Boston Flora

Month: November 2020

  • Wreath of the Day, From the Archives – Refining Our Techniques

    We’ve been at this a long time, and the materials favored in one year fall out of fashion the next. Sometimes it’s a practical matter. Dried fruits such as oranges and apples were a decorator favorite, until one particularly warm winter when flies and bugs descended on the outdoor wreaths adorned with fruit (sugar!) creating a particularly buggy dilemma for people going in and out of their homes. Now, when we use dried fruit, we either paint the elements gold or silver or spray clear fixative to discourage critters. The wreath below, from ten years ago, shows just how pretty the fruit can be.

    Today’s post has been generously sponsored by Club member Susan Morris. Thank you!

  • Monday, December 7, 10:00 am – 12:00 noon – Winter Weeds

    With winter approaching, most flowers and leaves are long gone, but that doesn’t mean we can no longer identify the plants that produced them. This Wright-Locke Farm class on December 7 with naturalist and past Garden Club of the Back Bay speaker “Boot” Boutwell will focus on the identification of winter weeds which remain standing well into or through the winter. Our walk will focus on plant identification as well as fun and interesting natural history about the plants we see. Children 10+ are welcome to register if accompanied by a registered adult. Masks are required. $30 per person. Register at https://www.wlfarm.org/adult-education-programs/

  • Tuesday, December 8, 6:00 pm – 7:00 pm – Observations on Urban Nature, Online

    Peter Del Tredici, Senior Research Scientist Emeritus at the Arnold Arboretum and Rosetta Elkin, Associate Professor of Landscape Architecture at McGill University, converse about the nature of urban environments, on December 8 beginning at 6 pm.


    Peter will begin the program with a brief overview of the plant observations he makes in his book, Wild Urban Plants of the Northeast. Following this, Peter and Rosetta will discuss both ecological and design elements that come into play in the cities and suburbs that we call home. Up for discussion are the environments that humans intentionally and unintentionally create as we turn over more land to infrastructure and buildings while also increasing designed green spaces for human use. They will consider how nature is realized and imagined in the city and who it supports. Offered in collaboration with Bartlett Arboretum & Gardens

    This virtual program will take place live in Zoom. Free admission, but registration is required. Register HERE.

  • Wreath of the Day, From the Archives – Margaret’s Basement

    For the first years of the Wreath Project, which began in the 1980’s, we decorated in the kitchen and basement of Past President Margaret Pokorny’s house. In those days we were there for two or three days (our switch to four days plus a half day of set up came later), and we made quite a mess. Margaret’s flagstone wall still bears evidence of some gold spray paint gone rogue. The amount of pine tar and ornamental grass dust shed was epic. I suspect some needles can still be found under the floorboards. Margaret’s long suffering husband would flee to New Hampshire. Even after we moved to The First Lutheran Church of Boston, a few special early orders were completed back on Marlborough Street. Wreath Week is always the first full week in December, but when the calendar doesn’t cooperate, some big buildings schedule their holiday parties on the weekend before we began decorating. To help with their dilemmas, we made a handful of wreaths early, including the one below, one of a fully decorated trio for 180 Beacon Street.

    Today’s Wreath of the Day post is sponsored by member Glenda Mattes, a decorator who specializes in the use of dried herbs, roses, and delicate materials, some of which are included below.

  • Now Through Tuesday, December 15 – Boston Turkish Arts & Culture Festival – Ovacik, Online

    On view now are thirty nine films in the Boston Turkish Festival’s 15th Annual Documentary and Short Film Competition, 22 of which are documentaries. Vote online for your favorite film for the audience award after screening. One film focused on community and sustainability is Ovacik, directed by Ayşegül Selenga Taşkent.

    Fatih Mehmet Maçoğlu is the first mayor ever in Turkey elected from the Turkish Communist Party. At the time of the filming of this documentary, he was the mayor of Ovacık, Tunceli, a small Kurdish-Alevi town in the heart of Eastern Turkey. (Currently he is the mayor of the city of Tunceli) 
    Unknown to the rest of the world, it is an area where cultural and humanistic values, peace, love and community work are cherished, and where production and education are pursued with almost no budget. 


    The film follows the daily life in Ovacık and Mr. Maçoğlu’s efforts to strengthen a sustainable economy by promoting community-based agriculture. Both the mayor’s and the residents’ remarkable efforts set an example for agricultural towns around Turkey. The honest and heartfelt example of Ovacik starts building a very important communication bridge between the East and the West of the country. $10 screening fee. Watch online at https://watch.eventive.org/bostonturkish2020/play/5f8a119c790e360053ea0f72

  • Wreath of the Day, From the Archives – On the Doors

    We’ve often photographed our wreaths on their easels, as formal portraits, but rarely have shown the wreaths up on neighborhood doors in all their glory. Partially that is because we take pictures at the Church during Wreath Week, but after the wreaths leave the premises, we don’t necessarily see them again. In 2008 a member walked around the neighborhood and took a few shots of our wreaths in situ, and the matched pair below is an example of how our wreaths beautify our doors. The wide doors below allowed the owner to place the mirror image bows next to each other, although on narrower doors, the bows would have been too close and could create a “cross-eyed” look.

    Today’s Wreath of the Day post sponsor is Garden Club member Sally Mead, who for years has been one of our most reliable delivery squad volunteers.

