Boston Flora

Month: June 2012

  • Friday, July 6 and Saturday, July 7, 10:00 am – 4:00 pm – Coastal Gardens Tour

    Friday, July 6 and Saturday, July 7, 10:00 am – 4:00 pm – Coastal Gardens Tour

    2012 Coastal Garden Tour , sponsored by the Rockport Garden Club, includes 13 private gardens in Rockport. Diverse in style, size, focus & plantings, each has had the benefit of significant owner input either through design, planting and/or maintaining these magical gardens. One garden will host all special events: a luncheon for purchase and sale of original artwork.

    Tickets $25. Call 978-546-2896 or go online to order now through June 27th.  Expect $1.00 per ticket postage & handling fee. To order, go to gardentour@rockportgardenclub.org or call 978-546-2896. Tickets are available at Toad Hall Bookstore. Tickets also available July 5, 6 & 7 8:30am-5pm at Visitor Info Booth – Upper Main St (Rte 127) and at Barletta Park – Broadway at T Wharf. Tickets are non-refundable.

  • Saturday, July 14 (raindate Sunday, July 15), 8:30 am – 4:00 pm – 23rd Annual Concord, Massachusetts Xerces/NABA Butterfly Count

    The NABA Butterfly Counts, a program for the North American Butterfly Association, is a compilation of all butterflies observed at sites within a 15-mile diameter count circle in a one-day period. The annually published reports provide a tremendous amount of information about the geographical distribution and relative population sizes of the species counted. Comparisons of the results across years can be used to monitor changes in butterfly populations and study the effects of weather and habitat change on North American butterflies.

    The 427 U.S. counts in 2011 were held in 47 states plus the District of Columbia. Florida led in number of counts (62, down from 68 last year), followed by California (28, down 3 from last year) and Michigan (22, up 4 from last year). Thirteen other states submitted 10-25 counts, 25 states reported 2-9 counts, and six states plus D.C. reported a single count. No counts were submitted from Hawaii, Kentucky, or Nevada.

    This year’s Xerces/NABA butterfly count will be held on Saturday, 14 July with a rain date of 15 July. Dick Walton hopes you will join him to continue the tradition.  There is a $3 fee for each count participant. Cost of the annual summary for all Xerces/NABA Counts is $6.00 ($4.00 for NABA members). Dick will provide a Concord Count summary to all participants.  So, oil up your nets and get ready. Meet at 7 Concord Greene # 8 in Concord at 8:30 A.M. Bring your own lunch. We will have a picnic and count down around 4:00 P.M.

    Please email to confirm your participation to dwalton@comcast.net and feel free to invite a friend and/or butterfly enthusiasts.

  • Tuesday, July 17, 9:00 am – 4:00 pm – Gardens of Martha’s Vineyard

    Join the Polly Hill Arboretum on Tuesday, July 17, from 9 – 4, for a special tour of some spectacular Vineyard gardens.  Begin at the Bressler Garden on Oyster Pond.  This small garden incorporates shrubs, grasses, native plants, and perennials, including 85 lavender plants, on the shore zone at Oyster Pond. From there, proceed to the Geiger Garden in Chilmark (pictured below,) tucked away in the woods, featuring an elaborate water garden.  Lunch will be served at the Polly Hill Arboretum, and from there you will proceed to the Coyne Garden in West Tisbury, located on Looks Pond, the former garden of Nina Schneider, a contemporary of Polly’s.  Then, on to “The Folly,” the Biggs Garden in West Tisbury, hidden off Lambert’s Cove Road.  The large stucco Italianate home features a variety of formal and informal garden areas. The price of $135 ($100 for PHA members) includes transporation, lunch, and a $30 donation to PHA.  To register, visit www.pollyhillarboretum.org, or call 508-693-9426.

  • Saturday, July 14 and Sunday, July 15, 2:00 pm – 4:00 pm – Garden Dialogues: Connecticut

    The Cultural Landscape Foundation will provide exclusive access to private gardens in Connecticut on Saturday, July 14 and Sunday, July 15.  Hear directly from the landscape architects and their patrons about the design process.  How do patrons and designers work together?  What makes for a great, enduring collaboration?  Garden Dialogues provides unique opportunities for small groups to visit some of today’s most beautiful gardens created by some of the most accomplished designers currently in practice.  On Saturday, July 14,  from 2:00 pm – 4:00 pm, see Twin Maples Farm, owned by Douglas and Wilmer Thomas, designed by Larry Weaner Landscape Associates.  This 450-acre northwest Connecticut estate features dramatic vistas, more than 40 acres of seeded meadow and shrubland, and an environmentally sensitive integration with the surrounding woodlands.

    Sunday, July 15, from 2:00 pm – 4:00 pm, see Diamond Hills Gardens in Redding, designed by Richard Hartlage, AHBL (see his book Bold Visions for the Garden below.)  This eight-acre estate garden features native meadows, a sunken garden, woodland walks, sculpture and beautiful water features.  The garden artfully balances rustic and sophisticated through the use of local stone and salvaged barn wood.  Register for either or both tours ($35 per person) at www.tclf.org.

