Boston Flora

  • Wednesday, October 21, 6:00 pm – 7:00 pm – Safar with Madhushree Ghosh

    Join Madhushree Ghosh as she discusses her book, Safar: Finding Home, History, and Culture through Punjabi Food in the American West. This event is sponsored by Boston University’s Food Studies Programs and is part of the Pépin Lecture Series. The date is October 21 from 6 – 7 at 808 Commonwealth Avenue in Boston, Room 124.

    Madhushree Ghosh (Phd in biochemistry) is also the author of Khabaar: An Immigrant Journey of Food, Memory and Family . She is the creative founder of KhabaarCo, a global literary salon and supper club. As a TEDx Speaker, Madhushree interrogates cultural, culinary and immigration issues using food as a social justice tool.

    Published in June of this year, Safar blends memoir and history to explore the role of Punjabi food in fostering community and identity among South Asian refugees and immigrants.

    Safar follows the journey of South Asian refugees, immigrants, and their children-in particular, Sikhs, Jats, and Muslims-who moved to the southwestern states of America over centuries as farmers, truck drivers, restaurant owners, and dhaba/diner stall cooks. An expedition in search of the asli-or real Punjabi food-Madhushree Ghosh explores how their food traveled from pre-partition British India to now, while weaving in her own immigrant journey as a graduate student to America in 1993, her quest to find home through the food of her Bengali refugee parents, and the physical journey she embarked on to visit the Punjabi communities in California, Arizona, and New Mexico.

    Focusing on four Punjabi women, each a part of a different immigration wave of South Asia to the American West, Ghosh highlights the food and recipes they brought with them that connect them to their pasts. Safar shares stories of displacement, discrimination, community, and hope, while shedding light on immigrant journeys and the true meaning of home, comfort food, and what constitutes a “true Punjabi” meal. Featuring essential recipes, this is a poignant reflection on what it means to find home and identity through food and culture as an immigrant to the United States. Reserve your free space HERE.

  • Saturday, October 17, 10:30 am – 2:30 pm – Roses Are Plants, Too!

    You are warmly invited to celebrate the 86th New England Rose Society Founders’ Day on Saturday, Octobeer 17 from 10:30 – 2:30 at the Hopkinton Center for the Arts, 98 Hayden Rowe Street in Hopkinton.

    This year, our lunch will be held at the Hopkinton Center for the Arts in Hopkinton, Massachusetts.

    We are delighted to welcome Paul Zimmerman as our featured speaker for this very special celebration.

    For the first time, NERS is excited to introduce a Digital Photography Contest, organized by Lisa Plesko. We look forward to showcasing the creativity and talent of our members.

    Our Founders’ Day celebration will also feature our Year in Review, highlighting the memorable events, accomplishments, and activities of the past year.

    We hope you will join us for this special day of roses, friendship, and celebration. Tickets are $45 (NERS members and their guests) and $50 (nonmembers.) Register at www.newenglandrosesociety.org

  • Tuesday, October 6, 5:00 pm Eastern – Olana: Frederic Church’s Vision of Art & Landscape, Online

    2026 is the bicentennial of Frederic Church (1826-1900), America’s foremost landscape artist. In The Olmsted Network’s next free webinar on October 6, Sean Sawyer, President of The Olana Partnership, will examine Church’s 40 year-long project of creating Olana—his 250-acre masterwork of American landscape design overlooking the Hudson River in Hudson, New York.

    Sawyer will detail how Church acted as his own architect, landscape architect, and interior designer, while collaborating with Calvert Vaux and drawing upon the most advanced thinking in design and environmental conservation. Free. Register at https://olmsted.org/events/olana-frederic-churchs-vision-of-art-and-landscape/

  • Wednesday, October 14, 6:30 pm – 8:30 pm – The Mystic: Charting Our Future

    MyRWA’s Annual Meeting and Celebration is on October 14th from 6:30 – 8:30 at Mass General Brigham on Assembly Row in Somerville.

    Learn about and engage with our new Theory of Change, celebrate the volunteers who make the Mystic River Watershed Association’s work possible, and meet other watershed community members.

    Who counts as a MyRWA member? If you have volunteered or donated in the last year, you qualify and can vote on our incoming board of directors (it’s never too late to give!) But you don’t need to be a member to join in on the celebration. All are welcome to join for the meeting, celebration, or both! Register and learn more at https://mysticriver.org/annual-meeting

  • Thursday, October 8, 2:00 pm – 3:00 pm Eastern – Tree Conservation in the Americas, Online

    Join Dr. Silvia Alvarez-Clare, the American Horticultural Society’s 2026 Scientific Award recipient, online on October 8 at 2 pm Eastern to learn about tree conservation efforts throughout the Americas. From the Global Tree Conservation Program and the Center for Species Survival, to the Global Trees Specialist Group and the Global Conservation Consortium for Oak, Dr. Alvarez-Clare will share the research and projects saving tree species from extinction.

    As director of the Global Tree Conservation Program at The Morton Arboretum, Dr. Silvia Alvarez-Clare safeguards threatened tree species through science-based conservation work with stakeholders around the world. Her research uses long-term monitoring, experimentation, and ecological techniques to understand how changes in climate, land use, and soil nutrients impact plant communities, particularly trees. She translates her research into better policies, improved management practices, and restoration actions that aid in saving tree species from extinction.

    Dr. Alvarez-Clare spearheaded the creation of the Center for Species Survival: Trees, which was established at The Morton Arboretum through a strategic partnership with the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s Species Survival Commission to serve as a catalyst for tree conservation and accelerate the actions needed to reverse species loss. Her scientific research with the Morton Arboretum provides models for tree health and ecosystem health throughout the world, including shaping plant collections and horticultural approaches and environments.

