Boston Flora

Tag: Beekeeping

  • Saturday, January 14, 2:30 pm – 3:30 pm – What is Beekeeping All About?

    Do you like apples, cranberries, pumpkins, and squash? This Tower Hill Botanic Garden talk by Mary Duane, Past President, Worcester County Beekeepers Association, will focus on the very critical role that honeybees play in our ecosystem, including your vegetable garden. A Power Point presentation will show the management of honeybee colonies through the seasons in Central Massachusetts. Learn what you can do to help to protect the honeybee, including becoming a beekeeper! The lecture, on Saturday, January 14 from 2:30 – 3:30, will take place at Tower Hill, 11 French Drive in Boylston, and the cost is included with admission to the garden ($10 adults, $7 seniors, $5 youth, free for children under 6.)  For directions, visit www.towerhillbg.org.

  • Saturday, July 23, 11:00 am – 2:00 pm – Urban Beekeeping

    Get on board with one of the hottest do-it-yourself trends that has The New York Times all abuzz! Let Noah Wilson-Rich, South End resident beekeeper and owner of Boston’s Best Beesâ„¢ dissuade any preconceived notions you may have about bees and give you insight to why they are being threatened. You’ll learn how to pick a location for a hive, set-up techniques, the best way to manage your new army, how to extract honey and creative ideas for your harvest! Every student will make and take home a beehive frame (the structural element that holds the comb within the hive) and a jar of all natural beeswax lip balm, along with a jar of honey that you helped to extract! This Urban Beekeeping class will take place at the Boston Center for Adult Education, 122 Arlington Street, Boston, on Saturday, July 23 from 11 – 2, and the fee to attend is $43 for BCAE members, $50 for nonmembers, with a $10 materials fee.  Register at www.bcae.org or call 617-267-4430.

  • Friday, April 8 – Sunday, April 10 – Bangor 2011 Flower Show

    The Bangor 2011 Flower Show will take place Friday, April 8 – Sunday, April 10 at the Bangor Auditorium  See eight garden displays as they compete for Best in Show and People’s Choice Award, while sampling from over 50 vendor booths to supply all your gardening needs.  This is the 20th anniversary of the show, general admission is a mere $5 at the door, and times are 10 am – 8 pm Friday and Saturday, 11 – 4 on Sunday.  Events will include A Taste of Local Color cooking demonstrations, Get the Honey Bee Buzz, Garden for Your Health seminars from St. Joseph Healthcare, Public Community Gardens presentation, Water Wise Gardening, Sustainable Landscape Design, Creative Container Gardening, Fruit Tree Tips for Amateurs, Kids Programs, Orchid Society Tea Party with the Eastern Maine Orchid Society, True Living Organics, a juried flower show, and more.  Contact Wendy Warren at 207-992-4255, or email wendy.warren@bangormaine.gov, or log on to www.bangorgardenshow.com. Image of flowers from the 2010 Bangor Flower Show from daliaphotography on Flickr.

  • Sunday, February 27, 2:00 pm – Vanishing of the Bees

    Where did all the bees go? If you’ve been aware of the news in the past few years, we’re sure you’re familiar with CCD: Colony Collapse Disorder. Discovered first in late 2006, hordes of bees literally….disappeared. The worker bees leave for the day and never return, abandoning the queen, the young, the eggs. Everything. So maybe the darn queen was crackin’ the whip too hard. But maybe not — the theories abound. Was it a virus? Environmental changes? Malnutrition? An affect of pesticides?

    Want to explore these questions? If so, come to the Small Metcalf Hall in Boston University’s GSU, 775 Commonwealth Ave., Boston, on Sunday, February 27th at 2:00PM for the film Vanishing of the Bees, which explores the issues in greater detail, outlining what led up to the problem and what can be done differently going forward in order to prevent it from happening again. We’re following the film with a panel of local beekeepers and honey makers (Golden Rule Honey, Allandale Honey Co & more!) discussing their work… And then we’ll get to taste their bounty! It’s your chance to learn the nuances of honey and talk to the folks that make it. And understand exactly why we need to be informed and make changes to prevent honeybees from disappearing again. This screening is generously co-sponsored by Slow Food Tufts and Slow Food BU. $5 fee. You may reserve a space on line at www.slowfoodboston.com/reserve.cfm?eno=873.

  • Saturday, January 22, 9:00 am – 12:00 noon – Beekeeping for Gardeners

    This Berkshire Botanical Garden workshop, to be held Saturday, January 22 from 9 – 12,  is for everyone with an interest in honeybees and beekeeping. Learn how to start a honey bee colony, the seasonal management required to keep a healthy hive of bees and the role of pollinators and their relationship to flowering plants. Topics provide an overview of the beekeeper’s job, and will help new beekeepers, or those who are considering becoming a beekeeper, to make the correct choices starting a backyard apiary. Equipment and tools used by the beekeeper will be discussed and step by step instructions for starting a new colony of bees will be covered. At the end of the workshop participants should have a solid understanding of how to successfully begin as a new beekeeper.

