Boston Community Gardens and The Food Project present Winter Workshops in the Greenhouse. On February 5, investigate Winter Sowing at the Dudley Greenhouse, 11 Brook Avenue in Roxbury. Prepare for spring planting with vegetables, perennials, and annuals. By using recycled milk jugs, seeds are able to be placed outdoors early. Come learn how. For more information visit https://thetrustees.org/
While Innisfree Garden’s many bats are rarely seen by visitors, as the garden is not often open in the evening, the garden’s diverse habitat could support as many as nine species native to New York State. These fascinating nocturnal animals play an important role in healthy ecosystems, and Innisfree is glad to provide them with a safe place to live.
Join Hudsonia biologist and educator Amanda Bevan Zientek on January 29 at 1 pm Eastern for a virtual lecture that sheds light on these often-misunderstood creatures. Amanda will discuss the lives, habits, and ecological importance of bats, including several of the species that call Innisfree and the wider surrounding area home, as well as the challenges bats face today. The next time you attend an evening event at Innisfree, you may find yourself with a new appreciation for those shadowy shapes fluttering overhead.
This lecture is being held virtually via Zoom and will be available to view live or later as a recorded session.
$35 non-members; $25 members. Register at https://www.innisfreegarden.org/events/bats-2026
The fifth talk in The Gardens Trust’s online six part course in partnership with FOLAR showcasing women pioneers takes place February 11, individual tickets £8 (members £6). Register through Eventbrite HERE. Attendees will be sent a Zoom link 2 days prior to the start of the talk, and again a few hours before the talk A link to the recorded session will be sent shortly after each session and will be available for 2 weeks.
Building on FOLAR’s popular series of Women in Landscape, this new collection of talks brings together insights into the motivations and work of three leading contemporary landscape designers and their teams, alongside stories celebrating the lives and achievements of earlier pioneers.
Each of these women has pushed boundaries to improve the lives of others. Some have studied and worked in the UK before adapting their knowledge and ideas to suit the unique contexts of their home countries – an exciting process of creative cross-pollination.
Every generation needs its pioneers, those who make lasting, and at times radical, changes, and who also inspire others to think boldly and act with confidence. Throughout the history of landscape design, there have always been people whose ideas and work transform the way we understand and shape our environments.
As with FOLAR’s previous series, these talks aim to showcase some of the most inspiring people, projects, and ideas in the field — past and present. Talk 5. 11th February: Building the Swedish Welfare Landscapes c. 1930–1960 with Catharina Nolin
This talk introduces Inger Wedborn and Sylvia Gibson who both trained at Swanley, and Ulla Bodorff, who trained at Reading. Through their projects, writings, and other professional activities, Catharina want to highlight their contributions to the Swedish welfare landscapes. She will also show their relation to British colleagues and their engagement with the ILA and IFLA
Catharina Nolin is a professor of Art History at Stockholm University. She has published extensively on Swedish nineteenth and twentieth century garden history and landscape architecture, especially urban parks (thesis), the gardens of architect Lars Israel Wahlman, historiography, and most recently on women landscape architects, c. 1900–1950.
This immersive experience returns to Franklin Park Zoo’s Tropical Forest Pavilion, spotlighting stunning orchids from habitats around the world, .
Cabinets of Curiosity
Take a trip back in time to the Victorian Era, where early nature enthusiasts displayed plants, shells, feathers, fossils, and other wonders in curiosity cabinets. Uniting rare orchids, repurposed furniture, fascinating biofacts and vibrant plant life, Orchid Adventure blends conservation history with a gorgeous visual aesthetic.
Orchids & Animals
Orchid species from the animals’ native regions will be displayed alongside their habitats—highlighting the role of biodiversity in healthy ecosystems. Look for Asian orchids near Jye the clouded leopard, African species near lemurs, pygmy hippos, and gorillas, and Central American orchids alongside the tapir, giant anteater, and cotton-top tamarins.
Tours, Take-Home & Hands-On Fun
Explore this botanical wonderland with guided orchid tours, scavenger hunt, and hands-on orchid mounting workshops led by our Horticulture team. Want to take one home? Don’t miss the orchid sale on Sunday, March 8.
For ticket information and details visit https://www.zoonewengland.org/engage/orchid-adventure/
This Innisfree Garden intensive six-part virtual series is designed for gardeners and landscape stewards who want to go beyond surface-level advice and build durable skills for creating healthier, more resilient landscapes.
Led by horticulturist Brad Roeller, each session combines structured teaching with generous time for Q&A—so participants can bring real site challenges, plant problems, and design questions into the conversation.
