Boston Flora

Tag: Blithewold

  • Mondays, October 21 – December 9, 6:00 pm – 8:00 pm – The Winter Garden Plants

    Gardeners who strive for year-round interest do not ignore the months of dormancy, instead choosing plantings to seamlessly link the four landscape seasons. Discussions and projects in this Boston Architectural College course will heighten students’ awareness of the quiet beauty of the winter landscape. We will explore plants for the winter garden in depth, discussing evergreen and persistent foliage, winter buds, colorful winter twigs and bark, winter-flowering plants, grasses, and bamboo, as well as the use of weeping and contorted plants as sculptural elements and columnar plants as spatial accents. In addition, each class will explore architectural elements such as walls, fences, hedges, topiary, sculpture, and rocks, all of which enrich the experience of the winter garden. This course will meet Mondays, October 21 through December 9, from 6 – 8 at 100 Massachusetts Avenue, Room M512, and includes 4 Field Trips.  The instructor is Gary L. Koller, and the fee is $920.  Register on line at www.the-bac.edu.

    Gary Koller is president of Koller and Associates, specializing in residential garden design. His award-winning gardens have been featured on tours conducted by the Perennial Plant Association, the American Society of Landscape Architects and the Garden Conservancy. Gary served for 22 years as Director of Horticulture for the Arnold Arboretum and is currently an instructor for the Landscape Institute of the Arnold Arboretum. He is an international lecturer and has published numerous articles. Gary has received many awards and medals for his skills in communicating about environmental horticulture. He serves on the Medals Committee of the Massachusetts Horticultural Society, the awards committee of the New England Wild Flower Society and the Buildings and Grounds Committee of Blithewold Mansion, Gardens and Arboretum.  Photo from www.valbourne.co.uk.

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  • Friday, September 27, 10:00 am – 11:30 am – Growing a Cutting Garden Part II

    For gardeners the ultimate pleasure is to be able to cut flowers from their own garden to beautify their home and give it a fresh look and feel. At Blithewold, located at 101 Ferry Road in Bristol, Rhode Island, which has tended a cutting garden for over 100 years, flowers from the garden have been brought into the Mansion for everyday pleasure as well as for special events, or given away to friends and family. Others who keep a cutting garden love to have home-grown blossoms, foliage, and seed heads handy for fresh or dried floral arrangements and crafts, and even for cooking.

    Guests at this Friday, September 27 session, beginning at 10 am, will meet at Blithewold’s Greenhouse, then accompany Gardens Manager Gail Read into the Cutting Garden, where she will share what she likes to grow for cut flowers. The June session of the two-part series highlighted cutting-garden annuals and planting plans; a walk around the property highlighted a variety of flowers worthy to be cut and brought into the home. The cutting bed comes into its own in July through September. September is Gail’s favorite time in the cutting garden—the flowers are so exuberant! And, it’s a great time to demonstrate cutting techniques as well as the possibilities for favorite foliage cuts. $20 for Blithewold members, $25 for nonmembers. Sign up by calling 401-253-2707, or online at www.blithewold.org.   Photo from www.theruralsociety.com.

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  • Sunday, August 18, 1:30 pm – 3:00 pm – Tomato Taste Test

    The verdict is out and Blithewold Mansion, Gardens & Arboretum needs your help to decide which tomato is the tastiest of the season in Blithewold’s vegetable garden!  After visiting the vegetable garden to learn about each variety of tomatoes, you and your family will have the opportunity to taste each tomato, and place your vote for the best tasting tomato of the season, on Sunday, August 18, from 1:30 – 3. Blithewold is located at 101 Ferry Road in nearby Bristol, Rhode Island. The cost of this event is included in regular mansion admission – visit www.blithewold.org for complete information. Also enjoy live music, crafts, and delicious food samples from Leo’s Ristorante, made with ingredients from the vegetable garden.

  • Monday, February 4, 6:30 pm – 8:30 pm – Native Plants for Four Season Gardening

    The New England Wildflower Society hosts an evening on Monday, February 4, beginning at 6:30 pm at Blithewold Mansion, Gardens & Arboretum (in the Mansion Living Room), 101 Ferry Road in Bristol, Rhode Island. By carefully choosing what trees, shrubs, and perennials to plant, we can have something of interest even in the coldest winter months! Wandflower, Galax urceolata, with its glossy foliage, and Ilex opaca, with its rich green American holly, are just a few of the plants that brighten the Garden throughout the year.

    Don’t underestimate the charms of decorative bark, evergreen foliage, fruits, and dried leaves and flower stalks dusted with snow. Learn about some of the best native species, with an emphasis on fall and winter interest, and discuss their use in garden design to ensure that your garden framework works just as well in the off-season. $26 for NEWFS members, $32 for nonmembers. Register by calling 401-253-2707 or visit www.newfs.org.

