Boston Flora

Tag: Mount Auburn Cemetery

  • Tuesday, July 24, 9:00 am – 10:30 am – Extending the Flowering Season

    Adding new plants to the collections at Mount Auburn Cemetery which flower in late spring or summer is not just about adding color to the landscape. This initiative is also a response to climate change and the general trend of plants flowering earlier and earlier each year. Join Dennis Collins, Horticultural Curator, on this walking tour to learn about this important horticultural initiative. The event will take place Tuesday, July 24 at 9 am, and is $7 for Friends of Mount Auburn, $12 for general public. Register at http://mountauburn.org/event/extending-the-flowering-season-3/

    Funding for programs has been provided in part by the Massachusetts Cultural Council.

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  • Thursday, June 28, 5:30 pm – 7:00 pm – Plant Hunters: Lions and Tigers and …Xenophobic Tibetan Lamas? Oh My!

    Have you ever wondered how the Douglas Fir got its name? Or how the tree’s namesake met his end by a wild bull in Hawaii? Join Steve Jackson, Mount Auburn’s Plant Records & GIS Manager, for an early evening stroll through the cemetery (580 Mount Auburn Street, Cambridge) to hear the stories of the plant hunters who often risked their lives to bring us the plants we have in Mount Auburn’s landscape. The walk will take place Thursday, June 28 at 5:30, and is $7 for Friends of Mount Auburn, $12 for general public. Register at http://mountauburn.org/event/plant-hunters-lions-and-tigers-andxenophobic-tibetan-lamas-oh-my/

    Funding for programs has been provided in part by the Massachusetts Cultural Council.

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  • Wednesday, March 7, 7:00 pm – 8:30 pm – Lessons Learned When Field Botany Meets Design

    Grow Native Massachusetts presents a free talk on Wednesday, March 7 at 7 pm at the Cambridge Public Library, 449 Broadway, by Uli Lorimer, Curator of the Native Flora Garden at Brooklyn Botanic Garden.

    Ecologically attuned designers are increasingly looking to nature for inspiration in the design of managed landscapes. But connecting field botany to horticulture is complex, and insights gained from observations in the wild don’t always translate directly into a cultivated garden.

    Uli will use the recently expanded native flora garden at Brooklyn Botanic Garden, a cultivated pine barrens and coastal plain grassland, as a case study sharing lessons learned along the way as the project evolved from a concept into a dynamic, living landscape. Good design allows for change and succession to occur, and flexibility in design intent is a valuable strategy because things do not always work out as planned.

    Uli Lorimer has been the Curator of Native Flora at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden Garden for over a decade. He was instrumental in the expansion of the Garden’s native plant collection, using only material sourced from the wild and grown from seed. As Field Chair at BBG, he coordinates fieldwork with regional botanists and leads botanical expeditions for naturalists and horticulturists. Co-sponsored by Mount Auburn Cemetery. For more information visit http://grownativemass.org.  Image from www.kendruse.com.

  • Friday, October 27, 10:00 am – 1:30 pm – Boston Committee of the Garden Club of America Annual Fall Meeting and Luncheon

    Friday, October 27, 10:00 am – 1:30 pm – Boston Committee of the Garden Club of America Annual Fall Meeting and Luncheon

    Dr. David Barnett, Mount Auburn’s President & CEO, will present a brief history of the Cemetery and explain how it is being managed today as both a cultural institution and still an active cemetery. Through pictures he will describe some of the cutting-edge practices used to continue providing a high level of service to families at their time of need, while at the same time working to preserve and enhance the character of this historically significant landscape and to also be a model of environmental stewardship. He will summarize the recently completed strategic plan and resulting vision for sustaining Mount Auburn for the next century and beyond. Dr. Burnett was awarded the Garden Club of America Distinguished Medal of Honor in 2016 for “his tireless stewardship of the horticultural and ecological enhancements at Mount Auburn Cemetery, an inspiration to all who visit and study the exceptional spaces.”

