Boston Flora

Month: November 2014

  • Monday, December 8, 7:00 pm – 10:00 pm – Young Friends of the Public Garden Frame the Garden Event

    The Friends of the Public Garden temporarily installed three frames in the Public Garden and encouraged people to “Take a photo and share your masterpiece with the world.” The Young Friends group promotes this initiative which celebrates the beauty of the Public Garden, engages visitors, and raises awareness for our work in caring for the Public Garden, Boston Common, and Commonwealth Avenue Mall.

    Join the Young Friends for an evening of appetizers, drinks, and socializing to support the frame project and the Friends ongoing work to care for these three parks.  Buy tickets online at https://interland3.donorperfect.net/weblink/weblink.aspx?name=ftpg&id=15.

    Monday, December 8, 7 – 10 pm
    Abby Lane
    253 Tremont Street, Boston
    Tickets: $40.00 per person (includes appetizers and one drink)
    RSVP by December 1

  • Wednesday, December 3, 6:30 pm – 8:30 pm – Repeal Day Anniversary Celebration

    Join friends and members of the Gibson House Museum for a benefit cocktail reception to celebrate the 80th anniversary of the Repeal of Prohibition (December 5, 1933). Etiquetteer Robert B. Dimmick will offer a few deft words about the manners during Prohibition. Special guest Stephanie Schorow, author of Drinking Boston: A History of the City and its Spirits, will also attend.

    Ladies United for the Preservation of Endangered Cocktails (LUPEC) will be serving Charlie’s Beacon, a cocktail specially designed in honor of the Gibson House and its founder, Charles Hammond Gibson, Jr.  Ryan and Wood Distillery of Gloucester is graciously sponsoring Repeal Day with its world-class Knockabout Gin. Period attire is encouraged.
    Sponsors will receive a personally autographed copy of Ms. Schorow’s book.  Please respond by November 28. Gibson House Museum is located at 137 Beacon Street, Boston.  Ticket price $125 for Patrons, $200 for Sponsors, and reservations are required; rsvp info@thegibsonhouse.org or 617.267.6338. Gibson martini image from www.magnoliadays.com.

  • Wednesday, December 10, 9:30 am – 3:45 pm – Greenhouse Vegetable Production in Containers

    UMass Extension Greenhouse Crops and Floriculture Program will hold a workshop on Wednesday, December 10, from 9:30 – 3:45 at the Publick House in Sturbridge, Massachusetts.  $40 per person, plus an additional fee if you register online with a credit card.  Registration includes morning refreshments, breaks, and handouts.  You may also print a mail in registration form at http://extension.umass.edu/floriculture/events/greenhouse-vegetable-production-containers.

    Speakers include Rich McAvoy from University of Connecticut, who will speak on Growing Greenhouse Tomatoes and Cucumbers, Carol Glenister of IPM Laboratories on Perfecting Biocontrol in Greenhouse Vegetables, Brian Krug of University of New Hampshire on Growing Bench-top Greens, M. Bess Dicklow of UMass Extension Plant Disease Diagnostic Laboratory on Diseases and Disorders of Greenhouse Tomatoes, and Brad Clegg of Four Town Farm and Dave Volante of Volante Farms, leading a Grower to Grower Panel.  Image from www.gizmag.com.

  • Saturday, December 13, 10:00 am – 12:30 pm – Holiday Table Garden

    On Saturday, December 13, from 10 – 12:30, join Betsy Williams at Tower Hill Botanic Garden for a Holiday Table Garden workshop.  Plant a fragrant, flowering long-lasting winter garden for holiday decorating or as a seasonal gift.  All materials are included.  Fee is $75 for THBG members, $90 for nonmembers.  To register visit www.towerhillbg.org. Image from www.projectgreenscaping.com.

  • Saturday, December 6, 10:00 am – 5:00 pm, and Sunday, December 7, 10:00 am – 4:00 pm – Berkshire Botanical Garden Holiday Marketplace

    The Berkshire Botanical Garden invites you to its Holiday Marketplace on Saturday, December 6 (10 – 5) and Sunday, December 7 (10 – 4).  This is a perfect time to buy garden themed gifts and stocking stuffers, while enjoying the beautifully decorated grounds.  For directions, visit www.berkshirebotanical.org.

