Boston Flora

Month: May 2014

  • Saturday, May 17, 11:00 am – 4:00 pm – Franklin Park Bike and Kite Festival

    On Saturday, May 17, bike to the Franklin Park Playstead Ballfields, Pierpont Road, Boston, or you can get a free bike “rental” of any size to ride on paved park paths. Kites that are easy to fly will be for sale starting at just a few dollars up to big, fancy ones. Bring a picnic lunch or enjoy fare from local food trucks. Sponsored by the Franklin Park Coalition, Discover Roxbury, the Boston Parks Department, and Boston Bikes. The event runs from 11 – 4, and you can find directions and more information at www.franklinparkcoalition.org.

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  • Saturday, May 17 – Sunday, May 25, 10:00 am – 5:00 pm – Heritage Museum & Gardens Rhododendron Festival

    Thousands of acclaimed rhododendrons in over 100 varieties in a profusion of colors will envelop the grounds at Heritage Museums & Gardens in Sandwich, MA, during a week-long festival May 17 – 25 that celebrates the bountiful blooms.

    Visitors can enjoy a peaceful walk surrounded by walls of flowers, learn more about the plants from horticultural experts and participate in other family activities related to this signature plant. Museum guests are also welcome to take home a piece of Heritage’s rhododendron legacy by purchasing a rhododendron at a special plant sale. More information is posted at heritagemuseumsandgardens.org.

  • Saturday, May 17, 12:30 pm – 3:30 pm – Spring Renewal Using Herbs

    Since you already have taken the Herb Walk at Tower Hill Botanic Garden earlier in the day with Guido Mase, stay for a class in Spring Renewal Using Herbs, on Saturday, May 17 from 12:30 – 3:30. Spring traditionally marks the transition into the warmer months. Come learn how a ritual, including appropriate medicinal herbs, can renew and revitalize body and spirit then help prepare us for the bustle of Summer. Stretching tips and recipes included! THBG members $30, non-members $45. Register at https://dnbweb1.blackbaud.com/OPXREPHIL/EventDetail.asp?cguid=C7E2C131-AD0F-49AA-B073-5B92F8300A37&eid=48465&sid=2E1B368B-F1E8-498C-BFEB-8C66ADE26ACB.

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  • Saturday, May 17, 10:00 am – 11:30 am – Herb Walk

    On Saturday, May 17, from 10 – 11:30, explore the outdoor spaces of Tower Hill Botanic Garden with instructor Guido Mase, author of Wild Medicine Solution, with an eye to the medicinal value of the plants, both cultivated and weedy, that we find there. We will discuss folklore and history, chemistry and preparation, as well as safe application tips for using these herbs in everyday life. Rain or shine so prepare for both. Co-sponsored with Herbal Community of Central Massachusetts.  Members of Tower Hill or the HCCM – $15; non-members $25.  Register at https://dnbweb1.blackbaud.com/OPXREPHIL/EventDetail.asp?cguid=C7E2C131-AD0F-49AA-B073-5B92F8300A37&eid=48466&sid=C6302ED0-F1DB-4A75-8950-22619AAC6F1C.

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  • Friday, May 16, 10:30 am – Dinosaur Footprints and Little Mt. Tom, Holyoke

    Join Julie Richburg of Trustees of Reservations  on Friday, May 16, beginning at 10:30 am, in exploring the Dinosaur Footprints property in Holyoke. From the Dinosaur Footprints property we will drive about 2 miles to explore Little Mt. Tom looking for Juniper Hairstreaks. We will meet on Route 5 NORTH of Holyoke at the Dinosaur Footprints parking lot. We will check out the footprints (VERY interesting and some of the best in the state and FREE). Then we drive to a parking area for Little Mt. Tom. Walking distance should be about 1 to 1 ½ miles. Bring lunch and water. Leaders: Julie Richburg and Tom Gagnon. Contact Tom at (413) 584-6353 or tombwhawk@aol.com.

  • Wednesday, May 21, 6:30 pm – 8:30 pm – Hellstrip Gardening: Paradise at the Curb

    Semi-public spaces in parking strips and alongside driveways and alleys could host thriving gardens that add beauty and provide ecological services.  Author Evelyn Hadden addresses issues such as car, foot, and paw traffic, utility and maintenance equipment, restricted root zones, contaminated soil, covenants and city regulations, and presents ideas for the greening of your neighborhood, on Wednesday, May 21, from 6:30 – 8:30 at Arnold Arboretum’s Hunnewell Building, 125 Arborway, Boston.  Co-sponsored with the Friends of Wellesley College Botanic Gardens.  Member of sponsoring organizations will pay $15, non-members $25.  Register at 781-283-3094, or email wcbgfriends@wellesley.edu.

