Boston Flora

Category: Volunteer Opportunity

  • Saturday, December 4, 10:00 am – 4:00 pm, and Sunday, December 5, 12:00 noon – 5:00 pm – Beacon Hill Decorating Days

    Please join the Beacon Hill Civic Association and your neighbors in Decorating the Hill for the Holidays. You can help one day or both, sign up or just show up, come for the whole day or just and hour. Do your own street or help wherever needed- they’ll show you how.

    On Saturday, December 4, from 10 – 4, meet at the Harrison Gray Otis House, 141 Cambridge Street.  On Sunday, December 5, from noon – 5, assemble at 160 Charles Street (next to Savenor’s.)  At 5pm on Sunday you will celebrate with a festive wrap up party for all the volunteers at 74 Joy Street. Join the Decorating Days email list by emailing: info@bhcivic.org.  One couple who met during this event have since married, so consider this an opportunity on a number of different levels.  Picture below by Charlotte Joan Sternberg.

  • Tuesday, November 30, 5:00 pm – 6:00 pm – Copley Square Holiday Tree Lighting

    Mayor Thomas M. Menino, The Boston Parks & Recreation Department, and The Friends of Copley Square will host the annual Copley Square Holiday Tree Lighting on Tuesday, November 30, from 5 – 6 pm.  The festive event will feature live entertainment, including The United States Air Force Brass Band Quintet, Trinity Church Choristers and Schola, Brian Jones and the Copley Singers, and holiday caroling.  The Old South Church bells will toll when the lights are turned on.  Santa will pay a special visit, and immediately following the tree lighting, The Copley Plaza will host a family reception for all in attendance.  The Garden Club of the Back Bay is pleased to announce its contribution of handmade bows to decorate the ArtsBoston kiosk.  Our volunteers will be in the Square decking the halls  November 26, if you’d like to stop by and say hello.  Visit www.friendsofcopleysquare.org to learn more about Copley Square.

  • Monday, December 6 – Thursday, December 9 – Garden Club of the Back Bay Wreath Making Days

    Here is the call for volunteers for The Garden Club of the Back Bay’s Annual Wreath Making Project. A version of the notice below was mailed to our members, but we’re happy to welcome all volunteers who may wish to help out with a fun, social, neighborhood fund raising event.  If you’re new and would like to decorate, you’ll be paired at first with one of our experienced decorators, as an assistant.  There are many other non-decorating tasks, however, so feel free to stop by!

    Pastor Ingo R. Dutzmann and his parish will again host our Club for wreath making on the lower level of The First Lutheran Church of Boston, 299 Berkeley Street (on the corner of Berkeley and Marlborough Streets). We are very, very grateful. The hours are as follows:

    Monday, December 6 – 8:00 a.m. – 7:30 p.m. (set up, training, + decoration)
    Tuesday, December 7 – 8:00 a.m. – 7:30 p.m. (decorating)
    Wednesday, December 8- 8:00 a.m. – 7:30 p.m. (decorating, delivery)
    Thursday, December 9- 8:00 a.m. – 8:00 p.m. (decorating, delivery, clean up)

    Please come to the side door on Berkeley Street. We’ll post a sign.  Dried materials and fresh greens can be delivered to the Church no earlier than Monday, December 6. Please have all decorations “cleaned down” – branches cut down, dead leaves removed – so we can contain the mess we inevitably make. Delicate materials can be laid flat in sweater boxes or gently stacked in cardboard containers. We are going to need as many dried items, especially flowers, as we can collect.

    Bring clippers and scissors if you have them, labeled with masking tape for ease of identification. Aprons are also a good idea. Dress comfortably! We need everyone’s help, whether you decorate, deliver, organize, make telephone calls confirming delivery, or sweep. Contact info@bostonflora.com if you have questions or can take a delivery shift. Otherwise, we’ll see you on December 6. Please try to come for as many hours as possible, on as many days as you can spare – we need you, and you’ll have a great time. Thank you.

  • Saturday, November 6, 10:00 am – 3:00 pm – Second Annual Esplanade Fall Clean-Up

    The Esplanade Association invites you to join them for the Second Annual Fall Clean-Up on Saturday, November 6th from 10 AM-3 PM, to help beautify the park and ready it for its annual winter coat of snow.

    Volunteers are needed to help with leaf raking and general clean-up. To make sure that everyone’s in the fall spirit, we will provide apples and cider. Gloves and rakes will be provided, but volunteers are encouraged to bring their own gear as well. All ages are welcome!

    They are also in need of volunteer leaders for Fall Clean-Up Day to staff 4 check-in stations at the park (2 leaders each): Lee Pool, Hatch Shell, Dartmouth Street, and the Exercise Course. Volunteer leaders will help with check-in, handing out cider, apples, and tools, and any other emergencies that may come up. Leaders are asked to be at their stations from 8:30 AM to 3:30 PM.

    For more information and to RSVP, please contact Jessica Blohm, Park Project and Volunteer Coordinator at 617.227.0365 or jblohm@esplanadeassociation.org.

  • Sunday, October 31, 3:30 pm – 5:30 pm – Halloween at The Clarendon Street Playground

    Join the Playground Committee of the Neighborhood Association of the Back Bay on Sunday, October 31 from 3:30 – 5:30 at The Clarendon Street Playground on the corner of Clarendon and Commonwealth for a playground party with magic and juggling show (performance begins at 4:15), a hayride around the neighborhood, and a spooky good time.  Be sure to wear your favorite costume.  Pizza slices, drinks and glow necklaces will be on sale for $1 each.  If you can volunteer for a 30 minute shift, email playground@nabbonline.com, or call the NABB office at 617-247-3961.  Be advised that Marlborough Street between Berkeley and Fairfield Streets, as well as Dartmouth and Clarendon Streets between Commonwealth and Beacon Streets, will be closed to moving traffic from 5 – 9:30 pm to ensure safe trick or treating.  Parked cars may stay on those streets during this time but may not be moved.  Adorable picture from the Los Angeles blog meamommy.com.