    She has influenced horticulture in the United States through collaborations such as the US Forest Service’s Forest Health Protection Program, researching the value of tree genetic diversity in urban areas. As a National Geographic Explorer, she also galvanizes support internationally to conduct scientific research on endangered oak flagship species and to plant thousands of trees in Mesoamerica with local communities.

    She is a member of the advisory board for the Global Trees Specialist Group, a network of more than 300 experts that is part of the Species Survival Commission of the IUCN. Dr. Alvarez-Clare also leads the Global Conservation Consortium for Oak, a network established by Botanic Gardens Conservation International (BGCI) to ensure that no species of oak goes extinct. She is also a mentor for the National Science Foundation-funded project Rare Plant Network (Rare RaMP), which focuses on training and mentoring post-graduates in plant research and conservation. Funding for many of these projects is endangered during the current administration, however.

    $15 for AHS members, $20 for nonmembers. Register at https://ahsgardening.org/ahs-live-tree-conservation-in-the-americas/

  • Thursday, October 29 – Massachusetts Horticultural Society Honorary Medals Dinner

    Massachusetts Horticultural Society (MHS) will celebrate their 2026 Honorary Medal winners at the 122nd Honorary Medals Dinner in the Hunnewell Building at the Garden at Elm Bank in Wellesley, MA on October 29, 2026.

    This ceremony celebrates a 195-year tradition of awarding medals to individuals and organizations for their contributions to horticulture for the public good, while marking the introduction of the R. Wayne Mezitt Medal – the first new medal established since 1927.

    Tickets for the awards ceremony including dinner and drinks are now on sale. Proceeds benefit excellence in horticulture at MHS. For a list of award winners and to register, visit https://www.masshort.org/honorary-medals

  • Thursday, October 1, 5:30 pm – 8:00 pm – Mass Rivers on the Road: Worcester

    On Thursday, October 1st the Mass Rivers Alliance will kick off its third Mass Rivers on the Road event in over a month, at Bay State Brewing Company, 112 Harding Street in Worcester . The evening is co-hosted by the Blackstone Watershed Collaborative. This event is open to the public, and will spotlight the work of our incredible partners in Central MA. Feel free to bring a friend. Learn more at https://www.massriversalliance.org/

  • Classes on Demand! Online – Carex for Every Garden

    Now you can gain gardening expertise whenever and wherever you want with Classes On Demand! Featuring several of Mt. Cuba Center’s most popular courses, each class lasts about 90 minutes. Once purchased, students are able to watch the pre-recorded videos more than once, or stop at any point and re-start it again later within 30 days of the purchase date. Please call if this is a gift that will need a specific start date.

    On-demand classes are intended for independent learning by one student. They do not offer teacher interaction and are available for a limited time only. $19. Register at https://tickets.mtcubacenter.org/webstore/shop/viewItems.aspx?cg=ga&c=REC#13837

    Carex are a diverse and versatile, yet underutilized genus of native plants that are overflowing with garden merit. They can fill various niches in landscapes as groundcovers and living mulch, while some can even be used on their own as specimen plants. Traditionally thought of as shade perennials, some Carex species exhibit remarkable tolerance to full sun as well, making them a viable and worthy addition to the garden. Sam Hoadley, manager of horticultural research, shares the top-performing Carex from Mt. Cuba Center’s Trial Garden and discusses strategies and examples of how to successfully incorporate Carex in home gardens.


    Sam Hoadley is the Manager of Horticultural Research at Mt. Cuba Center where he evaluates native plant species, old and new cultivars, and hybrids in the Trial Garden. Prior to working at Mt. Cuba, he was the lead horticulturist for Longwood Gardens’ Hillside Garden. He earned his degree in Sustainable Landscape Horticulture from the University of Vermont.

  • Friday, October 2, 5:30 pm Eastern – Emily Dickinson: The Poet as Botanist, Live & Online

    The New England Botanical Society October 2 meeting is presented by Peter Grima at 5:30 PM – Hybrid at Harvard University, Cambridge, and over Zoom

    Non-members, please register here

    Emily Dickinson’s Herbarium is a beautiful and fascinating collection of 424 pressed plants, exhibiting the same kind of careful attention to detail she later applied to her poetry. More than half of these are wildflowers native to the poet’s home landscape of greater Amherst, Massachusetts. Most intriguing are the many rare or locally extirpated taxa among her specimens. The breadth of wildflowers portrays her as an active and meticulous observer of the natural world, and they also represent tangible examples of the same plants she invoked in her poetry with direct connections to the ecological landscape of 19th century Amherst.

    In this talk, Peter Grima will dive into Dickinson’s botanical training and interests, as well as the process of creating her Herbarium. He’ll draw connections to her poetry and give examples of how botanical and ecological understanding can enhance our engagement with her work. He’ll also explore the wildflowers and share what they tell us about the Amherst landscape as Dickinson would have experienced it.

  • Saturday, October 3, 1:00 pm – 2:30 pm – Invasive Earthworms in Managed Landscapes: Impact & Solutions

    Jumping worms have garnered a lot of interest from the public in recent years. This October 3 live presentation will discuss the identification and biology of invasive earthworms in MA, and their role/ impact in the urban landscapes. This will include information about “crazy/jumping worm” species (Amynthas spp.) that have many homeowners in Massachusetts and New England concerned. Dr. Olga Kostromytska, Extension Assistant Professor and Turf Entomologist, UMass Stockbridge School of Agriculture will also share updates about current research.

    Registration Required: https://middlesexconservationdistrict.org/events/

    This program is offered in partnership with the Concord Free Public Library and begins at 1 pm. The Massachusetts Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs’ Division of Conservation Services Conservation District Innovation and Basic Grant Program provides funding for this program.