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  • Saturday, May 17, 9:30 am – 4:00 pm – One Subject, More than One View: Studies on Vellum

    Flowers, leaves, and seed pods are often just as beautiful from the back or sides as they are head on.  Explore a botanical subject of your choice from various angles and include these different perspectives in a work on vellum.  Esther Klahne will discuss nuances of composition and ways to integrate several small studies into a beautifully cohesive painting, in this class to be held at the Wellesley College Botanic Gardens on Saturday, May 17,  from 9:30 am – 4:00 pm.  Tips on using graphite and watercolor on vellum will be discussed. Fee ($95 for Friends of Wellesley College Botanic Gardens, $120 for non-members) will include project vellum, backing board and handouts.  To register call 781-283-3094 or email wcbgfriends@wellesley.edu.

    http://radiant4dcom.ipage.com/store/media/artists/klahne/ss_size1/esther_photo.jpg

  • Tuesday, May 13, 7:30 pm – Weevil Diversity: Beyond the 60,000 Names

    The Annual Meeting of the Cambridge Entomological Club will be held Tuesday, May 13, beginning at 7:30 pm in Room 101 of the Museum of Comparative Zoology, Oxford Street, Cambridge.  Bruno de Medeiros will give the traditional President’s address, this year entitled Weevil Diversity: Beyond the 60,000 Names.

    Many people know about horned scarab beetles fighting for females, or insect predators such a praying mantises that can be cannibals. What is less well-known is that similar stories can be found among the seemingly uninteresting plant-feeding beetles known as weevils. Weevils stand out as a very diverse group in terms of number of species – in fact, they are the most diverse family of animals. However, they are much more than a bunch of names, and weevil natural history can also be very interesting and sometimes even surprising. In this talk Bruno will share some stories that he found while doing research on palm-associated weevils during the last few years, and also the adventures that he went through while chasing them in Brazil.

    The meeting is free and open to the public. Snacks will be provided and you are also welcome to join us at 6:00 PM for an informal pre-meeting dinner at the Cambridge Common.

  • Friday and Saturday, June 6 and 7 – Garden Affairs Garden Tour

    The famed Concord spokesman for individualism and self-reliance, Ralph Waldo Emerson, once wrote: “When I go into a good garden, I think, if it were mine, I should never go out of it.” This year the Concord Museum is celebrating 24 years of “going into good gardens” on the annual Concord Garden Tour. The Museum’s Guild of Volunteers has organized this preeminent garden tour, an opportunity both to share in the delights of beautiful and historic private gardens in Concord and to support the Museum’s Education Programs which annually serve 10,000 students from 85 Massachusetts communities and 22 states.

    The Museum’s Garden Tour has become a New England tradition for garden lovers from near and far. The Garden Tour will take place on two days, Friday and Saturday, June 6 and June 7, rain or shine. Each of the private gardens reflects the individual interests and passions of the owners and their families and will inspire both new gardeners designing their first perennial bed and accomplished landscapers with acres of “garden rooms.”

    The tour of Concord-area gardens is self-guided and self-paced, beginning each day at 9:00 a.m. and continuing until 4:00 p.m. Garden-goers should arrive at the Museum to pick up their maps prior to starting out. Tickets are good for either or both days, but each garden may only be visited once. $35 Museum Members, $40 Nonmembers. No refunds; no photography. And don’t forget to stop by the Museum Shop, filled with wonderful garden-related gifts! Purchase tickets at www.concordmuseum.org.

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  • Friday, May 16 – Sunday, May 18, 10:00 am – 4:00 pm – 3rd Annual Herb Festival & Plant Sale

    Select from an extensive plant sale of herbs, perennials, wildflowers, everlastings and annuals at the best prices, at the 3rd Annual Herb Festival & Plant Sale, to be held May 16 – 18 at the Green Briar Nature Center, 6 Discovery Hill Road (off Route 6A) in East Sandwich.

    Browse among the craft booths and beautiful grounds and gardens of the nature center. Enjoy a delightful herb luncheon served on Friday. Advance reservations are required. All proceeds benefit the environmental education programs of the Thornton W. Burgess Society and its Green Briar Nature Center. Free admission. To make reservations, call 508-888-6870, or email info@thorntonburgess.org.

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