  • Thursday, October 21, 9:30 am – Bulb Planting at Mount Auburn

    Get your hands in the soil alongside Mount Auburn Cemetery’s gardening staff during Mount Auburn’s annual fall bulb planting on Thursday, October 21 at 9:30 am.  Bulbs planted in the Cemetery each fall add blooms to Mount Auburn’s early spring season.  Bring your work gloves and trowels along with lots of energy and enthusiasm. Dress for garden work.  Rain date: Friday, October 22.  For information, please call 617-607-1981. Weather related updates: 617-607-1983.  For directions log on to www.mountauburn.org.

  • Saturday, October 9, 9:00 am – Beardsley Zoo/Stratford Bioblitz

    Garden Club of the Back Bay speaker Richard Enser intrigued his audience this past  May with a description of a “bioblitz,” and here is an opportunity to participate in one.  On Saturday, October 9, we will join with  scientists from all disciplines (plants, insects, fish, mammals, etc.) and survey the habitats assigned to us in order to find as many plant species as possible in one day. Habitats include the 250-acre Roosevelt Park, Great Marsh Meadows, Short Beach, a 25-acre woodland, a pond and cranberry bog. Lunch will be provided.

    Directions: Meet at Beardsley Zoo in Bridgeport, Connecticut at the Hanson Exploration Station which will be our home base. From New Haven: Take Exit 52 off the Merritt Parkway (South to Bridgeport) to Rt 8 & 25. Proceed to Exit 5 (Boston Ave). At the end of the ramp, bear right and go to the 5th traffic light. Turn left onto Noble Avenue and proceed to the Beardsley Park entrance on the left. Follow the signs to the Zoo entrance on right. From New York, take Exit 49S (Bridgeport) to Rt 25. Proceed to Exit 5 and follow as above. From I-95 (CT Turnpike) Take Exit 27A to Rt 8 & 25. Proceed to Exit 5 (Boston Ave). At the traffic light at the end of the ramp, go left to the 4th traffic light. Turn left onto Noble Avenue and proceed to the Beardsley Park entrance on the left. Follow signs to the Zoo entrance on right.

    Leaders: John Triana and Carol Lemmon, (203)-488-781.  For additional information, log on to www.ct-botanical-society.org.

    http://www.greatswamp.org/BioBlitz09/BioBlitzLogoGrn297x266.gif

  • Thursday, September 16, 9:00 am – 12:00 noon – Chrysanthemum Planting in Chinatown Park

    On the morning of Thursday September 16, from 9 – 12,  the Rose Kennedy Greenway Conservancy’s Horticulture Team will be planting chrysanthemums in Chinatown Park, and they invite all interested volunteers to help us add color and seasonal interest to the park. To sign up, write volunteer@rosekennedygreenway.org or visit their volunteer webpage.

  • Wednesday, September 15, 10:00 am – The Boston Committee: What We Do

    Michele Hanss, Chairman of The Boston Committee of the Garden Club of America, and Past Chairman Beverly Van Orman, will present an illustrated program on the work of The Boston Committee at the opening fall meeting of The Garden Club of the Back Bay on Wednesday, September 15, beginning at 10 am at The College Club, 44 Commonwealth Avenue.

    The Boston Committee of The Garden Club of America, a not for profit organization,  was formed to achieve the following purposes:  To educate the general public regarding regional environmental concerns and horticultural practices; to assist individuals and organizations in the design and beautification of public parks and grounds and in the planting of green areas; to meet with representatives to exchange views on issues and concerns of the region; to encourage civic achievement in the environment and in horticulture by presenting awards for design, restoration of public areas, or for other related purposes as part of its public interaction.  Through its Blossom Fund, The Boston Committee continues to provide seed money to Boston area not for profit organizations for their garden and/or preservation projects (such as the Kelleher Rose Garden, pictured below.)  The Garden Club of the Back Bay is an affiliate member of this worthy organization, and has for many years assisted in raising funds and directing contributions, but we feel many members are still a bit in the dark about the goals and projects.  This meeting will fill in all the information gaps, and is a fitting beginning to The Garden Club’s 2010/2011 program year.

    An optional lunch ($20 members, $25 non-members) will follow the meeting, and reservations made prior to September 10 are essential.  Contact info@bostonflora.com to reserve.  Garden Club members will receive written notice of this event.

    http://www.emeraldnecklace.org/static/img/lib/Back_Bay_Fens_Rose_Garden_Volunteers_1__.JPG

  • Community Servings Herb Garden Call for Volunteers

    With the help of hundreds of volunteers, business and corporate sponsors, and its dedicated staff and board members, Community Servings prepare and deliver 3,340 lunches and dinners each week to the homes of almost 700 individuals and families who are homebound with an acute life-threatening illness.  In June 2009, Community Servings planted seedlings for its first herb garden in 100 feet of planters along the side of its building at 18 Marbury Terrace in Jamaica Plain. Community Servings needs a volunteer to come a couple of times each week to help weed, water and pick the herbs from the garden. Hours are flexible. This is a great opportunity for those in a Master Gardening program or anyone interested in learning more about gardening!

    The herb garden is a project developed in partnership with The Growing Connection, a grassroots project developed by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. The herbs and arugula grown are added to free home-delivered meals for critically-ill neighbors and their families.  If you are interested please contact the Ashley Boyd, Volunteer Recruitment Coordinator at 617-522-7777 Ext. 228 or at aboyd@servings.org.