Boston Flora

Month: September 2011

  • Saturday, September 24, 10:30 am – 1:30 pm – Pruning Small Ornamental Trees

    Autumn is a great time to assess your woody plants for shape and structure. This Berkshire Botanical Garden demonstration/workshop will focus on pruning, including when, why and how to shape, renovate, train or rejuvenate your woody plants. Learn about pruning tools, timing, and specific techniques available to the home gardener. Pruning techniques specifically for both evergreen and deciduous hedges will be covered. The program will take place Saturday, September 24 from 10:30 – 1:30 at the Garden in West Stockbridge, Massachusetts.  Ken Gooch is a Massachusetts Certified Arborist, and the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Management’s Forest Health Specialist for Berkshire County. He is an educator and lectures widely on a variety of topics including forest health, pruning, and arboriculture. Fee is $30 for BBG members, $35 for nonmembers. You may register on line at www.berkshirebotanical.org.  Wear waterproof outerwear and boots, and bring a bag lunch.

  • Wednesday, October 12, 1:00 pm – 5:00 pm – National Fossil Day

    The National Park Service and the American Geological Institute are partnering to host the first National Fossil Day on October 12, 2011 during Earth Science Week. National Fossil Day is a celebration organized to promote public awareness and stewardship of fossils, as well as to foster a greater appreciation of their scientific and educational value.

    Join the Harvard Museum of Natural History, 26 Oxford Street in Cambridge, between 1 – 5 in the afternoon for a variety of hands-on activities with fossils including the amazing prehistoric world of trilobites, dinosaurs, Ice Age mammals, and other creatures. Discover how fossils form and investigate fossilized bones, teeth, claws, and footprints. Fossil Day is offered as part of Earth Science Week, encouraging people everywhere to explore the natural world and learn about the geosciences.  Free with museum admission.  For more information, visit www.hmnh.harvard.edu.

  • Sunday, September 25, 1:00 pm – 2:00 pm – Propagation of Begonias and Gesneriads

    Wanda Macnair will give a presentation of methods to grow the various species and cultivars of the two families–Begoniaceae and Gesneriaceae, at Tower Hill Botanic Garden on Sunday, September 25, from 1 – 2. Growing medium and different methods of propagating these plants will be discussed. Reproducing terrarium plants will also be covered. Everyone in attendance will go home with a starter or two from Wanda’s extensive collection. Free with admission to Tower Hill. For more information, visit www.towerhillbg.org, or call 508-869-6111, x 124. Image from www.houseplantsguru.com.

  • Saturday, October 1 – Sunday, October 2, 9:00 am – 5:00 pm – 77th Annual Berkshire Harvest Festival

    For generations, the Harvest Festival has been a cherished tradition in the Berkshires. Originally conceived as a harvest-season family and community festival, it is one of the largest and longest running events of its kind in the country. The Festival is a celebration of community, showcasing local artisans, supporting local services, and promoting a wide array of superb Berkshire area products. Also of particular regional interest, this year’s Harvest Festival will feature a Farmers Market with the best Berkshire grown foods. The Harvest Festival supports educational programs at the Berkshire Botanical Garden. The Festival will take place Saturday and Sunday, October 1 – 2, from 9 – 5 each day at the Berkshire Botanical Garden at the junction of Routes 183 and 102 in Stockbridge.  Photo below from www.ruralintelligence.com. For a full schedule of events, visit www.berkshirebotanical.org/Harvest_Festival/

  • Wednesday, October 5, 6:00 pm – The Future of Trees in the Public Garden, Boston Common and Commonwealth Avenue Mall

    The Friends of the Public Garden invites all members to a Members Reception on Wednesday, October 5, beginning at 6 pm at the Union Club, 8 Park Street, Boston.  There will be time to socialize and to celebrate Henry Davis, a distinguished arborist who has spent over four decades working with the Friends to care for the trees in our three parks.  Hear Henry’s insights on The Future of Trees in the Public Garden, Boston Common and Commonwealth Avenue Mall.  The event is free to members, but please rsvp, as space is limited.  Email by Friday, September 30 at fopg@gis.net, or call 617-723-8144 for information (or to join, if you have not already done so.)  Membership can be renewed at this event as well.

  • Thursday, October 13, 3:00 pm – 5:00 pm – Fresh Pond Restoration: Combining Beauty and Function

    Located five miles from downtown Boston, Fresh Pond Reservation is a green oasis, an urban wild and protective watershed land covering 363 acres.  Designed by the Olmsted Brothers and Charles Eliot, over the past decade this premier open space has undergone major renovation focused upon water quality protection, habitat enhancement, and aesthetic improvement.  The Northeast Sector Project focused on improving a 30 acre section of the Reservation by closely integrating woodland and edge zone management with innovatively designed features such as a two acre constructed stormwater treatment wetland, butterfly meadow, community garden, soccer field, and new and improved walking paths.  The project received an Honor Award for Reclamation and Restoration from the Boston Society of Landscape Architects.  On Thursday, October 13, from 3 – 5, join project designer and tour guide Thomas Benjamin for an insider tour of the project’s planning and installation.  The tour is sponsored by the Ecological Landscaping Association, and you may register ($20 ELA members, $25 non members) on line at www.ecolandscaping.com, or by calling 617-436-5838.

  • Saturday, September 24, 2:00 pm – 5:00 pm – Waltham Farm Day

    Join the staff at Waltham Fields Community Farm, 240 Beaver Street in Waltham, on Saturday, September 24, from 2 – 5, for an afternoon of harvest-time fun, including cider pressing, live music, cooking demonstrations, kids’ activities, family friendly volunteering, and more.  For details, visit www.communityfarms.org.

  • Shirley Nicolai Named 42nd President of National Garden Clubs, Inc.

    Shirley Nicolai, of Fort Washington, Maryland, has been named the 42nd president of National Garden Clubs, Inc.  The Garden Club of the Back Bay  is affiliated, through its membership in the Garden Club Federation of Massachusetts, with the National Garden Clubs.  Quoting from an article published in The Washington Times, Shirley is “a former elementary school teacher who has been deeply involved in NGC-affiliated activities for more than 30 years…also recognized for her environmental activism related to aquatic ecosystems, having successfully submitted one of the first mitigation plans to satisfy Chesapeake Bay Critical Area legislation requirements.”  To read the full article, visit http://communities.washingtontimes.com/neighborhood/making-change/2011/aug/7/national-garden-clubd-inc-welcomes-new-president/  We welcome Shirley and wish her much success during her two year term.

  • September 11 – We Remember

  • Friends of the Public Garden Doggy Survey

    The Friends of the Public Garden is working to put together a snap shot of how people utilize the Public Garden, Boston Common and Commonwealth Avenue Mall for their pets. The Friends is asking dog owners to participate in the discussion by taking a brief survey regarding their use of the parks. Questions are designed to gauge how often dogs use each space and which spaces are used most often. Friends is also interested in hearing what dog owners have to say about an off-leash pilot program. The survey is available online at www.surveymonkey.com/s/KKSQFJ9.  For a printed copy, call the Friends at 617-723-8144.  Provide your email address at the end of the survey to be entered into a drawing to win a $20 gift certificate for Fish & Bone- Urban Pet Essentials.