Boston Flora

Sunday, May 8, 10:00 am – 12:00 noon – Duckling Day

Celebrate Mother’s Day in Boston’s most beautiful parks at the Duckling Day celebration and parade on Sunday, May 8th.

A beloved tradition for over 30 years, the event celebrates the children’s classic book Make Way for Ducklings by Robert McCloskey. Every year, hundreds of children parade through Boston’s most picturesque parks, dressed like characters from the story. Led by the Harvard University Marching Band, the parade will begin in the Boston Common at the Parkman Bandstand and end in the Public Garden near the famous Make Way for Ducklings sculptures. Bring your cameras – this is the most adorable event in all of Boston!

Prior to the parade will be Playtime on the Common, a vibrant array of family entertainment from 10:00 am to 12:00 pm. All activities are included with event admission:

· Interactive Circus Games with Esh Circus Arts
· Jenny the Juggler
· Peter O’Malley, magician
· Jump, climb, and play with Knucklebones
· Meet our giant Duck!
· Visit with the Harvard University Band
· Make Way for Ducklings reading station
· A goody bag for every kid – full of Duckling Day-themed items!

The registration fee is $35 per family group in advance (before May 6) and $40 per family the day of the event. Guests are required to follow City of Boston public health advisories and mandates in place at the time of the event. Each child who registers will receive a special goody bag. Register through the Friends of the Public Garden HERE.

Friday, April 22, 12:00 pm – 1:00 pm – Ask the Expert: Clean Energy, Online

Turning off your lights when you leave the room, driving an electric car or installing solar panels. We all have the power to turn dirty energy into clean energy, and our impact is even greater when we can get local, state, and national officials to take action. Join GBH on Earth Day as we envision a clean future with Environment Massachusetts, discussing ways to conserve energy and become changemakers to fuel a greener, healthier world. Our expert will address the largest climate change challenges of our time and give you tips on how to make your voice heard for a more sustainable future.

Ben Hellerstein, State Director of Environment Massachusetts, will guide us through what it takes to promote and create solutions for a healthier Massachusetts and beyond. Environment Massachusetts’s mission is to transform the power of our imaginations and our ideas into change that make our world a cleaner place to power our lives. Ben brings strategic approaches to thinking bigger regarding clean energy, conservation and more.

Learn more about Environment Massachusetts and how to support transitioning Massachusetts to 100% renewable energy here.

Bring your questions! Sign up at www.wgbh.org The Event is free.

Saturday, June 18, 9:30 am – 11:30 am – Eco-Tour: Gardening for Insects, a Native Pollinator Garden

The Ecological Landscape Alliance invites you to tour the private gardens of landscape designer and pollinator expert, Thomas Berger.

When choosing plants to support insects in our gardens, we want to make the most of our limited space. Which plants nourish the most species? And which kinds of insects need our support most urgently?

Thomas Berger has been designing landscapes for insects for more than twenty years in his own gardens and client gardens. Thomas pays particular attention to providing for two groups of insects:

The caterpillars of butterflies and moths (lepidoptera), which are an important part of the wildlife food chain.
The pollinators, especially native bees that fulfill the essential function of pollinating not only our food crops but also native plants and thus contribute to their survival.

Our goal for any garden should be to provide habitat for the largest possible number of insect species. Thomas Berger’s gardens demonstrate effective habitat that provide joy and beauty for humans as well.

Join us for a unique opportunity to explore the private gardens of an inspiring insect specialist, landscape designer, and passionate nature photographer. Thomas Berger grew up in a small rural town in Germany. During his childhood he was an avid collector of shells, bones, sea creatures, and fossils. He also gardened with his father and kept bees and sheep which led him to study agriculture. As an adult, Thomas worked on farms in Germany, France and Australia, and joined the German Volunteer Service in 1984, working in an agricultural project in Niger, West Africa. In 1994 he moved to the United States, where he started a landscape design and construction firm, Green Art, and received an award of excellence from the New Hampshire Landscape Association in 1998. Thomas is a regionally known stone sculptor, expressing his love of nature through his art. Thomas has won many awards and commissions and his sculpture is displayed at many public venues throughout the Northeast.

$33 for nonmembers. ELA member discounts will apply Register at www.ecolandscaping.org

Monday, April 25 – Monday, September 12 – Designing with Native Plants, Self-Paced, Online

This Native Plant Trust online course teaches the basics of designing with native plants and shows how to incorporate native plants into the garden and landscape. Discover the variety of native plants found throughout New England and learn how to design a visually interesting landscape that also supports biodiversity. You can complete the course at your own pace. It typically takes at least 12 hours to complete. Download the syllabus. Course access is available from April 25 – September 12. $80 for NPT members, $98 for nonmembers. Register at http://www.nativeplanttrust.org/events/designing-native-plants-self-paced-online/

Sunday, May 15, 10:00 am – 4:00 pm – The Garden Conservancy’s Worcester County Open Day

Two gardens in the Worcester area will be open through the Garden Conservancy’s Open Days program on May 15 from 10 – 4. Pre-registration is REQUIRED. Admission fee to each garden: Members $5 per person; General admission $10. Children 12 and under free.

