Boston Flora

Tag: greenhouse

  • Saturday, January 20, 10:00 am – 2:00 pm – Greenhouse Growing and Maintenance

    David Fiske, Mass Hort Gardens Curator, will lead a Saturday, January 20 workshop from 10 – 2 in the Putnam Building at the Gardens at Elm Bank that will show you ways to best utilize your greenhouse and indoor growing spaces. He’ll discuss not only how to use these spaces to grow specific plants and starts, but also review maintenance needs that should be on your seasonal checklist. Massachusetts Horticultural Society Member Cost: $25; Non Member Cost $40. Register online at http://www.masshort.org/eventdetail/612/greenhouse-growing-and-maintenance?filter_reset=1

  • Thursday, September 14, 7:00 pm – 8:30 pm – Cold Frame Gardening

    Cold frames and hoop houses are great season extenders, allowing vegetables to be planted 2-4 weeks earlier than unprotected plants. They also play a key role in the transition of seedlings of all kinds from the sheltered windowsill/greenhouse environment to the outdoors. Gretel Anspach will show you how, where and when to use these interesting tools in your own garden, in this Massachusetts Horticultural Society class at Elm Bank, 900 Washington Street in Wellesley, on Thursday, September 14 at 7 pm.

    Gretel Anspach is a Lifetime Master Gardener with the Massachusetts Master Gardener Association, a Trustee of the Massachusetts Horticultural Society, and a recently-retired systems engineer for Raytheon. Gretel helped to establish and maintain two food production gardens that have provided fresh produce to the Marlboro Food Pantry for the last eight years. Gretel considers her gardening interests to be eclectic, which is to say she know a little about a lot of different areas, but not too much about any one thing in particular. Mass Hort Members: $12; General Admission: $20. Register online at www.masshort.org.

  • From the Archives: Greenhouse Space

    On February 10, 1983, Michael Connor, then Superintendent of Horticulture in the Boston Parks Department, was our guest, speaking on the topic of Perennials for the Library Courtyard.  At the time, our Club maintained the garden at the main branch on Boylston Street. He outlined what perennials could be started from seed, and the various methods of propagation. He volunteered greenhouse space at Franklin Park. The consensus was that annual begonias would be planted in the spring, and perennials could be started the following year. Mr. Connor then offered the Club a tour of the Franklin Park Greenhouses in May.  Notes indicate the tour took place, with only four Club members attending. Ultimately, perennials, most notably hosta and pachysandra, were planted in the library beds. with many of the plants coming from past President Margaret Pokorny’s gardens in New Hampshire, and these plants were divided and redivided over the years.  Having greenhouse space offered by the City was a special tribute to our Club’s energy in pursuing neighborhood beautification projects, which continue today.

  • Saturday, September 28, 1:00 pm – 3:00 pm – Fall & Winter Bloom in the Solar Greenhouse, Unheated Glassed-In Porch, or Spare Bedroom

    Do you want the sights and smells of flowers in winter, but rising fuel costs seem to put a greenhouse out of reach? The solution—the subject of this Berkshire Botanical Garden class—is to go solar! You will learn the basic elements of a solar greenhouse, how to optimize greenhouse performance, how to operate month by month in response to the weather and how to choose plants that are growable and rewarding. The class will take place Saturday, September 28, from 1 – 3 in the Education Center of BBG in Stockbridge. BBG members $22, nonmembers $27. Call 413-298-3926 to register, or sign up online at www.berkshirebotanical.org.

    James Jones is a lifelong gardener and a member of many horticultural societies, with a particular interest in the North American Rock Garden Society, where he has been national president and chapter chair, as well as director of the Seed Exchange. He has recently published a book on his experiences using solar energy, Fall and Winter Bloom in the Solar Greenhouse. He often judges at the Boston Flower Show.  Image from www.houzz.com.

    http://st.houzz.com/simgs/9ff1fe890f076f88_4-2656/traditional-porch.jpg

  • Saturday, November 21 & Saturday, December 5, 9 – 12:30 – Introduction to Winter Tree Identification

    The Arnold Arboretum is sponsoring a two session class on Saturday mornings, November 21 and December 5, beginning at 9:30 a.m., with Arborist Kyle Stephens.  This class will provide an overview of the information necessary to identify deciduous trees during their dormant season. Looking at specific character combinations, participants will learn to determine the genus and species of several types of trees in the Boston area. The group will begin indoors with a discussion of basic classification techniques and then go outside to the Arboretum grounds to explore maples, oaks, lindens, buckeyes, hickories, hornbeams and as many other trees as time will allow. This class is recommended for the beginner-to-intermediate tree observer. The first class meets at the Dana Greenhouse Classroom. The second class meets at the Hunnewell Building. Dress warmly for spending the morning outdoors. A hand lens may be helpful, but is not necessary. Fee $65 Arboretum member, $75 nonmember.  To register, log on to www.arboretum.harvard.edu.

    winter tree by Madeleine_.