  • Saturday, July 7, 11:00 am – The Ants of Athol

    Honestly, if someone sends us an announcement with great alliteration, nothing will keep us from posting!  The Ants of Athol is a program of the Athol Bird & Nature Club, featuring Aaron Ellison, Ph.D., who will introduce you to some of the local ants at the Allen E. Rich Environmental Park and Cass Meadow. Dr. Ellison is a senior research fellow at Harvard Forest, and is the lead author of the new book A Field Guide to the Ants of New England, copies of which may be available for purchase.  Meet on Saturday, July 7 at 11 am at the park, near 50 Main Street in Athol.  Rain date will be Sunday, July 8.  For more information, contact the speaker at aellison@fas.harvard.edu.

  • Saturday & Sunday, June 30 and July 1, 1:00 pm – 6:00 pm – Photographing Botanicals

    Capture the magic and beauty of the garden and landscape at Berkshire Botanical Garden. Learn photographic techniques and tips to help create unique images. Exercises in composition, light, depth of field and exposure will give participants the skills and confidence to approach subjects with new and original points of view. Instructor Cassandra Sohn, the curator of Botanophilia, the current exhibition on display in the Center House at the Berkshire Botanical Garden will use the exhibition as inspiration for this workshop. Sohn will lead participants through discussions, demonstrations and focused assignments, to find new ways to explore flora and landscapes. All levels of ability are welcome. Bring your camera, either; SLR, digital, film, or point and shoot camera.  This two day class will take place June 30 and July 1, from 1 – 6 each day, and costs $195 if you are a member of BBG, and $225 if you are a non-member.

    Instructor Cassandra Sohn is a freelance photographer. She is the main contributing photographer in the book, Window On The Park – New York’s Most Prestigious Properties On Central Park, and exhibits with galleries throughout the United States and Europe. She teaches photography at IS183 Art School and Berkshire Community College.  Register on line at www.berkshirebotanical.org.

  • Sunday, June 24, 10:00 am – 4:00 pm – City Spaces, Country Places

    Tower Hill’s 18th annual self-guided tour of distinctive private Massachusetts gardens takes place on Sunday, June 24. Visit private gardens of distinction on this exclusive tour. This year’s tour includes a mix of gardens in Boylston, Berlin, Hudson and Northborough.  All ticket proceeds from the 2012 City Spaces/Country Places Garden Tour support education programs at Tower Hill Botanic Garden. Buy your tickets today on line at www.towerhillbg.org.

  • Thursday, June 28, 10:00 am – 12:00 noon – Behind the Scene Tour of White Flower Farm

    Join nursery manager of White Flower Farm, Barb Pierson for a “Behind the Scenes” tour, of this renowned nursery located in Litchfield, Connecticut. One of Bershire Botanical Garden’s most popular instructors, Barb will lead participants through the production greenhouses where she grows hundreds of varieties of plants. Learn how she propagates, cultivates, evaluates and produces some of the best plants available. Following the greenhouse tour Tom Bodnar, the Retail Store Manager will tour participants through the display gardens highlighting some of the best varieties in bloom. (From BBG to White Flower Farm approximately driving time 1.5 hour, from Boston, approximately 3 hours).   Meet in parking lot of White Flower Farm, Litchfield, CT. Directions available upon registration at www.berkshirebotanical.org.  $30 BBG members, $35 non-members.  Photo below of the Lloyd Border at White Flower Farm copyright Irene Jeruss for White Flower Farm.

  • Saturday, July 7, 10:00 am – Sunday, July 8, 12:00 noon – Wilderness Immersion for Adults

    Perhaps you thought the Garden Club of the Back Bay website doesn’t have a sense of humor.  Think again.  We’re encouraging our readers to register for Wilderness Immersion for Adults, which will run from Sunday, July 7 through noon on Sunday, July 8 in Goshen, Massachusetts.  Join Earthwork Programs for a 24 hour wilderness skills weekend, learn and practice fire by friction, tracking, knife safety, wild edible and healing plants, aidless navigation (that means no GPS ladies,) and other fun and games.  The cost is $250 – $350 on a sliding scale, and you may learn more at www.earthworkprograms.com, or by calling 413-522-0338. Image from Linda Bittle of Wilderness Awareness.

  • Tuesday, June 26, 7:00 pm – Natural History of the Chicken

    The Harvard Museum of Natural History will present a free film screening of Natural History of the Chicken on Tuesday, June 26, beginning at 7 pm.  This is a PBS documentary that examines the unique natural and cultural history of the chicken (Gallus gallus domesticus) from its life cycle to the modern-day poultry industry.  The Museum is located at 26 Oxford Street, Cambridge, and you may visit the website, www.hmnh.harvard.edu, for directions and parking information.