March 30, 2014 - Boston Flora

Tuesday, April 29, 7:00 pm – 10:00 pm – Taste of the Nation Boston

March 30, 2014 by Boston Flora

Come celebrate Bostonâ€™s hottest and most trend-forward food and beverage event Taste of the Nation Boston. Set at Cruiseport, 1 Black Falcon Avenue in Boston, Taste of the Nation features the largest gathering of award winning chefs from the region.

Join Honorary Chefs Jody Adams, Joanne Chang, Gordon Hamersley, Andy Husbands and Tony Maws and over 60 of Bostonâ€™s top chefs as we dine on delicious tastings paired with the best beer, wine and spirits the city has to offer. As of today, participants include 80 Thoreau, Lucca Back Bay, Aragosta Bar & Bistro, Lucky’s, Ashmont Grill, Masa, Belly Wine Bar, Mela, Bistro du Midi, Moody’s Delicatessen & Provisions, Blue Inc., Myers + Chang, Blue Room, Neptune Oyster (VIP), Bondir, OAK Long Bar, Bronwyn (VIP), Puritan & Company, Cambridge School of Culinary Arts, Rialto, Coppa, Russell House Tavern, Craigie on Main, Sandrine’s Bistro, Davio’s, Silvertone, Del Frisco’s, Stone Hearth Pizza, Eastern Standard, Taranta, Flour Bakery,Tavolo, Gracie’s,The Blue Frog Bakery, Haley House Bakery, The Salty Pig, Hamersley’s Bistro,The Tip Tap Room,
Harvest, Tico, Hungry Mother, Toro, Journeyman, TRADE, Kayak Cookies, Tremont 647, Kirkland Tap and Trotter, Trina’s Starlight Lounge, La Morra, West Bridge, L’Espalier, ‘Wiches of Boston, and Lincoln.

The 2013 event raised over $95,000 in the fight to end childhood hunger and was ranked #45 in Boston’s Top 100 2013 Events & #5 in the Food, Wine & Restaurant Industry Events by BizBash.

100% of ticket sales support No Kid Hungry’s efforts to end childhood hunger!Â General admission ticket $95, VIP ticket (6 pm – 10 pm) $150.Â Cocktail attire.Â For more information, and to buy tickets online, visit http://ce.strength.org/events/taste-nation-boston.

Saturday, April 12, 10:00 am – 12:00 noon – Northeast Wildflowers to Brighten Your Spring Garden

March 30, 2014 by Boston Flora

Learn about the importance of native wildflowers and how to bring them into the garden setting, on Saturday, April 12 from 10 – noon at the Berkshire Botanical Garden, at a talk and book signing with author Carol Gracie. Wildflowers brighten the New England woodlands in spring and are more than just a delight for the eye and a lift for the winter-weary spirit. Each has a role in the environment and often has interesting interactions with pollinators and seed dispersers. Learn about the fascinating life histories of some favorite spring wildflowers. Topics include adaptations for early blooming, medicinal and other uses, the origin of wildflower names, pollination and seed dispersal. A book sale and signing of Carolâ€™s beautiful newly published Spring Wildflowers of the Northeast: A Natural History will follow the talk.

Carol Gracie is a naturalist and photographer with a degree in plant studies from Lehman College of the City University of New York. She is retired from The New York Botanical Garden, where she headed the Childrenâ€™s Education Program and the Foreign Tour program and taught in the Continuing Education Program. In 2006 she co-authored (with Steve Clemants) Wildflowers in the Field and Forest: A Field Guide to the Northeastern United States. Her latest book, Spring Wildflowers of the Northeast: A Natural History, was published in March of 2012.

$25 for BBG members, $30 for non-members.Â Sign up at www.berkshirebotanical.org or call 413-298-3926, x 15.