    Dan Conlon owns Warm Colors Apiary in South Deerfield, Massachusetts. Warm Colors maintains bee yards in western Mass for honey production, and provides pollination services on area farms. As a full-time beekeeper, concerned with the decline of all bees, Dan focuses on management that improves Queen development & health, colony nutrition, and reduces the environmental risks threatening bees. He is President of the Massachusetts Beekeepers Association, and was recognized as the Eastern Apicultural Society’s 2004 Beekeeper of the Year, and the Massachusetts 2005 Beekeeper of the Year.

    $37 BBG members, $45 non members. Call 413-298-3926, or email info@berkshirebotanical.org for more information.

  • Wednesday, January 19, 6:30 pm – 9:00 pm – The Buzz on Beekeeping

    Learn the art, science, and craft of beekeeping from Beekeepers’ Warehouse owner Nancy Bentley Mangion, in this one session class, The Buzz on Beekeeping,  to be held at The Arnold Arboretum on Wednesday, January 19, from 6:30 – 9 pm. She will discuss equipment, site requirements, environmental benefits, and a bit of the history of beekeeping. She will also touch upon beeswax crafts, the medicinal uses of honey and beeswax, and have honey for tasting and purchase. There’s much to learn and gain through a closer connection to these vital pollinators. (Note: for an in-depth series in your area, consult the Massachusetts Beekeepers Association for a list of Bee School programs.)  Fee $45, and you may register online at www.arboretum.harvard.edu, or by phone at 617-384-5277.

  • Tuesday, January 4 – Saturday, January 8 – North American Beekeeping Conference and Trade Show

    We think combining gardening and traveling is a great idea, and after the New Year, as the snow descends on Boston, wouldn’t you enjoy being in Galveston, Texas, at the beautifully landscaped 30 acre San Luis Resort, for the 2011 North American Beekeeping Conference?  Together for a Sweet Future is the theme of the 2011 North American Beekeeping Conference & Tradeshow and represents the joint effort of the American Beekeeping Federation, the American Honey Producers Association and the Canadian Honey Council to produce the largest and most innovative beekeeping conference in North America. This is an exciting opportunity to bring together beekeepers at all levels and from all over the country and beyond to share ideas and develop new contacts.

    This joint conference promises to offer something for everyone. From the new hobbyist to the seasoned professional, they’ve planned a schedule to incorporate educational sessions at all levels.  The sponsors expanded the trade show area to offer even more great deals and new product ideas, and  invited other industry-related organizations to participate in this groundbreaking event. For a complete run down on schedules and speakers, plus travel information, log on to www.nabeekeepingconference.com.

  • Thursday, July 22 – Saturday, July 24 – Nantucket Garden Festival

    The Nantucket Garden Festival is back. Events are located downtown, under the tent at the Dreamland Theater Lot, at the Nantucket Lighthouse School, 1 Rugged Road, and in private island gardens. Complete details and registration opportunities may be found at www.nantucketgardenfestival.com.

    Thursday, July 22, 2010

    * A guided tour of four different ways to keep chickens
    * A hands-on workshop with Amy Pallenberg on late summer container gardening
    * Back by popular demand: A tour of three notable but very different vegetable gardens
    * A late summer container competition, judged by the Nantucket Garden Club
    * Opening Night Preview and Party featuring the many wonderful vendors in our Garden Marketplace !

    Friday, July 23, 2010

    * Early Bird Garden Marketplace with continental breakfast
    * The Garden Marketplace
    * An early morning tour of a very special seaside garden, hosted by Stephen Orr
    * A talk by Noel Kingsbury on the ‘natural garden’
    * A talk by Dean Riddle on context in gardening
    * A hands-on Obelisk workshop with Janice Shields of Cut It Out
    * A tour of three contemporary West End gardens with marvelous views
    * A garden based workshop with Noel Kingsbury, from a rabbit’s point of view
    * “Know your Geophytes!”: Russell Stafford’s talk about creative ways to use bulbs
    * A Monomoy Garden Tour in the late afternoon with wine and cheese
    * Dinner Alfresco and talk with Russ and Marian Morash

    Saturday, July 24, 2010

    * The Garden Marketplace
    * A hands-on Trellis workshop with Janice Shields of Cut It Out
    * A composting workshop with Katie Hemingway
    * An interactive discussion with David Berry of Nantucket Honey Bee Co. on keeping bees
    * Small group tours of island bee hives with David Berry
    * Tracy DiSabato-Aust’s luncheon lecture on the Well-Designed Mixed Garden
    * A garden tour focused on contrast, ending in a rarely visited garden where guests will linger over wine and cheese

