(upbeat music) - I can't imagine my life without the Botanical Gardens.

(upbeat music) - This is a treasure.

This is a jewel of, in Western New York that we've had for 120 years.

(upbeat music) - Hi, I'm Tafik Muhammad, and I'm here at The Buffalo and Erie County Botanical Gardens.

This is a really special place.

(classical music) This place has a rich history going back more than 120 years.

(inspirational music) When Buffalo was the seventh largest city in the country, it was a major hub for shipping and commerce (bright music) and even played a huge role in the Industrial Revolution.

The population was growing and city leaders were busy improving the quality of life for its citizens.

That's where this story begins.

- Folks who had been living on the waterfront, moving to the First Ward, the Valley, and then into South Buffalo Proper, they were concerned because they didn't have a park as other parts of the city had.

(classical music) - [Susan] Frederick Law Olmsted, of course, had developed the park system in Buffalo.

(classical music) And in the late 1880s, the citizens of the area in the south really wanted a park.

(classical music) - [David] And of course, parks were very important in those days.

They didn't have shopping malls or theaters to go to.

People on Sundays, usually their only day off, was an opportunity for them to gather with family and go to the park.

(classical music) But there were none here in South Buffalo.

- Olmsted returned with grand designs for a massive 12 hundred acre park, which wasn't at all what the city envisioned.

- The leaders in the City of Buffalo rejected that 12 hundred acre park and told them, "Look, you can build the park.

You can design an Arboretum, be known as South Park, but it will only be 156 acres."

- The city also required that Olmsted include a conservatory in the design.

(bright piano music) These botanical glass houses were built in major cities.

They were a testament to progress and promoted the field of botany.

- [Martha] Getting the conservatory to come in was another feature to attract people.

- And so they asked Frederick Law Olmsted to go back and redesign the park.

He wasn't overly pleased with this, but he relinquished the duty, really, I believe, to his son, Olmsted Jr., and the conservatory was indeed a part of it.

(soft piano music) - [Martha] Each of the parks had features, but this one was going to be outstanding.

- The city commissioned Lord and Burnham to design the structure and they modeled it after The Crystal Palace, which is in the Kew Gardens in London, England.

- This new conservatory would be home to thousands of plant species, not native to Western New York, but from all around the world.

(bright classical music) Before construction could even begin, John F. Cowell was named as first director.

- [David] He traveled around the western hemisphere, sailed down the Caribbean into Central American-identified plants and then had to bring them back and keep them alive.

And the story goes that he brought them back in Edwardian cases, large glass cases with soil and moisture and the plants survived and he brought them back to this country.

(inspirational music) - The conservatory opened in 1900 and it would have an early chance to shine a year later during the Pan American Exposition, (ragtime music) a world's fair that highlighted the cultural achievements and technological advancements of the 19th century.

It brought millions of visitors to Buffalo.

- [Martha] Thousands and thousands of people visited the conservatory.

And if all they could afford was a trolley ride to South Park, well, that was a whole new world for them.

(ragtime music) - [Susan] You could just imagine what it was like for people being on street cars, or even their carriages.

The women in their long dresses and the guys in their top hats coming out.

It must've been just an incredible experience to come and see all these plants from around the world.

- In the early years, you could find more than 7,000 different species of plants inside the conservatory.

(bright inspirational music) And more than 50,000 hard-wooded plants in the growing Arboretum.

- [Susan] You couldn't hop on a plane.

You couldn't turn on the TV or your computer to see what these plants look like.

They would have some literature, but there's a difference between looking at a still picture versus being there in-person and seeing the plant and seeing the blooms on the plants and how different they are.

Even today, people come in and are amazed at some of the plants we have, and people don't realize, "Gee, this is how a banana froze."

Or, "This is what a chocolate pod looks like."

(melancholy music) - [Tafik] Unfortunately, the unexpected death of director John Cowell in 1915, well, it would mark the beginning of several difficult years.

- Not only had we lost our leader, but the conditions were deteriorating.

- [Martha] According to the accountant's records, they were replacing panes of glass in the conservatory at a rate of 200 per year.

- Lord and Burnham where the preeminent greenhouse designers in the United States at the time, and they designed a structure that was Victorian style.

And part of the problem was the houses were shaped like this and the weight of the snow pushed down and caused serious damage.

- [Martha] And this conservatory was in a climate that was hot and humid on the inside, (gentle piano music) and ice cold on the outside.

Plus, the smoke from the smokestacks was very corrosive.

- At this point, the conservatory wasn't even 30 years old, but it was in desperate need of repair.

Even the word 'demolition' was being thrown around.

- In 1929, the City of Buffalo condemned the facility.

And that was the first time that there would be an attempt to demolish the conservatory.

(melancholy music) The Depression occurred.

And with that, federal money came to Buffalo to rebuild the conservatory from 1931 through 1932.

And that was a godsend for this place.

It meant that this historic structure, the architectural integrity and the botanical treasures, would be maintained.

(bright upbeat music) - [Tafik] Buffalo brought back the original designers to rebuild the conservatory.

- When Lord and Burnham came again in the 1930s, technology had changed.

(bright inspirational music) And they were able to add stronger materials, better coatings, better glass.

- [David] The new design used aluminum to ensure that the integrity of this structure had the strength to survive in this climate.

- And it did!

The '40s and '50s were good years for the gardens, but by the late '60s, history began to repeat itself.

(gentle guitar music) Buffalo was a Rust Belt city whose economy was suffering, (gentle guitar music) so many cultural assets in the region felt the pinch, including the gardens.

- [Susan] The financial situation at the time in Buffalo was very dire.

They were having a hard time paying the policemen, paying the firemen.