  • Monday, December 14, 12:00 noon – 1:00 pm – Creating Outdoor Spaces That Connect Children to the Natural World Webinar

    Nature play can awaken children’s senses, challenge their bodies, inspire their imaginations, and build self-confidence. In order to grow up healthy and happy, children need abundant unstructured time to play and explore in the natural world, but today’s children rarely have the opportunity to roam free outside. Bringing nature to the places where children spend their time is an answer. Well-designed nature play spaces are inviting and endlessly engaging for children AND good for the planet. With rich, inspiring images from around the world, author, educator, and landscape designer Nancy Striniste explains why and how to bring the beauty, adventure, and sustainability of nature play to backyards, schoolyards, churchyards, neighborhood parks, early childhood settings, and more. This Ecological Landscape Alliance webinar takes place December 14 from noon – 1 and is free for members, $10 for nonmembers. Register at https://www.ecolandscaping.org/event/webinar-creating-outdoor-spaces-that-connect-children-to-the-natural-world/

    Nancy Striniste, founder and principal designer at EarlySpace, LLC, has a unique background as both a landscape designer and an early childhood educator. From her Arlington, Virginia design office, she has worked with schools, childcare centers, municipalities, and organizations to create sustainably designed natural play and learning spaces and to teach educators and others about how to use the outdoors for teaching and learning.

  • Wreath of the Day – From the Archives, Begins Today

    Thanksgiving is behind us, today is Black Friday, the coronavirus is still with us, and we now turn our attention to The Garden Club of the Back Bay’s annual holiday wreath project, sadly cancelled in 2020 due to the pandemic. Club members and past purchasers were notified of this state of affairs in an October mailing, but we didn’t go into all the reasons behind our thinking. First and foremost was concern for the health of our volunteers. We make the wreaths in the basement of The First Lutheran Church of Boston, a venue where social distancing and proper ventilation would be challenging. As with all public spaces, we could not be assured the Church could rent to us if State or City guidelines became stricter as case numbers rise. Our volunteers are, in some instances, sheltering away from Back Bay. We always anticipate Wreath Week with excitement, and its loss in 2020 cuts deeply. Luckily we have a collection of photographs from years past, to bring some cheer and inspiration from now through the New Year.

    Generous members have contributed to bring these posts to you, and today we thank Nancy Devereaux, our director of site operations and able second-in-command bow maker, as our first Wreath of the Day sponsor. Contributions can be made at https://bostonflora.com/donate/ and we will be happy to acknowledge your support in a future post. All proceeds to our all volunteer organization go to the support of tree care and neighborhood beautification projects.

    Below is a wreath from 2008, hung outside the Church ready for delivery, with some of the address information edited out for privacy. We chose this image as an example of the many steps necessary before the wreath gets to the door – the production of the paperwork, the decorating in conformance to order specifications, the quality control, and the assignment to our drivers and driving assistants.

  • Tuesday, December 8, 2:30 pm – 4:00 pm – Untermyer Gardens, America’s Greatest Forgotten Garden Webinar

    Tuesday, December 8, 2:30 pm – 4:00 pm – Untermyer Gardens, America’s Greatest Forgotten Garden Webinar

    In 1916, New York City lawyer Samuel Untermyer tasked architect William Bosworth with designing the “finest garden in the world” on his cliffside estate in Yonkers, New York — he succeeded, and for 40 years, this 150-acre formal garden became a horticultural wonder of America, and the world. Though by the 1970s, one of America’s most beautiful green spaces had regressed into one of its most neglected, littered with abandoned buildings and crumbling ruins — any hints of its former greatness could only be found in local folklore.

    While many restoration efforts throughout the years were unsuccessful, the latest initiative has finally bucked the trend, and given the once-great garden a second life — this is the story of America’s greatest forgotten garden.

    Join New York Adventure Club for a virtual exploration of Untermyer Gardens, the formal gardens designed for Samuel Untermyer’s Greystone Estate in 1916, which became one of the most celebrated gardens in America.

    Led by Stephen F. Byrns, President and Founder of the Untermyer Gardens Conservancy, which began restoring Samuel Untermyer’s gardens in 2011, our unique digital showcase of this cliffside Persian “paradise” garden will include:

    • The story of Samuel Untermyer, the prominent New York lawyer and investor who purchased the Greystone Estate in an 1899 auction and transformed the grounds into one of the finest gardens in the world
    • An overview of Untermyer Gardens, from the 1916 design by Beaux-Arts architect Welles Bosworth, to its heyday when 60 full-time gardeners were on staff, to the successful modern restoration efforts after decades of failed revival initiatives
    • A virtual exploration of the stunning grounds including the Walled Garden‘s reflecting pools, mosaic pavements, and marble sphinxes; the Temple of Love‘s round temple on top of a rocky bluff and waterfall; and the jaw-dropping Vista, which features sweeping views of the Hudson River, framed by two 23-foot-tall Roman columns (believed to be the tallest ancient columns made from single stone chunks in the Western Hemisphere)

    Afterward, we’ll have a Q&A with Steve — any and all questions about Untermyer Gardens are welcomed and encouraged!

    Can’t make it live? Don’t worry, you’ll have access to the full replay for one week!

    See you there, virtually!

    *Immediately upon registering, you will receive a separate, automated email containing the link to join this webinar. $10. Register at https://www.nyadventureclub.com/event/untermyer-gardens-americas-greatest-forgotten-garden-webinar-registration-128544509087/

  • Happy Thanksgiving

    The Garden Club of the Back Bay wishes all a very Happy Thanksgiving. We hope you are able to connect with friends and family, in person or online, and sincerely cross our fingers that next year will be better.