The New England Botanical Club will meet on Friday, May 2, at 6:45 at Garden in the Woods in Framingham to hear Bill Brumback, Conservation Director of the New England Wild Flower Society speak on Flora Conservanda 2012: Changes in New England’s Rare Flora. For complete information, visit www.rhodora.org. The meeting is open to the public.
Imagine days filled with vistas of the rolling French countryside, historic architecture, and exceptional horticulture. Then make this vision a reality by joining the American Horticultural Society for Gardens of Normandy with Paris. This very special tour to northwestern France will include visits to a variety of remarkable destinations, such as the famous gardens of Claude Monet at Giverny, the historic landmarks and dramatic coastline of Normandy, and of course, an abundance of wonderful gardens – both grand and intimate. In addition to experiencing many of the region’s exquisite gardens, you also will have the opportunity to meet the people behind them.
This trip will conclude with a day in Paris to see the grand gardens of the Tuileries, originally created for Catherine de Medici in the 16th century and redesigned a century later by famous French landscape architect Le Notre for King Louis XIV. We also will visit Quai Branly Museum’s spectacular vertical garden designed by Patrick Blanc. The complete brochure may be found at http://www.ahs.org/uploads/pdfs/AHS_Normandy_ebrochure.pdf.
In his meticulous notes on the natural history of Concord, Massachusetts, Henry David Thoreau records the first open flowers of highbush blueberry on May 11, 1853. If he were to look for the first blueberry flowers in Concord today, mid-May would be too late. In the 160 years since Thoreau’s writings, warming temperatures have pushed blueberry flowering three weeks earlier than in Thoreau’s time. The climate around Thoreau’s beloved Walden Pond is changing, with visible ecological consequences. In his new book, Walden Warming, Richard B. Primack, PhD, Professor of Biology, Boston University, uses Thoreau and Walden, icons of the conservation movement, to track the effects of a warming climate on Concord’s plants and animals. Under the attentive eyes of Primack, the notes that Thoreau made years ago are transformed from charming observations into scientific data sets. Primack finds that many wildflower species that Thoreau observed have declined in abundance or have disappeared from Concord. Hear how warming temperatures have altered these and other aspects of Thoreau’s Concord, from the dates when ice departs from Walden Pond in late winter, to the arrival of birds in the spring, to the populations of fish, salamanders, and butterflies that live in the woodlands, river meadows, and ponds. The Arnold Arboretum program will take place Wednesday, April 30, from 7 – 8:30 in the Hunnewell Building of the Arboretum. Free for Arboretum members, $5 for nonmembers. Register online at www.my.arboretum.harvard.edu.
The 2014 Annual Meeting of The Esplanade Association will take place Tuesday, April 29, from 6:30 – 8 at The Hampshire House, 84 Beacon Street, Boston, Massachusetts. Meet new Executive Director Kate Fichter and hear about the accomplishments of the past year and challenges facing the organization. If you are interested in attending, email info@esplanadeassociation.org.
The Esplanade Association is pleased to welcome Kate Fichter as its new Executive Director. Kate has extensive experience in civic design, project management, and long-term planning, having worked for both the Massachusetts House of Representatives and the Massachusetts Department of Transportation. A native Bostonian, she grew up in the Back Bay and has known the Esplanade since her childhood. She is a graduate of the
University of Chicago and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Kate will be taking over from Margo Newman, The Esplanade Association’s Executive Board Chair, who has graciously been our interim volunteer Executive Director for the past year. Kate’s duties will include direction of all the operations of the organization, including capital projects, program activities, park care, and advocacy. To read more about The Esplanade Association, visit www.esplanadeassociation.org.
