Boston Flora

Tag: Horticulture Magazine

  • Wednesday, July 12, 10:00 am – 11:00 am – Cultivating Cures: The Botany, Ecology, and Lore of New England Medicinal Flora

    In this Berkshire Botanical Garden slide-illustrated talk — July 12, from 10 a.m. to 11 a.m. — we will explore medicinal plants in New England, from Old World introductions and the Doctrine of Signatures to Native American remedies and cures. Early colonial practitioners blended European herbal lore with Native American knowledge resulting in a uniquely American medicinal tradition. Topics will include the evolution of natural toxins and their uses in drugs, tonics and bitters, and food preservation in colonial and 19th century American homes.

    Professor Judith Sumner is a Massachusetts-born botanist who specializes in ethnobotany, flowering plants, plant adaptations, and garden history. She has taught at the college level and at many botanical gardens, including the Arnold Arboretum and Garden in the Woods. Her studies have taken her to the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew and the British Museum (Natural History). For several years, under the pseudonym of Laura Craig, she authored a column, “The Gardener’s Kitchen,” in Horticulture
    Magazine.     Her most recent book is Plants Go To War: A Botanic History of World War II. This lecture is jointly presented by BBG and the Lenox Garden Club.

  • Saturday, February 26, 12:30 pm – 2:00 pm – Clean Composting, Online

    Compost is the answer to most soil problems, such as compaction, poor water-holding ability and low fertility. In this Berkshire Botanical Garden online class on February 26 at 12:30 pm with instructor Daryl Beyers, students will discover why compost is the key to gardening sustainably and how to use it effectively to improve their garden ground to grow healthy plants. Learn the basics of composting and the techniques to create your own compost at home, using bins, tumblers, heaps or pits or directly on garden beds. Daryl Beyers is the author of The New Gardener’s Handbook: Everything you need to know to grow a beautiful and bountiful garden, available from Timber Press. As gardening certificate program coordinator at the New York Botanical Garden, he helps guide the program’s curriculum and teaches popular gardening classes. Daryl has more than twenty-five years of professional landscaping experience, specializing in residential garden design and development. As a staff writer, photographer and editor for Fine Gardening magazine, he authored two special issues on garden design and served as a contributing garden editor for Martha Stewart Living. His articles on gardening and garden design have also appeared in Horticulture and HGTV Magazine.    Register at www.berkshirebotanical.org

  • Thursday, July 9, 6:30 pm – 7:30 pm – The New Gardener’s Handbook, Online

    On July 9 at 6:30 pm, enjoy an online Berkshire Botanical Garden lecture and Q&A session with author Daryl Beyers about his new book, The New Gardener’s Handbook, available for purchase through the BBG online shop. Novice or experienced, all gardeners learn something new every time they step into a garden to check on a plant, dig in the soil or harvest the fruits of their labor. Daryl Beyers, author of The New Gardener’s Handbook, shares the why-dos of the how-tos that help gardeners grow beautiful and bountiful gardens. Daryl will discuss the fundamentals of how plants grow, the importance of soil, how to sow seeds, watering and weeding. New gardeners will come away with a foundation to help their gardens flourish, and accomplished gardeners will learn expert insights and some new tips and tricks. Our Summer Author Series is presented in collaboration with Tower Hill Botanic Garden and Timber Press.    $10 for members of sponsoring organizations, $15 for nonmembers. Register at https://www.berkshirebotanical.org/events/summer-author-series-daryl-beyers-new-gardeners-handbook-online

    Daryl Beyers is author of The New Gardener’s Handbook: Everything You Need to Know to Grow a Beautiful and Bountiful Garden, available from Timber Press. As gardening certificate program coordinator at the New York Botanical Garden, Daryl helps guide the program’s curriculum and teaches the popular Fundamentals of Gardening course and courses on container gardening and garden design. He has more than 25 years of professional landscaping experience, specializing in residential garden design and development. As a staff writer, photographer and editor for Fine Gardening magazine, Daryl authored two special issues on garden design, and he served as contributing garden editor for Martha Stewart Living. His articles on gardening and garden design have also appeared in Horticulture and HGTV Magazine. 

