Boston Flora

Tag: NPR

  • Monday, April 6, 7:00 pm – When the Forest Breathes: Renewal & Resilience in the Natural World

    Plan to be at the Museum of Science, Boston, on April 6 at 7 pm for a captivating conversation with acclaimed forest ecologist and bestselling author Suzanne Simard as she presents her new book, When the Forest Breathes, alongside moderators Steve Curwood and Jenni Doering of Living on Earth radio.

    Building on the groundbreaking insights of her previous book, the bestseller Finding the Mother Tree, Simard reveals how the deep cycles of renewal in forests hold the key to protecting threatened ecosystems from climate change and human disruption.

    Drawing on decades of research in her native British Columbia and collaboration with Indigenous communities, Simard demonstrates how forests thrive through intricate networks of life—from elder trees passing on their genetic knowledge to mushrooms breaking down fallen logs. Her work illuminates how thoughtful stewardship can restore balance to landscapes affected by logging, wildfire, and environmental pressures.

    With warmth, wisdom, and a profound reverence for nature, Simard intertwines her scientific discoveries with reflections on life, loss, and renewal, showing how the rhythms of the forest mirror our own journeys. When the Forest Breathes is a hopeful call to action, proving that through care, insight, and community, reversing environmental decline is within our reach.

    Tickets to this event includes a signed copy of When the Forest Breathes.

    This event is presented in partnership with Brookline Booksmith and public radio’s Living on Earth. $30. Register at https://www.mos.org/events/when-forest-breathes-author-suzanne-simard

  • Thursday, November 20, 12:30 pm – 1:45 pm Eastern – Rooted in Fire with Pyet DeSpain: Celebration of Native American and Mexican Cooking, Online

    As both a member of the Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation and someone with deep roots in her Mexican heritage, chef Pyet DeSpain works to reflect a balance of these rich cultures in her cooking. Her approach to food blends her identity with history and the drive to keep ancestral traditions alive.

    In her new cookbook, she shares how to incorporate an array of key ingredients—from venison, dandelion greens, honey, habanero peppers, and squash to sunchokes, bison, and native berries—into dishes that invite home cooks to honor the seasons and connect with essential foodways. DeSpain talks with Andi Murphy, journalist and producer for NPR’s “Native America Calling,” about the cookbook and the stories, traditions, culture, and philosophies of Indigenous people that flavor each recipe. This Smithsonian online talk on November 20 is $20 for Smithsonian members, $30 for nonmembers. Register at https://smithsonianassociates.org/ticketing/programs/rooted-in-fire-with-pyet-despain

  • Sunday, October 7, 2:00 pm – 3:00 pm – The Art and Science of Growing Giant Pumpkins

    Sunday, October 7, 2:00 pm – 3:00 pm – The Art and Science of Growing Giant Pumpkins

    On Sunday, October 7, at 2 pm at Tower Hill Botanic Garden in Boylston, giant pumpkin grower Steve Connolly will discuss how he grew the state record holding 2075 lb. pumpkin in 2016. His free talk will focus on how 30+ years of selective breeding of an isolated species of Giant Pumpkins has led to fruits that are bigger and heavier than ever. The genetic bundle inside the seeds know what to do. Provide optimum conditions and monster pumpkins result!

    Steve Connolly grew the first 1000 pound pumpkin in New England in 2000 and currently holds the record for the largest pumpkin grown in Massachusetts at 2075 pounds (2016). In his 24 years of growing giant pumpkins, he has won numerous awards and has been featured on radio, television and in print, including the Today Show, NPR, Martha Stewart, David Letterman, National Geographic, Yankee Magazine, and more. He is an active Board member of the Southern New England Giant Pumpkin Growers Club.

