Boston Flora

Month: January 2011

  • Saturday, February 5, 10:00 am – 3:00 pm – Darwinian Botany

    As a young man, Charles Darwin traveled on the HMS Beagle to the Galapagos archipelago, and later in his life offered to the scientific world the theory of evolution by natural selection. Darwin was also an expert botanist, and in his writings described pollination mechanisms, heterostyly, and insectivory. Join Darwinian student and botanist Dr. Judith Sumner at Garden in the Woods in Framingham, Massachusetts on Saturday, February 5, from 10 – 3, for this exploration of the life and botanical work of Charles Darwin. Discuss Darwin’s life, his voyage (1831-36) on the HMS Beagle, and his various botanical works. The course includes hands-on demonstrations and observations of plants that fascinated Darwin, as well as a traditional English tea to celebrate the anniversary of his birth on February 12. Co-sponsored by The New England Wild Flower Society and the Arnold Arboretum of Harvard University. $70 for members of either sponsoring organization, $84 for non-members. www.newfs.org.

  • Sunday, January 30, 11:00 am – 1:00 pm – Super Hunger Brunch

    Chef Jody Adams invites you to attend a benefit brunch on Sunday, January 30 from 11 – 1 at Rialto Restaurant, One Bennett Street, Harvard Square, Cambridge,  in support of the Greater Boston Food Bank’s efforts to end hunger in Eastern Massachusetts.  All proceeds will be donated to the Greater Boston Food Bank.  $35 per person. Reservations required.  Log on to www.rialto-restaurant.com, or call 617-661-5050.

  • Monday, February 7, 6:30 pm – 8:30 pm – Restoring Hawaii’s Marvels of Evolution

    The Arnold Arboretum presents an exciting lecture series in 2011: the new Director’s Lecture Series at the Hunnewell Lecture Hall, 125 The Arborway in Boston. The lectures are free but advance registration is required.

    On Monday, February 7, from 6:30 – 8:30 pm, botanist Robert Robichaux of the Hawaiian Silversword Foundation and University of Arizona discusses recent efforts to restore Hawaii’s Marvels of Evolution. Evolving in splendid isolation over millions of years, Hawaii’s native plants exhibit patterns of diversity that are unrivaled elsewhere on Earth. Especially striking are the many examples of adaptive radiation, in which original immigrants to the islands evolved into dazzling arrays of plants exhibiting great variation in form and habitat preference. Yet, Hawaii’s native plants face an uncertain future. Many native plants, such as the exquisitely beautiful silverswords (below, photo from www.silverswordalliance.org) and lobeliads, now teeter on the edge of extinction.

    Contact Pamela Thompson, 617.384.5277. http://calendar.arboretum.harvard.edu/index.php

  • Monday, January 31, 6:30 pm – 8:30 pm – A Darwinian Look at Darwin’s Evolutionist Ancestors

    NEW DATE: The Arnold Arboretum presents an exciting lecture series in 2011: the new Director’s Lecture Series at the Hunnewell Lecture Hall, 125 The Arborway in Boston.  The lectures are free but advance registration is required.

    On Monday, January 31, from 6:30 – 8:30 pm, Ned Friedman, newly-appointed  Director of the Arnold Arboretum, will speak on A Darwinian Look at Darwin’s Evolutionist Ancestors. Is Darwin truly deserving of his place in history? Examine the question of what set Darwin apart from the dozens of theorists who preceded him. For over a century before the publication of On the Origin of Species, naturalists, theologians, atheists, horticulturalists, medical practitioners, poets, and philosophers had advanced evolutionary concepts for the diversification of life through descent with modification. The early history of evolutionary thought will be examined through the lens of Charles Darwin’s highly personal views of his evolutionist ancestors.

    Contact Pamela Thompson, 617.384.5277. http://calendar.arboretum.harvard.edu/index.php

  • Tuesday, February 1, 7:00 pm – 9:00 pm – Native Groundcovers

    Groundcovers act as living mulches, preventing erosion and soil compaction, while conserving moisture and moderating soil temperatures. Beyond strictly practical considerations are the aesthetic delights of groundcovers—they bring refreshing seasonal changes and a pleasing rhythmic interplay of form, texture, and color to the ground plane. This New England Wild Flower Society workshop, led by Laura Eisener on Tuesday, February 1 from 7 – 9 at Garden in the Woods in Framingham, is appropriate for garden designers, landscapers and homeowners, and focuses on the attributes and availability of native plants for groundcover use.$22 for NEWFS members, $26 for non-members. Log on to www.newfs.org to register.  Bunchberry image below from The Down East Dilettante.