Pick and choose the sessions you’d like to attend—or sign up for the complete series at a discounted price.
Thursday, February 5 — Site Analysis & Plant Selection
Thursday, February 12 — Planting and Maintaining Trees and Shrubs
Thursday, February 19 — Creating and Maintaining a Perennial Garden
Wednesday, February 25 — Pruning: Why, When, and How
Thursday, March 5 — Integrated Pest Management and Plant Health Care
Thursday, March 12 — Environmental Stewardship in Landscaping Choices
$40 per session for Innisfree members, $45 for nonmembers; $200 for entire series for members, $250 for nonmembers. Register at https://www.innisfreegarden.org/essential-skills-for-sustainable-landscapes
For the first seasonal tour of the Polly Hill Arboretum in Martha’s Vineyard of 2026, take a walk through the Arboretum Woods with PHA Director of Grounds & Facilities, Ian Jochems. Ian will discuss basic tree identification; a primer for his in-depth Winter Tree ID workshop on February 21! The walk is included with the $5 admission fee (free for PHA members). Meet at the Arboretum Visitors Center.
Immerse in a weekend of curated films and one-of-a-kind Grace Farms site experiences in New Canaan, Connecticut on January 30 – 31, designed to honor the pivotal moment when one person commits to designing and building for the benefit of humankind and the Earth. Watch stories of bold, genius dreamers who put seemingly impossible ideas into action in the fields of architecture and design, and enjoy moments to reflect on your own journey through food, music, yoga, and guided walks.
Opening night of the film festival on January 30 will feature an evening film and conversation with inspiring themes that will echo throughout the next day. Grace Farms Members are invited to a casual reception on Friday to meet the directors and connect with fellow members.
Spend the day at Grace Farms on Saturday, January 31, with films and Q&As spread among three spaces in the River building and Barns, and food available for purchase. Throughout the day there will be additional opportunities to join a guided winter walk organized with New York Botanical Garden, Yoga and Movement with Pilin Anice, and a design session with Slade Architecture.
This year’s films have been curated by co-Festival Directors Kyle Bergman and Toshihiro Oki. The special partnership between the two organizations is grounded in the spirit of bringing the worlds of films, architecture and community together in a setting for creating new discussions and outcomes.
Special thanks to New York Botanical Garden. For tickets and complete schedule visit www.gracefarms.org
The Guild of Berkshire Artists Juried Member Show, ‘Flora/Fauna/Form’ will run February 13 – 29 at The Berkshire Botanical Garden, and the opening reception is scheduled for February 13 from 4 – 6. In this juried exhibition in the Leonhardt Galleries, artists explore the myriad ways flora and fauna take shape and inspire creativity. From delicate textures to bold palettes, from nature’s subtle elegance to its raw power, each piece reflects a unique perspective on the natural world. Is it the fragility of life or the complexity of ecosystems that captivates the artist? Through drawing, painting, sculpture, mixed media, photography, textiles, glass, and ceramics, these works celebrate both the beauty and the mystery of the living world. The result is a vibrant, diverse collection that invites viewers to see nature anew.
The winter garden is a truly low maintenance affair and a time to enjoy – no weeding, no watering and no deadheading! The winter landscape may be quiescent, but the garden need not be bleak. Plants with brightly colored berries, twigs, stems, foliage and even winter-blooming flowers shrug off the snow and cold. Landscape horticulturist Warren Leach, author of Plants for the Winter Garden, will showcase gardens he has designed that celebrate the winter season as well as planting design ideas for your own garden.
Warren Leach is a passionate plant collector, nurseryman, horticulturist, and landscape designer with a depth of knowledge of all garden plants including perennials, tropical, temperate and woody plants. For more than 35 years, Leach has been creating landscapes throughout New England as well as making captivating and education display gardens at Tranquil Lake Nursery in Rehoboth, MA. Leach is an award-winning landscape designer and has taught horticulture and landscape design at numerous horticultural institutions.
Join AHS Live online on January 22 at 7 pm Eastern to hear Warren. $15 AHS members, $20 nonmembers. Sign up HERE.
Save the date! David Culp’s world famous Galanthus Gala, featuring three superb lectures and a wide variety of vendors selling an incredible array of plants. Visit http://brandywine-cottage.square.site/ to register. Tickets are on sale now. The event takes place at the Friends Meeting House, 800 East Lancaster Avenue in Downingtown, Pennsylvania, but there is a virtual happy hour and lecture on February 27 and a virtual live auction and talk on February 28 with David Culp himself.
