Boston Flora

Month: March 2011

  • Saturday, April 16, 9:00 am – 1:00 pm – Growing Plants from Seeds

    There’s nothing more satisfying to a gardener than growing plants from seeds. From annuals and perennials to trees and shrubs, success can be achieved if you understand what triggers germination. Expert propagator Jack Alexander will share techniques for starting various types of plants from seeds in this Saturday, April 16 class at the Dana Greenhouse Classroom at the Arnold Arboretum. Students will leave class with a selection of seeds raring to grow. Aftercare will be necessary. Level: Beginner. Fee: $55 nonmember. To register, contact Marc Devokaitis at 617-384-5209, or log on to www.arboretum.harvard.edu.

  • Saturday, April 2, 9:00 am – 11:00 am – High Density Fruit Orchard Workshop

    The Wakefield Charitable Trust and the Arnold Arboretum will hold a High Density Fruit Orchard Workshop at the Wakefield Estate, 1493 Brush Hill Road in Milton, Massachusetts on Saturday, April 2, from 9 – 11 in the morning. Learn how to install a high density orchard for years of backyard fruit production. This method uses little space yet produces high yields of fruit with little effort. In last year’s session at the Wakefield Estate in Milton, students created a high-density orchard of 40 apple trees in a 25 x 30 ft. area. This year’s session will cover the basic planning and set up requirements for creating a low cost compact orchard for your own backyard. Those interested in planting trees this season should plan to order trees during the winter or early spring. Suggested supplier: Adams County Nursery. Fee is $15, and to register, log on to www.arboretum.harvard.edu, or call 617-384-5277.

  • Tuesday, March 29, 7:30 pm – 9:00 pm – “New Beginnings” Organic Gardening Talk

    SEMAP, in collaboration with The Rotch-Jones-Duff House and local organic landscaper and gardener, Jessica Duphily Cook, to offer a ‘New Beginnings’ talk on how to design and prepare your garden for springtime planting. Learn more about the positive benefits of growing and enjoying your own vegetables, fruit and herbs. Program content will provide an overview of organic gardening techniques and tried-and-true methods to guide you in creating a healthy landscape and beautiful garden environment. Don’t miss this opportunity to begin your garden planning and kick-start the growing season! Cost: RJD members, $8.00; non-members, $10.00, at door. Please visit www.rjdmuseum.org for more information.The lecture will take place Tuesday, March 29, beginning at 7:30 pm at the Rotch-Jones-Duff House, 396 County Street in New Bedford.

  • Saturday, April 30 – Monday, May 2 – Art in Bloom

    Celebrate spring at this annual festival of fine art and fresh flowers on April 30–May 2! See the MFA’s galleries transformed by fifty extraordinary arrangements inspired by magnificent works of art. This year a highlight of Art in Bloom is the Art of the Americas collection, on display in its spectacular new wing.

    Art in Bloom is free with Museum admission; no reservations are required to see the floral arrangements and participate in most of the programs listed below.

    Family Day on Saturday, April 30, features storytelling, performances, and activities for children. On the evening of Sunday, May 1, there will be a special members-only viewing of the festival with dining, shopping, and spotlight tours in the galleries. On May 2 from 5 to 9 pm, the Museum throws open its doors to the greater Boston community for a free Monday evening Open House featuring entertainment, flowers, and art. Free gallery tours and floral demonstrations will be offered from Saturday through Monday, and Elegant Tea will be served on Saturday and Sunday afternoons (reservations required for Elegant Tea; call 617-369-4204).

    This year’s special events include an illustrated lecture and floral demonstration—as well as a flower arranging master class—presented by the renowned Nancy Clarke, former chief floral designer, The White House. Mrs. Clarke has created thousands of beautiful decorations and floral designs for six American Presidents and First Ladies, their families, and international dignitaries. For 30 years she designed everything from simple bud vases for the First Lady’s nightstand to elaborate, formal arrangements for state dinners. Her floral designs and holiday decorations have delighted kings and queens, heads of state, members of Congress and journalists, as well as thousands of White House visitors. Mrs. Clarke will be appearing on Monday, May 2.  For complete details, log on to www.mfa.org/programs/series/art-bloom.

  • Through April 30 – Legacy: The Preservation of Wilderness in New York City Parks

    The Main Gallery of the Art Institute of Boston, 700 Beacon Street, Boston,  is honored to present this historic exhibition of photographs by Joel Meyerowitz entitled Legacy: The Preservation of Wilderness in New York City Parks,  organized by Aperture, presenting large format color photographs by master photographer Joel Meyerowitz, the first photographer to document New York City’s parks since the 1930s, when they were photographed as part of Franklin D. Roosevelt’s WPA program.

    In this stunningly beautiful exhibition the viewer discovers the hidden pockets of wilderness that still exist within the urban environs of New York City. Meyerowitz received this unique commission from the New York City Department of Parks & Recreation to document, interpret, and celebrate one of New York City’s greatest legacies: the nearly 9,000 acres of parks in the five boroughs that have been left or returned to their most natural state. The images in this book are drawn from the thousands that make up the HP Archive of the New York City Department of Parks & Recreation.

    In creating this work, Meyerowitz has drawn upon his childhood memories of a New York with “green space—open and wild, alive with rabbits, migratory birds, snakes, frogs, and the occasional skunk… [That] gave me my first sense of the natural world, its temperament and its seasons, its unpredictability, and its mystery.”

    JOEL MEYEROWITZ (born in New York, 1938) is an award-winning photographer whose work has appeared in over 350 international exhibitions. He is a two-time Guggenheim fellow, a recipient of both NEA and NEH awards, as well as a recipient of the Deutscher Fotobuchpreis. He has published over fifteen books, including  Aftermath: The World Trade Center Archive (2006). He lives in New York and is represented by Edwynn Houk Gallery. For more information call 617-585-6676, or email Andrew Mroczek at amroczek@aiboston.edu.

