Fishing demonstrations, tips and techniques will be on display at Jamaica Pond Thursday and Friday, April 19 and 20, from 10 – noon. Try out available fishing gear. A valid fishing license is needed, however. For more information, call 617-635-4505, or email parks@cityofboston.gov. The lyrical picture below, taken at Jamaica Pond, is available for purchase at www.nedhorn.deviantart.com.
Capture Boston’s picturesque parks during the 2nd annual Boston Park Advocates Summer Amateur Photography Workshop series. Learn tricks and techniques of taking a perfect photograph. Bring your own digital or film camera to Jamaica Pond in Jamaica Plain on Tuesday, August 16, beginning at 6 pm. Pre-registration is encouraged. For more information on the exact meeting spot, and to register, call (617) 961-3051. Photo below by andrewjosephkatz.
This NOFA workshop on Tuesday, August 9, from 6 – 8 at the Southwest Corridor Community Garden in Jamaica Plain, explores a variety of compost methods, including: efficient microbes, vermiculture, tumblers, barrels, and plain old piles. Presenter Allison Fastman will talk about what methods are best for different situations, what can and cannot be composted with each system, rat and pest control, nitrogen and carbon balance, and how to collect and use compost tea. Allison will also go over how to make a composter for each method, how to find excellent free materials, and how to use compost to enrich soils. $18 NOFA members/$20 Non-members. About the instructor: Allison Fastman has been gardening since she learned to walk under the tutelage of her parents and grandparents. She’s read and experimented extensively at home and in the classroom both as a student and teacher. To register for the workshop or for more information visit www.nofamass.or
Come to the Loring-Greenough House, 12 South Street in Jamaica Plain, on Saturday, May 14, from 9 – 3, for a plant sale to benefit the 250 year old historic house. There will be many donated plants, and all proceeds will go toward the maintenance and restoration of the historic landscape. For more information, go to www.loring-greenough.org, or contact Mariya Nikiforova at mariya@radonlake.com. Rain date: Sunday, May 15.
Come to the Dana Greenhouses at the Arnold Arboretum in Jamaica Plain on Saturday, May 14, from 8 – 11 in the morning, for a Nature Photography Workshop led by Erik Gehring, freelance photographer and multi-media producer. Improve your photographs of nature in this half-day workshop – a talk followed by hands-on experience. The class takes place at the Arnold Arboretum during one of the most beautiful times of the year. Learn about composition, color, light, depth of field and focus. Bring your camera and manual and familiarize yourself with the operation of your camera prior to the workshop. Offered with the Eliot School of Fine & Applied Art, the fee is $60, and there is a rain date of May 21. To sign up, visit www.my.arboretum.harvard.edu. And although the Erik Gehring photo below (www.northernwoodlands.org) is hardly a spring shot, it is so arresting we thought you should see it as an example of Mr. Gerhring’s talent.
Somerville artist Tova Speter uses found wood as a conduit to artistic exploration. The grain serves as her guide on a journey into the lines, shapes, and flow of the composition of the particular piece. In transforming scrap wood into works of art, she conveys the idea that everything has an inherent beauty that will shine through when viewed from a new perspective. Her work is currently on display in the Hunnewell Building Lecture Hall at the Arnold Arboretum in Jamaica Plain, through December 12. For hours and directions, log on to www.arboretum.harvard.edu. The artist will donate a portion of the sales from this exhibition to Spontaneous Celebrations in Jamaica Plain.
Cold-process soap is made from scratch using vegetable oils and lye. Learn the basics while making a batch of honey-oatmeal soap, then experiment with colors and fragrances. Soap made in class can be picked up the next day or next week. Glycerin soap is already made, but can be personalized with scents, colors, pearlescent powders, flowers or embedded items. Soap will be ready by the end of class. Both classes, taught by instructor Kymberlee Keckler at the Eliot School of Fine and Applied Arts, 24 Eliot Street in Jamaica Plain, include written instructions and resource guides for venturing out on your own. Take one workshop or both – all materials are supplied. Easy Glycerin Soap will take place Saturday, October 9 from 3:30 – 6:30, and Cold-process Soap will be held Sunday, October 10, from 1 – 6:30. The cost for Easy Glycerin Soap is $30 plus $10 materials fee payable in class, and for Cold-process Soap, $50 plus $10 materials fee payable in class. Take both sessions for $70. To register, and for complete information and directions, log on to www.eliotschool.org.
With the help of hundreds of volunteers, business and corporate sponsors, and its dedicated staff and board members, Community Servings prepare and deliver 3,340 lunches and dinners each week to the homes of almost 700 individuals and families who are homebound with an acute life-threatening illness. In June 2009, Community Servings planted seedlings for its first herb garden in 100 feet of planters along the side of its building at 18 Marbury Terrace in Jamaica Plain. Community Servings needs a volunteer to come a couple of times each week to help weed, water and pick the herbs from the garden. Hours are flexible. This is a great opportunity for those in a Master Gardening program or anyone interested in learning more about gardening!
The herb garden is a project developed in partnership with The Growing Connection, a grassroots project developed by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. The herbs and arugula grown are added to free home-delivered meals for critically-ill neighbors and their families. If you are interested please contact the Ashley Boyd, Volunteer Recruitment Coordinator at 617-522-7777 Ext. 228 or at aboyd@servings.org.
Jack Alexander, Plant Propagator for the Arnold Arboretum, presents a single session class at the Dana Greenhouses in Jamaica Plain on Saturday, March 13, from 9 am – 1 pm. There’s nothing more satisfying to a gardener than growing plants from seeds. From annuals and perennials to trees and shrubs, success can be achieved if you understand what triggers germination. Expert propagator Jack Alexander will share techniques and tips for starting various types of plants from seeds. This workshop is for beginners and those who have been frustrated in past attempts to transform seed to seedling. Students will leave class with a selection of seeds raring to grow. Aftercare will be necessary. Fee $45 Arnold Arboretum member, $55 nonmember. To register, log on to www.arboretum.harvard.edu.
