Boston Flora

Tag: Jackie Blombach

  • Wednesday, October 18, 2:00 pm – Art in Bloom On The Road

    The October meeting of The Garden Club of the Back Bay will be held at The Chilton Club, 152 Commonwealth Avenue, on October 18 at 2 pm. This is a members only meeting, but if you’d like to join the Club, visit their website at https://bostonflora.com/store to take advantage of the full year of activities planned for 2023 – 2024.

    The MFA Boston was the first museum in the country to host Art in Bloom — a magnificent pairing of flowers and art.  The Art in Bloom Roadshow brings the Art in Bloom experience to you with an informative PowerPoint presentation of the art and flower arrangements that wows visitors. 

    The PowerPoint will be presented by an engaging MFA art guide who has been trained by the museum.  It is followed by a live floral demonstration by an MFA trained Associate.  The floral arrangement is inspired by an art object from the MFA’s collection.  

    The Art in Bloom Roadshow offers a compelling “guided tour” and an up-close look at the stunning flowers and art that make Art in Bloom the busiest weekend of the year at the MFA Boston. If you have any questions about GCBB programs, feel free to contact Program Committee co-chairs, Jackie Blombach or Christine Hirshland.

  • Wreath of the Day – Workshops

    Over the years we have intermittently scheduled training mornings, or conducted bow making workshops before Wreath Week, or assigned new decorators to work with experienced decorators, but there was no real program to rely on. This year two of our best decorators, Past President Jackie Blombach and https://backbaytrees.org/ designer and webmaster Laurie Thomas did two workshops, training eight recruits in the fine art of decorating in our particular style. The topics included preparing the base wreath by fluffing, trimming, and attaching hangers, deciphering the order properly so the finished wreath reflects the client’s preference, choosing the bow, gathering the extra greens and materials, how to attach everything so nothing falls off in transit, what items to use only on indoor wreaths or only on outdoor wreaths, and so much more. One new member called the event a “fellowship of friends”, which is a good description. Below is a wreath created created by Laurie which shows great attention to detail, symmetry, and beauty.

  • Thursday, May 27, 12:00 noon – The Duchess of Rutland: Belvoir Castle and ‘Capability’ Brown, Online

    Thursday, May 27, 12:00 noon – The Duchess of Rutland: Belvoir Castle and ‘Capability’ Brown, Online

    The Garden Club of the Back Bay is pleased to announce its live virtual May program, welcoming the Duchess of Rutland speaking on Belvoir Castle and ‘Capability Brown’ – Discovering a Lost Landscape. The program will take place on Zoom on Thursday, May 27 at noon.

    Belvoir Castle (pronounced “Beaver”) is the most fabulous fairy-tale castle in England. From its high hill it broods over immense tracts of Leicestershire and Lincolnshire. It is one of the great treasure houses of the country and its chatelaine for the new millennium is Emma, 11th Duchess of Rutland. Since taking charge of the estate she has shaken off the dust-sheets and brought back to life a castle that had slept since the 2nd World War.
     

    As a 21st century duchess, Emma’s role is very different from that of her forebears. How do you maintain for the future a 1000 year old estate with huge overheads? An estate with 16,000 acres of tenanted farms, 400 properties, 50 employees, a thriving local community and a castle with 2.5 acres of roof? Seeking advice from the legendary Duchess of Devonshire, she was shocked to learn that, when it comes to Dukedoms, it is the women who earn the money and the men who spend it!
     

    In her book, Belvoir Castle and Capability Brown – discovering a lost landscape the Duchess tells the story of her discovery of plans for the park, drawn up in 1780 by the great landscape designer Lancelot ‘Capability’ Brown, but then shelved and left forgotten. Her predecessor, Elizabeth, the 5th Duchess (known as the ‘Builder’) had started to implement these plans and now, over 200 years later, Emma is bringing them to fruition.

    Please RSVP by May 21st  to Jackie Blombach by clicking here:  jdb.lily@comcast.net. The program is free for Garden Club of the Back Bay members. Non-members may register online for $10 by clicking HERE.

    A ZOOM link will be sent a few days before the program. PLEASE NOTE:  This program will not be recorded.

