Boston Flora

Tag: plants

  • Saturday, April 17, 8:00 am – 4:00 pm – Cape Cod Horticultural Conference

    Come to the Barnstable High School Performing Arts Center, 744 West Main Street in Hyannis on Saturday, April 17, for a full day conference beginning at 8:00 am – 4:00 pm, sponsored by the Master Gardener Association of Cape Cod.  The program will feature:

    Rick Darke, The Wild Garden: A fresh look at the wild garden concept and will illustrate why it is the most enjoyable, sensible approach for livable, ecologically sustainable modern landscapes;

    Vincent Simeone, Wonders of the Winter Landscape: How to enhance the aesthetic value and interest of the garden by using horticultural treasures such as winter fruiting plants, broadleaved evergreens, conifers and trees with interesting bark;

    C.L. Fornari, The Top 25: 25 plants that she thinks you should know about, along with the 25 most interesting/amusing/useful bits of gardening information she has learned in over 25 years of gardening.

    Book signings with speakers, lunch, marketplace, and a raffle will be part of the day. MCLP and MCH professional credits are available.  The cost of $60 includes lunch.  For more information, call 508-375-6690, or email tramos@barnstablecounty.org.  You may also find information at www.capecodextension.org.

    http://diggingdog.com/bookcovers/pockgdgrasses.jpg

  • Saturday, April 10, 9:30 am – 2:30 pm – Wow! Botany is Exciting

    Carol Govan is back at the Wellesley College Botanic Garden on Saturday, April 10, with a class beginning at 9:30 a.m.  Do you love plants and want to understand them better? Enjoy early arrival of spring in the WCBG Greenhouses as Carol Govan introduces botany using basic terminology, direct observations and journaling to explore basic plant morphology (seeds, roots, shoots, flowers and fruit). No previous experience is necessary. Class meets at the Wellesley College Botanic Gardens Visitor Center.  Fee $50 Arnold Arboretum or WCBG member, $65 nonmember.  To register, log on to www.arboretum.harvard.edu.

    http://www.botany.com/img/plants/dictionary-plants-flowers.jpg

  • Saturday, February 20, 9 am – 12 noon – Pruning in Winter

    Join Jen Kettell, Horticultural Technologist at the Arnold Arboretum, on Saturday, February 20  at 9:00 a.m. in the Hunnewell Building at the Arboretum for this single session pruning workshop. Jan presented this program earlier in January, and you have a second chance.  With no leaves on the branches to obscure your view, this is the best time of year to study a tree’s structure and shape it for improved air circulation, silhouette, and strength. Jen Kettell, an International Society of Arboriculture-certified arborist and accredited Organic Land Care professional, will explain the reasons for pruning and what to consider when pruning dormant trees, shrubs, and vines. She will demonstrate techniques, give guidelines for determining which plants benefit from winter pruning, and explain how plants heal from pruning wounds, even when dormant. Bring your questions to this classroom discussion and demonstration. Fee $30 Arnold Arboretum member, $35 nonmember.  To register, or for more information, log on to www.arboretum.harvard.edu.

  • Thursday, February 4, 7:00 pm – 8:30 pm – Garden Design: A Perfect Plant Palette

    Like dabs of paint and brush strokes in a painting, individual plants and their placement are what creates a garden or yard. It’s easy to walk into a nursery or garden store and become overwhelmed by the wide selection of plants, tools, soil choices, gardening tips, and helpful accessories. With so many choices how is it possible to comprise plant schemes with ease? This class will give an overview of the first steps to take in creating your perfect plant palette. You  will discuss the basic design features of plants and how to use them in combination to make your available garden space into the retreat you wish it to be. Topics will include using plant forms to define outdoor rooms, using leaves and/or bark as a prominent feature of the garden, and using flowers and fruits to accent the garden. You’ll talk about color theory and the use of texture to create a balanced composition in the landscape.  This course, sponsored by Brookline Adult Education, will be held on Thursday, February 4, beginning at 7 pm, at Brookline High School.  The fee is $28, and you may register on-line at www.brooklineadulted.org, or by phone at 617-730-2700.  The instructor, Kimberly Turner, is a principal of KDTurner Design, a landscape architecture firm in Newton.  She has a background in both horticulture and landscape architecture and is the author of the soon to be published book Botany For Designers.

    http://www.ktpdesignsinc.com/images/kimbytree.gif

  • Saturday, January 30, 9 am – 4 pm – Grafting Techniques for Ornamental Trees

    Join Plant Propagator Jack Alexander at the Dana Greenhouses at the Arnold Arboretum on Saturday, January 30 at 9 am for this day long workshop sponsored by the Arnold Arboretum. Grafting is the technique of joining parts of plants in such a manner that they unite and continue their growth as one plant. It is sometimes the most practical propagation method for the hobbyist, since it does not require special conditions or equipment. This workshop will teach methods of grafting and offer practice in making graft unions from actual plant material. You will graft both deciduous and evergreen trees and shrubs. The plants may include two- or five-needled pines and crabapples. (Simple aftercare will be required until planting out in late spring.) If you own pruning shears or a grafting knife, please bring them to class. You must sign an assumption-of-risk-and-release form in order to practice the techniques taught in class (yes, you can cut yourself if you’re not careful!)
    Fee $90  Arboretum member, $110 nonmember.  To register, log on to www.arboretum.harvard.edu.