  • Saturday, February 17, 11:00 am – 12:00 noon – The Budget-Wise Gardener

    Tower Hill Botanic Garden in Boylston welcomes Kerry Ann Mendez, author of The Budget-Wise Gardener, on Saturday, February 17 from 11 – noon for a talk and book signing. Free with admission to the Garden.

    This book proves that you don’t need mega bucks to have a beautiful garden. The secret is having savvy garden pro Kerry Mendez by your side. In The Budget-Wise Gardener, Mendez gives the inside scoop on nailing the best deals and having it all: selecting plants that give you the most bang for your buck, timing your purchases to take advantage of deep discounts and giveaways, finding treasures at plant, bulb and seed swaps – and much more. Her chapters take you from “How to Score Great Plants for Less…or for Free!” and “Design Secrets that Save Money” to “Regal Containers on a Dollar-Store Budget.” With luscious color photos on nearly every page, this is an essential guide to creating the garden of your dreams without breaking the bank.

    Kerry Ann Mendez is the owner of Perennially Yours, a landscaping company focusing on the art of low-maintenance perennial gardening. Perennially Yours gardens have been featured in numerous garden and lifestyle magazines, newspapers, radio and television shows. Mendez is the author of several books, including The Ultimate Flower Gardener’s Top Ten Lists and The Right-Size Flower Garden. A busy lecturer and teacher, each year she gives over 25 workshops and webinars, and 60-70 talks. She is the founder of the annual Great Gardens and Landscaping Symposiums at the Equinox Resort in Vermont, and recently hosted 6 national webinars for Horticulture magazine. She resides in Kennebunk, Maine.

  • Garden How-To Free On Line Workshops

    Horticulture Magazine’s free online Smart Gardening Workshops give you access to great garden speakers from the comfort of your own home. They have no new workshops scheduled at this time, but you can access recordings of past workshops at http://www.hortmag.com/smart-gardening-workshops. Here is a sampling:

    12 Ideas for Gotta-Have Garden Combos

    Get inside garden guru Pamela Straub’s head for a dozen of the season’s cleverest combination containers. Known for pairing the new, the unusual and the uncommon, Santa Rosa Gardens’ lead designer shares her tips, tricks and timeless secrets in this sassy session.

    8 Months of Spectacular Color: Spring~Fall with Waterwise, Easy-Care Perennials

    The secret to a great perennial garden is understanding how to use a succession of varieties that will keep your garden in color from early spring through the fall. David Salman (pictured) of High Country Gardens shows his favorites perennials and perennial combinations to help you create a long-blooming, waterwise, easy-care landscape.

  • Garden How-To Free On Line Workshops

    Horticulture Magazine’s free online Smart Gardening Workshops give you access to great garden speakers from the comfort of your own home. They have no new workshops scheduled at this time, but you can access recordings of past workshops at http://www.hortmag.com/smart-gardening-workshops. Here is a sampling:

    Japanese Maples For Every Garden

    With over 400 cultivars available, selecting a Japanese maple can be challenging. In this free online workshop, Japanese Maple Specialist Patricia Smyth, from Essence of the Tree, provides a overview of the cultural needs of these glorious trees with information to help with choosing the best one for your garden, whatever your climate might be.

    The Year-Round Vegetable Gardener

    Canadian gardening expert Niki Jabbour shares her ideas and tips for growing vegetables year-round, no matter your hardiness zone.

  • Garden How-To Free Online Workshops

    Horticulture Magazine has a series of free download’s on its website which give you access to great garden speakers from the comfort of your own home. No new live workshops are currently scheduled as of this date, but you may access recordings of past workshops at http://www.hortmag.com/smart-gardening-workshops

    Here are highlights of two presentations of interest. We will feature more in the coming weeks:

    Urban Farming: Rooted In The City

    “Give me a bit of ground the size of a postage stamp, and I will give you an Urban Farm.” For years edible gardening seemed like a trend, but now we view it as a true cultural shift. Edibles are being used in the garden and on the patio in containers as never before. Never mind if your area is small or large—this workshop will offer great tips that you can use in your own Urban Farm. And it’s not just about the edibles; you’ll get a firsthand look at the companion plants that provide much needed nectar and cover for essential pollinators. The speaker is Nicholas Staddon, Director of the New Plants Team at Monrovia.

