Adrian Bloom

Friday, June 14, 2:00 pm – 3:00 pm Eastern – Foggy Bottom – A Garden to Share, Online

by

An inspirational guide to understanding plants and gardens, the book and American Horticultural Society virtual talk on Friday, June 14 are based on Bloom’s experience in creating his own spectacular six-acre garden, Foggy Bottom. From an empty meadow in 1966, this renowned horticulturist’s lifetime creation demonstrates stunning combinations and seasonal interest. Learn how to masterfully use perennials, grasses, and shrubs, as well as the background of how this project inspired Bloom’s signature Give Away Gardens.

From expanding the family nursery business to include new ranges of plants, to designing countless gardens throughout the UK and the US, Adrian Bloom has cultivated a gardening culture for the past sixty years. He has appeared as a television presenter with Anglia TV (1973), BBC Gardener’s World (1993-96), and WGBH in the US on The Victory Garden, (1996- 2001). Bloom has written more than 10 books, including Conifers for your Garden (1972), A Year Round Garden (1978), Blooms of Bressingham Garden Plants (with Alan Bloom 1992), Winter Garden Glory (1993), Summer Garden Glory (1996), Gardening with Conifers (2001), Bloom’s Best Perennials and Grasses (2010), and Foggy Bottom: A Garden to Share (2023). Bloom has also received numerous awards, including the Victoria Medal of Honour (VMH) by the RHS (1985), the Lifetime Achievement Award by the Garden Media Guild (2015), the George Robert White award by the Massachusetts Horticultural Society (2001), and 26 gold medals for the Bressingham Gardens exhibits at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show.

$15 AHS members, $20 non-members. Register at www.ahsgardening.org

Saturday, February 3, 10:00 am – In Conversation with Adrian Bloom

by

The Massachusetts Horticultural Society hosts a talk and book signing in early February which you won’t want to miss. Plantsman, author and designer of Bressingham Garden, Adrian Bloom, is coming to the Garden at Elm Bank, 900 Washington Street in Wellesley, on February 3, 2023. Learn about his career, projects including Bressingham Garden at Massachusetts Horticultural Society, and his new book, Foggy Bottom, which will be available for purchase and signing at the event! Coffee and Pastries included with registration.

9:30 – Check-in and enjoy coffee/pastries
10am – Adrian Bloom, in conversation with James Hearsum, MHS Executive Director
11am – Book Signing, purchase a new copy of Foggy Bottom and have it signed, before it’s released in the U.S.!

MHS members $35, nonmembers $40. Register at https://www.masshort.org/adrian-bloom-230203

Thursday, October 5 – Saturday, October 7 – America in Bloom National Symposium

by

The 2017 America in Bloom National Symposium is coming to New England for the first time this October.  The Town of Holliston will host the event October 5 – 7, and attendees from out of state will lodge at the Sheraton Framingham Hotel & Conference Center.

The conference kicks off with an East Coast Garden Tour on Thursday, October 5 from 10 – 4, advance registration required. If you want to experience horticultural heritage in the Boston area at its best, this tour is for you! We’ll start by visiting one of the oldest and finest garden centers in the Boston area, Weston Nurseries. Known for offering exceptional plants and garden ideas, this nursery in Hopkinton, MA also has an amazing railroad garden. After touring the garden center we’ll enjoy lunch hosted by Peter Mezitt, fourth generation nursery owner. Then we will head to The Gardens at Elm Bank in Wellesley, MA, headquarters of the Massachusetts Horticultural Society, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Here we will enjoy special tours of 12 display gardens, including an historic Olmsted Italianate Garden as well as the Bressingham Garden designed by English nurseryman Adrian Bloom. The last stop on the tour is to Wellesley College, rated one of the most beautiful small college campuses in the country. We will have a special tour of their botanic garden which now focuses on the fundamental role of plants in nature and culture. The cost is $50 and includes lunch. Tour is limited to 50 people so register early.