    Image result for Steve Connolly giant pumpkins

  • Sunday, August 5, 10:00 am – 11:30 am – Bee Safari

    On Sunday, August 5 from 10 – 11:30 am, join native bee expert Sam Droege on an expedition through Tower Hill Botanic Garden’s gardens and meadows to discover the diversity of bees that live there. Bring close focusing binoculars if you have them and load this on your smartphone: http://bio2.elmira.edu/fieldbio/beesofmarylandbookversion1.pdf

    Sam Droege is a wildlife biologist at the Patuxent Wildlife Research Center, part of the US Geological Survey. He is widely published in journals and has been the editor of numerous government publications on birds and insects. His work cataloging and photographing native bees has been featured by NPR, The Weather Channel, and the National Wildlife Federation, as well as in numerous publications including Wired, the Wall Street Journal, and Popular Science. Currently he is developing an inventory and monitoring program for native bees, online identification guides for North American bees at http://www.discoverlife.org, and with Jessica Zelt reviving the North American Bird Phenology Program. His group maintains high resolution photographs of insects and other macro natural history objects at: http://www.flickr.com/photos/usgsbiml/

    The session fee is $10 for Tower Hill members, $20 for nonmembers. Register at www.towerhillbg.org.

    Image result for sam droege bee photos

  • Saturday, June 4, 6:30 pm – 8:30 pm – Tom Ashbrook at Newton Community Farm

    The Newton Community Farm is honored to host an intimate evening with Tom Ashbrook, award-winning journalist and host of NPR’s On Point. Having spent his childhood on a farm, Tom will talk about farm life, both past and present, and the place of local farms in our agricultural system. The event will be held June 4th from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. The event will begin with a farm tour at 6:30 p.m., and the talk will begin at 7 p.m. This event is part of Newton Community Farm’s Ten-Year Anniversary program. Click here to register, or call 617-916-9655.

  • Wednesday, July 22, 7:00 pm – What a Plant Knows

    Tower Hill Botanic Garden will host Professor Daniel Chamovitz of Tel Aviv University on Wednesday, July 22 from 7 – 8 pm for a lecture and book signing. Highlighting the latest in plant science, renowned biologist Professor Daniel Chamovitz takes us into the lives of different types of plants and draws parallels with human senses to reveal that we have more in common with sunflowers and oak trees than we realize. What a Plant Knows was listed as one of the Top 10 Science Books on Amazon and has been featured on the BBC, NPR, and CBS. Tower Hill members $15, nonmembers $25. Register online at www.towerhillbg.org.

  • Friday, June 19 and Saturday, June 20, 6:30 pm – 8:30 pm – In the Groves: A Summer Solstice Journey

    Ancient legends of trees with music and songs from cultures around the world accompany a twilight stroll through the beautiful groves of the Arnold Arboretum on Friday and Saturday, June 19 and 20, from 6:30 – 8:30. This performance event, specifically designed for this tree sanctuary by award-winning storyteller Diane Edgecomb and Celtic harper Margot Chamberlain takes us to some of its loveliest spots. Stories and music are drawn from the rich cultural traditions of Japan, Wales, England, Australia, Russia and Native America. The evening culminates with the haunting Czech legend “The Wild Woman of the Birch Grove” told among the birches of Bussey Hill at sunset.

    This duo has been featured on NPR and at storytelling festivals, coffeehouses, theaters, and garden clubs. Diane is known for her unique style of storytelling, where she embodies the various characters and scenes in a tale, bringing each moment alive. For this she has won the first national Oracle Award for Storytelling Excellence in the Northeast. Margot Chamberlain’s versatile approach to harp and song brings an underlying poetic weave to support each tale. Expect to laugh, be moved, and leave your cares behind. $20 through June 10 and $25 thereafter. Telephone 617-524-1718, or visit https://my.arboretum.harvard.edu/Info.aspx?DayPlanner=1024&DayPlannerDate=6/20/2014 to register.  Photo by Pamela Ruby Russell.

  • Thursday, August 7, 7:00 pm – 8:30 pm – Garden Herbs and Spices for Home Brewing

    Join the Massachusetts Horticultural Society on Thursday, August 7, from 7 – 8:30 for a lecture on the description and history of hops, and the decades of the Northeast’s leadership in US hop production. Discover how you can grow hops at home, the structures you can use for the vines. Roger Savoy will also describe each individual ingredient in beer: malt, hops, yeast and water. Learn how we use those to make beer, supplimenting the four ingredients with adjuncts and specialty herbs, spices, fruits and such.

