Boston Flora

Month: October 2015

  • Tuesday, October 20, 6:30 pm – Sequence of Bloom

    Tuesday, October 20, 6:30 pm – Sequence of Bloom

    The Hopkinton Garden Club is an affiliate of The Garden Club Federation of Massachusetts. On October 20, 2015, Laura Bibler will join them to present a program entitled Sequence of Bloom. The presentation is a slide lecture that allows audiences to enjoy a walk through the seasons. This photographic presentation of the succession of bloom as it relates to the ever changing landscape provides a thorough survey of this essential element of landscape design.

    Laura has served on the Executive Board of the Garden Club Federation of Massachusetts. Laura has also served on The Stevens-Coolidge Place Committee and The Trustees of Reservations with a particular interest in Historic Preservation. Her many projects range from modest garden spaces to comprehensive master plans for private homes to Historical Estates.

    The meeting will be held at Faith Community Church, 146 E. Main Street, Room 213, in Hopkinton. The general meeting starts at 6:30p.m. The speaker portion starts at 7:30 p.m. and is free and open to the public. New members are welcome any time during our club year. For more information, please email info@hopkintongardenclub.org or visit  www.hopkintongardenclub.org.

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  • Saturday, October 24, 10:00 am – 12:00 noon – Heirloom Pumpkin Harvest Centerpiece

    Make an autumn centerpiece that can be used for both Halloween and Thanksgiving, in this Tower Hill Botanic Garden class led by Betsy Williams on Saturday, October 24 from 10 – 12. Heirloom pumpkins are actually a hard-shelled squash. Flatter then Halloween pumpkins, they come in shades of celadon, forest green, cream and peach. An uncut heirloom pumpkin makes an elegant base for a striking harvest arrangement of richly colored dried flowers, herbs, grains, pods, nuts, mosses, berries and preserved leaves. The finished arrangement can be used as a harvest table accent for many weeks. All plant material, glues and Heirloom pumpkins are supplied by the instructor. Be sure to bring a pair of floral scissors and apron with you. Tower Hill members $75, nonmembers $90. Register online at www.towerhillbg.org.

  • Wednesday, October 21, 9:00 am – 10:00 am and 10:30 am – 11:30 am – Healthy Halloween Treats

    The Trustees, Massachusetts’ largest conservation and preservation organization, announced an exciting line up of culinary, health, and wellness programs being offered throughout the month of October in the KITCHEN at the Boston Public Market on Congress Street in Boston. As the programming partner for the state-of-the art KITCHEN space at the nation’s only all-locally sourced Market of its kind, The Trustees offers programs during Market opening hours designed to connect Boston residents, commuters, and visitors to local food and healthy, active living. Programs include a diverse selection of free and paid hands-on classes and workshops, demos, lectures and special events. For a full line up of currently scheduled program offerings and to register, visit: thetrustees.org/KITCHEN. For more information, email kitcheninfo@thetrustees.org or call 617.542.7696 x2117.

    Getting our kids to eat healthy is a challenge most days of the year – during holidays like Halloween it can be even more difficult with all of the candy and junk foods that are available. The Art of Healthy Eating is happy to team up with the Boston Public Market to offer its Healthy Halloween class for children and their caregivers – a fun, interactive, and festive way to expose kids to wholesome plant based foods in a community setting. We will touch on topics such as why eating the rainbow is important, as well as why eating local is beneficial to our health as well as the environment. During this class children will have a chance to create and then enjoy their own works of festive, edible art featuring local plant based ingredients. Recommended for children ages 3 and up and their caregivers. Fee: Trustees of Reservations Members: $20 per family; Nonmembers: $25 per family. Image from www.famlii.com

  • Monday, October 19, 9:00 am – 12:00 noon – Guiding the Rain: Aesthetic Form, Ecological Function

    Rain gardens guide the rain away from storm drains while attracting wildlife and protecting streams, lakes, and ponds. Planted with native flowers, shrubs, and grasses, rain gardens can thrive without fertilizers and pesticides. Tree filter systems are another solution that integrate street trees with stormwater collection. These systems are unique in that they integrate above-ground vegetation with subsurface bio-remediation principals to treat and cleanse stormwater pollutants prior to infiltration to groundwater and aquifers. Join tour guides Ed Himlin from the Massachusetts Watershed Coalition and stormwater engineer  Paul Iorio to learn more about Leominster’s stormwater solutions that combine aesthetic form and ecological function. Learn more, get the map of the meeting place, and register today at http://www.ecolandscaping.org/event/guiding-the-rain-aesthetic-form-ecological-function/ ELA members $22, nonmembers $32.

  • Wednesday, October 14, 7:00 pm – Deer, Forests, and People: Understanding and Managing Socioecological Systems

    Wildlife comebacks in the last half century are to be celebrated. But, there have been unintended negative consequences. Deer populations, in particular, have risen to unprecedented levels in many areas, causing all kinds of problems. This Athol Bird & Nature Club presentation on Wednesday, October 14, beginning at 7 pm at the Millers River Environmental Center, 100 Main Street, Athol, will explore the deer overabundance issue and its many challenges. We no longer manage wildlife, but rather, “socioecological systems.” Tom Rawinski Botanist US Forest Service Durham Field Office will speak. Free.