    http://www.gardeningknowhow.com/images/bud-grafting.jpg

  • Saturday, January 23, 9 am – 12 noon – Pruning in Winter

    Join Jen Kettell, Horticultural Technologist at the Arnold Arboretum, on Saturday, January 23 at 9:00 a.m. in the Hunnewell Building at the Arboretum for this single session pruning workshop. With no leaves on the branches to obscure your view, this is the best time of year to study a tree’s structure and shape it for improved air circulation, silhouette, and strength. Jen Kettell, an International Society of Arboriculture-certified arborist and accredited Organic Land Care professional, will explain the reasons for pruning and what to consider when pruning dormant trees, shrubs, and vines. She will demonstrate techniques, give guidelines for determining which plants benefit from winter pruning, and explain how plants heal from pruning wounds, even when dormant. Bring your questions to this classroom discussion and demonstration. Fee $30 Arnold Arboretum member, $35 nonmember.  To register, or for more information, log on to www.arboretum.harvard.edu.

    winter branches by finna dat.

  • Saturday, December 12, 10:00 am – 2:00 pm – Bark and Buds

    Participate in this indoor field study to be held at the Berkshire Botanical Garden in West Stockbridge on Saturday, December 12, from 10:00 am – 2:00 pm. Discover the many plants that lend bark, buds, fruit, and structural interest to the garden in fall and winter. Develop or enhance your ability to identify winter trees by twig and bud anatomy, bark features and plant architecture. Students will practice their skills with winter tree dichotomous keys. Participants should have The Illustrated Book of Trees by William Carey Grimm ISBN 0-8117-2220-1. Must be 1983 edition. Dress for limited outdoor fieldwork. Class enrollment is limited. Brad Roeller is Manager of Display Gardens at the Institute of Ecosystem Studies in Millbrook, N.Y. where he oversees the Institute’s landscaping projects. He lectures for the New York Botanical Garden, Institute of Ecosystem Studies and Berkshire Botanical Garden.  To register, log on to www.berkshirebotanical.org.  Cost for BBG members is $25, $35 for non-members.

    http://imageserver.homeearth.com/product_images/0811728110.jpg

  • Saturday, November 21, 1:00 pm – Myxomycetes! The Enigma of Slime Molds

    In this illustrated talk, David Rose, past president of the Connecticut-Westchester Mycological Association (COMA), will explore the natural history of myxomycetes, commonly known as “slime molds.” Slime molds are colorful harmless organisms that inhabit damp woodland environments. So perplexing to science that they have been classified variously as animals, plants, and fungi (they are actually protists), these organisms are remarkable for their delicate beauty and their surprising transformation from an animal-like to a plant-like stage. Though they are not mushrooms, slime molds reproduce by spores and have traditionally been studied by mycologists for their resemblance to the fungi.  The program will be held Saturday, November 21 beginning at 1:00 pm at the Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station, 123 Huntington Street, New Haven, Connecticut, and is free and open to the public.

    http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/84/Slime_Mold_Olympic_National_Park_North_Fork_Sol_Duc.jpg

  • Saturday, November 7, 10 am – 12:30 pm – Conifers for Urban Sites

    Mount Auburn Cemetery’s Horticultural Curator Dennis Collins is the go-to guy for teaching about conifers.  He will use the Arnold Arboretum’s vast collection of conifers to show those that would be suited for smaller spaces in city gardens. Dennis will also recommend plants that can withstand some of the stressors common to urban sites, such as extreme wind or heat.  Dress for the weather and wear comfortable walking shoes for this class, which takes place entirely outdoors.  The location is Bussey Street Gate, Arnold Arboretum, Jamaica Plain.  For directions, and to register, log on to www.wellesley.edu/WCFH, or www.arboretum.harvard.edu, or email horticulture@wellesley.edu.  Cost is $30 for members of WCFH and the Arboretum, $35 for non members. Araucaria heterophylla photo courtesy of Rundstedt B. Rovillos.

    Araucaria heterophylla by Rundstedt B. Rovillos.

  • Saturday, October 17, 10:30 am – Bay State African Violet Society Annual Meeting and Plant Sale

    The Annual Meeting of the Bay State African Violet Society will be held Saturday, October 17, beginning at 10:30 am at the Parish of St. Michael, Bedford, Massachusetts.  Following the plant sale, there will be a luncheon beginning at 12:30 with a guest speaker addressing members on special issues in cultivating African violets.  In addition, this year there will be a panel of experts to answer your questions.

    The Bay State African Violet Society was organized in 1959, as an affiliate of the African Violet Society of America (AVSA), the national organization for African Violet enthusiasts. BSAVS provides a forum for lovers of African violets to share their interest in the propagation and culture of these beautiful gesneriads.

    As a member, you will receive four issues of the Society’s official newsletter, Ye Bay Stater. You also become eligible to enter your plants and designs in our African violet shows, sanctioned by the African Violet Society of America.

    Activities include the annual Spring Flower Show and Sale; the annual Meeting in October with a program on AVs presented by a well-known speaker; and other activities such as potting clinics.  All offer the opportunity to socialize with and learn from other violet enthusiasts.  For more information, log on to www.baystateafricanviolet.org.

    http://behnkes.com/website/images/stories/Misc/african-violet-1.jpg