    Roger Savoy is President of Homebrew Emporium, which sells equipment and supplies to make beer, wine, cheese and other home prepared foods. He taught at and worked as a consultant and at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute’s Incubator, helping small businesses develop locally and internationally. He, wife Anita, and friend Bruce Lucier purchased a small 500 sq ft homebrew store in Rensselaer, NY in 1997. Since then, the company has become the largest in the Northeast and one fo the largest in the country. He has been a regular on NPR, and frequently speaks at brewing related events.

    Roger is also an avid cook and gardener. His garden has many herbs including those used brewing, such as hops, coriander and lemon balm.  Lecture Fee: Mass Hort Members $10, Non-Members $15.  The lecture takes place in The Parkman Room at the Education Building, 900 Washington Street in Wellesley.  Register online at http://events.r20.constantcontact.com/register/event?oeidk=a07e9hk0rw5b3814e98&llr=kzaorjcab, or call Katie Folts at 617-933-4973.

  • Wednesday, April 9, 10:00 am – 12:00 noon – Massachusetts Agricultural History

    Meg Muckenhoupt is such an extraordinarily good speaker we just had to have her again. Meg is an environmental and travel writer. Her book Boston Gardens and Green Spaces (Union Park Press, 2010) is a Boston Globe Local Bestseller, and she is co-creator of the Green Spaces: Boston app. She has appeared on NPR’s Radio Boston and WCVB’s Chronicle, and WGBH’s Forum site. She blogs at GreenSpaceBoston.com, and now is a reviewer on www.thesweethome.com. She is working on a new book on the history of Boston food, which may not be published by the date of the meeting, but which we eagerly anticipate. An optional lunch will follow the meeting, which takes place Wednesday, April 9, beginning at 10 am at The College Club of Boston, 44 Commonwealth Avenue, Boston.  Garden Club of the Back Bay members will receive written notice of the meeting. Image below from www.ag.umass.edu. If you are interested in attending, please email info@bostonflora.com.

    http://ag.umass.edu/sites/ag.umass.edu/files/agricultural-data/cranberry_industry_1.jpg

  • Friday, April 12 – Sunday, April 14 – The 10th Annual Great Gardens and Landscaping Symposium

    The 10th Annual Great Gardens and Landscaping Symposium will take place April 12 – 14 at the world-class Equinox Resort in Manchester, Vermont.  Day only rates are available, as well as overnight symposium packages.  On Friday, April 12, at 7 pm, Presenter Kerry Ann Mendez, garden designer, author and consultant, will welcome guests and speak on The Art of Shade Gardening: Seeing Your Way Out of the Dark.  On Saturday, from 9 – 4, the Gardener’s Marketplace will be open, and past Garden Club of the Back Bay speaker Rich Pomerantz will speak on Design Strategies for Great Gardens.  Jessica Walliser, horticulturist, author, teacher and radio show host, will speak on The Benefits of Beneficials  and Heather Poire of Bailey Nurseries will give a session on Sensational Flowering Shrubs for the Landscape.  After lunch, Ruth Rogers Clausen, former editor of Country Living Gardener, will speak on Successful Gardening in Deer Country.  Saturday winds up with another talk by Kerry Ann Mendez on The Dazzling New Perennial Line-Up for 2013. 

    Sunday will start with an Ask the Experts Panel at 9 am, followed by Jessica Walliser on Forgotten Garden Combinations and the Fabulous Beekman Boys, owners of the Beekman 1802 organic product line, speaking on The Heirloom Life.  Brent Ridge and Josh Kilmer-Purcell have a passion for organic gardening and ‘the simpler life’. They will talk about how the notion of history and permanence influences every aspect of Beekman 1802 from what they do in the garden to the products they produce. Dr. Brent is an Assistant Clinical Professor at Mount Sinai School of Medicine and was Vice President of Healthy Living at Martha Stewart Living Omni Media. He writes for The Huffington Post, and is now CEO of Beekman 1802. Josh is the New York Times bestselling author of “The Bucolic Plague”, “I Am Not Myself These Days”, and “Candy Everybody Wants”. Kilmer-Purcell is a monthly columnist for OUT magazine and a contributor to NPR.

    For complete registration information visit www.pyours.com/symposium.  To book online, go to www.equinoxresort.com.

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