Boston Flora

Sunday, July 8, 10:00 am – 4:00 pm – Hidden Gardens of Munjoy Hill

Each year Friends of the Eastern Promenade hosts and coordinates the Hidden Gardens of Munjoy Hill. This self-guided walking tour offers a sneak peek into a selection of private gardens within the charming seaside neighborhood adjacent to the Eastern Promenade in Portland, Maine. Friends of the Eastern Promenade adopted the tour as its own in 2010.

Portland’s East End has become a sought-after neighborhood for many reasons, not least its wonderful gardens. Tour attendees come from as far away as Massachusetts and New Hampshire and attendance grows each year. The tour begins at Fort Allen Park, and tickets are $15 in advance, $30 on the day of the tour. For more information and to purchase tickets, visit https://easternpromenade.org/hidden-gardens-of-munjoy-hill/

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Through July 31 – Summer Blues Courtyard Display at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum

Late-flowering hydrangeas make the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum Courtyard a delightfully cool retreat in the summer, beginning with large, spectacular mopheads and ending with the tall Paniculata ‘Grandifolia’, known in America as PeeGees. In July, the statuesque Agapanthus appears in the Courtyard with its large umbels of inky blue flowers. Hydrangeas are native to Japan, where they have been grown as ornamental plants for centuries; Western travelers brought them to their gardens in the late 18th century.

Visit the Museum website for hours and entrance fee information. Photo by Siena Scarff, 2012. Please note that the Courtyard displays are part of a living collection and as such the actual flowers may be different than what is described on our website, http://www.gardnermuseum.org/

Summer Blues courtyard display at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum.

Saturday, July 14, 5:00 pm – 9:00 pm – Meals in the Meadow

Come celebrate summer and support the FARM Institute’s Farm-Based Educational programs at Meals in the Meadow on Saturday, July 14 from 5 – 9 at 14 Aero Avenue in Edgartown. Enjoy a silent auction and farm-o-ramas during which students turn into teachers, eager to show you what they’ve learned on The Farm. The buffet dinner will feature FARM Institute meat and produce from other Island farms. Dance to the music of the Sultans of Swing. $225 per person. Contact lbrown@thetrustees.org to learn more, or purchase online at http://www.thetrustees.org/things-to-do/cape-cod-islands/event-35166.html?srrelated_property=737500678

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Sunday, July 8, Tuesday, July 10, Thursday, July 12, and Saturday, July 14, 9:00 am -12:00 pm – Howe’s Garden Benefit Tour

The Howes’ Garden in Centerville holds numerous flower gardens with many different perennials and bulbs. Their specialty is hybridizing day lilies. They have seedlings from plants cross-pollinated in 2017, yearlings planted in the spring of 2017, and close to 100 plants saved from crops as far back as 2004. The best hybrids get a Cape Cod name (such as Cape Cod Lemonade), and are registered with the American Hemerocallis Society. If you are curious about hybridization, or simply want to see an array of beautiful blooms, this is the garden to visit! The proceeds from this July 14 garden tour will benefit Whelden Memorial Library. Rain or Shine. Admission: $5 Pay cash at the door. OPEN: July 8, 10, 12, 14 9am-12pm

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Tuesday, July 17 – Thursday, July 19 – Nantucket Garden Festival

The 10th Annual Nantucket Garden Festival highlights the unique and beautiful garden ecosystems on Nantucket and focuses on the importance of sustainability, conservation and gardening ethics for the long-term health of the island. Scheduled for July 17th-19th, the festival celebrates gardening through creative workshops, exquisite garden tours, children’s workshops, family activities and an opening night party. The keynote speaker will be Thomas Rainer, Principal of Phyto Studio in Washington, DC. In a workshop entitled The Inspired Plantsmen: Nature-Inspired Approach to Plant Selection and Composition, Rainer, a leading voice in ecological landscape design, will discuss how plants fit together in nature and how to use this knowledge to create landscapes that are resilient, beautiful, and diverse. Both practical and inspiring, this talk will explore a synthesis of ecology and horticulture—resulting in an intentionally designed and managed plant community where population dynamics are encouraged within an aesthetic framework. Rainer’s workshop will take place on Wednesday, July 18th.

