The Charlesgate Alliance was very happy with the turnout on April 7th for its Zoom Dog Park Design Meeting. 38 people came. A link to the presentation, first presented to the Dog Park Design subcommittee in September, is here. Regardless of whether you joined us or not for the Zoom meeting, you can give feedback for this element of the project design here.
Have you always wanted to keep a small flock of backyard chickens? This is your chance to learn the basics of backyard chicken care. Join us on May 3 at 10:30 am for a one-hour introductory online course in keeping chickens for eggs. Taught by Berkshire Botanical Garden Director of Education Bridgette Stone. BBG members $10, nonmembers $12. To register visit http://berkshirebotanical.org.
Polly Hill Arboretum Director Tim Boland will trace the development and diversity of trees brought to us by talented horticulturists and plant breeders who have helped create many new varieties available today. This free webinar takes place at 1 pm Eastern on April 30. Registration required; Visit this link to sign up: bit.ly/PHARedbudsWebinar20
This Berkshire Botanical Garden online workshop will provide an in-depth overview of the process for fermenting vegetables at home. It will include a demonstration of how to properly prepare and set up a fermentation vessel, as well as provide principles and practices for successfully managing and storing your ferment. BBG Members $20, Non Members $25. The event takes place May 2 from 2 – 4 Eastern time. To register, visit http://berkshirebotanical.org
In structuring conservation policies for plant life, biodiversity is often the chief metric used to determine species viability in the wild. This approach to conservation has been critiqued for providing an anthropogenic bias on the value of non-human life. With our focus on merely attaining biological thresholds of species’ viability rather than on species’ abundance (an “ecology of the minimal”), are we acting in an environmentally just manner? Or is there another path? In this Native Plant Trust online class, to be held Friday May 1 from 10:30 – 1 with Michael Piantedosi, we will discuss how we can apply environmental justice concepts to methods of conservation for the benefit of life across Earth. Please note: Due to the COVID-19 threat, this class will be offered as a webinar. $38 for NPT members, $45 for nonmembers. Register at http://www.nativeplanttrust.org/events/environmental-justice-botanists/
Using flower and foliage that you might find in your own yard and garden, learn the basic techniques of floral design in this Massachusetts Horticultural Society workshop led by Barbara Rietscha, owner of Field & Vase. Flowers and supplies will be provided. The workshop will take place in the Putnam Building, 900 Washington Street in Wellesley, from 7 – 8:30 pm, but in light of the continuing Covid-19 concerns, please call ahead in the event of cancellation or postponement.
Preregistration Required. Limited Space. $50 for Mass Hort members, $75 general admission. Register at www.masshort.org.
Field and Vase by Stow Greenhouses is a floral design studio specializing in fresh, locally grown, seasonal arrangements using flowers cut from our own family-owned farm which is located 30 miles west of Boston in Stow, MA. Our flowers go from the field to the vase within a day of being cut, meaning they smell sweeter and last longer in the vase. We cut the best of what is blooming each day and bring the flower field to you at your home, business or wedding.
Stow Greenhouses has grown from the wholesale cut lily farm that it was to the expanded floral design studio and cut flower farm that is today’s Field and Vase. In addition to the floral design studio and farm, we operate a retail location at the Boston Public Market, attend seasonal farmers’ markets and supply flowers to local floral designers and businesses. We grow over 90 varieties of flowers including sweet peas, peonies, dahlias, sunflowers and many other old-fashioned favorites.
Feedspot came through again with a definitive list of the top 20 gardening podcasts to follow in 2020. See the list at https://blog.feedspot.com/gardening_podcasts/ They include The Joe Gardener Show out of Miami, Florida, airing once a week, Epic Gardening from San Diego, airing daily, Plant Talk (twice a day), and one which sounds like lots of fun, On The Ledge, from Bedford, England, all about indoor gardening with Jane Perrone. The time is right.
Berkshire Botanical Garden’s annual Plant Sale, a harbinger of spring for many in the Berkshires, goes virtual this year, with online ordering from May 1 through 12 and safe and efficient drive-through pickups in pre-arranged time slots before and after Mother’s Day weekend, May 7-8 and 11-12.
“This year’s sale will offer the Garden a chance to reconnect with the community while finding homes for thousands of plants already growing in the Garden’s Lexan greenhouse prior to COVID-19,” said BBG Executive Director Michael Beck. “We are taking all the necessary precautions to ensure the safety of both staff and shoppers while providing a diverse selection of plants and gifts ready for pickup over a period of four days.” An online store will offer BBG’s signature hanging cone planters, annuals, perennials and woody shrubs for sun and shade, succulent tabletop containers and hanging pieces, vegetable and herb starts from Miller’s Crossing, and a choice selection of Mother’s Day gifts from our Garden Shop. Shoppers place orders and prepay online using a credit card or BBG gift card, and choose a pickup date and time. Supplies are limited.
Assorted gift items from the shop will also be available, including gardening gloves, garden shears, bud vases, decoupage rose trinket trays, screen-printed tea towels, pocket field guides and garden books, market baskets, sun hats, and BBG insignia baseball caps and tote bags.
How it works: shoppers will visit the Garden’s new online store at berkshirebotanical.org beginning May 1 and shop for plants and gift shop items. On checkout, shoppers will choose a time slot on one of the four pickup dates and print their receipt. Members receive a 10% discount at time of purchase. Non-members may add a membership to their order to receive the discount. As a membership perk, while supplies last, those who join, renew or upgrade to the supporter level will receive a limited-edition gold plated or sterling silver Lucy’s Garden topiary charm with matching chain.
On pickup day, shoppers will proceed by car to the pop-up tent in the Garden’s parking lot, where Garden staff members will have orders ready to deliver to each car upon presentation of the purchase receipt. For more information email: info@berkshirebotanical.org.
Preorder plants for safe-distance pickup from Native Plant Trust. Your garden dreams will soon come true—and we have done some reconnoitering to help get you the plants you want while following public safety guidelines. Please see our Buy Native Plants page for new instructions about how to preorder and safely pick up this season’s plants. You’ll also be able to download this year’s plant availability and price lists in two different formats and find other tools to select the right plants for your place.
In keeping with CDC and Harvard COVID-19 guidelines for large gatherings, the Arnold Arboretum has suspended all public programs until further notice including Lilac Sunday 2020, our annual festivities celebrating lilacs and the arrival of spring. All formal activities such as tours, family crafts and science, and performances scheduled for Sunday, May 10 are canceled. Picnics will not be allowed on this or any day. The good news is that our spectacular lilacs will bloom as usual over the course of several weeks (typically late April through mid-to-late May). We invite you to visit during these weeks of peak lilac bloom, but request that you follow safety guidelines and respect our plants. If the landscape appears to be too crowded for safe visitation, please return another time.
