Daily Archives: October 29, 2022

Wednesday, November 2, 12:00 noon – 1:00 pm – Not in My Front Yard: Social-Aesthetic Barriers to Green Infrastructure in the Public Realm, Online

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Landscape designers nationwide believe in the many benefits of green stormwater infrastructure (GSI); but, for this strategy to succeed, the public must want these installations in their yards, parks, schools, and neighborhood streets. This Ecological Landscape Alliance online session on November 2 presents a study of public reactions to the appearance of GSI, focusing on rain garden installation within the municipal streetscape – technically a “public” space, but perceived by homeowners as part of their front yards. Public resistance to streetscape rain gardens can be found across the U.S. Some residents regard these rain gardens as “ugly pits,” while others think they “look great.” A community’s appreciation for rain gardens is critical to their cultural sustainability: negative reactions can stall and prevent implementation. The study interviews designers and municipal program managers of green streets projects in Kansas City, Missouri, and Montgomery County, Maryland, and builds upon existing research and theory transecting the fields of landscape architecture and environmental behavior. Data analysis reveals the drivers of public concern regarding appearance and potential design and participatory strategies. Register HERE.

Presenter Kate Cholakis is conducting research examining the intersections of sustainable stormwater management, landscape perception, and environmental behavior through the MSLA program at Penn State University. She teaches ecological design and planning within the Conway School’s graduate program, and her professional practice experience involves green infrastructure planning and design and ecological approaches to land management. Ms. Cholakis earned her BA in Architecture from Smith College and MA from the Conway School. She is a LEED Green Associate. Presenter Eliza Pennypacker is a Professor of Landscape Architecture at Penn State University. Since 2005 she has conducted research with Stuart Echols on “Artful Rainwater Design”: sustainable stormwater management that celebrates the rain in a way that is entertaining and enlightening. She and Echols have presented and published extensively on the subject, including their 2015 book, Artful Rainwater Design: Creative Ways to Manage Stormwater (Island Press).

Wednesday, November 9, 7:00 pm – Birding in the Land of the Midnight Sun, Live and Online

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On November 9 at 7 pm, The Athol Bird & Nature Club will host naturalist and birder Jeff Blanchard who will speak on Birding in the Land of the Midnight Sun. Participants can watch at the Environmental Center in Athol or online via Zoom. Free. The event will be held at the Millers River Environmental Center, 100 Main Street, Athol. To register for the Zoom link, email Dave@dhsmall.net, or visit www.atholbirdclub.org

Saturday, November 12 or Sunday, November 20, 3:00 pm – 5:00 pm – Therapeutic Horticulture: Festive Cornucopia

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Take deep breaths, slow down and leave your “to do” list behind.  Experience the therapeutic benefits of horticulture while creating a seasonal cornucopia arrangement.  The cornucopia, also called the horn of plenty, symbolizes abundance and nourishment, and is traditionally a horn-shaped container overflowing with produce and flowers.  You can choose to design your cornucopia with a rich variety of colorful and fragrant autumn flowers, berries, wheat, herbs and ornamental grasses. Feel calm and refreshed with positive energy by focusing on being in the moment and engaging each of your five senses one at a time – sight, touch, sound, smell and taste – while interacting with sensory rich plant materials.

This New England Botanic Garden at Tower Hill class will include an overview of the therapeutic benefits and power of horticulture to understand why and how it can be used personally, and for people of all ages and abilities.  We will discuss the difference between therapeutic horticulture and horticultural therapy.  You will learn about benefits including increased relaxation, decreased anxiety, stress relief, sensory stimulation, hope, improved cognitive abilities, engagement in life, connectedness, and physical exercise.  It will be clear how plants and the natural world give you support when life gets overwhelmingly busy or stressful.   We will spend approximately 40 minutes delving into this.

You will spend approximately 80 minutes designing and making a unique medium size festive arrangement in a cornucopia basket. You can place it on your Thanksgiving table, or other welcoming space in your home like the kitchen, family room, mantel or front hallway.  Your arrangement can also make a lovely gift.  Join Deborah Krause, Horticultural Therapist, in these relaxing sessions where you may leave with a smile, feeling of calm and peace, and pride in your creation.

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. She 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. Deborah 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. She is currently a Program Coordinator at The Nature Connection whose mission is to improve the wellbeing of individuals and communities through the therapeutic use of nature. Deborah is the horticulture educator at the Memorial Spaulding School Garden where students grow produce to donate to food pantries. She presents webinars for AARP on adaptive gardening as we age.  Deborah consults with non-profit organizations to design and facilitate therapeutic and educational horticulture and nature 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 continue to bring this to Tower Hill.

$70 Member Adult; $85 Adult (Registration includes admission to the Garden) All materials are provided. Register at www.nebg.org