Boston Flora

Tag: Historic New England

  • Tuesday, April 19, 2:00 pm – 4:00 pm – Spring Seeds and Seedlings

    Spend an afternoon from 2 – 4 on Tuesday, April 19 side-by-side with Historic New England’s Casey Farm’s experienced and knowledgeable vegetable farmers to learn the tricks of the trade while helping the greenhouse team prepare for the popular Mother’s Day plant sale. As you plant, you’ll discuss the proper ways to start seedlings and get answers to your garden questions. Space is limited to 15. Free, but open only to Historic New England members. Casey Farm is located at 2325 Boston Neck Road, Saunderstown, Rhode Island. Registration is required. Please call 401-295-1030 for more information.

  • Saturday, April 16, 10:00 am – 12:00 noon – Franklin Park Walking Tour

    Join the Franklin Park Coalition and Historic New England’s Phillips House Site Manager Julie Arrison for a series of free walking tours in the “crown jewel” of Boston’s Emerald Necklace—Franklin Park. Each tour explores a portion of the 527-acre park designed by Frederick Law Olmsted. This first tour, on Saturday, April 16 from 10 – noon, meets at the Ellicott Arch (pictured below on a vintage postcard) and ends at the Nursery. Please call Franklin Park Coalition at 617-442-4141 to register or for more information.

  • Thursday, April 7, 2:00 pm – 5:00 pm, and Friday, April 8 – Sunday, April 10, 10:00 am – 4:00 pm – Spring Orchid Sale

    Hundreds of orchid plants are for sale at the Lyman Estate Greenhouses, 185 Lyman Street in Waltham, beginning Thursday, April 7, from 2 – 5 for Historic New England members, including cattleyas, laelias, paphiopedilums, and phalaenopsis. Both species and hybrid plants that are budded and blooming are available.  Historic New England members receive early access before the sale opens to the public on April 8. No RSVP is necessary. Historic New England’s Garden and Landscape members receive a 15% discount on all greenhouse purchases. Learn more about Garden and Landscape membership, or call the membership line at 617-994-5910 to upgrade. Can’t make it to the preview? Regular sale hours are April 8 – 10, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m, open to the public.For more information, log on to www.historicnewengland.org.  Photo by Orchids by Richard.

  • Monday, February 7 – Sunday, March 6, 10:00 am – 4:00 pm – Camellia Blooming Season

    Visit the celebrated collection of camellias in the 1804 camellia house at the Lyman Estate Greenhouses, 185 Lyman Street, Waltham, from 10 am – 4 pm Monday, February 7 through Sunday, March 6. Many of the trees are over one hundred years old and this is the time of year they put forth a profusion of blossoms in all sizes and shapes. Other plants available during this season include orchids, citrus, and sweet olives. Free admission. Please call 781-891-1985 for more information.  Camellia japonica ‘Lady Vansittart’ pictured below courtesy of Pender Nursery.

  • Wednesday, February 16, 10:30 am – 12:00 noon – Wintry Wednesday

    Join Historic New England on Wednesday, February 16, from 10:30 – noon at Phillips House, 34 Chestnut Street in Salem, for Wintry Wednesday.  Follow the Phillips family on a wintry jaunt around New England during school vacation week.  Enjoy hot cocoa and cookies while viewing film clips of the family engaged in their favorite winter activities.  Tour the House and see Phillips family items, such as sporting equipment, postcards, photographs, and artwork, not usually on display.  Co-sponsored by the Salem Parks and Recreation Department, the program fee is $5 for Historic New England members and $10 for nonmembers.  For more information, log on to www.historicnewengland.org, or call 978-744-0440 to purchase tickets.  Photo by massmatt at www.flickriver.com.

  • Friday and Saturday, November 19 & 20, 10:00 am – 12:00 noon – Composting 101

    Make your own black gold.  Turn unwanted kitchen scraps into a rich fertilizer for your plants.  The staff at the Lyman Estate Greenhouses, 185 Lyman Street in Waltham will teach you how to set up a home composting bin. Topics in this two day class to be held Friday, November 19 and Saturday, November 20 from 10 – 12 include choosing the right bin, feeding and maintaining your worms, and havesting your compost.  Registration is required. Please call 781-891-1985 for additional information, or log on to www.historicnewengland.org.  The fee is $20 for Garden and Landscape members, $25 for Historic New England members, and $35 for nonmembers.

  • Saturday, October 23, 10 a.m. – 3:00 pm – Orchid Growing Clinic

    Once again Historic New England will feature orchids at the Lyman Estate Greenhouses in Waltham, Massachusetts on Saturday, October 23 at 10 a.m.  Bring up to three orchid plants for evaluation by experienced horticulturists. Get advice on maintaining healthy blooming plants. Other services offered include repotting and educational handouts about orchids. Books, pots, and growing supplies are for sale. Admission fee is $10.  For more information call 781-891-1985.  For directions, log on to www.historicnewengland.org.

  • Friday, October 8 – Sunday, October 10, 10:00 am – 4:00 pm – Fall Orchid Sale

    Hundreds of orchid plants are for sale, including many hard-to-find varieties. Visit these antique greenhouses and enjoy gorgeous floral colors, shapes, and scents. Among the many varieties on display and for sale are cattleyas, laelias, oncidiums (below), Paphiopedilum, and Phalaenopsis. Their long lasting and showy blooms make orchids a dramatic addition to any indoor environment and this adaptable species can be grown in a variety of home conditions. The sale will take place October 8 – 10 from 10 – 4 at the Lyman Estate Greenhouses in Waltham, Massachusetts, and is sponsored by Historic New England.  For more information and directions, log on to www.historicnewengland.org, or call 781-891-1985.


  • Thursday, August 19, 5:30 pm – 7:00 pm – Honey Bees: Premier Pollinators

    Vice President of the New Hampshire Beekeepers’ Association Amy Antonucci talks about the goodness honeybees bring to our gardens and world, in a lecture on Thursday, August 19, from 5:30 – 7 at the Rundlet-May House in Portsmouth, New Hampshire.  Explore the evolution of bees, the division of labor, social life in the hive, and why bees matter.  Sponsored by Historic New England, the cost to attend is $10 for members of Historic New England, and $15 for non-members.  To register, log on to www.historicnewengland.org, or call 603-436-3205.

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  • Sunday, August 8, 3:00 pm – 4:30 pm – Charles Eliot and the Nickels-Sortwell Garden

    Landscape historian Marta McDowell talks about Charles W. Eliot II, one of the country’s pre-eminent landscape architects, who designed the Colonial Revival garden at Nickels-Sortwell House, on Sunday, August 8, from 3 – 4:30 at the Nickels-Sortwell House in Wiscasset, Maine.  For more information, call 207-882-7169, or log on to www.historicnewengland.org.  $5 Historic New England members, $10 non members – registration required. Co-sponsored by the Maine Humanities Council.

    http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_Xx0N7O1X5XQ/SyK23SW_9aI/AAAAAAAAAFw/3Fcd0NyQ3iU/s400/Nickels-Sortwell_House,_Wiscasset,_ME.jpg