Boston Flora

Tag: Arnold Arboretum

  • Thursday, July 22, 4:00 pm – Herbs in History: The Practice and Lore of Medicinal Botany

    The Berkshire Botanical Garden, 5 West Stockbridge Road, West Stockbridge, continues its Horticulture in History series on Thursday, July 22 at 4 pm with a lecture, book sale and signing by author Judith Sumner. Beginning in prehistory, plants were known as the most reliable sources of essential medicines. Learn about traditional herbs and their many uses from ancient to modern times. Consider the best known herbal families, such as the mints and the mustards, and examine the basis for their efficacy. Traditional lore such as the Doctrine of Signatures, will provide historical context and breadth. This is an herbal adventure, spanning the medicinal botany practiced by the Greeks and Romans to the herb gardens of colonial America, herb use during wartime, herbs in the New England landscape, and modern herbal practices.

    Judith Sumner is a popular lecturer for botanical and horticultural organizations, including the Arnold Arboretum, New York Botanical Garden, and Garden in the Woods. She is the author of several books including The Natural History of Medicinal Plants and American Household Botany.  To register ($20), log on to www.berkshirebotanical.org, or call 413-298-3926.

    http://www.globalherbalsupplies.com/herb_information/images/aloe-vera.jpg

  • Asian Longhorn Beetles Found in Jamaica Plain

    We just received this information from the MA Dept. of Agricultural Resources—please read this, spread the word, and help stop the spread of this critter that required 27,000 trees to be cut down in Worcester in 2008-2009.

    This weekend a small infestation of Asian longhorn beetle (ALB) was found in Jamaica Plain (Boston). The site is at Faulkner Hospital, just across from the Arnold Arboretum. Six infested maple trees were found so far, in close proximity to each other, and have already been removed by USDA/DCR. Surveys will continue this week.

    It is extremely important that we get the word out ASAP to everyone in the Boston, Brookline and Newton area to be on the lookout for:

    1) Adult Asian longhorn beetles (shiny black beetles with white spots and long, banded antennae – picture below)

    2) ALB exit holes (dime-sized, perfectly round holes, especially in maple, but also in birch, elm, horse chestnut, willow and other hardwood trees…but not oak)

    3) ALB egg-laying sites (divots in the bark ranging in size from 1/4 to 3/4 inches across – fresh pits often have oozing, foaming sap)

    Anyone seeing anything suspicious should report it immediately at http://massnrc.org/pests/albreport.aspx or toll-free: 1-866-702-9938.  Take photos if you can.

    If you are with an environmental group or other organization that needs outreach materials, we will provide you with free ID cards, fact sheets, etc. Just contact Jen Forman Orth (jennifer.forman-orth@state.ma.us; 617-626-1735)

    Spread the word, not the beetle! Get all the latest ALB news at: http://massnrc.org/pests/alb

    http://www.franklintwpnj.org/alb.jpg

  • Thursday, July 8, 4:00 pm – Beatrix Farrand, Private Gardens, Public Landscapes

    Judith Tankard continues her book tour with a stop at Berkshire Botanical Garden, 5 West Stockbridge Road in West Stockbridge,  on Thursday, July 8 at 4 pm. Beatrix Farrand (below) was one of the foremost landscape architects of the early 1900s and one of the earliest women to take up the profession. She studied privately under the renowned horticulturist Charles Sprague Sargent and learned about garden design through extensive travel abroad. Many of her clients were members of high society, with estates in Newport, the Berkshires, and Maine. Learn about this remarkable woman and her lasting influence on the field of landscape design.  $20.  To register, log on to www.berkshirebotanical.org, or call 413-298-3926.

    Judith B. Tankard is an art historian specializing in landscape history. She is the author of seven books and has taught for over twenty years at the Landscape Institute of the Arnold Arboretum, Harvard University.

    http://www.ced.berkeley.edu/cedarchives/images/farrand2.jpg

  • Saturday, June 26, 9:00 am – 12:00 noon – Propagating Trees and Shrubs from Cuttings

    Cuttings, one of Polly Hill’s favorite ways for sharing superior plants, produce plants genetically identical to the parent. Come to the Polly Hill Arboretum, 809 State Road, West Tisbury, on Saturday, June 26, beginning at 9 am, and join Jack Alexander, longtime Arnold Arboretum propagator, to learn how to propagate woody plants from softwood cuttings. After an introductory lecture, participants will collect cuttings from the Arboretum grounds, and then return to the greenhouse to learn techniques. You will leave with a small box of cuttings. Please bring a pair of hand pruners; a sharp knife and apron would also be a welcome accessory. Please pre-register; space is limited to 12. An assumption-of-risk release form must be signed to participate in this workshop. $55/$50 for PHA members.  For more information, or to register, log on to www.pollyhillarboretum.org.

    http://apps.rhs.org.uk/advice/ACEImages/RHS_PUB0004444_483611.jpg

  • Saturday, June 12, 1:00 pm – 2:30 pm – A Rose Family Reunion

    The rose family is more than just roses. This large group of plants contains plenty of ornamental trees and shrubs but also an astonishing array of edible fruits including apples, cherries, peaches, almonds, and strawberries.