If you prefer, take a tour of the Urban Farming Institute from 1 – 4. If you believe in sourcing local, fresh food, don’t miss this tour! The Urban Farming Institute is a brand-new concept in the historically-diverse Roxbury/Dorchester/Mattapan neighborhoods of Boston. The Institute’s mission is to develop and promote urban farming as a commercial sector within the city and to create green collar jobs for residents. It is also committed to engaging its urban community in building a healthier and more locally-based food system. The Fowler-Clark-Epstein Farm, currently under reconstruction, is becoming the center for celebrating the agricultural heritage of the Boston area as well as the cultural and historic heritage of this unique community. On this tour, you will see first-hand the work the Institute is doing to enable urban farming through farm creation, farmer training, public education, and policy change, and how the Institute brings people in urban neighborhoods closer to food production. Your tour leader is Barbara Knecht, partner in “Strategies for Cities.” Barbara has brought 30 years of developing urban land for public good and a love of all things edible to her work developing urban farm sites. The cost is $35. Tour is limited to 11 people so register early.

Prior to that evening’s silent auction and cocktail reception there will be a Mayor and Elected Leaders Reception, and later, a Celebration Dinner.

The Symposium begins in earnest on Friday, with a Keynote Presentation by Ken Kruckemeyer, board member of LivableStreets Alliance and partner in “Strategies for Cities.” Ken specializes in the design of civil infrastructure focusing in pedestrian and bicycle corridors as well as roadway and bridge design. Historic preservation has become a fundamental tool for strengthening communities. When understood as a combination of physical and human attributes, it can provide a framework for communities to build on their assets and improve health, affordability, prosperity, and well-being. Historic preservation can make it possible to achieve a wide range of public goals, including small business incubation, affordable housing, sustainable development, neighborhood renewal, heritage tourism, and economic development. By examples primarily drawn from his Boston experience, Ken will address the importance of historic preservation and the role that walkable corridors play in an effective immersion in the historic character of a community.

Friday brings a host of panel presentations such as Creating a Sense of Place Downtown, and a How-To Guide to Improving Your Town Through Horticulture. Afternoon and evening tours of the Freedom Trail and the Rose Kennedy Greenway, plus Mount Auburn Cemetery, are on offer.

On Saturday the Showcase of Innovation continues, and America in Bloom President Katy Moss Warner will take a brief look at collective successes in her morning Keynote Speech. A lunch and Holliston Walking Tour round out the afternoon, and that evening, the America in Bloom Awards Banquet will take place.

Full registration is $345, and by registering online at http://www.americainbloom.org/Symposium/Registration.aspx before September 8 you will receive a discount. You may also call 614-453-0744, or email aib@AmericainBloom.org.

Tuesday, July 25, 12:00 noon – 5:00 pm – Bressingham Garden Symposium 2017

by

Join the Massachusetts Horticultural Society on July 25 to celebrate the 10th Anniversary of this beautiful garden at Elm Bank! They have arranged a day led by the experts, presenting on how you can create a unique four-season landscape that is truly inspirational. Garden designer and creator, Adrian Bloom, plantsman of the Bressingham and Foggy Bottom Gardens in England, will talk about the garden’s design intent and year-long appeal. The symposium will also feature Michael Dirr, America’s top expert on woody plants; Kerry Ann Mendez, garden design, speaker and author; and Mal Condon, hydrangea expert.

And, you’ll want to stay for the 10th Anniversary celebration of the Bressingham Garden at Elm Bank- wine and hors d’ oeuvres in the garden.

Plant Sale: 11:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. Suzanne Thatcher, Russell’s Garden Center, offers you an opportunity to take home the plants that inspire you. A portion of the day’s proceeds will go to support Mass Hort and future projects in the Bressingham Garden.

Day Symposium: 12 – 5 p.m. $99 per person (includes box lunch)

Add Reception: 5:30 – 7:30 p.m. $20 per person ($25 per person if not attending symposium)

Full Symposium and Reception: $119

Additional information, please call: 617-933-4973

Proceeds raised from this event will support the Bressingham Garden and future projects. To register online visit www.masshort.org.

Saturday, August 29, 10:00 am – 12:00 noon – Bressingham Basics

by

Join Suzanne Higham on Saturday, August 29 at 10 am for an introduction to the Bressingham Garden of the Massachusetts Horticultural Society. She will identify different plants and the inspired design concepts that make this a gem of The Gardens at Elm Bank.

Garden Keeper Suzanne Higham has had the opportunity to spend time in the Bressingham Garden with renowned designer Adrian Bloom. Working beside him, and speaking with him through several seasons, she has a deep understanding of this beautiful garden and Bloom’s vision for its development and future. Work with Suzanne to get a hands-on lesson on how you can grow these plants in your own landscape. Come with questions!

