Month: March 2024
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Wednesday, April 10, 7:00 pm – 8:30 pm Eastern – Discussing Resilient Landscapes with Trevor Smith, Online
Trevor Smith, Design and Education Manager at Weston Nurseries, will take you past the scary numbers and the heartbreaking photographs and break out what sorts of things you can actually do about climate change in your landscape practice and design. He will discuss the plant-soil connection, the importance of biodiversity and overall, how native plants help the climate via hydrology, habitat, and restoring carbon cycling. The choices we make today have a great impact on tomorrow. Choose wisely. Register for the free April 10 Massachusetts Pollinator Network webinar HERE.
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Wednesday, April 10, 7:00 pm Eastern – Fine-Tuned for Performance: How Migratory Bird Bodies Enable Incredible Feats of Endurance, Live and Online
Dr. Cory Elowe will describe some of the research that shows the incredible ways that migratory birds seasonally change their bodies to allow them to make the perilous trip from their wintering grounds to their breeding grounds and back. He will also talk about how the environment plays a role in shaping how successful they’ll be and why conservation efforts and physiology research go hand-in-hand. This program on April 10 at 7 pm Eastern is sponsored by the Athol Bird & Nature Club. Register in advance for this webinar: https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_snWtv2xXTZObEdmAANuJgg After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar.
Dr. Elowe is a postdoctoral research associate in the Biology Department at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, having earned his Ph.D. 2016-2022. As an undergraduate he attended Bowdoin College in Maine, and then earned his M.S. at California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo.
Growing up in central Maine, Cory spent a lot of time outdoors, exploring the woods around the house and trying (in vain) to get the winter birds to eat out of his hands. His father was a state wildlife biologist, so for Cory it seemed completely normal to have close encounters with wild animals regularly. An interest in biology was a part of his childhood. Cory is active in local bird clubs, an avid birder, and a regular contributor to eBird. Although he loves birds, the river otter will always be his favorite animal.
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Tuesday, April 16, 5:00 am – 6:30 am Eastern (but recorded) – History of Gardens: Elizabethan Gardens, Online
This five week online course from the Gardens Trust will be suitable for anyone curious about gardens and their stories – whether absolute beginners or those with some garden history knowledge. Running from April 14 – May 14, the course aims to help participants recognize important eras, themes and styles in mainly British garden history from the earliest times to today, grasp something of the social, economic, political and international contexts in which gardens have been created and find greater pleasure in visiting historic gardens. You can sign up for whole series or dip into individual talks. There will be opportunities to discuss issues with speakers after each talk, and short reading lists for further exploration.
Week One on April 16 is Elizabethan Gardens with Jill Francis. From the magnificent gardens of the Queen’s Royal palaces to the fabulous show gardens of her courtiers which acted as a backdrop to elaborate entertainments, to the creation of the gardens of the gentry, to the productive plots of land that would have surrounded all but the smallest of dwellings, Elizabethan gardens were characterized by symmetry, proportion and harmony, in tune with the relative peace and prosperity of the age. This talk will explore a range of gardens right across the social spectrum, looking at how they were created, how they were used and how they reflected the social status of their owners.
Jill Francis is an early modern historian, specializing in gardens and gardening in the late-sixteenth and early-seventeenth centuries. She was awarded her PhD in 2011 by the University of Birmingham where she teaches as a visiting lecturer for both the Centre for Midlands History and Cultures and contributes to the Winterbourne House and Gardens program of activities. She is an occasional lecturer in a variety of Garden History fora and is now specifically involved with delivering the online program for the Gardens Trust. She also works at the Shakespeare Institute Library in Stratford-upon-Avon. Her book, Gardens and Gardening in Early Modern England and Wales, was published by Yale University Press in June 2018.
For tickets, visit www.eventbrite.co.uk Ticket holders can join each session live or view a recording for up to 2 weeks afterwards. £8 each or all 5 for £35 (Gardens Trust members £6 each or all 5 for £26.25) Attendees will be sent a Zoom link 2 days (and again a few hours) prior to the start of the first talk (If you do not receive this link please contact us), and a link to the recorded session will be sent shortly after each session and will be available for 2 weeks.