Climate change research indicates that “biological spring†has shifted earlier in most parts of the world, with plants leafing and flowering approximately one week earlier than a century ago. Such work uses plant phenology—the timing of life-history events—to track responses to warming. Plant phenology is strongly linked to climate, can be easily observed, and affects important ecosystem services, thus it is one of the most reported and critical indicators of climate change. However it is also one of the most variable—showing remarkable variation across species, habitats, and time. Elizabeth Wolkovich, PhD, Assistant Professor at the Arnold Arboretum of Harvard University, (and talented photographer – see below) will speak about her research aimed at improved prediction of this variation and how temporal assembly and species attributes may interact with phenology to shape current and future plant communities. The program will be held in the Hunnewell Building of the Arboretum on Thursday, April 24, from 6:30 – 7:30. Free, but registration requested at www.my.arboretum.harvard.edu.
The Bay State African Violet Society puts on another spectacular show at Tower Hill Botanic Garden April 26 – 27 featuring America’s favorite houseplant, the African Violet (Saintpaulia sp.). All are welcome to enter their own plants and floral designs for judging to win ribbons and prizes. Participate in workshops on African Violet care. Start your own collection at the sale, where commercially grown plants and supplies are sold, along with plants grown by members.
Schedule of Events:
Saturday April 26, 2014
11:30am and 1:30pm
Lecture Demonstration
How to repot a violet: guidelines for when to repot, demonstration of how to repot, potting down a neck, removing old leaves and suckers. Propagation of African violets: how to leaf propagate, timetable for growth, and separating baby plantlets. This workshop will also include general care of African violets: identifying types, soil and fertilizer, watering, lights, schedule for repotting.
3pm – Guided Walk-through of the Show
Commentary on African violets, how they are judged, what denotes an award winning violet, discussion of the different sizes and types of violets; overview of the designs, including the hows and whys of flower design using African violets.
Sunday April 27, 2014
11:00am and 1:30pm
Lecture Demonstration
How to repot a violet: guidelines for when to repot, demonstration of how to repot, potting down a neck, removing old leaves and suckers. Propagation of African violets: how to leaf propagate, timetable for growth, and separating baby plantlets. This workshop will also include general care of African violets: identifying types, soil and fertilizer, watering, lights, schedule for repotting.
12:15pm
Guided Walk-through of the Show
Commentary on the African violets, how they are judged, what denotes an award winning violet, discussion of the different sizes and types of violets; overview of the designs, including the hows and whys of flower design using African violets.
Educational Display
A member will be available at the Educational Table to answer questions and give more informal demonstrations to smaller groups of people.
African Violet Basic Care Video will be played in the workshop/education room.
Cost: Included with admission to Tower Hill. For more information visit www.towerhillbg.org.
Celebrate Earth Day by joining a group of New England Wild Flower Society volunteers to restore Arthur Morency Woods, a 15-acre parcel of conservation land in Framingham. These “habitat islands” in densely populated areas are of great importance to wildlife. Meet at the Arthur Street Extension in Framingham at 10 AM. Plenty of parking at the entrance on Arthur Street. For more information visit www.newfs.org, or call 508-877-7630.
East Quabbin Land Trust (www.eqlt.org) will be hosting an ecological inventory day on its Prince River Preserve property in Barre, Massachusetts on Sunday, May 4, 2014. Stewardship Coordinator Caren Caljouw welcomes participation by any who might be interested. Expertise in other areas such as herpetology, mammalogy, ornithology, botany, etc. would be very helpful, too. Located to the east of Old Reservoir, off Flaherty Road, the property is 690 acres of hilly terrain dominated by mixed hardwood and conifer forest interspersed with wooded swamps. The date suggests that you’ll be encountering early invertebrates, amphibians and reptiles, spring ephemeral plants, and migrating birds. Habitats include moist woods and lake shoreline. Visit the website for additional details.
You are cordially invited to the 44th Annual Meeting of the Friends of the Public Garden on Tuesday, April 29, at 5 pm, at First Church in Boston, 66 Marlborough Street, Boston. The featured speaker will be Bill Walczak, Vice President of External Relations at Shawmut Design and Construction, and a member of the Friends Council. His topic is Opportunities for Parks in Boston’s New Political Environment. He is a long-time parks advocate and was a candidate for Mayor of Boston in 2013. Reception to follow. Kindly respond by April 22 to 617-723-8144, or email info@friendsofthepublicgarden.org.