  • Burger’s Onion

    We’ve come upon an interesting blog we thought would interest our followers.  Burger’s Onion, http://burgersonion.blogspot.com/, deals with weird botany and horticulture.  Posts with fabulous pictures range from a description of the minute Anacampseros hillii to pictures of flowering Hondelbal (“dog ball” in Afrikaans – just guess what this plant looks like) to gymnosperms of the Namib Desert to Organic Pest Control, the Mad Botany Way (using carnivorous plants to mop up fruit flies in the greenhouse.)  The site also has good links to plant organizations, on-line communities and specialist nurseries (you can order poison dart frogs from Black Jungle, www.blackjungle.com).  Always good to have a sense of humor.

    http://www.biologyreference.com/images/biol_02_img0213.jpg

  • Wednesday, October 14, 10:30 a.m. – 12 noon – Bonsai Matching

    What would happen if a bonsai tree were planted in the ground? Most of the species seen as bonsai in the Arnold Arboretum’s world-renowned Larz Anderson Bonsai Collection can also be seen in the Arboretum landscape, but they look very different! Explore the history and culture of bonsai and the Arboretum’s long relationship with these fascinating plants. Compare and contrast bonsai with their “unrestricted” counterparts in the landscape. Meet instructor Robbie Apfel, Docent, at the Bonsai House, adjacent to the Dana Greenhouse at 1050 Centre Street.  Free. Advance registration requested.  Log on to www.arboretum.harvard.edu to sign up  and for directions.

    Ficus Bonsai, Washington, DC by Grufnik.

  • Saturday, September 26, 10 am – 2 pm – Sustainable Gardens at the Perkins School

    On Saturday, September 26, from 10 – 2, join Sonia Baerhuk, lead grounds-person, for a tour of the extensive campus at Perkins School for the Blind in Watertown, the country’s first school for the visually impaired, founded in 1832. The school’s sustainable garden highlights range from the leaf and fallen tree composting systems to a tropical “Cathedral” greenhouse that operates without the use of chemicals. See the two recently installed rain gardens funded by a grant from the Watertown Community Foundation, as well as orchards that grow with biological controls and visit several native plant gardens.  The smells, textures and sounds in the various gardens enrich the lives of students, staff and visitors. Bring a bag lunch. Sponsored by the New England Wild Flower Society, $35 for NEWFS members, $42 for nonmembers, limited to 20 participants.  For more information, directions, and to register, log on to www.newfs.org, or call 508-877-7630.

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  • Saturday, June 13, 11 – 3 – Elm Bank Plant Sale

    From 11:00 AM to 3:00 PM this Saturday, Joe Kunkel, horticulturalist extraordinaire, and David Fiske, Mass Hort’s Gardens Curator, will be on hand to show our great selection of plants for sale and to answer any questions you may have.

    EchnaceaThe plant sale will be outside the Greenhouse area of our site. You’ll find a wide selection of annuals and perennials, many brand new to the area.  On hand are new varieties of petunias, Vinca, and many unusual species.  Most plants are in 4″ pots at $2 a piece with a special tray price of 15 for $20.  You can mix and match on full trays.

    VincaWe also have a wide selection of perennials in gallon containers at the great price of $8 or six in tray at $35.  You’ll find brand new varieties of Achillea and Echinacea that are being seen in the latest horticultural magazines.  We also have plenty of tried and true favorites as well.

    So if you are still looking for plants for your garden and you want beautiful specimens at a great price, come down to Elm Bank this Saturday for a rewarding experience.

    Joe Kunkel will be on hand to help you choose the right plant for your garden.  Joe is a dedicated Trustee of the Massachusetts Horticultural Society and oversaw the planting of the MHS Gardens on the Rose Kennedy Greenway.  For more information, log on to www.masshort.org.