The Festival is also thrilled to be welcoming Jennie Love of Love ‘n Fresh Flowers to Nantucket for the Festival’s first-ever Celebrity Floral Design Workshop. This half-day event, hosted in the Nantucket Yacht Club’s Governor’s Room, will include six hours of hands-on design and instruction. Participants will leave with a bouquet and a centerpiece (an abundance of flowers!). All flowers used during the workshop are grown by Love at her organic, urban flower farm in Philadelphia. Owner and Creative Director at Love ‘n Fresh Flowers, Jennie Love is a trained horticulturist and life-long farmer. Jennie first began flower farming in 2007 and launched her thriving event design studio in 2009. A charismatic and passionate business woman, Jennie found her natural niche as a “farmer florist” for wedding and special event design, becoming a recognized leader in the local flower renaissance with her distinctively lush and textural creations. She has been prominently featured in major press, including the New York Times, for her farm-to-centerpiece efforts, as well as in numerous photo shoots, magazines, style blogs, and books. She was named one of the top wedding florists in the nation by Martha Stewart Weddings (Spring 2015 issue) and received a special In Season spread featuring her work in the Summer 2016 issue of the magazine. This workshop takes place Wednesday, July 18 from 9 – 3. ($1,000 if you register before June 30, $1,250 thereafter)

Jennie has led many design workshops and classes, including the sold-out Seasonal Bouquet Project workshops and several accredited classes for Longwood Gardens’ Floral Design Certificate program. Jennie is currently Vice President for the national Association of Specialty Cut Flower Growers and writes a regular column for the Cut Flower Quarterly. More information about Love ‘n Fresh Flowers and Jennie are available at http://www.lovenfreshflowers.com.

On Tuesday from 9 – 11, join a Victory Garden Talk and Tour with Russell Morash, hosted by Russell and Marian Morash and sponsored by Johnny’s Selected Seeds ($85 before June 30, $100 thereafter). Also on Tuesday, from 10 – 12, is a floral arrangement workshop with Megan Soverino ($300/$350), and a Mommy & Me Garden Tea Party from 2 – 4 ($65/$75). If you prefer to be at the other end of the island, there will be two ‘Sconset Walking Garden Tours, one with Jenne Atherton from 2:30 – 4:30 and a second from 3 – 5 with Katie Hemingway (each $75/$85)

Wednesday brings a Lincoln Circle Walking tour with Julie Wood from 9 – 11 and a Lincoln Circle Walking Tour with Fabrizia Lu Macchiavelli from 9:30 – 11:30 ($75/$85). You may wish to participate in Fairy Gardens & Floral Crowns with Alana Cullen and Bee Shay from 10 – noon ($50/$60), and end the day with a Garden Soiree from 6 – 9 at Middle Brick ($150/$200).

Thursday features Monomoy and Polpis Garden Tours with Amy Pallenberg from 9 – 11 ($75/$85) and an Intimate Garden Talk and Lunch with Gordon Hayward at the Nantucket Culinary Center from noon – 2 ($200/$225). The Mommy & Me Garden Tea Party returns to the Nantucket Lighthouse School from 2 – 4 ($65/$75).

To register, and for a complete calendar of events, visit http://www.ackgardenfestival.org/

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Saturday, July 7, 1:00 pm – 2:30 pm – Growing Herb Medicine

Growing your own herbal medicine is easy and satisfying. Many of our common ailments can be taken care of with herbs grown in our gardens or even in containers. On Saturday, July 7 at 1 pm, at the Cambridge Center for Adult Education, 42 Brattle Street in Cambridge, learn about 20 easy-to-grow herbs with suggestions on using them. Handouts include information on the herbs, their uses, and growing suggestions. Instructor: Iris Weaver. $50. Register online at http://learn.ccae.org/modules/shop/index.html?action=courseBrowse&TagID=254

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Thursday, July 12, 10:00 am – 4:00 pm – Nantucket Open Day

The Garden Conservancy announces Nantucket Open Day on Thursday, July 12 from 10 – 4. Admission to each garden is $7 for members and nonmembers without tickets purchased in advance.

A must – visit is Blueberry Hill. An oak forest and tupelo grove protect the house and garden from ocean winds. The naturalistic landscape, designed by Lucinda Young, contrasts with rolling serene meadow views of West Polpis Harbor. An enclosed garden, set in a small building envelope on a conservation restriction, consists of heaths, heathers, and a crabapple espalier. A hidden garden contains a flower and shade garden. Chickens roam the property. At the request of the Garden Host, directions to this garden are provided at additional gardens open on this date, or by calling the Garden Conservancy office toll-free weekdays, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. EST, 1-888-842-2442.

The Garden at 7 Pocomo is located, naturally, at 7 Pocomo Road. A cottage resting atop a knoll surrounded by Nantucket’s natural beauty, the land itself is a tapestry of undisturbed native plants. Interwoven grass paths connect a series of protected rooms. The garden was created to bring joy to many generations of family. There are cutting and vegetable gardens to supply the house and friends all summer, as well as a flock of chickens! The cutting garden focuses on the color palette of summer, and the vegetable garden is chockfull of reliable food all summer long. This property is sure to be a treat for novice and experienced gardeners.