  • Tuesday, November 17, 6:00 pm – 7:15 pm – Gibson House Virtual Architecture Tour

    Experience the Gibson House’s unique architecture from the comfort of your own home on November 17 at 6 pm. Join The Gibson House’s Building Committee members Jackie Blombach and Lorie Komlyn for an in-depth exploration of the museum’s structural features and innovative mechanical systems, reflecting nineteenth-century tastes and technology. If you want to admire the ventilation shaft, or think more about how the two separate staircases were designed and used, this is the tour for you. Jackie is Past President of The Garden Club of the Back Bay, and a knowledgeable restoration carpenter. Time will be allowed for audience questions following the presentation. This event will take place on Zoom. Pre-registration is required HERE. $10 fee.

  • Nine Historic Gardens to Tour Online

    Thanks to Garden Club of the Back Bay Past President Jackie Blombach for sharing this link allowing us to tour nine spectacular gardens in Great Britain, France, and the United States online and in the safety of our homes. The beautiful magazine Gardens Illustrated compiled the list, which includes favorites like Kew Gardens and Hidcote. Visit https://www.gardensillustrated.com/gardens/gardens-to-visit/virtual-garden-tours-best/

  • Friday, March 31 Deadline – Sponsor the Garden Club of the Back Bay’s 2017 Twilight Garden Party

    Friday, March 31 Deadline – Sponsor the Garden Club of the Back Bay’s 2017 Twilight Garden Party

    The Garden Club of the Back Bay’s Twilight Garden Party will be held Tuesday, June 6 at the “Sitting Grove” in the Prudential Center, catered by the Mandarin Oriental Hotel.  This is our 10th Anniversary Year and we hope you will help us celebrate by becoming a sponsor.  Sponsorships help us continue our mission to provide more care for our neighborhood trees.  Last year we planted sixteen Gingko trees along Clarendon Street with tree pit fences and ground cover, updated our alley tree survey, donated $26,000 in grants for pruning, planting, and fertilizing trees, donated $3,500 for scholarships for inner city children to attend Boston Nature Center’s summer camp, and spent an additional $20,000 on pruning street trees in the Back Bay.  This year we plan to launch a new website (this one will remain, fear not!) BackBayTrees.org, that will serve as a visual, online database of all the trees in the Back Bay, make it easier for us to revise our surveys as trees are removed or planted, and be a useful tool for the Parks Department and the Back Bay Architectural Commission as they make decisions that impact the neighborhood’s tree canopy.

    Sponsorship levels and benefits may be found at https://bostonflora.com/twilight-garden-party/ and you may link from that page to our store (https://bostonflora.com/shop/)  to purchase sponsorships or tickets.  If you prefer, you may write a check made out to Garden Club of the Back Bay, Inc. and mail it to Jackie Blombach, PO Box 991017, Boston, MA 02199.

  • Garden Club of the Back Bay Announces 2015 Grants

    At the Annual Meeting of The Garden Club of the Back Bay, held May 11 at The College Club of Boston, the membership voted to approve the following recommendations of the Executive Committee.  Co-Presidents Jackie Blombach and Jolinda Taylor were pleased to announce that, in addition to $20,000 to be spent directly by our Club for Back Bay tree care (primarily pruning and inoculation), other not-for-profit organizations will benefit from our fund raising efforts throughout the year, primarily our Twilight Garden Party and Holiday Wreath Sale.

    $5,000 to the Commonwealth Avenue Mall Committee for its tree care program, Dutch elm disease monitoring, and soil improvement.

    $5,000 to the Friends of the Public Garden for inoculation against Dutch elm disease for certain Belgium elm street trees not located on the Mall, planted beyond Massachusetts Avenue.

    $4,000 to The Esplanade Association for its tree care program and planning, including updating inventory and data manipulation.

    $3,000 to the Boston Nature Center of the Massachusetts Audubon Society to support scholarships for summer camp for children ages 5 – 14 from local neighborhoods of Mattapan, Roslindale, Roxbury and Jamaica Plain.

    $3,000 to the Emerald Necklace Conservancy for the planting of perennials in the Fenway.

    $2,000 to the Charles River Cleanup Boat for general operating expenses.

    $2,000 to the Trustees of Reservations/Boston Natural Areas Network in support of the MBTA Indigo Line/Fairmount Indigo Line Project, which will convert City-owned vacant lots along the rail corridor into parks and gardens.  This donation will help convert a vacant lot at Windermere Road in Uphams Corner.

    $1,500 to the Friends of Copley Square for treating trees with fertilizer and fungicide for root stress.

    $1,000 to the Blossom Fund of the Boston Committee of the Garden Club of America in recognition of its 25th Anniversary.

    We thank all our contributors and patrons whose generosity allows us to make these grants.  We hope to see many of you at this year’s Twilight Garden Party on June 4.