Owner and principal designer of Frog Hollow Landscapes, Suzanne is an award winning designer, and has worked on a team of designers with Mass Hort to create our award winning gardens at the Boston Flower and Garden Shows in 2014 and 2015. Learn more at www.froghollowlandscapes.com.

Please attend dressed to get your hands a little dirty in the garden. Fee: Mass Hort Members $5, Non-Members $8. Register online at www.masshort.org.

Sunday, September 1 – Saturday, September 7 – The Bressingham Academy

by

Dr. Allan M. Armitage and Adrian Bloom have started a new school for horticulture for gardeners at Bressingham Hall, Norfolk, England.  The first opportunity begins Sunday September 1, and there are a few places left. The Bressingham Academy for Advanced Garden Studies will open its doors in September, 2013 with its first class. Only 25 students will be in the first class. Adrian Bloom and Allan Armitage, along with other highly distinquished lecturers, will present an interesting variety of topics. Lectures will take place in historic Bressingham Hall and the laboritories and outdoor classrooms will include Bressingham Gardens and the private gardens of Adrian Bloom (The Dell Garden). Along with a few other local trips and one to Wisley, the week will be full and exciting.

Tentative class schedules and itinerary:

Day 1 Sun, Sept 1st – Meet in London airport, Heathrow at a specific time (TBA). Coach to Angel Hotel, Bury St Edmunds. Dinner in hotel with Adrian and Rosemary Bloom

Day 2, Mon, Sept 2 – From Nature to landscape – Science in the Garden. Introduction, welcome, curriculum, introduce speakers, handout materials, taught by Adrian Bloom and Allan Armitage

Plants in Wild Places, and how they are collected, presented by Dr Chris Grey-Wilson

Introduction to Dell Garden, the work of Alan Bloom, presented by Jaime Blake, followed by lunch at Bressingham Hall. In the afternoon, enjoy a short lecture on Taxonomy and Morphology with Allan Armitage, followed by The Dell Garden part 1 and Foggy Bottom part 1. No trip to England is complete without tea at Bressingham Hall. Dinner will be in the hotel.

Day 3 covers The Selection of Garden Plants, Day 4 highlights Plants with a Purpose, Day 5 is Spreading the Word with a day trip to Wisley, a BBQ, and Day 6 will include a pub dinner on the way back to London before flying home. Complete details at http://allanarmitage.net/garden_vistas.  If you are interested, contact Allan Armitage at amarmitage@earthlink.net as soon as possible.

http://www.gardenvisit.com/assets/madge/bressingham_steam_museum_and_gardens_637_jpg/600x/bressingham_steam_museum_and_gardens_637_jpg_600x.jpg

Wednesday, July 4 – Monday, July 9 – Thirtieth Perennial Plant Symposium

by

The yearly Perennial Plant Symposium is the only annual symposium devoted entirely to perennials. It is also the oldest with the first symposium presented in 1983. The location changes each year. Enjoy learning about and observing perennials, gardens, and production facilities all across the USA and Canada. This summer the annual meeting of the Perennial Plant Association takes place in Boston, Massachusetts. The conference includes optional tours before and after the symposium, trips to public and private gardens, a trade show, and retail, grower, or designer’s talks and tours. Selected highlights include:

July 4th: Optional walking horticultural tour of Boston, historical tour by bus of Boston, Lexington and Concord,  and fireworks cruise

July 5th: Public Day Seminar Speakers

Julie Merservy:  Home Outside – Creating the Landscape You Love

Debra Knape: Good Enough To Eat – Designing Edible Landscapes

David Culp:  Best of Yesterday, Today & Tomorrow

Adrian Bloom:   Bloom’s Best Perennials and Grasses

Roger Swain: Ace of Shovels: Finding the Perfect Garden Tool

Laura Deeter: Bringing Your Perennials Up Right

July 6th: Eleven fascinating presentations featuring growers, landscape designers, and retailers, plus Keynote by Julie Merservy:  Hearing the Stream With Open Eyes – The Evolution of a Designer

July 7th: Morning Bench to Border Tours of Cavicchio Greenhouses, Stonegate Gardens, Russell’s Garden Center, Garden in the Woods, Weston Nursery, and Tower Hill Botanic Garden.

Afternoon Divine by Design Garden Tours of four private gardens, Elm Bank (Massachusetts Horticultural Society), Weston Nursery, and Tower Hill Botanic Garden.