- Places like the Botanical Gardens were, again, not maintained properly.

(gentle guitar music) This was part of the roller coaster ride that the Botanical Gardens, throughout its history, has experienced.

(gentle guitar music) - [Tafik] So clearly this is the desert house.

- Yes, it is the desert house.

It's loaded with thousands of plants, cacti and succulents from around the world.

And you know, it's not the only reason why this house is famous.

In the blizzard of 1977, the structure was demolished because of the weight of the snow and the wind.

(apprehensive music) For the second time in its history, it really encouraged the city of Buffalo to think about, "Maybe we need to demolish this structure."

- This is when the public really got involved, including one woman who was determined to save it.

Florence DaLouiso-Zoll, who literally lived right here in South Park Avenue, put together the Botanical Garden Society, a group of supporters who pressured local leaders to save the facility and begin to repair it.

- And that group of people really hustled.

They really put a lot of pressure on political people to make sure that this place survived.

(gentle piano music) The County of Erie stepped up in 1981 and proposed to the City of Buffalo, "Don't demolish this.

The County of Erie will purchase the conservatory."

- How much did the county have to fork over?

Just $1.00.

The Botanical Garden Society lobbied to have the gardens recognized as a national historic landmark.

(bright upbeat music) Florence knew it would take an army of volunteers to improve the plant collection, and, once again, make it a destination for the community.

- Well, the reason I came was because Florence DaLouiso at the district meeting for all the garden clubs of Western New York, would invite us to come to the Botanical Gardens.

And she was looking for volunteers to become docents.

- The collection was not labeled at the time, and it was really important to learn the names of the plants.

So Maria kept us online doing this.

- We, as docents, developed several different lesson plans that would interest different audiences.

- [Beth] My father ended up volunteering.

My husband and I came and volunteered and then when I started having children, my two children came here.

- I see the alligator right there.

- For me, growing up, my parents were both and still are very big supporters of believers in the natural world.

And coming here only seemed to make sense both from tying in with that and what we learned at home, to the architecture and the appreciation of this as a cultural entity in the Western New York community.

(bright inspirational music) - The gardens had solidified their place in the community.

By the year 2000, the county and the Botanical Garden Society were looking for a better way to run day-to-day operations.

- Erie County didn't have any specialists in horticulture or botanics.

Joel Giambra, who was the County Executive, (bright inspirational music) asked that we look into the society taking over the operation from Erie County.

- [Erin] Sometimes that's hard to communicate, that the day-to-day operations are run by a very small staff with support of over 200 volunteers.

- So a lot of the things you see here, a lot of us did it as volunteers.

We took care of beautification and installation of exhibits.

- The Botanical Gardens were now the newest, non-profit cultural institution in Western New York.

This came with some specific changes.

(bright upbeat music) They could charge admission, which will help to pay to create robust educational programs and find creative ways to generate revenue.

- When we started to charge admission, people really started to value it differently.

They started to look at it differently.

(bright music) We were thinking about what the community needed or what they wanted, what they wanted to see.

How they wanted to see the Botanical Gardens interpreted.

(bright upbeat music) - [Child] It needs some water!

- [Erin] How kids wanted to come and experience the gardens, how families wanted to come and experience the gardens.

- My oldest grandchild is Matt, and his brother, Greg.

They've been coming here for all the special shows.

And even as teenagers, they would sit down at the checker board in the, in the gazebo there and play some checkers, while the rest of us enjoyed the plant collection.

(chuckling) - I know the educational programs here really give kids opportunity to experience how things grow, why it's important.

It's one thing to look at a plant and see that, "Oh, it's a beautiful plant," but maybe it has a function as food.

Maybe it has a function as medicine, and you might not learn, you know, from a book, but you could learn if you actually had some hands-on experience with it.

(tranquil music) - For my children, I can tell that when they have spent a day here at the gardens, they are more tired, but in the right way.

Their lungs have breathed in fresh air.

They have gotten vitamin D from the sun.

They have, you know, experienced a different sort of sensation than they otherwise do if they're just sitting on the couch, watching TV all day.

(tranquil music) - [Maria] To come here and to feel this respite, it's almost like an instant relief that you feel when you come in here.

- Plants have a healing nature.

When I walk through the conservatory and I may be having a bad day, I feel better.

(tranquil music) - Everyone that comes here feels better when they leave than when they did when they arrived.

And there's something very spiritual about that.

(tranquil music) - The Botanical Gardens are committed to evolving and growing after more than 120 years.

Part of that evolution is laid out in a master plan that calls for renovation and expansion by the design firm of Toshiko Mori.

- We have these beautiful exhibits that are laid out here.

- [David] The biggest challenge we face is that the current structure, which is absolutely beautiful, does not accommodate the needs of the visiting public.

- And some of the things that aren't pictured in here that's really exciting, is we have plans for a cafe, the expanded events space, educational classrooms, a butterfly conservatory, a new gift shop admission area.

So it's really going to be a whole new part of the Botanical Gardens.

- [Barbara] I think any organization has to recognize that things change, and that in order to maintain the viability of an organization, that organization needs to change as well.

- All of that is part of bringing people closer to plants.

And that is the focus of this institution.

- Today you can Google anything.

There are apps on your phone that can identify plants with the touch of a button, but nothing can replace experiencing it up close and in-person.

- Why do you think someone would name this an 'old man palm'?

- 'Cause it has fur on it!

- [Tour Guide] It has what looks like hair!

- [Tafik] Nothing could take the place of the feeling of peace and tranquility you have when you're here.

(soft piano music) This place has served Western New York for more than a century.

And luckily for us, it has plans for the future that will serve generations to come.

(inspirational piano music) (soft piano music) (soft piano music)