Boston Flora

Thursday, December 7, 2:00 pm Eastern – Sissinghurst Through the Seasons, Winter Episode, Online

Troy Scott Smith will guide you through the Garden Conservancy online course of a gardening year at Sissinghurst. Troy will share with you how the garden looks, which flowers are blooming at each season, and what the garden looked like when it was first created in the 1930s. He will uncover the secrets of pruning and propagation and the art of the English Garden. Each episode will be packed with information, all simply explained and illustrated, giving you techniques and confidence to put into practice in your own garden. The Winter episode will take place Thursday, December 7 at 2 pm Eastern. The bare blanket of earth that for many is the “winter garden,” need not be. If harnessed, the potency of the season can be as exhilarating as the heady explosion of summer. Pockets of evergreen planting, almost unnoticed in summer, are now an essential ingredient, exuding a presence and injecting solidity into the sparseness of the scene. Coatings of hoarfrost re-order the prominence of their outlines. Spring plants eager to steal a march on their competitor’s race to flower. There is nothing that disappoints about the winter garden, and in this final episode, Troy will share with you some of the possibilities to make winter in the garden a season to look forward to and enjoy.

Sissinghurst was created nearly a century ago by the writers Vita Sackville-West and Harold Nicolson as a private home and as refuge dedicated to natural beauty. Today it is owned by the National Trust and visited by hundreds of thousands of visitors annually. Troy’s career has been devoted to the beauty and romance of gardening. Since joining the National Trust of England, Wales & Northern Ireland in 1990, Troy has led some of the world’s most beautiful gardens, among them the Courts (Wiltshire), Bodnant (Wales), and two stints at Sissinghurst (Kent), where he has led a remarkable transformation and restoration of the Vita Sackville-West gardens.

$5 for Garden Conservancy members, $15 for nonmembers. Register HERE.

Wednesday, December 13, 1:00 pm – 2:30 pm Eastern – The Ornamental Wilderness in the English Garden, Online

While today we may think of a wilderness as a wild place unspoiled by human intervention, in the 17th and 18th centuries a garden wilderness referred to a highly cultivated part of the formal garden, a place bounded by trees or tall hedges with paths to walk on and with occasional cultural delights within—statues or fountains or a summer house in the classical style. In its mature form, the wilderness constituted most of the garden and the setting in which all other features were placed. The wilderness was shady and private, a place for solitary retreat as well as social activity, an ‘artinatural’ space in which artifice and culture combined with nature. This illustrated online talk with The Gardens Trust on December 13 examines the history and development of the English garden wilderness and takes a new look at this period of garden history through the perspective of the wilderness garden.

James Bartos is the author of The Ornamental Wilderness in the English Garden (Unicorn, 2022) and has published in the journals Garden History and Die Gartenkunst. From 2015 to 2020 he was the first Chairman of the Gardens Trust, having previously served on the Council of the Garden History Society. He was awarded a PhD in Garden History from Bristol University in 2014. Over the past twenty-five years, he has created a new garden in Dorset.

The talk will be introduced by Peter Hughes KC, the chair of the Gardens Trust.

A recording of the talk will be available to ticket holders to enjoy throughout the Christmas period.

Ticket price £5, Gardens Trust members may use their promo code for an additional 10% discount.

Optional Ticket price £10 to include £5 donation to help us fund our work protecting historic green spaces. To register visit https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/the-ornamental-wilderness-in-the-english-garden-tickets-748729880227

Ticket sales close 4 hours before the event. Attendees will be sent a Zoom link 2 days (and again a few hours) prior to the start of the talk (If you do not receive this link please contact The Gardens Trust), and a link to the recorded session, available until the end of December, will be sent shortly afterwards.

Wednesday, December 6, 12:00 noon – 1:00 pm Eastern – From Milkweed Soup to Hmong Sticky Corn: Community Connection through Culturally Relevant Food Gardens, Online

Explore the vibrant community-driven gardening projects at Olbrich Botanical Gardens in this engaging webinar. A free admission 16-acre public garden in Madison, Wisconsin, Olbrich Botanical Gardens seeks to be a community resource where everyone feels a sense of belonging. Join Olbrich’s Herb Garden horticulturist, Erin Presley, as she spins the tale of two community-based gardening projects at Olbrich. The Indigenous Garden, created with local Ho-Chunk tribal members, offers opportunities to connect, converse, and appreciate the history and majesty of food plants significant in Midwestern First Nations cultures. Meanwhile, the Hmong Garden, which debuted in 2023, honors the traditions and resourcefulness of the 60,000 Hmong residents who migrated to Wisconsin after the Vietnam War. Both gardening projects were led by young women from their respective cultural groups and engaged guests with hands-on activities, bilingual signage, and of course – veggie tastings! Please join The Philadelphia Horticultural Society and Erin Presley to learn more about these uplifting, collaborative gardening projects and principles that could be applied in your own community.