  • Tuesday, July 12, 1:30 pm – 4:00 pm – New England Trees in Decline: The Science Behind the Story

    David Orwig, Forest Ecologist at Harvard Forest, will speak in the Hunnewell Building of the Arnold Arboretum on Tuesday, July 12, from 1:30 – 4 pm, on the topic of New England Trees in Decline: The Science Behind the Story. Since 1907, research has been underway at the 3,000-acre property of Harvard Forest, one of the oldest and most intensively studied forests in North America. Scientists, students, and collaborators at the Forest explore topics ranging from conservation and environmental change to land-use history and the ways in which physical, biological, and human systems interact to change our earth. Join Dr. Orwig for this special opportunity to learn about tree decline in New England and to explore ways to reduce and avoid further problems. Dr. Orwig will present information that details ongoing tree decline resulting from a variety of stressors including native and exotic pests and pathogens. Conifer species will be highlighted, but ongoing hardwood tree problems will be included as well. An emphasis will be given to identification of the problem, the mode of tree decline, and appropriate treatment options when applicable. Discussion will include pests such as hemlock woolly adelgid, elongate hemlock scale, red pine scale, Sirex wood wasp, spruce diseases, emerald ash borer, Asian long-horned beetle, and oak decline on Martha’s Vineyard.  Note New Date: Postponed from April 5.
    Fee $20 Ecological Landscape Association and Arnold Arboretum members, $25 nonmember.  Co-sponsored by the Ecological Landscape Association and the Arnold Arboretum of Harvard University.  Register online at https://my.arboretum.harvard.edu or by phone at 617-384-5277.

  • Thursday, April 7, 2:00 pm – 5:00 pm, and Friday, April 8 – Sunday, April 10, 10:00 am – 4:00 pm – Spring Orchid Sale

    Hundreds of orchid plants are for sale at the Lyman Estate Greenhouses, 185 Lyman Street in Waltham, beginning Thursday, April 7, from 2 – 5 for Historic New England members, including cattleyas, laelias, paphiopedilums, and phalaenopsis. Both species and hybrid plants that are budded and blooming are available.  Historic New England members receive early access before the sale opens to the public on April 8. No RSVP is necessary. Historic New England’s Garden and Landscape members receive a 15% discount on all greenhouse purchases. Learn more about Garden and Landscape membership, or call the membership line at 617-994-5910 to upgrade. Can’t make it to the preview? Regular sale hours are April 8 – 10, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m, open to the public.For more information, log on to www.historicnewengland.org.  Photo by Orchids by Richard.

  • Wednesday, April 6, 7:00 pm – 8:30 pm – Life on the Wing in an Era of Human Dominance

    Grow Native Massachusetts presents Wayne Petersen, Director of the Mass Audubon Important Bird Areas Program, in a free program on Wednesday, April 6 entitled Life on the Wing in an Era of Human Dominance.  The event will take place at the main branch of the Cambridge Public Library from 7 – 8:30 pm.

    It is easy to take birds for granted. They cheer us with their songs in spring, engage us with the wonders of their flight, and grace our landscapes throughout the year. Yet, these idyllic images belie the serious impact of human activity on many bird populations. Come learn what we must do to help ensure their survival—what might comprise an avian wish list for human behavior. Wayne Petersen is a nationally known ornithologist, and a contributor to numerous field guides and publications. His talk will be the next best thing to birding with him in the field. For more information contact programsmanager@grownativemass.org.

  • Sunday, April 3, 2:00 pm – 3:00 pm – Bioluminescent Animals: Flashlight Fish, Fireflies, and the World of Light Emitting Organisms

    You have probably seen the marvelous flashing of fireflies at dusk in summer, but less well-known are the many different types of luminous organisms in the oceans, and some others on land. On Sunday, April 3, beginning at 2 pm, Harvard’s Woody Hastings, a pioneer in the study of bioluminescence, will explore how and why creatures do this, show live specimens from his collection of glowing dinoflagellates (a type of plankton), and discuss how scientists are discovering new benefits of bioluminescence for medical research. Free with Harvard Museum of Natural History (26 Oxford St., Cambridge) admission. Log on to www.hmnh.harvard.edu, or call 617-495-3045 for more information.

  • Friday, April 1, 7:00 pm, and Saturday, April 2, 9:00 am – 5:00 pm – Edible Ecosystem Weekend

    Get your hands dirty as you help implement Wellesley College Botanic Gardens’ Edible Ecosystem Demonstration Garden, located on the slope below Whitin Observatory.  This landscape, designed by permaculture experts Dave Jacke and Keith Zaltzberg with the assistance of several Wellesley students, mimics the forest in structure and function while providing diverse yields of food, habitat, and research opportunities.  Begin with an introductory talk Friday evening on the theory behind “edible ecosystems.”  Then join us for as much of Saturday as you can, immersed in a mix of hands-on learning and formal presentations on the design process, land management strategies, and ecosystem design.  Gain valuable experience as part of a work team planting baby trees, transplanting and propagating existing vegetation, and laying down the largest week-suppressing sheet-mulch the town of Wellesley has ever seen.  Workshop participants should dress for a day of work in the garden.  Long pants and sturdy, close-toed shoes are required.  Plan to bring a hat, work gloves, you own tools (label them, please), sunscreen, bug repellent, lunch, water and snacks.  Introductory talk: $10 Wellesley College Friends of Horticulture members, $15 non-members.  Workshop: $60 Wellesley College Friends of Horticulture members, $75 non-members.  Pre-registration required – call 781-283-3094, or email horticulture@wellesley.edu.