Boston Flora

Category: Field Trip

  • Saturday, May 8, 11:00 am – 4:00 pm – Draft Horse Plow Day

    While we’re still on the topic of sheep shearing, come to the Spencer-Peirce Little Farm in Newbury, Massachusetts on Saturday, May 8, from 11 – 4, if you’re not already headed down to Rhode Island to Watson Farm, and watch teams of draft horses and mules from throughout New England participate in plowing demonstrations as part of this annual event.  learn how horses are harnessed, hitched, and cared for.  Watch the – you guessed it – sheep shearing and see how the wool is washed, carded, and spun into yarn.  Enjoy horse-drawn wagon rides, farm animals, blacksmithing demonstrations, children’s crafts and games.  Listen to fiddle music from E. J. Ouelette and watch a puppet show by Martha Dana.  Free to Historic New England members, $6 nonmember adults, $4 children.  Call 978-462-2634, or log on to www.historicnewengland.org.

    http://www.wired.com/images/article/full/2008/09/iron_horse_wins_500px.jpg

  • Saturday, May 1, 10:00 am and 2:00 pm – Blossom Bike Tours with Earthworks

    EarthWorks is pleased to announce they will be taking another chance with an orchard bike tour this spring! After being successfully rained out of the fall orchard tour, they are planning a Blossom Bike Tour to visit six urban orchards in several Boston neighborhoods! Be prepared for some urban biking with minimal hills and a great opportunity to preview where delicious fresh fruit will be ripe for the picking throughout the summer and fall. The EarthWorks staff will guide the tour and point out the variety of sumptuous fruit growing just outside your door! Please join then on Saturday May 1st (rain date Sunday May 2nd) at 10 am or 2 pm, leaving from the Stonybrook T Station during the Wake Up the Earth Festival! Come with your own bike and helmet, and they’ll provide the rest! Families are strongly encouraged to attend, but all minors must be accompanied by an adult. Contact Ruby with any questions or to register: ruby@earthworksboston.org.

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  • Saturday, May 1, 10:00 am – 12:00 noon – Esplanade Spring Walk

    Put on your walking shoes Saturday, May 1, from 10 am – 12 noon, and join The Esplanade Association’s spring walk, guided by Karl Haglund, noted historian and author of Inventing the Charles River.  Mr. Haglund, who also serves as the Department of Conservation and Recreation’s Project Manager for the New Charles River Basin, will delight you with fun facts about the Esplanade as you take in the sights and sounds of the park.  Meet in front of the Hatch Shell, rain or shine.  You may contact Justin Burke at 617-227-0365 for more information, or log on to www.esplanadeassociation.org.

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  • Thursday, May 6, 6:00 pm – Saturday, May 8, 4:30 pm – Landscapes for Living: Post War Years in Texas

    Another interesting trip is planned May 6 – May 8 by The Cultural Landscape Foundation (www.tclf.org), this time with a focus on the unique Post War legacy of public and private landscapes in Texas, during what is now thought to be an optimistic time of innovation and experimentation.  Nationally recognized speakers from the public and private sectors and the academic community, including Charles Birnbaum, W. Mark Gunderson, and Ben Koush,  will provide rare insight and analysis of this unprecedented era of design.  The conference , to be held at the Dallas Museum of Art, will look both back and ahead, as the symposium culminates in a panel discussion which explores what this design legacy and Modern design means in the 21st century.  Fees (not including transportation and lodging) $125 for members of the TCLF, $150 for nonmembers, $75 students.  Co-sponsored by Historic Fort Worth, Inc. For more information, log on to the TCLF web site or email andrea@tclf.org.  Heritage Park, Fort Worth,  designed by Lawrence Halprin, is pictured below.

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  • Saturday, April 24, 9:30 am – 10:30 am – From Chinatown to the Sea

    Join the Rose Kennedy Greenway Conservancy and the Island Alliance for a free walking tour of the Greenway in Chinatown, ending at Long Wharf North, on Saturday, April 24, beginning at 9:30 am, and experience the connection to the sea that is now possible.  Meet at the old Chinatown Gate in Chinatown Park, near Hudson Street.  This event is free.  For more information, log on to www.rosekennedygreenway.org.

    http://www.boston-discovery-guide.com/image-files/chinatown-gate.jpg

  • Saturday, April 17, 6:30 am – 8:00 am – Bird Walk and Exploration

    Get up early on Saturday, April 17 and meet local  birder Wendy Howes at 6:30 a.m. at Fruitlands Museum in Harvard, Massachusetts.  Local residents and early arrivals, including Eastern Towhee (below)  and Rose-breasted Grosbeak, should put in an appearance.  Expect to walk about two miles on trails through meadows and woods, with some wet areas, so dress appropriately.  Bring your own binoculars and field guide.  Free.  For more information, log on to www.fruitlands.org.

    http://www.kersteins.com/blogdepuree//srv/htdocs/wp-content/uploads/2009/05/easterntowhee_05022009.jpg

  • Saturday, April 17 – Sunday, April 25 – National Park Week

    National Park sites across the nation will be open free of charge Saturday, April 17 – Sunday, April 25, celebrating National Park Week.  Fitness is the theme for this year’s event.