    Dr. Barnett is the featured speaker for this year’s Boston Committee of the Garden Club of America’s Annual Fall Meeting, followed by lunch, at The Country Club, 191 Clyde Street, Brookline. Coffee and registration begins at 10 am, business meeting at 10:30 am, and lecture at 11:00 am. Garden Club of the Back Bay members should email info@bostonflora.com if interested in car pools. For more information visit http://www.bostoncommitteegca.org/index.html

  • Thursday, October 5 – Saturday, October 7 – America in Bloom National Symposium

    The 2017 America in Bloom National Symposium is coming to New England for the first time this October.  The Town of Holliston will host the event October 5 – 7, and attendees from out of state will lodge at the Sheraton Framingham Hotel & Conference Center.

    The conference kicks off with an East Coast Garden Tour on Thursday, October 5 from 10 – 4, advance registration required. If you want to experience horticultural heritage in the Boston area at its best, this tour is for you! We’ll start by visiting one of the oldest and finest garden centers in the Boston area, Weston Nurseries. Known for offering exceptional plants and garden ideas, this nursery in Hopkinton, MA also has an amazing railroad garden. After touring the garden center we’ll enjoy lunch hosted by Peter Mezitt, fourth generation nursery owner. Then we will head to The Gardens at Elm Bank in Wellesley, MA, headquarters of the Massachusetts Horticultural Society, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Here we will enjoy special tours of 12 display gardens, including an historic Olmsted Italianate Garden as well as the Bressingham Garden designed by English nurseryman Adrian Bloom. The last stop on the tour is to Wellesley College, rated one of the most beautiful small college campuses in the country. We will have a special tour of their botanic garden which now focuses on the fundamental role of plants in nature and culture. The cost is $50 and includes lunch. Tour is limited to 50 people so register early.

    If you prefer, take a tour of the Urban Farming Institute from 1 – 4. If you believe in sourcing local, fresh food, don’t miss this tour! The Urban Farming Institute is a brand-new concept in the historically-diverse Roxbury/Dorchester/Mattapan neighborhoods of Boston. The Institute’s mission is to develop and promote urban farming as a commercial sector within the city and to create green collar jobs for residents. It is also committed to engaging its urban community in building a healthier and more locally-based food system. The Fowler-Clark-Epstein Farm, currently under reconstruction, is becoming the center for celebrating the agricultural heritage of the Boston area as well as the cultural and historic heritage of this unique community. On this tour, you will see first-hand the work the Institute is doing to enable urban farming through farm creation, farmer training, public education, and policy change, and how the Institute brings people in urban neighborhoods closer to food production. Your tour leader is Barbara Knecht, partner in “Strategies for Cities.” Barbara has brought 30 years of developing urban land for public good and a love of all things edible to her work developing urban farm sites. The cost is $35. Tour is limited to 11 people so register early.

    Prior to that evening’s silent auction and cocktail reception there will be a Mayor and Elected Leaders Reception, and later, a Celebration Dinner.

    The Symposium begins in earnest on Friday, with a Keynote Presentation by Ken Kruckemeyer, board member of LivableStreets Alliance and partner in “Strategies for Cities.” Ken specializes in the design of civil infrastructure focusing in pedestrian and bicycle corridors as well as roadway and bridge design. Historic preservation has become a fundamental tool for strengthening communities. When understood as a combination of physical and human attributes, it can provide a framework for communities to build on their assets and improve health, affordability, prosperity, and well-being. Historic preservation can make it possible to achieve a wide range of public goals, including small business incubation, affordable housing, sustainable development, neighborhood renewal, heritage tourism, and economic development. By examples primarily drawn from his Boston experience, Ken will address the importance of historic preservation and the role that walkable corridors play in an effective immersion in the historic character of a community.

    Friday brings a host of panel presentations such as Creating a Sense of Place Downtown, and a How-To Guide to Improving Your Town Through Horticulture. Afternoon and evening tours of the Freedom Trail and the Rose Kennedy Greenway, plus Mount Auburn Cemetery, are on offer.

    On Saturday the Showcase of Innovation continues, and America in Bloom President Katy Moss Warner will take a brief look at collective successes in her morning Keynote Speech. A lunch and Holliston Walking Tour round out the afternoon, and that evening, the America in Bloom Awards Banquet will take place.

    Full registration is $345, and by registering online at http://www.americainbloom.org/Symposium/Registration.aspx before September 8 you will receive a discount. You may also call 614-453-0744, or email aib@AmericainBloom.org.