Enjoy the garden of Matt Mattus and Joe Philip right in the city. Matt’s garden is a mature, third- generation family property in a suburban neighborhood. It contains many tall trees (now more than 90 feet tall) planted in the 1920s by his grandfather and father. “The garden is an ongoing restoration project” says Matt. “I’ve never opened it up for tours as I’ve always believed that it was more of a small collector’s garden than one that is ‘tour-worthy’, yet I know that most visitors enjoy the casual atmosphere, and the ‘down the rabbit hole-ness’ of a true collector’s garden!” Expect to see collections of interesting plants and greenhouse projects, sweet peas, stone and gravel paths, boxwood and hornbeam hedges, garden rooms, and even a small 100-year-old goldfish pond. Charming and picturesque as a small English garden and as horticulturally interesting as a botanic garden, this 1.5 acres is essentially a home garden, yet one that has recently been featured in Martha Stewart Living, Better Homes and Gardens, and other magazines. Matt Mattus, whose blog is Growingwithplants.com, is the author of Mastering the Art of Vegetable Gardening (2019) and Mastering the Art of Growing Flowers (2020). Both books will be available for purchase on site.

The Swift River Farm in Petersham (below) is the second offered garden on that date. A woodland garden screens the house from the road and continues along the north side of the house with many spring ephemerals and flowering trees, ending in a small collection of tree peonies. A stone walkway leads past a tulip border to a small perennial garden enclosed by a box hedge. Further on is a water garden with a gazebo that overlooks a koi pond. A small herb garden behind the house leads out through a set of clematis arbors to another perennial garden. Next to the greenhouse is a rock garden and beyond it a spring garden with primulas, spring bulbs, and species peonies. The rock garden looks out on a large meadow designed by Gordon Hayward with a mix of nectar-rich perennials and grasses. Paths through the meadow lead to an apple orchard and a vegetable/cutting garden.

Thursday, April 28, 5:00 pm – 6:00 pm – Urban Trees: Overcoming Adversity with Tree Diversity, Online

The lifespan of a tree planted in a typical US municipality is less than 15 years! Over the past 30 years, a ramped-up effort to plant street trees across the country has brought about a renewed effort towards the right tree, right place. The founder of Arbor Day, Joy Morton, set out to plan and plant for a more verdant, beautiful world. Polly Hill Arboretum Executive Director Tim Boland will share his story and describe how towns on-island can plan and plant in the face of climate change.

This April 28 presentation at 5 pm Eastern time is virtual. A Zoom link will be provided after registering. $10; FREE for PHA members. Proceeds benefit Polly Hill Arboretum. Register here: https://bit.ly/Street-Trees-Webinar

Monday, April 25 – Monday, September 12 – Gardening for Pollinators, Online

This online Native Plant Trust course teaches how to convert a yard into productive pollinator habitat. Learn about issues associated with pollinator decline and current conservation efforts, then explore a variety of pollinators and the native plants that support their life cycles. The course also covers basic pollinator garden design and provides step-by-step instructions for selecting plants and installing and maintaining these habitats. You can complete the course at your own pace. It typically takes at least 12 hours to complete. Download the syllabus. Online access begins April 25. $80 for NPT members, $98 for nonmembers. Register at http://www.nativeplanttrust.org/events/gardening-pollinators/

Thursday, April 21, 9:30 am – 11:30 am – The Border Brigade Season Four Kick-Off

Under the guidance of Eric DiTommaso, Parks Care Specialist on the staff of the Public Garden, we tend the borders of the Garden, mainly weeding and light pruning. Often Eric surprises us with a special project such as planting a mass of Hostas or heavily pruning some rose bushes.

We meet the third Thursday of each month from 9:30 -11:30, usually at the Boylston Street entrance to the Garden.

Small gardening tools are helpful and gloves highly recommended. Our first meeting this year will be on Thursday, April 21. If you are interested in joining us, or want more information, please send an email to Sherley Smith by clicking HERE.

Monday, April 25 – Monday, September 12 – Plant Ecology, Self-Paced, Online

This Native Plant Trust overview of plant ecology addresses the distribution and abundance of plants and their interactions with other organisms and the physical environment. We will explore factors that affect plants as individuals, populations, and communities, such as life history, resource use, competition, and animal-plant interactions (e.g., pollination, dispersal, herbivory). This Basic Certificate online core course is self-paced, with opportunities for peer discussion, expert access for questions, and field projects. A facilitator will guide you in your learning, review your assignments, and answer your questions. It typically takes at least 12 hours to complete. Download the syllabus. Instructor is Jennifer McCarthy. $150 for NPT members, $200 for nonmembers. Register at http://www.nativeplanttrust.org/events/plant-ecology/

Tuesday, May 3, 5:00 pm – 7:00 pm – Garden Club of the Back Bay Annual Meeting

The Annual Meeting of The Garden Club of the Back Bay, Inc. will be held Tuesday, May 3 beginning at 5 pm at The College Club of Boston, 44 Commonwealth Avenue, Boston. Officers for 2022-2023 will be elected, and proposed grants will be announced and approved. The meeting is open to the public but we require advance notice of attendees, so we ask for responses by April 18. Respond by clicking HERE. The College Club subscribes to the City of Boston “B Together” policy regarding vaccination and masking.