Erin Presley left her heart at Olbrich Botanical Gardens while interning there in 2005. After earning a bachelor’s degree in Horticulture from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, she gardened for nearly a decade in the private sector before returning to Olbrich in 2014, where she manages the Herb, Woodland, and Pond Gardens. Her interests include native woodland plantings, sedges, low-maintenance and drought-tolerant gardening styles, recycling woody debris, and all things related to herbs, vegetables, and cooking. In addition to teaching at OBG, Erin loves talking plants and collaborating with herb societies, master gardeners, and local community organizations. Never shy when it comes to sharing the joy of gardening, she has appeared on the nationally syndicated podcast Cultivating Place and Wisconsin Public Radio’s Garden Talk and is a contributor to the print and online content of Fine Gardening magazine. PHS members free, $20 for nonmembers. Register at https://phsonline.org/events/milkweed-soup

Monday, December 4, 6:00 pm – 7:30 pm – Faces of Phillis

The Associates of the Boston Public Library warmly invite you to our fifth annual Pierce Performance, Faces of Phillis, a staged reading and panel discussion that will celebrate Phillis Wheatley Peters, the first African American and the second American woman in the United States to publish a book of poetry. The event commemorates the 250th anniversary of the publication of Phillis Wheatley Peters’s groundbreaking book, Poems on Various Subjects, Religious and Moral. Look for the statue of Phillis Wheatley on the Commonwealth Avenue Mall.

This three-part event includes:

1. a staged reading written by British-Nigerian playwright Ade Solanke and directed by Regge Life. Faces of Phillis includes two dramatized moments from Phillis Wheatley Peters’ life. Adeola Solanke, also known as Ade, is an award-winning playwright, screenwriter, and founder of Spora Stories. Her acclaimed debut play, “Pandora’s Box,” received a Best New Play nomination in London’s Off-West End Theatre Awards. Ade has been recognized as the Best Playwright in the Nigerian Entertainment and Lifestyle Awards and received Best Play honors in the African Film Awards. Her work has graced renowned stages across the UK, including Arcola, Young Vic, and Sheffield Crucible Theatres. Ade recently completed two Fulbright Distinguished International Fellowships at Emerson College and the University of Southern California.

2. a panel discussion featuring Ade Solanke, our playwright, Meredith Bergmann, the sculptor for the 2003 Boston Women’s Memorial, and Kyera Singleton, the Executive Director of the Royall House Museum.

3. a dramatic poetry reading by Boston’s Poet Laureate and BPL Trustee, Porsha Olayiwola.

The event will take place in the Boston Public Library’s Rabb Lecture Hall on Boylston Street on December 4 from 6 – 7:30. For those who can’t make it in person, sign up here to access the event virtually on Vimeo for one week following the production.

Through Sunday, December 31 – Edaville Festival of Lights

Experience one of New England’s oldest holiday traditions: steam trains, 250,000+ Christmas lights, food, local businesses and crafters, Santa, vintage amusement rides, and more.

Festival of Lights Schedule:

Thursdays – Sundays now through December 31*

Hours:

Thursdays 4:00-8:00 pm
Fridays 4:00-9:00 pm
Saturdays 2:00-9:00 pm
Sundays 2:00-8:00 pm

Tickets Starting at $12.95

*Closed Thanksgiving & Christmas Day.

