Daily Archives: December 10, 2021


Wreath of the Day – History

In a “normal” year we would be beginning our Wreath of the Day features, highlighting our creations from the holiday Wreath Week project just wrapping up. For the second year in a row, that project has been put on hiatus due to COVID concerns. Celebrating our past achievements, however, is still possible. Hard to believe that the picture below was taken thirty years ago, in 1991, in Margaret Pokorny’s basement on Marlborough Street. It wasn’t even the first year of the project, either. Photos from that era are hard to come by. We had no sense of preserving an archive of what was at the time considered a hands-on craft project with a minor fundraising component. Starting out, we worked for two days, taking orders by telephone, and buyers picked up their purchases at Margaret’s. Over the next few decades we moved to a larger venue, The First Lutheran Church of Boston, organized purchasing by mail, newsletters, and ultimately online, maintained extensive databases, and set up a delivery system. Numbers of volunteers grew, and the project expanded from two days to four and one half days of active work, with preparation tasks beginning in October. The essence of the project, however, remained the same – friendship and neighborhood beautification.


Saturday, December 18 – Christmas Bird Count, Live and Online

Join the Christmas Bird Count on December 18, the longest continuously running bird data event in the area. Contact Dave Small for additional information and to participate in this nationwide annual event: 978-413-1772 or Dave@atholbirdclub.org  Covid-19 rules are in effect National Audubon has issued guidelines which ABNC will use.  Then, enjoy the Christmas Bird Count Wrap-up and Party, online. Join us as we find out the preliminary results of the Annual Christmas Bird Count. An informal group discussion and meeting. Find out what unusual birds were seen during the days’ count. 

You are invited to a Zoom meeting. When: Dec 18, 2021 05:00 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada)
Register in advance for this meeting: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZEkd-iorj8sE9wnkJnlGODdr5O6n1tsjP-D  After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.

up party

National Capital Dahlia Society 2022 Calendar

National Capital Dahlia Society is now offering its third annual dahlia calendar, with more than 20 beautiful photos of dahlias and additional dahlia related photos – available for individual orders and for group sales for groups wishing to offer them to members.

A team of dahlia photographers, artists, and computer photo specialists reviewed thousands of photos to select beautiful dahlia photos and present them in pleasing ways.  A top layout specialist and printing group in Europe put the package together to develop a stunning calendar.  The initiative for this project was to raise funds to help support the 2022 ADS National Show, which NCDS will host in Reston, Virginia.

Pricing for the calendar sent to a U.S. address is as follows:

  • Individual sales (minimum purchase of two calendars to nine calendars) are $10 each plus $8 for priority mail postage.  (Minimum of 2 calendars to ship.) 
  • Small group orders are $8 each for 10 to 24 calendars, plus $15.50 for priority mail shipping. 
  • For 25 or more calendars, the price is $7 each plus $15.50 shipping for up to 50 calendars, or $22 shipping for larger orders that require a large priority mail fixed price carton. 

To order the NCDS calendar, send an E-mail to Alan Fisher.  Please put “2022 Dahlia Calendar” in the subject box.  Do not send money until you receive a confirmation/reply. To see sample photos from the calendar, follow the link here or go to nationalcapitaldahlia.org.  

Photo by Margaret Roper