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Thursday, April 4, 1:00 pm – 4:00 pm – Vernal Mustards
Members of the mustard family (Brassicaceae), both native and introduced, are among the earliest flowers to bloom in the spring. Using images and herbarium specimens, this Native Plant Trust presentation by Ted Elliman at Garden in the Woods on April 4 from 1 – 4 will discuss the identification features and habitats of a number of the species in this confusing and often overlooked group of wildflowers, including species of Arabidopsis, Boechera, Brassica, Cardamine, Draba, Lepidium, and several other mustard genera. $45 for NPT members, $54 for nonmembers. Register at http://www.nativeplanttrust.org/events/vernal-mustards/
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Friday, April 12, 1:00 pm – 3:00 pm Eastern – Garden Design: Color, Texture, Shapes, and Layers, Online
The excitement and wonder of a colorful garden grab our attention and imprints its beauty on our memory. While color attracts us and stimulates our imagination, it also confounds many of us. We will explore our relationship to color, the garden dynamics that affect it, and how creating successful color combinations is strengthened by incorporating texture and shape throughout the layers of our gardens. This American Horticultural Society online talk will take place April 12 from 1 – 3. $30 AHS members, $40 nonmembers. Register at ahsgardening.org
Cheryl Salatino is a New England based landscape designer, educator, and native plant enthusiast. She started Dancing Shadows Garden Design twenty years ago to offer clients a more thoughtful and purposeful design aesthetic. What continues to inspire this designer is how the beauty and value of nature endlessly challenge, surprise, and teach us. Salatino received her certificate in landscape design from the Radcliffe Seminars Landscape Design Program of Harvard University. She has earned the status of Massachusetts Certified Horticulturist by the MA Nursery & Landscape Association and completed the UMASS Green School program in Landscape Management. She has also earned an Advanced Certificate in Horticulture and Design as part of the Native Plant Trust educational certificate program.
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Tuesday, April 2, 1:00 pm – 2:00 pm – From Scraps to Scrumptious: Earth Month Upcycling Cooking Demonstration
The Boston University Food & Wine Program, with BU Dining, presents this free program on Tuesday, April 2 from 1 – 2 at 808 Commonwealth Avenue, Room 124 in Brookline. The event offers quick lessons in how to turn food you might throw out into great meals. Chef Chris Bee, BU’s Campus Culinary Director, will demonstrate recipes and guests will get to sample them. Be inspired to help end the global crisis of food waste and enjoy delicious up-cycled food. Register on Eventbrite HERE.
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Tuesday, April 9, 3:00 pm – 4:15 pm Eastern – Native “Weeds” as Beneficial Workhorses, Online
Gardeners spend countless hours pulling weeds. Some of these, however, are native plants that in the context of ecological gardening, could just as easily be treated as landscaping allies. These tough, often self-sufficient plants can suppress much worse weeds, control erosion, and provide significant habitat value. In the right setting, these plants can be surprisingly ornamental, both as individuals and as contributors to an overall garden composition. Maybe best of all, they often show up for free. By acquiring information on their benefits and learning how to plant or manage them, we can turn these “problem plants” into welcome partners in the naturalized landscape. Ethan Dropkin will present a Zoom presentation on April 9 at 3 pm, and the session will be recorded and viewable to registrants for three months after the live session date. $42. Register at https://learning.ndal.org/courses/weeds-as-workhorses-2024
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Saturday, March 30, 10:00 am – 1:00 pm – Spring Hoppening
Berkshire Botanical Garden begins its 90th season festivities with its second annual Spring Hoppening on Saturday, March 30, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Highlights of the event include egg hunts, a story walk, crafts, pony rides, games, food trucks, drinks, and opportunities to have photos taken with a rather large and friendly bunny. The Garden’s gift shop will be open with garden items for sale
At 10:30 a.m. the first of three egg hunts begins for children 3 and under, followed at 10:45 a.m. with an egg hunt for ages 3 to 6. At 11 a.m. the egg hunt for children of ages 7 through 12 begins. Older children are welcome to come help their younger siblings/friends.
Spring Hoppening is sponsored by the Kinney Family and Lee Bank.
Admission is $10 per person for members, $15 for non-members. Free admission for all children under the age of 4. Become a member here!
Registration is recommended. https://www.berkshirebotanical.org/events/spring-hoppening
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Thursday, April 4, 6:45 pm – 8:00 pm Eastern – Not the End of the World: The Beginning of a Better Future, Online
In today’s world, it is easy to become consumed by anxiety and despair when contemplating the future of our planet. With climate change seemingly spiraling out of control, it’s become common to forewarn younger generations that the Earth is on the brink of destruction.
Author Hannah Ritchie challenges this prevailing narrative in her new book, Not the End of the World: How We Can Be the First Generation to Build a Sustainable Planet. She argues that a more optimistic outlook emerges when we step back and consider the progress that humanity has achieved throughout history. Her mission is not to conduct groundbreaking studies or make scientific breakthroughs, but to synthesize and convey the wealth of existing scientific knowledge and data.
Drawing from the latest research and offering practical guidance, Ritchie illustrates that with a little optimism and proactive lifestyle changes, we can be the first generation to pave the way for a sustainable world. She discusses critical topics including air pollution and breathing clean air; deforestation and seeing the world for the trees; biodiversity loss and protecting the world’s wildlife; overfishing and pillaging the oceans; and others.
Like the Smithsonian’s Earth Optimism Initiative, which was created to shine a light on the people who are developing sustainable solutions that preserve nature as well as our own well-being, Ritchie advocates that with active change, it may not be the end of the world, but the beginning of a better future. Ritchie is the deputy editor and lead researcher of the online scientific publication Our World in Data. $20 for Smithsonian Associates members $25 for nonmembers. Register at www.smithsonianassociates.org