The gardens belonging to Gale H. Arnold at 110 Wauwinet Road are reflective of its place in time, architecture, and utility. Tree, shrub, and perennial plantings are integrated into the natural landscape. Walkways and lawn space allow for free movement throughout and provide a clear view of the inner harbor and sunset. A collection of scented plants and fruit grow inside the 18th-century-style glass house. An enormous native oak, typical of Wauwinet, dominates the back of the Queen Anne-style residence.

House in the Woods is a naturalistic landscape design. The property wraps around a large wetland, which has determined the aesthetic of the landscape, embracing native meadows, pollinator gardens, pool gardens, and native groundcovers. The connecting property emphasizes edibles in extensive vegetable gardens with wonderful woodwork and stonework details throughout.
At the request of the Garden Host, directions to this garden are provided at additional gardens open on this date, or by calling the Garden Conservancy office toll-free weekdays, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. EST, 1-888-842-2442.

Finally, all PBS fans will want to see the Morash Victory Garden at 41 Shawkemo Road. The Morash Victory Garden has expanded several times during the past thirty years. Today, polypropylene deer fencing protects twenty earthen raised beds that were built on native sandy soils amended generously with local and site-made compost. Benefiting from such strategies as winter cover cropping, grass mulching, plastic sheeting, and clean cultivation, the garden grows the usual suspects found in most backyard vegetable gardens. Potatoes and pumpkins, tomatoes, and cut flowers are important crops. Sufficient water, abundant sunshine, and a hardworking homemade greenhouse, together with countless happy hours from an old gardener, are some of the secret weapons to be found in this vegetable and flower display.

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Saturday, July 7, 11:00 am – Growing Fresh Culinary Herbs

It’s easy to grow your own culinary herbs! Fresh and nutritious herbs are a healthy and fun way to liven up any meal. This Cambridge Center for Adult Education class on Saturday, July 7 at 11 am will focus on the most common herbs used in cooking. Whether you have a garden or a windowsill for containers, you’ll be able to plant, grow, and harvest your very own herbs. Handouts will include information on herbs and growing instructions. Instructor: Iris Weaver. The class will take place at 42 Brattle Street in Cambridge, and is $50. Register online at http://learn.ccae.org/modules/shop/index.html?action=courseBrowse&TagID=254

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Wednesdays, July 11 – July 25, 10:00 am – 2:00 pm – The Art of Planting Design

In this three-session Massachusetts Horticultural Society tutorial course, Maria von Brincken, landscape designer, will teach you how to use color and plants to design gardens filled with color from flowers and foliage. You’ll learn how to create beautiful plant combinations that flower from spring to frost for sun and shade.

Through hands-on practice sessions, participants make a landscape/garden color palette, practice the system to design plant combinations in color sequences through the seasons, and learn planting bed lay-out. Tutorial walks in the Bressingham Garden illustrate class lectures and exercises. The classes will take place July 11, 18, and 25 from 10 – 2 at The Gardens at Elm Bank, 900 Washington Street in Wellesley. $240 for Mass Hort members, $275 for nonmembers. Register online at http://masshort.org, or call 617-933-4973.

Maria von Brincken, principal of Maria von Brincken Landscape Garden Design, is an award-winning certified designer (APLD and LI) celebrating her 20th year in professional practice. Maria specializes in custom beautiful spaces and colorful flower gardens using native and ornamental plants.

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Sunday, July 8 and Friday, July 13, 10:00 am – 4:00 pm – Cape Cod Hydrangea Society East Falmouth Garden Tour

The Cape Cod Hydrangea Society welcomes you to a Garden for All Seasons. Featured in Fine Gardening magazine last year, this property was chosen for its skill in making a mere half acre feel much larger. Winding garden paths lead the visitor through surprising vistas and vignettes. Espaliered pear and dogwood trees and archways of beeches and hydrangeas are some of the many features to be discovered in this 34 year old garden created by the homeowners / professional horticulturists. More than 30 hydrangea cultivars are integrated into the mixed borders. Yearly changes make this garden well worth a return trip. Open: Sunday, July 8 and Friday, July 13, 10 – 4. The proceeds from this garden tour will benefit the Cape Cod Hydrangea Society. Admission:$5 per garden. Rain or Shine. Pay cash at the door. For more information visit http://www.thecapecodhydrangeasociety.org/

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