  • Thursday, December 4, 12:00 pm – 1:00 pm – “Jwal sulul li’be!”: Exploring the Muddy Path of Conservation and Development in Central America

    EcoLogic Development Fund, based in Cambridge and Guatemala, has worked to empower rural communities to protect and restore tropical ecosystems in Mexico and Central America since 1993. EcoLogic believes that what makes conservation stick is skilled local leadership and enduring community-level commitment. On Thursday, December 4, Anne Elise Stratton, a Tufts senior, will present her summer research in a lowland Caribbean Guatemala protected area. She’ll explain challenges farmers face with climate change, corn production, and agroforestry as well as her insights and anecdotes from fieldwork. Devyn Powell, Tufts class of 2014, joined EcoLogic’s staff before graduating last spring. She will add to Anne Elise’s presentation by leading lunch participants in a conversation about career paths, sustainability and climate, and EcoLogic’s special role and theory of change applied across the region – especially how a small NGO tackles deforestation and landscape restoration beyond protected areas alone.

    Anne Elise Stratton worked as a field intern for EcoLogic this summer in the Sarstún region of Guatemala, where she is also pursuing research about seed selection and exchange in the area. She is currently a rising senior at Tufts, where she is pursuing her bachelor’s degree in Biology and Environmental Studies with a focus on food systems. Devyn Powell, EcoLogic Development Fund Communications Officer. Devyn is responsible for the development and implementation of EcoLogic’s communications strategy. Prior to joining EcoLogic, Devyn helped coordinate online communications, website management, and graphic design for the Tufts Institute of the Environment. She spent time in Ancash, Peru, where she conducted field research exploring climate change adaptation strategies for rural farming communities, and has also lived in Costa Rica. Devyn was raised in Portland, Oregon, and earned a BA in International Relations and Environmental Studies from Tufts (Class of 2014). She is proficient in Spanish and knows some Portuguese and Japanese.

    Lunch & Learn lectures take place every Thursday from 12:00-1:00pm at the Lincoln Filene Center, Rabb Room on the Medford Campus during the academic year. The Tufts Institute of the Environment generously sponsors lunch. If you are interested in participating in the Lunch & Learn program as a guest lecturer/participant, contact environmentalstudies@tufts.edu.

    You can’t make it to the talk? No problem! Watch it live here from your computer or smart phone.

  • Tuesday, December 2, 3:00 pm – 6:00 pm – Copley Square Tree Lighting and Holiday Festivities

    Mayor Martin J. Walsh, the Boston Parks and Recreation Department, and The Friends of Copley Square will celebrate the holidays with the annual Copley Square Tree Lighting on Tuesday, December 2, from 5:00pm to 6:00pm.

    The free event will feature appearances by Mayor Walsh, WHDH-TV’s Janet Wu, Santa Claus, and Rudolph along with live entertainment including members of the Boston Pops Brass Ensemble, the Trinity Church Choristers, vocalist Sheree Dunwell, and a holiday sing-along.

    The Old South Church bell will toll when the tree is illuminated. Light refreshments will be provided by local businesses and the Fairmont Copley Plaza will host a family reception immediately following for all in attendance.

    The reception will include cookie decorating, photos with Santa and treats from Georgetown Cupcake, Pain d’Avignon, and the Fairmont Copley Plaza.

    In addition, beginning at 4:30 p.m. Copley Square will become a spot for family revelry with jugglers, stilt walkers, and festive music provided by Magic 106.7, Boston’s holiday music station.

    Even more festivities will take place in and around Copley Square on December 2. The Boston Public Library and The Catered Affair will host a Storytime and Candy Cane Tea at The Fairmont Copley Plaza from 3:30 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. The tea is free but reservations are required by calling (617) 859-2282.

    For additional information please call the Boston Parks and Recreation Department at (617) 635-4505. To learn more about The Friends of Copley Square, please visit www.friendsofcopleysquare.org.