  • Sunday, October 18, 1:00 pm – 3:00 pm – Bike Tour of the Emerald Necklace

    Sunday, October 18, 1:00 pm – 3:00 pm – Bike Tour of the Emerald Necklace

    Join docent Barbara Nazarewicz, as she leads a bike tour from the Fens to the Arnold Arboretum to enjoy the seasonal beauty of the Emerald Necklace. Return to Shattuck Visitor Center. Free, but registration required. Space limited. Sponsored by the Emerald Necklace Conservancy. Register on line at www.emeraldneckace.org.

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  • Wednesday, October 14, 10:00 am – 12:00 noon – Beaver: Building Habitat, Improving Eco-Systems

    Beaver-created wetlands enhance human habitat by storing and slowly releasing floodwater. These wetlands improve water quality by removing or transforming excess nutrients, trapping silt, binding and removing toxic chemicals, and removing sediment. And finally, flooded areas can also recharge and maintain groundwater levels, and provide flow to streams even during droughts. Join conservationist Cindy Dunn at Wachusett Meadow on Wednesday, October 14, from 10 – noon, for this unique walking Ecological Landscape Alliance tour of the 85 acre beaver pond to learn about the important ecological role that beaver play. Wachusett Meadow is one of the spectacular wildlife sanctuaries within Mass Audubon. This property consists of 1,200 acres accessed by 12 miles of trails. The sanctuary protects a diverse landscape of shrubland fields and meadows, forests, Wachusett Meadow’s Wildlife Pond, and beaver wetlands. Register online (ELA members $22, non-members $32) at http://www.ecolandscaping.org/event/beaver-building-habitat-improving-eco-systems/  Image from www.hikeneewengland.com.

  • Friday, October 23, 8:00 am – 3:30 pm – Let’s Drink to That! A Symposium on the History of Herbal Libations

    Learn about shrubs, bitters, herbal cordials, infused wines, and more on Friday, October 23 from 8 – 3:30 at the Hunnewell Carriage House, 900 Washington Street in Wellesley. The use of herbs in intoxicants and distilled beverages is part of an ancient and traditional rite of celebration. Enjoy a day of exploration of these amazing beverages featuring five lectures or demonstrations, an herbal lunch, taste samplings of herbal beverages, and a silent auction.

    Speakers include Dr. Judith Sumner, John Forti and Susan Belsinger. Lunch catered by Stockbridge Herbs. The program is sponsored by The New England Unit of The Herb Society of America. Cost is $90 if you register before October 5, $105 thereafter. Register at www.neuhsa.org or call 508-869-0545.

  • Tuesday, October 13, 7:30 pm – Small Carpenter Bees: What Insect Societies Tell Us

    The first Cambridge Entomological Club meeting of the 2015-16 year will be held on Tuesday October 13 at 07:30 PM. Please join them in in room 101 of the Museum of Comparative Zoology, as Sandra Rehan will present a talk entitled “Comparative biology of Ceratina small carpenter bees: What early insect societies can tell us about the evolution of sociality”.

    The small carpenter bees, genus Ceratina, offer important insights into the early stages of social group formation. Small carpenter bees provide a unique opportunity to study the evolution and maintenance of social behavior in a group benefitting from detailed life history studies and a well-established phylogeny. Ceratina are globally-distributed and species range from solitary to complex societies; solitary species are typically found in temperate environments and social groups are recurrent in tropical regions. Sandra’s data highlights the importance of molecular phylogeny and historical biogeography for understanding the relative roles of phylogenetic inertia and regional ecology on the evolution of social behavior. Moreover, maternal care is a key precursor for the evolution of eusociality. Maternal investment is often determined, in part, by the quality and quantity of food provided to the offspring. Such maternal manipulation of nutrients, during development in particular, can influence the activation of hormones, nutrient storage, and social interactions of offspring once development is complete. The small carpenter bee, Ceratina calcarata, is native to New England and this species is of special interest because of its prolonged maternal care and mothers who produce a special class of small daughters that help raise their siblings. Sandra examines nutritional, developmental and behavioral variation among offspring to determine the role of maternal manipulation and social environment on offspring care and worker behavior in incipient insect societies.

    The meeting is free and open to the public. Snacks will be provided and you are also welcome to join them at 5:45 PM for an informal pre-meeting dinner at West Side Lounge Restaurant.

  • Sunday, October 11, 10:00 am – 4:00 pm – Chestnut Hill Farm’s Harvest Festival

    Join The Trustees of Reservations on Sunday, October 11 from 10 – 4 for Chestnut Hill Farm’s Harvest Festival, a day long celebration of the fall and farm. This revitalization of the farm’s historic festival will include activities for all ages including pumpkin carving and painting, goat milking, farm tours, guided hikes, meet the farmer, food, live music, and much more. The event is free, and the farm is located in Southborough, Massachusetts. For directions, visit http://www.thetrustees.org/things-to-do/greater-boston/event-21139.html. Image from http://www.sudburyvalleytrustees.org