  • Setting the Scene for the Twilight Garden Party

    Setting the Scene for the Twilight Garden Party

    This year’s successful Twilight Garden Party took place in June at the American Meteorological Society at 45 Beacon Street. The building has a lovely garden which was in need of seasonal sprucing after our long, cold winter, and the Garden Club of the Back Bay’s crack decorating team of Rita Christensen, Jackie Blombach, and Catherine Bordon, assisted by Jolinda Taylor, spent a day pruning, raking and planting.  Below are some pictures of their efforts:

    Bordon JackieRita Rita Meteorological

  • The Garden Club of the Back Bay Donates to Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital

    Once again the Garden Club of the Back Bay, Inc. has donated money to a local institution. The Club has given $1,000 to Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital in honor of the survivors of the Boston Marathon bombings. “After visiting Spaulding, we were impressed by the easy access of patients, visitors and staff to many garden spaces around the building,” said Jolinda Taylor, Co-President of the Garden Club. “The views of Boston Harbor from the patient rooms are spectacular and uplifting,” added Jackie Blombach, Co-President of the Club.

    “Spaulding is committed to caring for the whole patient, body and spirit” according to Steven Patrick, Vice President for Development, who accompanied the Garden Club officers on their mid-summer visit, “and allowing patients access to peaceful garden spaces is essential.” Patrick added that “the outdoor spaces are intended to encourage patients to get outside, seek fresh air and engage with the community. We plan to incorporate gardening as a therapeutic activity, with wheelchair accessible raised beds.” The gardens include native, drought-tolerant, and salt-resistant trees and shrubs, ornamental grasses, and evergreens, on the hospital’s site at the Charlestown Navy Yard. The new Spaulding facility has achieved LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Gold status certification, a very high standard of energy conservation and responsiveness to the natural environment.

    The Garden Club cares for neighborhood trees. The Club celebrated its fiftieth anniversary this year by planting 50 magnolia trees in Back Bay and nearby neighborhoods. Club members volunteer in community projects at the Women’s Lunch Place, Hale House, The Learning Project Elementary School, The College Club, and the Commonwealth Avenue Mall.

    http://www.spauldingrehab.org/assets/images/Pond-Waterfall-Fish.jpg

  • Garden Club of the Back Bay Announces 2013 Grants

    At the Annual Meeting of The Garden Club of the Back Bay, members voted to approve the grant recommendations proposed by its Co-Presidents Jackie Blombach and Jolinda Taylor and by the Executive Committee of the Club.

    Our major focus in the coming year will be the completion of the Linden Project on Beacon Street.  Over 60 historic linden trees will be professionally pruned, at a cost of $35,000.  $5,000 of the total will be paid with a grant received from the City of Boston, with The Garden Club of the Back Bay contributing the balance.  In addition to our tree care project, we will give $5,000 to the Commonwealth Avenue Mall Committee for its tree, turf and soil project on the Charlesgate block of the Mall, and another $5,000 to the Friends of the Public Garden to continue the inoculation of elms against Dutch elm disease.

    Other organizations receiving Garden Club of the Back Bay grants this June are the Boston Nature Center of the Massachusetts Audubon Society – $2,000 to support scholarships for its summer camp for children aged 5 – 14, $2,000 to City Roots/Urban Ecology Institute for a project in partnership with Roslindale Wetlands and the Boston Parks and Recreation Department’s Urban Wilds Initiative, $2,500 to the Esplanade Association for the Eliot Garden Project, and $1,000 each to the Charles River Cleanup Boat and The Friends of Copley Square, and $500 to The Boston Committee of the GCA, in support of a grant made by the Blossom Fund to The Friends of Christopher Columbus Park for a landscape design plan to beautify a neglected circle adjacent to Christopher Columbus Park.

    Finally, $1,000 has been set aside to honor the victims of the Marathon bombing through a donation to a healing garden at one of the area’s hospitals or rehabilitation centers. In the next few weeks members of the Club will visit potential grantees and assess where the donation will have the most impact.  We will report back when a decision is made.

    Thanks go to all our supporters, those of you who buy a ticket to our Twilight Garden Party on June 4, or a holiday wreath in December, for without your generosity, these worthy expenditures of $56,000 could not be made.

    http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-SQweIllolg0/TfeCo5A86wI/AAAAAAAAHmQ/lS93rLBzHPQ/s1600/tilleul_fleurs.jpg