  • Thursday, July 20, 5:30 pm – 7:00 pm – Twilight Art Stroll

    Come to Mount Auburn Cemetery in Cambridge on Thursday, July 20 at 5:30 pm and join Meg L. Winslow, Curator of Historical Collections, for a special walking tour of funerary art in the resplendent light of a late summer afternoon. This tour is recommended if you would like to learn about the iconography and design of Mount Auburn’s monuments. Free for Friends of Mt. Auburn, $7 for nonmembers. Register online at http://mountauburn.org/2017/twilight-art-stroll-2/

  • Wednesday, September 14, 10:00 am – Sustainable Eco-Systems for Wildlife

    Join the Ecological Landscape Alliance and tour guide Paul Kwiatkowski on Wednesday, September 14 at 10 am to learn about the Wildlife Action Plan at Mount Auburn Cemetery. This walking tour will include highlights of the ongoing work to create and sustain important ecosystem functions on this 175-acre property in Cambridge, MA. This multi-year project enhances wildlife habitat while also encouraging visitors to reconnect with the landscape. Paul Kwiatkowski will discuss how they developed and implemented projects ranging from finding the necessary funding and creating a citizen science volunteer program to addressing storm water management concerns, reintroducing native amphibians, and selecting native species for pollinator habitat creation. The Wildlife Action Plan has inspired staff and visitors alike to push the boundaries of expectation is helping Mount Auburn to evolve into an urban wildlife refuge.  $23 for ELA members, $28 for nonmembers – See more at: http://www.ecolandscaping.org/event/49836/#sthash.dc63kNwk.dpuf. Image from http://www.neighbormedia.org.

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  • Monday, June 6, 5:30 pm – 7:00 pm – The Lively Place: Mount Auburn, America’s First Garden Cemetery, and its Revolutionary and Literary Residents

    When the Mount Auburn Cemetery was founded, in 1831, it revolutionized the way Americans mourned the dead by offering a peaceful space for contemplation. This cemetery, located not far from Harvard University, was also a place that reflected and instilled an imperative to preserve and protect nature in a rapidly industrializing culture—lessons that would influence the creation of Central Park, the cemetery at Gettysburg, and the National Parks system. Even today this urban wildlife habitat continues to connect visitors with nature and serves as a model for sustainable landscape practices. Stephen Kendrick celebrates this vital piece of our nation’s history, as he tells the story of Mount Auburn’s founding, its legacy, and the many influential Americans interred there, from religious leaders to abolitionists, poets, and reformers. A pre-talk reception on Monday, June 6 will begin at 5:30 with the lecture at 6, at the Massachusetts Historical Society, 1154 Boylston Street in Boston. Register at www.masshist.org.

  • Thursday, July 30, 5:30 pm – 7:00 pm – Summer Blooming Trees and Shrubs

    Enjoy an early evening walk at 5:30 pm on Thursday, July 30 with Mount Auburn President & CEO Dave Barnett to observe the ornamental trees and shrubs that show off their flowers in late July. Learn about the many plants available that provide summer beauty and interest. The culture and use of these plants in your home garden will be discussed. $7 for Friends of Mount Auburn, $12 for nonmembers. Register at http://mountauburn.org/2015/summer-blooming-trees-shrubs-3/ Funding for programs has been provided in part by the Massachusetts Cultural Council. Image from massbutterflies.blogspot.com.

  • Wednesday, July 8, 5:30 pm – 7:30 pm – Mount Auburn’s Beautiful Public Lots

    Mount Auburn, since its beginnings in 1831, has set aside modest burial spaces suitable for single grave interments. The first such space was called St. James’ Lot and it is on Cypress Avenue (1831). This Wednesday, July 8 walking tour led by Volunteer Docents Rosemarie Smurzynski and Bill McEvoy will begin at 5:30 in Story Chapel and then continue with a walk on the grounds to St James’ and St. John’s public lots preserved as a country cemetery. Note: this program is two hours. Funding for programs has been provided in part by the Massachusetts Cultural Council. $7 for Friends of Mount Auburn, $12 for nonmembers. Register online at http://mountauburn.org/2015/mount-auburns-beautiful-public-lots/  Image from www.promptguides.com.