Boston Flora

Month: August 2021

  • Wednesday, August 26, 6:00 pm – 7:00 pm – Adaptive Gardening for People 50 Plus, Online

    A lifelong love, or a newly discovered leisure activity of gardening, should not have to end as we age.  Gardening  provides exercise, stimulation, a sense of accomplishment, hope and many other benefits for mental and physical health.  Enjoying gardening late into life also helps people on fixed incomes to “stretch the pocketbook and tight budget” by growing food in a garden and keeping a healthy diet.  Join Deborah Krause, Horticulture Therapist, to learn how to make gardening more accessible depending on your physical abilities.  Learn about adaptations for limited mobility, arthritis, vision loss, or low stamina.  You will learn basics to get started or adapt your existing garden, including raised beds, container gardening, stools, pathways easy for walkers, canes or wheelchairs, adaptive tools, watering systems and growing nutritious food.  You will leave with creative solutions to stay comfortable, active and joyous.

    This August 26 webinar is free to attend thanks to the generous sponsorship by AARP Massachusetts. This webinar will be recorded and available to registrants for 1 month.  Register through Tower Hill Botanic Garden HERE.

    Deborah Krause is a Registered Horticultural Therapist. She is passionate about wellness and the therapeutic benefits of horticulture for people of all ages and abilities. Deborah has served in various capacities in the American Horticultural Therapy Association (AHTA) and the Northeast Horticultural Therapy Network (NEHTN), which she co-founded, and currently is on the Board of Directors. She developed the horticultural therapy program at Perkins School for the Blind and was the horticultural therapist and coordinator of the horticulture center there for 40 years. Deborah is the horticulture educator at the Memorial School Garden where students renovated a garden and grew produce to donate to food pantries. She consults with non profit organizations and programs to design and facilitate therapeutic and educational horticulture programs. Deborah’s popular classes for adults creating sensory rich seasonal flower and plant arrangements have focused on relaxation, stress reduction and positive thinking and she is honored and happy to bring this to Tower Hill.

  • Wednesday, September 1 – Saturday, September 4, 10:30 am – 2:45 pm – The Garden in Pastel

    Learn how to capture the splendor of Garden with the deep pigments that can only be found with pastels. This four session Berkshire Botanical Garden class, September 1 – 4 from 10:30 – 2:45 each day, is appropriate for beginners to intermediate students. A materials list will be provided upon registration. Students will work in-plein-air, learning the fundamentals of this medium before using it to rendering the late summer garden in all its glory. Instructor Cheryl Moore is an artist and educator who specializes in watercolor and oil pastel. She has more than 40 years of teaching experience working with children and adults. Cheryl holds a B.A. from Rhode Island School of Design and has trained in botanical art with Janet Walsh, Charles Reid, and Jack Flynn.

    $250 for BBG members, $300 for nonmembers. Register at https://www.berkshirebotanical.org/events/garden-pastel

  • Friday, August 27, 1:00 pm – 3:30 pm – Watercolor Painting: Bird Nests and Eggs

    Looking at real bird nests as inspiration will hone your observation skills. Create a watercolor painting on paper of a bird nest and eggs. No previous experience necessary. Drawing and painting demonstrations will be taught and practiced. Color theory and composition will be discussed. This Tower Hill Botanic Garden Class will take place August 27 from 1 – 3:30. All COVID protocols will be followed.

    Suzanne Hauerstein is a professional teaching artist and the Coordinator of Volunteer & Intern Services at Tower Hill. She has over 25 years of experience designing and facilitating art-based programs for informal learning environments. Suzanne is committed to creating programs that are accessible, positive, and enjoyable learning experiences for students of all ages and abilities.

    $40 Member Adult; $55 Adult (Registration includes admission to the Garden) Register HERE.

    1. All material for class is included
    2. Please note, there is currently construction happening at Tower Hill, which may result in altered or obstructed walkways, parking lots, or parking spaces, in addition to some noise.

  • Monday, August 30, 5:00 pm – 7:00 pm and 7:45 pm – 9:45 pm – Taste America: Boston

    The James Beard Foundation, as part of a ten city culinary series, makes a stop in Boston on August 30, with two seatings at 5 and 7:45. This is a national initiative to bring together chefs and diners from across the country to support local restaurants and rebuild a more sustainable and equitable industry.

    The dinner at Chickadee in the Seaport District will be an intimate gathering with safety regulations strictly enforced as mandated by the local governance. Chefs John daSilva and Stef Bui will prepare a three-course menu that reflects their signature style, and highlights the uniqueness of their restaurant and the Boston community. The dinner will also include beverage pairings for each course as well as a swag bag to take home. 65% of each ticket purchase goes directly to Chickadee to support their business and 35% will support the James Beard Foundation’s national programming, including the Open for Good campaign, which is its commitment to help independent restaurants survive the pandemic, rebuild better, and thrive for the long term.