  • Saturday, January 29, 10:00 am – 12:00 noon – Seed Information Exchange

    Join the horticulture staff at the Berkshire Botanical Garden on Saturday, January 29, from 10 – noon,  for a firsthand look at the wonderful annual flowers and vegetables that will be grown at the Berkshire Botanical Garden in 2011. Instruction will cover sourcing seeds, reading a seed catalog, exploring new annual flowers and vegetables for 2011, and selecting tried and true varieties for the home garden. This program is designed as a roundtable discussion and all questions will be answered. Both annual flower seeds and vegetable seeds will be covered. Tips and techniques for successful sowing and germination will be discussed. Come be inspired and learn how to shop for the best seeds.

    Dorthe Hviid, Director of Horticulture at Berkshire Botanical Garden, and Jess Savory, Senior Gardener in charge of greenhouse management and the vegetable garden, will lead this discussion.  $22 for BBG members, $27 for non members.  To register, log on to www.berkshirebotanical.org, or call 413-298-3926.

  • Saturday, January 29, 1:00 pm – 3:00 pm – Growing Chinese Herbs for Health and Diversity

    Chinese medicinal herbs are being cultivated on a small scale in the U.S., while scientists, licensed Oriental medicine practitioners and growers are exploring the development of domestic production. This Berkshire Botanical Garden slide presentation on Saturday, January 29, from 1 – 3, gives an overview of this phenomenon, which has implications for the future of herbal health care. Gardeners and small-scale growers can share in this discovery process. Recommendations of new and old favorites for ornamental value will be given.

    Jean Giblette has maintained an Asian medicinal plant garden in Claverack, N.Y., for 17 seasons. Her farm, High Falls Gardens, furnishes a site for training of Oriental medicine professionals and growers, produces seed for distribution to other Chinese herbal gardens, and coordinates a national network of growers who are beginning to sell herbs directly to licensed practitioners. The educational programs of this venture were developed for ten years under the auspices of High Falls Foundation, Inc.  $22 for BBG members, $27 for non members.  Call 413-298-3926, or email info@berkshirebotanical.org for more information.

  • Thursday, January 27 – Sunday, January 30 – Flora in Winter

    The Worcester Art Museum comes alive Thursday, January 27 through Sunday, January 30, 2011 for the annual Flora in Winter celebration! Worcester Art Museum and Tower Hill Botanic Garden present Flora in Winter, the premier floral design event of the year. Skilled artisans from across New England create clever, provocative interpretations at both venues, interpreting this year’s theme “Moments in Time.”

    This event lasts only four days. Log on to www.worcesterart.org or call 508-799-4406, ext. 3025 to learn more about special programming as information becomes available. Information may also be found at www.towerhillbg.org. Events include: opening party, demonstrations, guided tours, floral inspired products for sale in the Museum Shop, and extended Museum Café hours.

  • Katherine K. Macdonald – Massachusetts Horticultural Society’s New Executive Director

    On January 10, Katherine K. Macdonald begins her tenure as the new Executive Director of the Massachusetts Horticultural Society.

    Kathy brings a wealth of skills to her new position, including both public company and not-for-profit management experience. She was President of KMAC Marketing and, prior to that, was Vice President of Marketing for Thompson Island Outward Bound, a non-profit focused on experiential education. Her hiring is the result of a lengthy search that saw applications from around the country. As it turned out, Kathy was already well-acquainted with MassHort. She lives in Wellesley and Elm Bank has long been part of her regular cycling route.

    “I was attracted by the extraordinary opportunity to leverage the turnaround that is already underway at Mass Hort as a launching pad for the organization’s renaissance,” Kathy says. “Mass Hort has been part of the environmental movement since 1829, and now is the time to make its voice heard in the contemporary conversation. My goal for MassHort is straightforward: to use the organization’s considerable resources to meet society’s changing needs. To that end, I believe MassHort must sharpen its focus on sustainability, protecting natural resources, health, and environmental stewardship.”

    Kathy holds an MBA from Olin Graduate School of Business at Babson College and a bachelor’s degree from Central Connecticut State University. Long active in civic affairs in Wellesley, she has been an elected Town Meeting member for 24 years. Kathy has served on multiple committees, including the Advisory/Finance Committee, the Wellesley Housing Development Corporation, and the Community Preservation Committee. She has managed several initiative campaigns including one, in 2002, for the Massachusetts League of Women Voters that focused on campaign television advertising. An avid cyclist and gardener, Kathy and her husband Kevin have lived in Wellesley for more than 30 years. They have two adult children, Brian and Bridget.  Photo credit: Andy Caulfield.

    Katherine Macdonald

  • Saving the Marlborough Street Elm

    The Garden Club of the Back Bay’s Margaret Pokorny is featured in this Boston Globe story and video on our joint effort with The Neighborhood Association of the Back Bay, and our Marlborough Street neighbors, to save an historic elm.  Although the article and video don’t mention the individual contributions of the organizations, we are not shy about saying we’re proud of this solution. Log on to  www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles/2011/01/09/beloved_elm_tree_imperiled_solution_is_found_to_save_it/