  • Friday, February 6, 7:00 pm – Mardi Gras Benefit for Friends of Copley Square

    Buy tickets before the December 5 deadline for savings on one of Boston’s most exciting benefit events – Mardi Gras a Boston 2015.  The Fairmont Copley Plaza Hotel will host.  Tickets are $125 per person before December 5, $150 thereafter.  For $475 purchase two tickets and an overnight stay in the Back Bay (always desirable during the winter), but there is limited availability so book today.  Visit http://www.focsmardigras2015.eventbrite.com, or send a check to The Friends of Copley Square, PO Box 170124, Boston, MA 02117-0124.

    Mardi Gras a Boston 2015 Save the Date

  • Sunday, December 7, 2:00 pm – Jamaica Pond & Boston’s Water System

    From the 1630 settlement of Boston, people needed a water supply. On Sunday, December 7 at 2 pm, Marcis Kempe, Executive Director of the Metropolitan Waterworks Museum and an avid water supply historian will discuss the early attempts by Boston residents to find drinking water on Shawmut peninsula. Attempts at wood pipe water systems led eventually to the construction of Boston’s 1796 Jamaica Pond Aqueduct Corporation which fulfilled a need for water supply piped directly into houses. Mr. Kempe will chronicle this story and that of 1848 Boston’s municipal water system that eventually replaced the wooden pipes. He will also discuss the further growth of the Metropolitan Boston water system at the turn of the century and the steps taken to protect the public from the growing pollution of water sources. Come and join the Jamaica Plain Historical Society to learn about the important people and events in the Jamaica Pond story and how this modest system grew into today’s nationally acclaimed Metropolitan Boston area water supply.

    Free and open to the public. Light refreshments will be served. This event is being hosted by the Arnold Arboretum at 125 Arborway, so please check their website, www.arboretum.harvard.edu, for directions and parking instructions. Garden Club of the Back Bay members please note that our March excursion will be to the Metropolitan Waterworks Museum to hear Mr. Kempe speak.

  • Friday, December 5, 1:00 pm – 2:00 pm – Webinar: Landscape Design – Therapeutic Wellness Gardens

    Ecological landscape professionals have long understood the connection between healthy landscapes and human health. Landscape Architect Tom Benjamin takes this connection one step further by creating therapeutic wellness gardens in the midst of healing facilities such as the Kent Hospital in Rhode Island. In this Ecological Landscaping Alliance webinar, Tom Benjamin will share his insights and the techniques that he has used to integrate human “well-being” and environmental health into wellness designs for heavily developed sites. Tom’s December 5th presentation will cover the planning, implementation, and maintenance of therapeutic wellness gardens as components of campus scale efforts to transform conventional landscapes to green infrastructure. As part of the overall design, he will cover passive stormwater management, soil rejuvenation, habitat enhancement, aesthetic and maintenance considerations, and the nexus between human wellness and the health of the environment. Innovative methods of reusing onsite materials to reduce our carbon footprint and control Operations & Maintenance costs will be addressed as well. The role of sustainable landscapes to inspire larger facility-wide sustainability initiatives will also be discussed.
    Thomas (Tom) Benjamin is an independent registered Landscape Architect and LEED Accredited Professional (AP BD+C) practicing design and sustainability consulting and is Principal of Wellnesscapes. Tom has more than 20 years experience in environmental design and sustainability work often focused on green design, including energy, waste, water and food systems. In addition to residential restoration, Tom’s site planning work emphasizes low cost, low maintenance landscape solutions for healthcare, academic and senior institutions, public facilities, commercial and residential developments, large-scale solar farms and community farms/gardens. His work has often encompassed enhancement of natural stormwater filtration systems. His design experience includes upland, wetland, and coastal zone restoration using low tech bioengineering solutions. Tom teaches sustainable landscape design at the University of Massachusetts. He is the recipient of multiple awards, including three for his sustainable landscape design work at Kent Hospital located in Warwick, RI. Tom is also a Board Member of the Ecological Landscape Alliance (ELA). – See more at: http://www.ecolandscaping.org/event/webinar-therapeutic-wellness-gardens/#sthash.n9GHHoJn.dpuf.