July 8th – Trade Show and Sixteen Lectures on topics ranging from Biological Controls to New and Upcoming Coreopsis Cultivars to Container Gardening.

July 9 – Optional Tour to garden centers and Newport gardens

July 10 – Option Tour:  Journey to the Edge!  The Maine Event.  Visit five wholesale and retail growers in New Hampshire and Maine, and experience a lobster bake at the Coastal Maine Botanic Garden.

 

Lectures, reception and the trade show will take place at the Boston Park Plaza Hotel, 50 Park Plaza at Arlington Street. The room rate is: $129 for Single or $129 for Double.  Non Perennial Plant Association members are invited to register for the entire conference at non-member rates, or just for the public day on July 5th.  Registration information will be available at www.perennialplant.org.  This is a fabulous opportunity for our Boston area gardening community to participate in one of the nation’s premier horticultural events.

 

Wednesday, July 13, 7:00 pm – 8:30 pm – From Bressingham Gardens to the Bressingham Garden at Elm Bank

by

Beginning in 2002, Adrian Bloom began planting demonstration gardens in America, both to illustrate his design principles and promote his plants. In August 2007, he accepted an invitation to install a garden at Elm Bank. To that time, his largest American garden was about 4,000 square feet in size. Originally planned to be considerably smaller, the Elm Bank garden quickly grew to just over an acre in size, yet was largely built in a weekend by several hundred volunteers.

Adrian will talk about his original vision for the garden and how he adjusted that vision to meet American – and New England – sensibilities and realities. He’ll talk about what he has learned in four years and where he sees this particular garden going. He’ll also share his experiences about plants that work well in our climate and planting combinations. After a break for refreshments, he’ll field questions from the audience.

This Massachusetts Horticultural Society talk begins at 7 p.m. and will be held in the Hunnewell Building at Elm Bank in Wellesley. Seating is limited to 200 and pre-registration is suggested. The cost for members is $20; non-members are $25. Wine and light refreshments will be served.

To reserve a spot for this lecture you may register online or call 617-933-4995.

Wednesday, July 13, 9:00 am – 11:00 am – A Garden Walk and Design Tutorial with Adrian Bloom

by

Please join The Massachusetts Horticultural Society beginning at 9:00 a.m. for a continental breakfast in the James Crockett Memorial Garden (below) at Elm Bank. At 9:30 a.m., you’ll step into the Bressingham Garden for a hands-on look at the garden, led by its designer. Adrian will talk about the garden’s underlying design principles and the choice of specific materials, including ‘hardscape’ items. He’ll discuss his choices of color and texture. Now that the garden is entering its fourth season, he’ll also talk about changes to the garden and how the New England climate comes into play. All of this will be interspersed with a commentary on how all of this relates to an urban or suburban homeowner’s desire to create a memorable garden. Questions are encouraged.

Please plan for at least one hour for this event, which will be held rain or shine. It is limited to 40 participants and pre-registration is a must. The cost, including continental breakfast, is $45. Preference will be given to Mass Hort members, but if space remains after July 11, the cost for non-members will be $55.

To reserve a place for this event you may register online or call 617-933-4995.

Wednesday, May 11, 6:30 pm – 8:00 pm – The Best Garden in Boston Can Be the One in Your Back Yard

by

Paul Miskovsky has created, hands down, some of the most stunning gardens in New England. He has a horticulturist’s eye and he’s an artist who uses a Bobcat to sculpt nondescript properties into showcases for their owners.

But he’s also a guy who believes that great gardens begin with selecting the right plants. And, you don’t have to have a million bucks to spend to create a garden with an ‘aura’. All it takes is a good eye and some imagination. Last year, Paul’s imagination landed his own garden on the front cover of the Boston Globe magazine’s annual gardening issue. On May 11, Paul will talk about choosing annuals and perennials for your garden. He’ll start by taking you on a walk through the Bressingham Garden at Elm Bank, which is chock full of unusual perennials. (Paul has more than a passing familiarity with the garden, he helped built it in 2007 and maintains it today, interpreting the vision of its designer, Adrian Bloom). You’ll then head back to the classroom to hear Paul talk about what works – and doesn’t work – in the home garden.

Because of the garden walk component of the program, the starting time will be 6:30 p.m. Please assemble in front of the Elm Bank Education Building. The fee for this program is $10 for Massachusetts Horticultural Society members and $15 for non-members. Reservations are not required. As always, refreshments will be served.For more information, log on to www.masshort.org.