  • Friday, November 30 and Saturday, December 1, 10:00 am – 12:00 noon – Wreath Decorating Workshops at Blithewold

    Friday, November 30 and Saturday, December 1, 10:00 am – 12:00 noon – Wreath Decorating Workshops at Blithewold

    Blithewold’s Garden Manager Gail Read, and Interpretive Horticulturist Kristen Green will share design ideas and assembly tips that allow you to create a one-of-a kind holiday wreath. You will be able to choose your greens from a wide variety of plant material, some of which is pre-cut from Blithewold’s collection of unique evergreens. Anyone who may be in Rhode Island and plans to help with The Garden Club of the Back Bay’s wreath project the following week may wish to take this “practice” opportunity. Blithewold is located at 101 Ferry Road in Bristol, Rhode Island, and the workshops will be held Friday, November 30 and Saturday, December 1, from 10 – noon. $38 for Blithewold members and $45 for non members. Register by telephone at 401-253-2707, or on line at www.blithewold.org.  One of our own Garden Club of the Back Bay wreaths is pictured below (to order, click on to www.gardenclubbackbay.org/products-page/.

  • Saturday, September 8, 10:00 am – 12:00 noon – Morning in the Vegetable Garden at Blithewold

    Join Assistant Grounds Manager Dan Christina for a morning tour on Saturday, September 8,  of Blithewold’s Vegetable Garden, 101 Ferry Road in Bristol, Rhode Island. These monthly tours are designed to encourage and offer guidance to the home gardener, or anyone who may be interested in producing their own vegetable garden.

    The tours will cover a variety of topics such as high-yield succession plantings, space-saving growing techniques, and tips for engaging young minds using playful structures. This fun and educational tour will highlight the topics, tasks and projects as they arise in Blithewold’s vegetable garden.  Regular admission costs apply, and more information may be found at www.blithewold.org, or by calling 401-253-2707.

  • Mondays, August 6 – 27, 10:00 am – 11:30 am – Floral Arranging Classes

    Join award-winning floral arranger Lynne Merrill for a series of floral design classes at Blithewold Mansion, Gardens & Arboretum, 101 Ferry Road (Route 114) in Bristol, Rhode Island. During this four-week series, Lynne will provide tips for harvesting, cleaning, and conditioning flowers as well as basic instruction of flower arranging. Each week will highlight a different design principle, in order to explore various floral design trends in color, materials, and arrangement styles. Then, using your own artistic expression, you can create a take-home centerpiece each session. Students will be asked to bring your own containers and shears.

    To learn more about the instructor, and to view the list of weekly themes, please visit www.blithewold.org  $75 Member, $85 Non-Member for the four week series.

  • Thursday, June 21, 6:00 pm – 8:00 pm – An Intimate Garden Tour: Along the Sakonnet

    A tour will be led on Thursday, June 21, from 6 – 8, of a garden located near the gathering point at 101 Ferry Road (Rt. 114) in Tiverton, Rhode Island.  The guide is Jessica Duphily of Quintessential Gardens.  Individual highlights of this exquisite property include a hidden Japanese garden, a raised vegetable garden, a fruit tree orchard, and a rose garden, all set on a historic Civil War burial site.  Registration is limited and required in advance.  Cost is $30 for Blithewold members, $35 for non members.  To register, visit www.blithewold.org, or call 401-253-2707. Image of nearby garden from www.thegrowingvine.com.

  • Sunday, April 15, 1:00 pm – 2:00 pm – Family Daffodil Garden Walk

    See Blithewold Mansion’s gardens come to life on Sunday, April 15 beginning at 1 pm as tens of thousands of daffodils and other early blooming bulbs and shrubs are coaxed from winter slumber to delight you with their quiet beauty and subtle scents.  Led by Horticulturist Gail Read, this special walk for the whole family will highlight stars of the early spring garden.  Blithewold Mansion is located at 101 Ferry Road in Bristol, Rhode Island.  Be prepared, however – spring has been so warm, you may be seeing tulips instead!  For directions, visit www.blithewold.org.  Free with regular admission.

  • Saturday, July 16, 10:00 am – 12:00 noon – Capturing the Herbal Harvest

    Capture the herbal harvest while gardens and farm stands are brimming with fresh herbs. Even though no one wants to think about winter now, you will be thrilled when your pantry and freezer are stocked for winter cooking and holiday gift giving!

    Imagine lining your cupboard shelves with jewel toned bottles of herb vinegars, golden brown herb mustards and sparkling jars of herbal jellies. Picture containers of herb butters, bags of rosemary walnuts and bottles of herb pesto filling a corner of your freezer.

    Not enough time? Too much work? Not true. Mrs. Thrift never does anything that takes too much time! Learn which herbs are best to dry, and which to freeze. Mustard, butters, vinegars, jellies, salts and sauces can all be quickly made, then stored for year round enjoyment. Bring your taste buds. We will end with a little taste of everything! Recipe sheets included. The program will take place Saturday, July 16, from 10 – 12 at Blithewold Mansion, Gardens and Arboretum, 101 Ferry Road, Bristol, Rhode Island, and costs $18 for Blithewold members and $25 for non-members. For more information, or to register, call 401-253-2707, or visit www.blithewold.org.