    Heaven Scent

    Nicholas Staddon, a lifelong plantsman, takes you on a journey of some of his favorite plants that will delight the nose. Nothing is more fun than being in the garden when, from somewhere, you get a whiff of a delightful scent. This workshop will help you create those moments in your own garden.

  • Garden How-To Free On Line Gardening Workshops

    Horticulture Magazine has a series of free download’s on its website which give you access to great garden speakers from the comfort of your own home. No new live workshops are currently scheduled as of this date, but you may access recordings of past workshops at http://www.hortmag.com/smart-gardening-workshops

    Here are highlights of two presentations of interest. We will feature more in the coming weeks:

    RHS Chelsea Flower Show: The Winners (Parts 1 and 2)
    Monrovia Nursery’s Director of New Plants, Nicholas Staddon, shares his opening day experiences at the Chelsea Flower Show 2014 in this unique workshop. He’ll take us through the stalls to see up-and-coming trends in gardens tools and decor, and we’ll get to wander the grounds with him as he shows us the award-winning garden displays. He then takes us on a VIP visit to the Grand Marquis at the 2014 Chelsea Flower Show, where we’ll see the most exciting plants and new ways they’re being used in today’s gardens. It’s a unique experience, almost like we’ll have arrived in plant heaven. Born and bred in England, Nicholas will also take this opportunity to share a few of his other discoveries he made while in his birthplace.

    Create a Kitchen Garden Wherever You Grow

    Why do people garden? Money, beauty, great food, and peace of mind are all great reasons. You may not think you have room to garden, but you do. Gardening is one part craft and one part artistic endeavor. Let author Dee Nash show you how to grow wherever you live: apartment, condominium, small house, larger property, or even in a community garden. Learn to create a garden that won’t scare your neighbors, but also gives you great food to eat and plants that awaken your five senses.

  • Garden How-To Free On Line Gardening Workshops

    Horticulture Magazine’s free online Smart Gardening Workshops give you access to great garden speakers from the comfort of your own home. They have no new workshops scheduled at this time, but you can access recordings of past workshops at http://www.hortmag.com/smart-gardening-workshops. Here is a sampling:

    Plants We Love

    You’ll discover great new plants as well as tried-and-true workhorses. You’ll also see which selections were award winners—they’re sure to be a success in your garden, too! Join Horticulture’s editor, Meghan Shinn, and Community Leader, Patty Craft, for this workshop.

    Grow a Rainbow Kitchen Garden

    Watch Renee Shepherd’s online workshop as she talks about choosing, growing and enjoying an internationally inspired Rainbow Kitchen Garden.  Image from www.heirloomgardener.com.

  • Garden How-To Free On Line Workshops

    Horticulture Magazine’s free online Smart Gardening Workshops give you access to great garden speakers from the comfort of your own home. They have no new workshops scheduled at this time, but you can access recordings of past workshops at http://www.hortmag.com/smart-gardening-workshops. Here is a sampling:

    Put Texture to Work in Your Garden

    Texture is so much more than a soft and fuzzy leaf – it’s a design workhorse able to solve a wide range of everyday garden problems. Drawing from her latest book, Refresh Your Garden Design, Rebecca Sweet shares her best strategies to use texture in a garden, in ways that are inspiring and easy to put into practice.

    Garden Design Quick Fixes with Color

    Horticulture columnist and professional landscape designer Rebecca Sweet shows how one of the most powerful elements in your garden—color—is the answer to many common garden problems. Learn just how easy it is to transform gardens that seem cramped, uninviting and disjointed into the garden you’ve always wanted through the use of colorful (and strategic) illusions.