Boston Flora

Month: October 2009

  • Sunday, November 15, 4:00 pm – Forest Hills Cemetery Book Party

    Join author Anthony Sammarco and The Forest Hills Educational Trust on Sunday, November 15 at 4:00 pm at Forest Hills Cemetery, 95 Forest Hills Avenue in Jamaica Plain, for the launch party of Mr. Sammarco’s new book, Forest Hills Cemetery, 1848 – 2008.

    This new photographic history of Forest Hills Cemetery  celebrates the 160th anniversary of the cemetery. This book is lavishly illustrated and sales will benefit the Trust’s education and preservation projects.

    Laid out in 1848 as a rural garden cemetery by Henry A.S. Dearborn,  its 275 magnificent acres have been the resting place of people of all walks of life, ethnicities, religion and race. Among these are poet Anne Sexton, playwright Eugene O’Neill, ee cummings and William Lloyd Garrison.

    Forest Hills’ landscape is a museum of sculpture, art and monuments that chronicle the Victorian age to the present. The first crematorium in the United States was here and prominent Bostonian suffragette Lucy Stone was the first person to be cremated at Forest Hills in 1893. An active cemetery and an all embracing place, Forest Hills offers a bucolic and picturesque setting for the “gathering of generations,” and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

    Anthony Sammarco has written over fifty books in the Arcadia series, and is a trustee of the Forest Hills Educational Trust and teaches at the Urban College of Boston.  For more information, and for directions, log on to www.foresthillstrust.org.

  • Saturday, October 24, 9 am – 1 pm and 2 pm – 5 pm – Stone Walls for the Garden and Stone Steps, Pathways and Flatwork

    Two interesting hands on workshops will be held at Berkshire Botanical Garden in West Stockbridge on Saturday, October 24.  Each session may be taken separately, or both may be taken – there is a 10% discount if a student takes both classes.

    The first, Stone Walls for the Garden, begins at 9 am.  This hands-on program will cover the basics of wall building, including: planning and layout, learning to look at stone and demonstrations on cutting and fitting. Various applications for the garden will be considered, with special attention to building a freestanding wall. All questions will be answered. Participants should bring: work gloves and safety glasses; dress for outdoor work. Mark Mendel is the master mason of Monterey Masonry. He apprenticed with Maine stonemasons in the 1960’s and taught at the Haystack School of Crafts in Deer Isle, Maine. He has built scores of walls, arches, terraces and walks in addition to many fireplaces in both brick and stone. Locally, his work includes the kitchen at Hancock Shaker Village, and Guido’s Marketplace. BBG members $45, non-members $50.

    The second, Stone Steps, Pathways and Flatwork, will begin at 2 pm. Flatwork will be the focus of this workshop: paving with stone and brick for terraces, walkways, paths and garden edging. Watch a demonstration and participate in construction of a stone walkway using a variety of materials including stone and brick. Learn how to evaluate a project and choose the best material. All questions will be answered in this popular workshop. BBG members $45, non-members $50.

    To register, or for more information, log on to www.berkshirebotanical.org. Rain date for both sessions is Sunday, October 25.

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  • Wednesday, October 21, 5:00 – 7:00 pm – Night Lights

    Say goodbye to the season at Garden in the Woods in Framingham with a candlelit stroll through parts of the garden on Wednesday, October 21, from 5 – 7 pm.  This is a New England Wild Flower Society members only event, but annual membership levels begin at $50, and entitle you to a host of benefits, which can be found on the web site, www.newfs.org.  Make your reservation for this lovely evening by calling 508-877-7630, ext. 3001, or email information@newenglandwild.org.  The Cabot Creamery Cooperative has donated cheese for this event.  If you are interested in gardens at nightfall, we recommend Linda Rutenberg’s beautifully photographed book The Garden at Night.

    http://www.thegardenatnight.com/site_images/tgn_book.jpg

  • Sunday, November 8, 9 am – 4 pm – Natural History and Ethnobotony of Medicinal Plants

    Judith Sumner, Botanist and author of The Natural History of Medicinal Plants, will present a fascinating lecture on Sunday, November 8 beginning at 9 in the morning. Before the time of written records, early people used plants to relieve symptoms and cure disease, forming the basis of the modern study of ethnobotany and the starting point for the history of medicinal plants. During this one session intensive course on the history and current directions of medicinal botany, to be held at Garden in the Woods, we will track the knowledge of medicinal plants from prehistory through the spectacular work of the Renaissance herbalists, the Doctrine of Signatures, and the development of the European medical tradition. New World settlers carried the seeds of medicinal plants with them to North America, where European medical knowledge commingled with Native American lore. The class will consider herbal medicine in nineteenth century America, the field of zoopharmacognosy, and the current ethnobotanical approach to drug discovery. You will gain an understanding of human-plant interactions and botanical cures for human disease and the importance of preserving the diversity of medicinal plants.
    Fee $77 member of either the Arnold Arboretum of NEWFS, $91 nonmember
    Offered in collaboration with the New England Wild Flower Society. To register, log on to www.arboretum.harvard.edu.

    Medicinal plant by Khor Hui Min.