    There will be hundreds of family friendly events on Saturday, April 24, for National Junior Ranger Day. Each child participating in Junior Ranger activities will receive a certificate, patch, or pin. Other National Park Week highlights include the 40th anniversary of Earth Day and the 75th anniversary of the nation’s most visited national park,  the Blue Ridge Parkway. Normally, 146 of 392 national parks charge entrance fees ranging from $3 to $25. The other 246 do not charge for admission.

    The fee free waiver for National Park Week does not include other fees such as fees charged for camping, and concessions. For more information, log on to www.nps.gov.

  • Thursday, April 15, 10:00 am – 12:00 noon – Mount Auburn Ecological Tree Care

    Enjoy a private Ecological Landscaping Association Eco-Tour of the beautiful 175 acre landscape of Mount Auburn Cemetery, 580 Mount Auburn Street, Cambridge on Thursday, April 15, beginning at 10 am.  Mount Auburn is one of the most historic landscapes in America and is on the leading edge of sustainable and environmentally sound land care practices.  This event features the more than 5,000 trees that are under Mount Auburn’s ecological tree care program.  $10 for ELA members, $15 for non members.  Paul Walker will lead the tour, and you may register on line at  www.eventville.com/catalog/eventregistration1.asp?eventid=1006114, or call 617-436-5838.  You may also email ela.info@comcast.net.

    http://www.gardenvisit.com/assets/madge/mount_auburn_garden_cambridge/600x/mount_auburn_garden_cambridge_600x.jpg

  • Friday, March 12, 12:00 noon – 3:00 pm – Managing Fruit Trees in the Edible Landscape

    Join tour guide Nick Novick on Friday, March 12, from noon – 3, to visit a small orchard and learn the ecological care of fruit trees using a holistic approach. Until fairly recently, producing a reliable fruit crop required the use of a number of synthetic chemicals with troubling health and environmental profiles. By changing the way we think about “pest control” and utilizing innovative approaches along with improved materials, good results are now possible without the use of environmentally damaging chemicals.

    You’ll visit a home orchard at 393 Estabrook Road in Concord where you’ll discuss care throughout the year, including pruning, spray materials and timing, and discuss other, practical considerations. The focus will be on apples, but some other fruits will be discussed.

    Nick Novick owns and operates Small Planet Landscaping, which, since 1997, has provided environmentally sensitive landscaping services including lawn fertility and weed management, low-impact orchard care, and installations emphasizing native plant communities. He has a B.S. in Environmental Conservation, attended UMass Extension’s Green School, and has served on the Board and edited the newsletter for the Ecological Landscaping Association. His company currently cares for almost 80 trees on six different properties.

    Fee is $20 for ELA members, $25 for non-members, and walk-ins are welcome. For more information email ela.info@comcast.net, or call 617-436-5838.

    Directions: From the center of Concord, take Lowell Road (heading northwest toward Carlisle) for just over a mile. At the four-way stop/intersection, take right onto Barnes Hill Road. Go 1/2 mile, and take left onto Estabrook Road. Number 393 is the last property on the left. Following the parking signs, proceed through the two, stone pillars, go a few hundred feet, and take a left just past the small, brick house. Someone will point out where to park. Call Nick directly if you have difficulty finding the site: 508-308-4960.

    http://www.treehugger.com/the-apple-orchard-photo.jpg

  • Saturday, March 27, 9:00 am – Birding Belle Isle and Vicinity

    Belle Isle Marsh Reservation on Bennington Street in East Boston is known as one of Massachusetts’ birding hot spots.  Join DCR and Boston Natural Areas Network to look for snipe and waterfowl on Saturday, March 27, beginning at 9:00 am.  Binoculars will be available to borrow.  Boston Natural Areas Network, organized in 1977, works to preserve, expand and improve urban open space through community organizing, acquisition, ownership, programming, development and management of special kinds of urban land – Urban Wilds, Greenways and Community Gardens. In all of its endeavors, BNAN is guided by local citizens advocating for their open spaces and assisting them to preserve and shape their communities.  For more information, log on to www.bostonnatural.org.

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