    Children’s Workshops:

    Friday, July 23, 2010

    * Create a Garden Fairy House (Kinderclass teacher Barrie Sanders)
    * Make a Garden Mobile with found items (Primary teacher Erin Dancik)

    Saturday, July 24, 2010

    * Make a Mosaic Flower Pot (Kinderclass teacher Monika Geerling with ceramicist Nell Van Vorst)
    * Birds of the Garden: stitch and adorn a colorful bird for your garden (Lighthouse School co-founder, Lizbet Carroll Fuller)

  • Thursday, March 4, 7:00 pm – 9:00 pm – Beekeeping Basics, with Honey Tasting

    Learn how to start raising bees in your own backyard with Nancy Bentley Mangion. Nancy, who is a well known bee consultant and owner of the Beekeepers’ Warehouse in Woburn, has trained hundreds of New Englanders about how to keep bees.  Nancy will bring an active bee hive for demonstration (!) and offer tastings of more than 30 different honeys from around the world. She will also demonstrate how to make beeswax candles.  The program, taking place Thursday, March 4, beginning at 7:00 pm at the Medford Public Library, 111 High Street in Medford, is sponsored by the Medford Garden Club, and is free and open to the public.  For more information, email sbcummer@msn.com.

  • Thursday, July 23 – Saturday, July 25 – Nantucket Garden Festival

    The Nantucket Garden Festival benefits the Nantucket Lighthouse School, an independent day-school serving children pre-school through sixth grade through a developmentally appropriate education that engages the whole child – head, heart and hand.


    Thursday, July 23

    6:00 – 8:00 p.m.            Preview Party and Keynote:
    Holly Shimizu, first-look at the Garden Marketplace, auction, hors d’oeuvres and libations. Read more.

    Friday, July 24

    9:00 – 11:00 a.m.          Hypertufa Workshop:
    Kathy and Chris Tracey. Make a look-alike stone trough planter.  Limit 12; bring rubber gloves.  Read more about it.

    9:00 – 10:00 a.m.         “Out of their Element”:
    Ellen Hornig’s power point lecture on growing tender plants in inhospitable climates. Read more about it.

    9:30 – 11:00 a.m.          Cut it Out:
    Janice Shields demonstrates making garden trellis from vines and twigs. Read more about it.

    10:10 – 11:10 a.m.        “Epimediums: No Longer Just a Groundcover:”
    Karen Perkins Probst is the proprietor of Garden Visions, the nursery credited with breeding epimediums, botany’s gift to dry shade. Read more about it.

    11:15 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.    Garden Tour & Luncheon with Michael May:
    A tour of four private gardens with lunch catered by Sarah Leah Chase.  Limit 30. See “Special Events” for details. Read more about it.

    3:00 – 5:00 p.m.            “True Organics: Landscaping with Yesterday’s Knowledge and Today’s Science” Seminar with Michael Nadeau. Read more about it.

    10:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.    Stonewalling Demonstration by Nantucket Plantsman. Read more about it.

    6:30 – 9:30 p.m.            Dinner in the Garden with David Wheeler:
    A dinner party in an evening garden setting.  Seating limited. Read more about it.

    Saturday, July 25

    9:00 – 10:00 a.m.          Beekeeping Seminar:
    David Berry discusses the rewards of beekeeping. Read more about it.

    9:00 – 10:00 a.m.          “Thinking Like a Seed”:
    Ellen Hornig’s challenge in this power point lecture. Read more about it.

    11:15 – 1:15 p.m.          Hypertufa Workshop:
    Make a look-alike stone trough planter. Limit 12; bring rubber gloves. Read more about it.

    11:15 – 3:00 p.m.          Garden Tour & Luncheon with Russ and Marian Morash:
    A tour of four very different vegetable gardens with lunch catered by Black Eyed Susans.  Limit 30.  See “Featured Events.” Read more about it.

    3:00 – 4:00 p.m.            Raffle

    10:00 – 2:00 p.m.          Stonewalling Demonstration by Nantucket Plantsman. Read more about it.

    Children’s Program conducted by Lizbet Carroll Fuller, co-founder of the Nantucket Lighthouse School

    Friday:

    9:00 – 10:15                    Feather Your Own Nest (ages 6 – 12)

    10:45 – 12:00                  Make a Mosaic Flowerpot (ages 6 – 12)

    Saturday:

    9:00 – 10:15                    Create a Miniature Fairy Garden (ages 6 – 12)

    10:45 – 12:00                  Make a Sunprint Pillow (ages 6 – 12) or                                                                                                                         Build a Wooden Birdhouse (ages 8 – 12)

    Check back for event details as they develop.  Call 508.228.0427 for event details and information about participation.