On New Year’s Eve, what better choice for Wreath of the Day than the wreath below, ordered by our Delivery Chair for her Marlborough Street door, which is in full sunlight. She asked for sparkle, and the designer added sparkle, but emphasized the chartreuse green in the bow rather than the hot pink or purple, so the final look is actually more traditional than one might have expected, given the unusual ribbon. Note the jingle bells nestled under the bow.
The Arnold Arboretum will present When America First Met China: An Exotic History of Tea, Drugs, and Money in the Age of Sail on Tuesday, January 29 in the Hunnewell Building, 125 Arborway, beginning at 6:30 pm. Best-selling author Eric Jay Dolin will trace America’s fraught relationship with China back to its roots: the unforgiving nineteenth-century seas that separated a brash, rising naval power from a battered ancient empire. He will delve into the furious trade in furs, opium, and bêche-de-mer–a rare sea cucumber delicacy—which might have catalyzed America’s emerging economy, but also sparked an ecological and human rights catastrophe of such epic proportions that the reverberations can still be felt today. Hear about this period in history that preceded and spurred American botanical expeditions to China in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Fee $5 Arboretum member, $15 nonmember. Other books by Eric Jay Dolan include Fur, Fortune, and Empire, Leviathan, and Political Waters: The Long, Dirty, Contentious, Incredibly Expensive but Eventually Triumphant History of Boston Harbor. Register on line at www.my.arboretum.harvard.edu.
For this large indoor wreath, our Wreath Project co-chair chose a filmy red lace patterned ribbon, which had a romantic, almost Valentine’s Day look, and asked one of her favorite decorators to just go wild with it. In her mind, she pictured dried roses, perhaps baby’s breath, a Victorian touch of this or that, but she promised not to peek at the wreath until it was done, since nothing is more annoying than having someone hover while you make design decisions. The designer had been toying with using the fabulous red feathers for days, and now she had her opportunity. The little white accents are pearls, the magnolia leaves and white pine augmented the already substantial bow, and silver squiggly things added to the drama. Needless to say, the wreath is a total triumph and may be one of the Club members’ favorites of the season.
The Arnold Arboretum will hold a class on Pruning in Winter in the Hunnewell Building, 125 Arborway, on Saturday, January 26 from 9 – noon. Jen Kettell, an ISA-certified arborist, will explain the reasons for pruning and what to consider when pruning dormant trees, shrubs, and vines. She will demonstrate techniques, give guidelines for determining which plants benefit from winter pruning, and explain how plants heal from pruning wounds.
Note: this workshop teaches ornamental pruning techniques; it does not provide information on pruning for fruit production. The fee is $48 ($35 for Arnold Arboretum members) and you may register by emailing pam_thompson@harvard.edu. Image from www.danwilt.com.
Many of us keep our wreaths hung long after the holiday season has ended, and if the wreath’s coloration is not traditional, no one would guess when the wreath was first hung. The ribbon here is a cross between pink, gold, and copper, depending on the angle and the light. It paired with burgundy quite successfully in the first example, and another designer used the same ribbon in a matched pair with copper accents, and the effect is totally different.
In association with the exhibition, The Greatest Source of Wealth: Agriculture in Concord, the Farm to Lectern Speakers Series brings nationally-recognized agrarian activists to Concord.
On Thursday, January 17, 2013, the Concord Museum welcomes Joel Salatin, author and full-time farmer at Polyface, a multi-generational, beyond organic farm in Virginia’s Shenandoah Valley. In his talk, Folks, This Ain’t Normal, based on his book by the same title, Salatin gives a whimsical performance filled with history, satire, and prophecy in defense of small farms, local food systems, and the right to opt out of the conventional food paradigm. He relates his dirt-under-the-fingernails experiences with mischievous humor and based firmly on a lifetime spent communing with ecology, economics, and emotion in their full reality, as a farmer. Both sobering and inspiring, his performance empowers people to tackle the seemingly impossibly large tasks that confront our generation.
Book signing to follow lecture. 7:00 p.m., at the Fenn School, 516 Monument Street in Concord. The speakers series is free, but reservations are requested, 978-369-9763 ext. 216.
No, you actually won’t find candy canes on this wreath, but the ribbon is so cheerful it calls to mind candy canes swizzled in hot chocolate by a roaring fire. In a ski lodge. In Aspen, while we’re fantasizing. Many of you may be off in the mountains this post-Christmas week, so we wish you a relaxing trip.
Whole Foods Market in Wellesley has teamed up with our Garden to Table program to bring you cooking classes through the fall and winter. Healthy Eating Specialist Lisa Caldwell, director of the Our Health Starts Here Program at Whole Foods Market in Wellesley, will help you make healthy choices in cooking, eating, and menu planning.Classes will be held at Whole Foods Market in Wellesley.
Is it possible to have a healthy lifestyle and eat delicious food too? Yes, yes it is . The food world is vast, come in and explore the wonderful ways of preparing foods that will contribute to your new beginning. Cost – $10.00 for Mass Hort members, $12.00 for non-members. Reservations may be made by calling 617-933-4943 or ordering online at www.masshort.org. You may also pay at the class.
One of our most generous and loyal members has ordered wreaths with red bows and all natural accents for years. She buys them for herself, her family, friends, and also orders for her condominium. For the past few seasons she has come to the workshop on Monday and picked out her ribbon. For the indoor wreath to hang in her unit, she decided to go with a white and gold theme. The decorator was cautious – knowing the customer’s dislike of “overly embellished” wreaths, she struck a very happy balance, and the touches of gold in a few of the pine cones and sweet gum balls carry the gold in the ribbon throughout the wreath in a very successful manner.
Each January we thank our members for their support with a Winter Tea, this year to be held Tuesday, January 15 beginning at 3 pm at The Courtyard Restaurant at The Boston Public Library. Overlooking the beautiful Italianate courtyard in the BPL’s historic McKim building, the Courtyard Restaurant is steeped in history and loaded with delightful tea selections. Holly Safford of The Catered Affair will see to our every need. We will enjoy a selection of tea sandwiches which may include (subject to the whims of the market) cucumber with herb cream cheese, smoked salmon butter canapes, apricot chicken salad, turkey & Earl Grey butter on marble rye, lobster with chive cream cheese on mini lemon butter crust buns, tomato with crumbled bacon, date nut bread with honey cream cheese, currant scones, four fruit marmalade, Devonshire double cream, plus fresh fruit tartlets, assorted French macaroons, Irish coffee bars, raspberry thumbprints, chocolate sinclairs, and your choice of premium loose leaf teas. Members are invited to ask friends to join them, although we must charge a separate increased fee for guests. The Club underwrites a substantial portion of the expense of this meeting on behalf of our valued volunteers. $35 for Garden Club members, $45 for guests. Members will receive a written invitation after the first of the year. If you are not a member but would like to attend, please email info@bostonflora.com to put your name on the invitation list.
