Boston Flora

Tag: Gardens at Elm Bank

  • Friday, November 28 – Sunday, December 28 – 17th Annual Festival of Trees

    Massachusetts Horticultural Society’s 17th Festival of Trees showcases dozens of decorated trees as well as Snow Village, including a model railroad display.  This annual event takes place at The Gardens at Elm Bank, 900 Washington Street, Wellesley, MA 02482.  The venues are handicapped accessible. 

    Mostly displayed in the Hunnewell Building, the Festival offers beautifully decorated holiday trees that are donated and decorated by local businesses, garden clubs and other organizations, and individuals. Holiday lights and decorations fill the Garden. See the Garden at Elm Bank in a new light with holiday lightscapes, magical displays, and the perfect photo opportunities. You’ll get a hot cocoa at the gate and finish your visit with s’mores by the firepits. 

    Visitors ‘vote’ with their raffle tickets, selecting the tree(s) they would like to win at the end of the event.  Tree sizes vary from one foot to nine feet in height and some have gifts in addition to the decorations.  This year there will also be a virtual Festival in addition to the physical display.    

    Another and totally different experience is provided by Snow Village, an indoor exhibit occupying a whole room.  This large display features model trains wending their way through villages and vignettes, including Christmas in the City (Boston of course!), Fenway Park, a Dickensian village, the North Pole and hundreds of decorated houses and lights.  There are too many Santas to count as well as skaters galore.  This is a visual treat for young and old alike and each year it is a little different. 

    For tickets and more information visit https://www.masshort.org/festival-of-trees#signup

  • Mondays, September 29 – November 3, 10:00 am – 1:00 pm – Foundations of Botanical Drawing and Painting, Online & In-Person

    Through demonstrations and tutorials, celebrate the colors of seasonal leaves while learning how to realistically depict your subject matter in pencil, and then in watercolor, with Sarah Roche, on six Mondays, September 29 – November 3, from 10 – 1, online except for two classes which will be held at the Putnam classroom at The Gardens at Elm Bank. All abilities are welcome! The winter topic: Fall topic: Orchids in Watercolor. In fall, we will be studying the Phalaenopsis orchid. With a limited palette and simple techniques, we will work together, step by step, to capture their exotic and vibrant beauty. Using live plant specimens, Sarah will lead you through the processes of accurate drawing and painting in watercolor. Members $385, nonmembers $460. Register at www.masshort.org


  • Saturday, July 13, 10:00 am – 11:30 am – Hydrangeas 101

    Hydrangeas are some of the most striking flowering shrubs, from the size and color of their inflorescences to their lengthy flowering times. However, there is much confusion regarding water and soil requirements, sun exposure, fertilization, and pruning of these colorful shrubs. The Massachusetts Horticultural Society sponsors a walk through the gardens on July 13 starting at 10 am and participants will visit many cultivars of common species in New England: macrophylla (Big Leaf), arborescens (Smooth), paniculata (Paniculate), quercifolia (Oak Leaf). A handout will provide information for the proper care of the different species and a listing of the plants visited.

    For over 25 years in San Francisco and Boston, Reed Pugh has worked in multiple nurseries; had his own design, installation, and maintenance businesses on both coasts; managed a 30-acre historic private estate in Brookline; and managed one of the top fine-gardening companies in New England. Currently, he focuses his passion on working individually with people in their gardens and showing them how to make their gardens and landscapes beautiful through inspiration, knowledge, and proper care with his company, Barking Dog Gardens. $40 for Mass Hort members, $56 for nonmembers. Register at https://www.cognitoforms.com/MassachusettsHorticulturalSociety/_250713Hydrangeas101

  • Thursday, April 24, 9:30 am – 1:30 pm – The Boston Committee of The Garden Club of America Spring Lecture – TulipMania

    The Boston Committee of The Garden Club of America will hold its Spring Meeting, Lecture and Luncheon on April 24 at The Gardens at Elm Bank in Wellesley. The meeting will include a lecture, lunch, and tour of the Massachusetts Horticultural Society’s 55,000 tulips in bloom. Mass Hort Executive Director James Hearsum will speak on Gardens as a Community Asset. James Hearsum is an accomplished horticulturist and leader with a proven track record of advancing botanical and community-focused organizations. From 2014 to 2019, he served as the Executive Director of St. Andrews Botanic Garden in Scotland, where he spearheaded transformative initiatives in guest experience, outreach, and education. Under his leadership, the garden established a sustainable Urban Farm, a Butterfly House, and a Community Hub, while also expanding its reach to previously underserved communities.

    Since 2020, Hearsum has brought his extensive horticultural experience and dynamic leadership to the Massachusetts Horticultural Society, continuing to advance excellence in horticulture and community engagement.

    Members of member clubs of The Boston Committee will receive an invitation. $35 lecture only, $60 lecture and luncheon. If you are not a member, you may consider joining The Garden Club of the Back Bay, which is one of the affiliate clubs.

  • Through May 15 – Bulbs & Spring Ephemerals

    Don’t miss “Bulbs & Spring Ephemerals” — the MHS Botanical Art Program spring exhibit. Works by 14 artists detail the beauty of early spring blooms. A splendid variety of works will be on display in the Education Building from April 1 through May 15 at the Garden at Elm Bank. Included with Garden Admission. Below: Poet’s Narcissus (Narcissus poeticus) by Pam Harrington

  • Saturday, October 28, 10:00 am – Floral Design, Principles and Practice

    Join Lorraine Walsh and Mary Lou Ashur from Artistry Floral on October 28 at The Gardens at Elm Bank, 900 Washington Street in Wellesley for a floral design class that covers the principles of design is a wonderful opportunity to learn how to create beautiful and aesthetically pleasing floral arrangements. Understanding these principles is essential for anyone interested in floral design, whether you’re a hobbyist or aspiring to become a professional florist. Together in class, we’ll explore contrast, variety, color theory, textures, and more.  

