Three life-size bronze portrait busts — of Leonardo da Vinci, Confucius, and Hypatia of Alexandria — are now on view in the garden of the King Hooper Mansion, 8 Hooper Street in Marblehead, home to the Marblehead Arts Association. Created by the artist to honor the human capacity for thought, the series invites reflection on our innate ability to reason, imagine, and shape the world — just as these great thinkers once did. Their lives exemplify the profound personal and collective transformations made possible through deep inquiry. This exhibit, on view though October 1, is generously supported by Landry & Acari. For more information, visit https://www.studiojonathansherman.com/visit-the-sculpture-exhibit
Join the Native Land Conservancy for a land care event at Tall Pines, now called Qâqunôhqus8ee K8âut in Centerville, Massachusetts on Wednesday, July 16 from 9 am – noon. We will be doing general clean up and trail maintenance. We are starting early and ending before lunch to avoid the heat of the day. Bring your sunscreen, bug spray, and hand tools if you have them. NLC will provide light refreshments, tools, and supplies. Meet at the Cape Cod Chamber parking lot, 5 Patti Page Way in Centerville. Register to join at bit.ly/NLCPines
The Polly Hill Arboretum, 795 State Road in West Tisbury, presents Matthew Ross on July 16, speaking on Asylum to Asylum: The Story of The Botanic Garden at Historic Barns Park, as part of the Annual Lisina and Frank W. Hoch Memorial Lecture. Matthew Ross, Executive Director of The Botanic Garden at Historic Barns Park will share insight into the role of horticulture in our well being through the story of the Northern Michigan Asylum. Over the past ten years, the historic farm has transformed from abandoned buildings and fields of invasive plants into an emerging botanical garden with over 12 feature gardens. The garden is reviving the philosophy that “Beauty is therapy” first practiced at the Asylum in the 1880s and has developed therapeutic programs for cancer patients, installed an Anishinabek Medicine Wheel and Foraging Meadow, and a 10,000 brick Labyrinth. He will also discuss how the garden has evolved from a design perspective and highlight particular plants of interest within its living collection.
Matthew Ross oversees the 26-acre Botanical Garden which was founded by visionaries Kurt and Karen Schmidt and a team of volunteers on the site of the Northern Michigan Asylum Farm which was operational 1885 – 1957. Prior to coming home to Michigan, Matthew was the Director of Continuing Education at Longwood Gardens, a college instructor at Owens Community College, and chief Horticulturist at Toledo Botanic Garden. He is a proud graduate of Michigan State University where he received a B.S and M.S. in Horticultural Science with an emphasis on Landscape Design Construction Management and Urban Forestry respectively. He is a well-respected public garden professional that spends his spare time kayaking, hiking, and exploring botanical gardens around the world.
Please pre-register, Sign Up Here. $10 for PHA members, $15 for nonmembers.
Nostalgia for the English countryside is common, but what of the English city? Urban Nostalgia is, for many, a desire for a city that once was. The Garden Museum will present a panel discussion online on July 15 at 12:00 noon Eastern time.
Where could we locate the accounts of the cattails or arrowheads that sat beside the Pudding Mill River, or the trees that populated the Clay Lane Estate and the Eastway Cycle Circuit – places that were lost in the development of the Olympic Park? Whilst children play on the re-landscaped Eythorne Park, would they believe the stories of the hills that once stood where they play?
Part II invites attendees to explore the etymology of the term and its validity today. With gentrification changing the soundscape and landscape of the city, Urban Nostalgia beckons for us in the city to remember sights, smells, tastes and noises that bring forth experiences of old.
Speakers include Dehlia Snoussi, Curator (Contemporary London) at the London Museum; author, curator and musician Gabriel Dedji, and Garden Museum Director Christopher Woodward. £10 Livestream. Register at www.gardenmuseum.org.uk/
Most tasks associated with land care maintenance are mowing, pruning, and weeding. Landscapes that encourage natural systems such as the growth of a plant community, are more complex and require management that understands ecological principles and natural processes. For example, the use of low growing native plants is terrific for reducing areas of lawn. To allow them to establish, raising the level of the mower blade still cuts the grass and leaves the plants to proliferate. Marie Chieppo will discuss case studies that provide a new meaning to the role of maintenance and how together with management we can steer our properties into a more naturally-based trajectory of growth. This Ecological Landscape Alliance Webinar will take place July 10 at 6 pm Eastern. You may register at https://www.ecolandscaping.org/new-events-calendar/.