    Corporate sponsorship courtesy of Capital One, and a list of other generous sponsors, the amazing menu, and ticket purchase link, may be found at www.jamesbeard.org. Questions? Email jbftaste@bowenandco.com. $300 per pair – single tickets not available, so bring a friend.

  • Online: A Behind the Scenes Tour of the National Trust Conservation Centre

    Great Britain’s Plant Conservation Centre is normally not open to the public and its actual location is a closely guarded secret! Watch this YouTube video (click HERE) for a tour of the National Trust’s Plant Conservation Centre. You’ll get a rare insight into the work the National Trust does to care for unusual and historic plant species. Discover rhododendrons from the Himalayas with a fascinating history and an azalea plant that was thought to be extinct. We protect and care for places so people and nature can thrive. Everyone can get involved, everyone can make a difference. Nature, beauty, history. For everyone, for ever. Free.

  • Through October 31 – AHS Virtual Art Show & Sale

    The American Horticultural Society invites you to its Virtual Art Show & Sale now through October. Browse a wide selection of garden and nature themed watercolor paintings from the artists of Salon 8. All of the artists share a passion for the natural world and a love of trying to capture it through the challenging medium of watercolor. All artists are members of Potomac Valley Watercolorist, a regional juried arts organization, and have exhibited locally, regionally and nationally. A portion of all sales benefits the American Horticultural Society’s national programs. Browse the offerings and bid online HERE.

  • Friday, August 27, 7:30 pm – 8:30 pm – Bats of the Berkshires

    Discover the mysterious world of bats. This Berkshire Botanical Garden program on August 27 at 7:30 pm, which includes a slideshow and walk, will introduce participants to the bats that live around us and what we can do to be better neighbors to these intriguing, winged mammals. Pre-registration is required. Presented in cooperation with Mass Audubon. BBG members $12, nonmembers $18. Register at https://www.berkshirebotanical.org/events/bats-berkshires

  • Saturday, August 28, 10:00 am – 1:30 pm – Weaving with Natural Materials

    On August 28 at Berkshire Botanical Garden, join fiber artist Jamie Goldenberg of Hart Textiles in Housatonic, MA, to explore the art of basket weaving. Create a small basket using foraged natural material and build the foundational knowledge you’ll need to begin creating vessels and sculptural pieces on your own. 

    Jamie Goldenberg is a textile artist based in Western Massachusetts. Informed by her background in art and cultivating native plants, she designs, dyes and weaves objects with narratives based in the natural world, but meant for the domestic realm. Her approach uses materials from a particular place to make pieces that reflect the experience of that environment. She was a 2016 resident of the Textile Arts Center in Brooklyn, an adjunct professor at the Parsons School of Design in NYC and co-founder of MUSE, a former textile mill turned artist space in Housatonic. She currently weaves and teaches in her studio in Housatonic. You can find her at www.harttextiles.net, and on Instagram: @harttextiles. BBG members $55, nonmembers $65.

    Register Now

  • Thursdays, August 26 – September 2, 6:00 pm – 8:00 pm – Houseplant Design Workshop, Online

    Do you prefer simple and clean or wild and lush? Whatever your preference, learn to use basic principles of repetition, symmetry, and color theory to blend your beloved collection of houseplants into a unified design. In this New York Botanical Garden online course, we will discuss a broad palette of plants, how to mix and match them, and how to select the best pots or shelves to complement your decor. Daryl Beyers is the instructor, and the two session class begins August 26 and ends September 2, from 6 – 8. $85. Register HERE. Registered students will receive log in instructions.

    NYBG’s Gardening Program Coordinator, Daryl Beyers, brings over 20 years’ experience designing residential gardens and private estates to NYBG. Daryl has gone from the self-described “the guy pushing the wheelbarrow” to the owner of his own design business and an accomplished garden writer. He’s a former editor at Fine Gardening, and his articles have been featured in HGTV Magazine and in Martha Stewart Living, where he also served as Contributing Editor.

  • Monday, August 30, 9:00 pm – 10:30 pm – Floriography – The Language of Flowers

    Illustrator Jessica Roux will discuss the Victorian language of flowers – a clandestine method of floral communication, on August 30 beginning at 9 pm, online. She will show beautiful illustrations of flowers and talk about their meanings.

    Jessica Roux is the author and illustrator of the book, Floriography: An Illustrated Guide to the Victorian Language of Flowers. Jessica is a Nashville-based freelance illustrator and plant and animal enthusiast. Using subdued colors and rhythmic shapes, she renders flora and fauna with intricate detail reminiscent of old-world beauty.

    Jessica has created illustrations for The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Pottermore, The New Yorker, The New York Times, Smithsonian Magazine, and more. Visit www.jessica-roux.com You must register for this event to receive the link to the WebEx virtual lecture. Register HERE. Sponsored by the Salt Lake County Library (and thus, the later start time for East Coast registrants.) Free.