  • Tuesday, November 3, 6:00 pm – Feast or Pharmacy? Meeting Micronutrient Needs with Local Food

    Ellen Messer, Visiting Professor of Gastronomy at Boston University, will present a free lecture on Tuesday, November 3 at 6 pm, entitled “Feast or Pharmacy? Meeting Micronutrient Needs with Local Foods.”  The lecture will take place at 808 Commonwealth Avenue, Room 117, and is free and open to the public, although Boston University asks that you call to reserve a space – 617-353-9852.   Dr.  Messer is an anthropologist and specialist in human rights, food security, and religion, with a special interest in religion and development. She has taught Religion and Development and, in a cross-cultural approach, Nutrition and Food Security, at Brandeis University. The talk is part of BU’s ongoing MLA in Gastronomy Lecture Series in Food Studies.  More information on all the lectures can be found at www.bu.edu/foodandwine.

  • Saturday, October 31, 1:00 pm – 2:30 pm – Barking Mad!

    Michael Dosmann, Curator of Living Collections, Arnold Arboretum, will speak on Saturday, Oct 31 , 1:00–2:30pm, at the Arnold Arboretum in Jamaica Plain.
    As the weather changes and leaves drop, focus your attention on bark, an often-overlooked ornamental feature of woody plants. The Curator of Living Collections is mad for bark! Join him on a stroll to find trees and shrubs with beautiful, colorful, textural bark. Free.  Advance registration requested.  Log on to www.arboretum.harvard.edu for directions and registration.

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  • Saturday, October 24, 5:30 pm – Eighth Annual Pumpkin Float

    Watch spooky pumpkins float down Davenport Creek.  Participants are invited to bring a 6 – 8 inch pumpkin carved at home to float.  The event will take place at Pope John Paul II Park, Gallivan Boulevard Entrance, 751 Gallivan Boulevard, Dorchester, and registration is required by calling 617-542-7696, or emailing info@bostonnatural.org.  Only those bringing pumpkins and those with children are required to register to make sure there are enough floats and treats for all.

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  • Sunday, October 25, 1 – 2 pm – The Native Plant Center: It’s Easy Being Green

    Learn about the energy saving and other ‘green’ technologies used in the design and construction of the New England Wild Flower Society’s new Native Plant Center at Garden in the Woods in Framingham on Sunday, October 25, beginning at 1 pm.  This walking tour of the new facility with Ron Wik addresses all ‘green’ attributes of the building, such as roof and wall insulation, use of local materials, radiant heating and other energy saving technologies. Find out how the Society is working towards LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification at the gold level for our newest, greenest structure. LEED Certification involves meeting a demanding suite of standards for environmentally sustainable construction, and Garden Club of the Back Bay members will hear more about this at our March meeting with Marie Stella.  The program is free, but registration is required.  Call 508-877-7630, or log on to www.newfs.org.

    Native Plant Center 7.09
    Click to view full-size image…

  • Sunday, October 19, 11:00 am – Groton Foliage Hike

    Join the Appalachian Mountain Club for a hike in the rural woods in Groton, Massachusetts on Sunday, October 18, beginning at 11:00 am.  Come see New England autumn splendor in a quiet rural setting. The hike will be 2-3 hours at a moderate pace and will feature eskers, scenic ponds, beaver dams, and of course lots of colorful leaves. From I-495 in Littleton take 119 west towards Groton. In 6.5 miles turn right onto Route 40. In 4.0 miles turn left onto Cow Pond Brook Road. Take this road about 1.6 miles until it ends and park. 42.6250N, 71.5027W.  Sponsored by the Boston Chapter of the AMC, registration is not required for this trip, but contact Leader Olin Lathrop at olin@embedinc.com with any questions.  For more information about upcoming activities of the Boston Chapter of the Appalachian Mountain Club, log on to www.outdoors.org.

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  • Fall Foliage Tours from Boston Now Through October 25

    For those of you without a car, or who hate to drive but love autumn scenery, there is a daily option (through October 25).

    Enjoy the spectacular New England countryside as the leaves turn a multitude of colors during the fall season. A pleasant afternoon tour of foliage display is capped by a stop at a native orchard for apples and cider.

    Experience the gently rolling New England countryside, awash with the colors of Indian Summer. Travel past quiet ponds and ancient farms, weathered roadside taverns and sturdy colonial churches. Enjoy a hot Yankee style lunch at a quaint New England tavern nestled in the heart of the mountains (cost is additional).

    Finish your afternoon with a visit to a native orchard where apples are grown and local (non-alcoholic) cider is made. Pickup and drop off at 16 South Charles Street and, upon advance arrangement, from selected Boston and Cambridge hotels (such as the Back Bay Hilton, the Boston Park Plaza, the Colonnade, the Copley Square Hotel, the Fairmont Copley Plaza, the Lenox, the Marriott Copley Place, etc.).  Designed for the tourist, but accessible to the resident, the cost for this ten hour bus trip is $58, plus gratuities.  Customer reviews are excellent.  For more information, log on to www.viator.com/tours/Boston/Fall-Foliage-Spectacular-Tour-from-Boston/d678-3978TOUR11?SSAID=333659&aid=463296857.

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