Limited timed admissions – book now at https://edaville.com/

Monday, December 11, 6:00 pm – 7:00 pm GMT – The Early Life of Alexander McKenzie: The 19th Century Horticulturist and Landscape Designer, Online

Alexander McKenzie’s first knowledge of horticulture, nature and forestry came from his love of the woods and vales in Nairn, Scotland where he was born. His love of nature never left him, and at the time of his death, he was still working closely with nature as the Superintendent of Epping Forest. McKenzie’s early career started at Learney Estate in Scotland, before commencing his more formal studies under his fellow Scot, Robert Marnock, at the Royal Botanical Gardens in Regents Park, London. As he established himself in a rich and varied career, McKenzie was both the owner of a garden nursery in Brighton and an entrant in the competition to design a new landscaped park for the site of the Alexandra Palace.

Lisa White has worked as an Accountant for most of her life. After studying horticulture on a part-time basis (RHS Level 2 and 3 Diplomas), she then embarked on a change of career. Following her completion of a full-time BA (Hons) degree in Garden Design, she now holds a Master’s Degree in Garden and Landscape History and is currently continuing her research of Alexander McKenzie for her PhD with the University of Sheffield.

This is an online lecture which will take place on Zoom. The Zoom link for the lecture can be found in your confirmation email, and will be sent out again on the day of the lecture. Register with London Parks & Gardens HERE.

Saturday, December 16, 10:00 am – 3:00 pm – Four Seasons of Tree Identification

In this Berkshire Botanical Garden class, we will revisit trees through the seasons, and witness their unique characteristics with and without leaves. We will learn how to identify species of trees, ID a tree by it bark, and understand which trees flower in which seasons, beginning on December 16, 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. Come join in the journey of the magic of trees, starting with how to identify them in the landscape and forest settings. Led by Melissa LeVangie Ingersoll, Certified Arborist (MCA, ISA, NH) CTSP and Tom Ingersoll, a Massachusetts Certified Arborist. $50 for BBG members, $65 for nonmembers. Register at https://www.berkshirebotanical.org/events/four-seasons-tree-identification-0

Thursday, November 30 – Sunday, December 10 – Kennebunkport’s 42nd Annual Christmas Prelude

The 42nd annual Christmas Prelude (Nov. 30-Dec. 10) will soon see the town decked out in twinkling lights and greenery, with a buoy-decked Christmas tree at its center – like a Hallmark Christmas movie come to life! See www.christmasprelude.com for full schedule details.

The re-imagined Santa’s arrival by lobster boat is a traditional event that got bigger and better last year, with a move to the Nonantum Resort. It will be back at the inn this year. Also returning this year are the craft fairs Prelude is known for – the perfect places to find unique, hand-crafted gifts. Midweek merriment includes a Cookie Crawl, house tours of the beautifully decorated White Columns, a Merry Market at Maine Art Hill, cookie decorating, art classes and the return of the ever-popular Storybook Christmas for children on Dec. 7.

Friday, December 1 – Sunday, December 3 – 49th Annual Nantucket Christmas Stroll

Now in its 49th year, the Nantucket Chamber of Commerce-sponsored Annual Christmas Stroll embodies the magic of the holiday season with tributes to Christmas’ past. They transform the island into a Winter Wonderland while creating delightful memories at this year’s Christmas Stroll, December 1st through 3rd, 2023. For more information visit https://www.nantucketchamber.org/christmas-stroll/

Monday, December 4, 6:30 pm – Curated Cuisine: A Celebration of Black Women and Femmes in Food

Chef and writer Klancy Miller worked by trial and error at a number of jobs in the food industry, eventually starting the magazine For the Culture. What she discovered researching and writing for the magazine were the extraordinary women of color — chefs, food stylists, mixologists, historians — who have paved the way and continue to. She honors those women in her new book, For the Culture: Phenomenal Black Women and Femmes in Food. Join Miller and Food & Folklore founder Tamika Francis for a conversation about the book with special guests Elle Simone (chef, food stylist and on-screen test cook at America’s Test Kitchen) and Kyisha Davenport (GM and beverage director at Comfort Kitchen), who are featured in it.

Copies of the book will be available for purchase from our bookstore partner Frugal Books. Miller will sign copies and guests will enjoy a bite from the book following the conversation.

CitySpace Tickets – Register HERE
Premiere: $25.00 (includes reserved seating in the front of the theater)
General: $15.00
Student: $5.00

Ways To Save
WBUR Members save $5.00 off tickets to this event. To apply the discount to your ticket purchase online, you’ll need to enter a promo code. You can get your code by emailing membership@wbur.org. This event is co-produced by Boston University Metropolitan College Programs in Food & Wine.