A new exhibit, Darwin’s Garden: An Evolutionary Adventure, opened Friday at New York Botanical Garden. The exhibit replicates many of Charles Darwin’s botanical experiments, along a 33-stop tour that includes a replica of a room in Darwin’s home.

While Darwin is best known for his theory of evolution, he had a lifelong fascination with plants. He kept a vibrant garden at his Down House residence in England, where he conducted experiments on plant growth, pollination, and reproduction.

The exhibit at Botanical Garden features a breathtaking English cottage garden, along with presentations of several of Darwin’s plant experiments. One of the experiments is on the co-evolution of orchids and their pollinators. Among them is the comet, or star, orchid from Madagascar, whose defining characteristic is a 12-inch-long nectary. Examining this unusual specimen in 1862, Darwin hypothesized that the orchid must be pollinated by an equally unique moth with a proboscis long enough to reach the nectar hidden at the bottom of the tube.

At the time, Darwin’s peers ridiculed him, but a century and a half later, science finally vindicated his prediction. Watch this video of biologist Phil DeVries, featured in NATURE’s “Deep Jungle,” as he sits in the forest at night with an infrared camera, waiting for Darwin’s moth to arrive.

Darwin’s Garden: An Evolutionary Adventure runs through June 15 at New York Botanical Garden, Bedford Park, the Bronx.

Update: (May 12, 2008) See the photo of the star orchid in the main Darwin’s Garden display. Then, be sure to visit the orchid display case in the tropical upland rain forest gallery to see a living specimen of the Darwin star orchid.