Andrew Freedman, Senior Science Writer for Climate Central, will speak at The Fletcher School, Tufts University in Medford on Thursday, February 14, from 5:30 – 7, in Cabot 703. His topic is Extreme Weather and a Changing Climate: Past, Present and Future. The talk is free and no registration is required. The event is sponsored by The Center for International Environment & Resource Policy.
The Northeast’s leading horticulture trade show and green industry seminars await you at New England Grows, one of the largest and most popular horticultural and green industry events in North America, Wednesday February 6 through Friday, February 8 at the Boston Convention & Exhibition Center, 415 Summer Street in Boston.
New England Grows connects 13,000+ green industry professionals with the brightest horticultural ideas, hottest selling plants, latest green industry technology, and best outdoor equipment at its 1,100+ booth horticulture trade show.
Add to that dozens of ground-breaking green industry seminars led by world-renowned experts, and you’ll understand why New England Grows is the ultimate green industry event for you and your business.
New England Grows is a professional conference and exposition designed specifically for the green industry. Green industry professionals, educators, students, and members of allied professions are invited to attend. For times and more information, visit www.newenglandgrows.org. $69 per person, good for all three days.
Guest Speaker Betty Sanders from the Massachusetts Master Gardeners Association will present Native Trees and Shrubs on Wednesday, February 13 beginning at 6:30 pm at the Millis Veterans Memorial Building, 900 Main Street, Room 130, Millis, Massachusetts. This free program is sponsored by the Millis Garden Club.
“Native Trees and Shrubs will be more than a listing of those plants and the qualities that make them a desirable part of any garden,” said Ms. Sanders. “I will begin the Program with a thoughtful discussion of what qualifies as a native plant and why natives are a vital part of any landscape. I’ll wrap up by highlighting some of my favorites, what makes them special and why they belong in your garden.” For more information visit www.millisgardenclub.org.
Visit the largest consumer travel event in the United States February 8 – 10 at the Seaport World Trade Center, 200 Seaport Boulevard in Boston. The show is sponsored by The Boston Globe, and more than 300 exhibitors will be there, including companies with great suggestions on gardens to visit around the world. There will be a Northeast craft beer pavilion, cultural performances, culinary stations, live animals from SeaWorld Parks, and the salty stars of National Geographic Channel’s breakout hit Wicked Tuna. For complete details visit www.bostonglobetravelshow.com.
The Garden Club of the Back Bay held its annual January Tea this year at The Catered Affair at The Boston Public Library, and we would like to thank Holly Safford, the magnificently talented owner of The Catered Affair, and most especially Food and Beverage Manager Markos Doyle, for the delicious and elegant tea. Pictures of members enjoying themselves can be found on our Facebook Page, but below are a couple of photos to tempt you – tea is served Wednesday through Friday, 2 – 4.
Come to the Medford Public Library, 111 High Street in Medford, on Thursday, February 7 from 7 – 9 for a free program sponsored by the Medford Garden Club entitled Make the Most of Your Outdoors. Ever wonder why your garden doesn’t quite fit the space it is in? Why your house might not seem so grounded as others in your neighborhood? Or why your garden leaves you feeling it just isn’t quite “right”? Scale is often what is missing in home gardens. Demetra, of Gardens by Demetra, will focus in her comments and slides on simple design strategies that will grow your garden from good to great!
Bring your questions, as there will be plenty of time to explore specific garden design issues as well as general questions.
Seduced by begonias? Join the crowd. Are you crazy about cacti, spines and all? How about orchids? You must have killed at least one. Have a thing for air plants? There is always room for one in the bathroom. On Saturday, February 2, from 10 – 2, join three mad gardeners—Tovah Martin, Rob Genneri and David Burdick—and learn how to successfully cram more plants into your house in a hands-on session with houseplants. The event takes place at the Berkshire Botanical Garden, 5 West Stockbridge Road in Stockbridge, Massachusetts. Bring a plant to repot or be evaluated. Consider the different growing mixes and learn how to take cuttings and divisions and, finally, how to keep them all happy inside your house until spring. Join the fun with our favorite plant experts for a houseplant smackdown and learn their secrets. You’re guaranteed to go home with more than you came with.
Tovah Martin is a horticulturist, writer and garden personality living in northwestern Connecticut. She writes for many horticultural publications and has authored several books. Her popular book on terrarium gardens, The New Terrarium, was published in 2009, and The Unexpected Houseplant was published in August of 2012. Rob Gennari is a garden designer and owner of Glendale Botanicals, a specialty tropical nursery located in Berkshire County. He uses tropical plants in his design work and has in-depth experience with propagating, growing and maintaining them. David Burdick is owner of Daffodils and More, a retail bulb and plant nursery located in Dalton, MA. He is a plants man extraordinaire and is well versed in a diverse range of plant groups. He has instructed for the Berkshire Botanical Garden for many years. BBG member price $75, non-members $85, and you may register on line at www.berkshirebotanical.org.
The New England Wildflower Society hosts an evening on Monday, February 4, beginning at 6:30 pm at Blithewold Mansion, Gardens & Arboretum (in the Mansion Living Room), 101 Ferry Road in Bristol, Rhode Island. By carefully choosing what trees, shrubs, and perennials to plant, we can have something of interest even in the coldest winter months! Wandflower, Galax urceolata, with its glossy foliage, and Ilex opaca, with its rich green American holly, are just a few of the plants that brighten the Garden throughout the year.
Don’t underestimate the charms of decorative bark, evergreen foliage, fruits, and dried leaves and flower stalks dusted with snow. Learn about some of the best native species, with an emphasis on fall and winter interest, and discuss their use in garden design to ensure that your garden framework works just as well in the off-season. $26 for NEWFS members, $32 for nonmembers. Register by calling 401-253-2707 or visit www.newfs.org.
Barbara Paul Robinson, author of Rosemary Verey: the Life and Lessons of a Legendary Gardener, will come to the Massachusetts Horticultural Society, 900 Washington Street in Wellesley, on Thursday, January 31 at 1:30 pm, to give an illustrated talk.
The book recounts how Ms. Robinson, in mid-career as a New York City lawyer, took a sabbatical to work at Ms. Verey’s famous garden at Barnsley House in the Cotswalds, England. The short internship led to a longtime friendship, so the author was able to observe the rising fame of the great English gardener and to enlist Ms. Verey’s many other associates to contribute their memories to this intimate biography. After her talk, Barbara Paul Robinson will be open to questions and to signing books. Light refreshments will be served. $10 for Mass Hort members, $15 for non-members. To register for the event, visit www.masshort.org or call Maureen Horn at 617-933-4912.
We might think robins are simply a common backyard bird, but actually they represent one of the most unusual, successful, and abundant animals (the order Aves) in Earth’s history. The new science of evolutionary developmental biology (“evo-devoâ€) sheds fascinating light on the evolution of birds’ highly distinct skulls with toothless beaks, and on how modern birds can generate a seemingly endless array of beak shapes. Arkhat Abzhanov, Associate Professor of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology at Harvard University, will speak on Thursday, January 31, beginning at 6 pm on Developmental Mechanisms for the Origin and Evolution of Birds. Part of the Evolution Matters Lecture Series, supported by a generous gift from Drs. Herman and Joan Suit. Free and open to the public. Geological Lecture Hall, 24 Oxford Street. Free event parking for evening lectures in the 52 Oxford Street garage.