Marie Chieppo is a passionate advocate for the environment. Now in her 28th year of practice as an organic gardener and ecological landscape designer, her passion is working with clients and the public to discover the value of partnering with nature. She encourages sustainability in every aspect of her work, including the use of alternative materials to plastic containers. Marie is a member of ELA’s Education Committee and an avid instructor for many organizations.
Join Historic New England at the Sarah Orne Jewett House, 5 Portland Street in South Berwick, Maine on Joly 10 from 5 – 7 for an opening reception of our new exhibition!
In partnership with the Dover Arts Commission, this summer’s gallery exhibition at the Sarah Orne Jewett House is A Seacoast Garden. This exhibition is inspired by the new collections going on displayed at Hamilton House. This new display examines Elise Tyson’s early 20th century photography of the Hamilton House Gardens and her floral arrangements. Tyson found inspiration for her photography and art in her garden and others along the seacoasts of Maine and New Hampshire. Elise was inspired by the beauty and uniqueness she found in these gardens. A Seacoast Garden weaves together the works of local artists that are interpretations or are inspired by the local seacoast gardens of today with Elise Tyson’s garden photographs. Together, this exhibition examens the unique beauty of seacoast gardens and the purposes they serve today and in the past.
Free. Please call (207) 384-2454 for more information.
Join the Friends of the Public Garden for a Summer Celebration on Brewer Plaza on Thursday, July 10, from 12 – 2. Enjoy complimentary sandwiches, frozen treats, and live music from the Good Trouble Brass Band. Embrace the summertime vibes – no registration required.
Have fun, explore, and learn outdoors and inside at Discovery Museum’s free Nature Play Festival on July 11 at 11 – 7! We will gather with our community and local businesses to offer immersive nature-based activities throughout our campus including Invasive Plant Papermaking, Mud Kitchen, Bug Hunts, Log and Rock Flipping, and so much more. The Museum is located at 177 Main Street, Acton, Massachusetts. https://www.discoveryacton.org/events-programs/nature-play-festival-free
Explore our inclusive, accessible, and giant Treehouse and Discovery Woods nature playscape, and take a guided Nature Walk on the conservation land that abuts our campus. The fun will continue indoors with our STEM-based galleries and hands-on activities.
There will be food, music, and fun as we connect with nature and appreciate the wonderful planet we all call home. Free admission for all. Rain or shine.
Slice herbs into gossamer threads and mix heirloom curry blends in hands-on cooking classes dedicated to Nyonya Peranakan culture; sample sun-fermented soy sauces; visit a nutmeg and durian farm; taste seafood that’s just been caught; slurp bowls of aromatic noodle soup at a daily market; dine at high-end restaurants and street vendor hawker stalls; tour UNESCO World Heritage sites. This Milk Street trip to Penang, Malaysia is scheduled for June 21 – 28, 2026, with an alternate option of July 2 – 9, 2026. You will travel with Captain Hoo Peng Poh and Linda Tay Esposito. You will enjoy the iconic noodle soup of Malaysia, laksa; hyper-local tropical fruits; chicken curries; intricate rice pilafs layered with ginger, herbs and blue pea flowers; multiple versions of roti; fresh coconut water you extract yourself; buttery love letter cookies; enormous, lacy flatbreads called roti; robust Malaysian coffee served with toast, jam and eggs. Per person cost is $6,750, with a single room supplement of $1,000. For complete information visit www.177milkstreet.com
Hydrangeas are some of the most striking flowering shrubs, from the size and color of their inflorescences to their lengthy flowering times. However, there is much confusion regarding water and soil requirements, sun exposure, fertilization, and pruning of these colorful shrubs. The Massachusetts Horticultural Society sponsors a walk through the gardens on July 13 starting at 10 am and participants will visit many cultivars of common species in New England: macrophylla (Big Leaf), arborescens (Smooth), paniculata (Paniculate), quercifolia (Oak Leaf). A handout will provide information for the proper care of the different species and a listing of the plants visited.
For over 25 years in San Francisco and Boston, Reed Pugh has worked in multiple nurseries; had his own design, installation, and maintenance businesses on both coasts; managed a 30-acre historic private estate in Brookline; and managed one of the top fine-gardening companies in New England. Currently, he focuses his passion on working individually with people in their gardens and showing them how to make their gardens and landscapes beautiful through inspiration, knowledge, and proper care with his company, Barking Dog Gardens. $40 for Mass Hort members, $56 for nonmembers. Register at https://www.cognitoforms.com/MassachusettsHorticulturalSociety/_250713Hydrangeas101