    Class time allows for students to practice and apply these principles in hands-on projects. It’s also a great opportunity to learn about various flower varieties, care techniques, and design styles. Practical experience and feedback from instructors and peers help to develop your skills and creativity in floral design.

    Please bring floral scissors and a bucket or box to carry home your arrangement. $75 for Massachusetts Horticultural Society members, $95 for nonmembers. Register at www.masshort.org

  • Friday, October 27, 10:00 am – Setting Up a Seasonal Nature Journal

    Come learn how to set up and be inspired to continue your own ongoing Seasonal Nature Journal. Record in simple drawing and writing the weather, habitat, plants, and animals of here and where you live. As our climate is changing, your own Nature Journal can be a useful way to track the changes you see. Veteran Journal keeper, artist, and author Clare Walker Leslie will lead you both outdoors and indoors in ways to excite you to keep your own Journal going. The class is suitable for beginners. No previous drawing or writing skills are needed.  The class will take place Friday, October 27 at 10 at The Gardens at Elm Bank, 900 Washington Street, Wellesley, and is $50 – $70. Register at www.masshort.org

  • Thursday, August 24, 8:15 am – 3:30 pm – Northeast Regional Perennial Plant Symposium

    The Northeast Regional Perennial Plant Symposium will take place at The Gardens at Elm Bank, 900 Washington Street in Wellesley, on August 24. The Symposium is co-sponsored by the Massachusetts Horticultural Society and the Perennial Plant Association. An all-star cast of speakers will be featured. Andrew Brand will talk about Spectacular Native Plants: Beauty and Biodiversity of the Northeast. Marie Chieppo’s topic is Let Your Landscape Work for You: Designing for Resilience and Sustainability. Uli Lorimer takes on Spoiled for Choice: Becoming an Informed Consumer of Native Plants. John Magee’s talk is, appropriately, Let’s Talk About This. Complete biographies of all speakers and registration information may be found at www.masshort.org.

  • Wednesdays, July 12, 19, and 26, 10:00 am – 2:00 pm, and Onsite Visit – The Art of Planting Design: Learn to Design in Seasonal Sequence

    Maria von Brincken will lead you thru the garden design process in this Massachusetts Horticultural Garden three part series on July 12, 19, and 26 from 10 – 2, from 10 – 2 at The Gardens at Elm Bank, 900 Washington Street in Wellesley. Once you have your list of the plants you love and are thriving in your garden, it’s time to design your garden.

    You’ll learn how to use drifts, masses, and individual plants to create garden lay-outs, how to select a winning color palette, and how to create planting combinations that will flower in season sequence.

    We’ll start with designing the landscape of shrubs and trees—using conifers, deciduous, and broad-leafed plants.  Then we’ll layer in the perennial flower garden. You’ll practice creating small gardens either with plots the instructor provides or your own premeasured small garden (no larger 20′ x 8’—bring photos too).

    You’ll have class time to practice new skills with in-class worksheets and apply them to a section of your own garden (Sun or Shade) (about 9 x 12’). The instructor takes time to individually review your worksheets and your design layout and plant pairing choices. You’ll prepare before class by photographing and measuring the garden you wish to transform. A “decluttering worksheet helps you take an inventory, so you’ll be ready to start your garden design.

    Lectures include extensive handouts. Lecture images are from gardens in New England, MHS’s Bressingham Garden, and the author’s design work to inspire you and give you examples you can use right away.

    Maria von Brincken, principle of Maria von Brincken Landscape Garden Design, is an award-winning certified designer (APLD and LI) celebrating her 20th year in professional practice. Maria specializes in custom beautiful spaces and colorful flower gardens using native and ornamental plants. 

    Trained as a fine artist, color theorist, and organic gardener Maria brings years of critical design thinking to her landscape solutions. Her design has been featured in Fine Gardening Magazine, Landscape Ideas You Can Use and others. Aformer contributing editor to LandShapes Magazine, her writing has also been published in NELDHA’s Perspectives, APLD’s The Designer, and GardenDrum.org.

    Her lectures and workshops have been featured at the MHS, Boston The Flower Show, Radcliffe Seminars and the LI, Conn. Master Gardener’s Conference, Perennial Plant Conference, ELA- just to name a few. Her lectures, classes, and workshops teach successful ways of thinking and techniques. Learn more about Maria and her work at http://www.mariavonbrincken.com

    Preregistration required. To register visit www.masshort.org. Mass Hort members $225, nonmembers $255.

  • Monday & Tuesday, August 22 and 23, 9:30 am – 3:30 pm – Fun with Perspective: Understanding the Basics

    Explore the fundamentals of perspective with Carol Ann Morley and take your drawing skills to a new level. Learn methods of measuring and how to draw in proportion; foreshortening, overlapping shapes and illusion of depth; linear and atmospheric perspective; light source; and techniques of shading with graphite. Examine how key shapes like the cube, cone, sphere and cylinder underlie all organic subjects and are the foundation of drawing. Beginner to experienced students welcome. Carol Ann has led sessions with the Garden Club of the Back Bay is is an excellent instructor. The classes will be held at the Putnam Classroom at The Gardens at Elm Bank in Wellesley, August 22 & 23 from 9:30 – 3:30. Pack a lunch. Friends of Wellesley College Botanic Gardens $225, nonmembers $275. Email wcbgfriends@wellesley.edu