    On this free tour on Saturday, June 12, beginning at 1 pm, you will walk through the Arnold Arboretum’s Bradley Rosaceous Collection andl look at some of the beautiful, unusual, and edible members of the rose family, complete with interesting tales of how these plants came to the Arboretum and what’s happening in the collection.  The Arboretum is located at 125 Arborway, Jamaica Plain, and for directions, call 617-384-5209, or email arbweb@arnarb.harvard.edu.  Photo by kreynard.

    http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3611/3520149355_b1554b2a99.jpg?v=0

  • Thursday, June 3, 7:00 pm – Spirit of a New Garden

    The Arnold Arboretum and Trinity Church are pleased to present programs on the intersections of gardens, spirit, health, environment, and healing. On Thursday, June 3, at 7:00 pm, Dominique Browning will speak on the topic Spirit of a New Garden.

    For over a decade, Dominique Browning brought gardening expertise to readers around the country as editor-in-chief of House & Garden magazine. But one Monday morning in 2007, the magazine folded and she was told to pack up her office. She also packed up the house where she had raised two children and had lovingly tended her own garden. After losing the job that defined her and the garden that inspired her, Browning started to cultivate a new garden, beginning a journey of self-discovery and reinvention. Join Browning, author of Slow Love, as she shares how the spirit of a new garden helped her to love the unexpected, unanticipated life.

    Fee $20 Arboretum and Trinity members, $25 nonmember.  This lecture takes place at Trinity Church, 206 Clarendon Street in Copley Square, Boston.

    Register online at arboretum.harvard.edu or call 617.384.5277 (Arboretum) or 617.536.0944 x225 (The Shop at Trinity) to purchase tickets over the telephone. Questions? Contact Kathy Acerbo-Bachmann 617.536.0944 or by email at kacerbobachmann@trinitychurchboston.org.

    http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_T4n7SL-6fWE/S6ymzVg44II/AAAAAAAADdQ/WlP18r0sEr4/s1600/slowlifelove.jpg

  • Tuesdays, May 11, 18, 25, and June 1, 6:30 – 8:30 pm – Oh Garden of Fresh Possibilities

    Gloucester designer Kim Smith will present the necessary elements for making your garden welcoming to birds, bees, butterflies, and other wildlife.  She will help you assess your existing garden to create a more life-sustaining ecosystem.  Students should research a specific habitat that is of interest and bring photos and sketches of an outdoor space to class, for comment and discussion.  You will gain a deeper understanding of the interconnected world that we human beings share with plants and wildlife, and learn how to translate that information to your own garden.  Copies of Kim’s book, Oh Garden of Fresh Possibilities!, will be available for sale.  The dates are Tuesdays, May 11, 18, 25, and June 1, from 6:30 – 8:30 in the Hunnewell Building of the Arnold Arboretum.  Arboretum members $85, non-members $100. To register, log on to www.arboretum.harvard.edu.

    http://www.kimsmithdesigns.com/images/purchase.jpg

  • Thursday, May 20, 2:00 – 4:00 pm – The Power and Purpose of Trees: A Walk with Diana Beresford-Kroeger

    The Arnold Arboretum proves the perfect classroom for renegade botanist Diana Beresford-Kroeger. She will lead you among trees from around the globe, describing their subtle and not so subtle qualities that contribute to the environment. Mixing lore and chemistry, fact and theory, Diana will broaden your understanding of the inherent importance of trees to the lives of all on this planet. The walk will take place Thursday, May 20, from 2 – 4, and you should meet at the Hunnewell Building at the Arnold Arboretum in Jamaica Plain. The program is co-sponsored by the Wellesley College Friends of Horticulture and the fee is $25 for Arboretum members and Wellesley College Friends of Horticulture, $30 for the general public. Sign up at www.arboretum.harvard.edu.

    http://img.infibeam.com/img/fc77c981/517/8/9780472068517.jpg

  • Thursday, May 20, 7:00 pm – 8:30 pm – Trees for Life: Planting the Global Forest

    Though schooled in classical botany, medical biochemistry, organic and radio-nuclear chemistry, as well as experimental surgery, Diana Beresford-Kroeger’s thoughts about trees are anything but classical. She has a collection of ideas, some radical, for how trees can be used to affect climate change as well as human health. According to Beresford-Kroeger, we have yet to fully understand the function and contribution of trees. In this lecture Diana will espouse the intrinsic values of particular trees, explain her hopes for reforesting the planet, and share some of the lore that fuels her passion to continue her research on trees. This lecture, taking place Thursday, May 20, from 7 – 8:30 pm in the Hunnewell Building of the Arnold Arboretum in Jamaica Plain, is co-sponsored with The Wellesley College Friends of Horticulture, and costs $15 for members of the sponsoring institutions, $20 for non-members. You may register at www.arboretum.harvard.edu.

    http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_fbieQ6vDebI/SITNt4OFQ-I/AAAAAAAABaA/ciA5a9WQ1AY/s400/Virginity-noon.jpg

  • Sunday, May 9, 10 am – 4 pm – Lilac Sunday

    Of the thousands of flowering plants in the Arnold Arboretum, only one, the lilac, is singled out each year for a daylong celebration. Gather at the Arboretum to picnic (allowed on this special day only!), watch dance performances, tour the lilac collection, and more. Event takes place rain or shine. The Arboretum is open from dawn to dusk, with refreshments available for purchase and activities take place from 10 AM to 4 PM.  For directions, log on to www.arboretum.harvard.edu.

    Lilac lilacs by robynejay.