Boston Flora

Tag: Thomas Mickey

  • Thursday, February 24 – Sunday, February 27 – 40th Annual Connecticut Flower & Garden Show: Rhythm & Blooms

    Spring 2022 will arrive early in Southern New England when the “40th Annual Connecticut Flower & Garden Show” blossoms from Thursday, February 24 through Sunday, February 27 to the Connecticut Convention Center, 100 Columbus Blvd. in Hartford, Conn. Hours: Thursday, Feb. 24 from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.; Friday, Feb. 25 from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.; Saturday, Feb. 26 from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.; and Sunday, Feb. 27 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

    The prestigious yearly event will be New England’s only 2022 major flower exhibition and show, covering almost two acres, offering ideas for house, apartment, and condo dwellers. “Rhythm & Blooms” is the theme of this year’s show that features expansive live gardens, a nonstop schedule of seminars and demonstrations, the Federated Garden Clubs of Connecticut’s annual Standard Flower Show, and hundreds of vendors displaying and selling all types of items.

    As soon as attendees step into the Exhibition Hall, they are welcomed by more than a dozen live gardens in full bloom by professional landscape designers and nonprofit organizations, including naturalistic, low maintenance, native, containers, vegetables, organic, herb, and pollinator gardens.

    Over 70 hours of seminars and demonstrations will be presented by horticulturalists, landscapers, and industry professionals, and are free with admission. Every day, Mar Jennings, America’s Top Lifestyle Expert and a 10-time Emmy-nominated and Telly Award-winning TV host and best-selling author, tells How to Best Increase Your Home’s Value. An impressive roster of expert speakers includes Bob Buettner, Karen Bussolini, Pamm Cooper, Jeffrey Eleveld, Len Giddix, Dr. Nick Goltz, Trish Manfredi, Laurie Masciandaro, Thomas Mickey, Charlie Nardozzi, Dawn Pettinelli, Jen Plasky of Sam Bridge Nursery & Greenhouses in Greenwich; Paul Split, Rob Townsend ;George Trecina, and Steve Walowski. [Full list and schedule of events at www.CTFlowerShow.com]

    The Federated Garden Clubs of Connecticut’s annual Standard Flower Show features over 12,000 square feet of beautiful design, horticulture, botanical arts, and photography competition with entries from members across the state – all themed “Rhythm & Blooms”.

    Always popular are the hundreds of booths of displays, activities, shopping: artisans, handcrafted gifts, fresh flowers, plants, garden ornaments, metalwork sculptures, herbs, bulbs, seeds, fertilizers, soils, gardening books, patio furniture, lawn and garden tools, equipment and more. Bring 1/2 cup of soil for free testing at the UConn Co-op booth.

    Discounted online tickets are $16 for Adults and Seniors are on sale now at www.CTFlowerShow.com.

    General admission at the door: $20 Adults & Seniors; $5 Children 5-12; Free for Children Under Age 5.

  • Saturday, October 30, 2:00 pm – 3:00 pm – Victorian Flowers We Still Love

    On October 20, from 2 – 3, at Berkshire Botanical Garden, Thomas Mickey discusses the new book All about Flowers: James Vick’s Nineteenth-Century Seed Company . He illustrates how this nineteenth-century seed company influenced both gardeners and the kind of garden that became essential, the Victorian flower garden. James Vick’s story has not been told yet. He is known in his hometown Rochester, NY, but he played a key role in gardens everywhere in nineteenth century America, whether of the wealthy, the middle class, the working class, or the city dweller.  Vick inspired gardeners everywhere with his own passion for gardening with flowers and his desire to spread the love of floriculture. Vick published yearly seed catalogs and a popular monthly garden magazine. He systematized the seed business: growing seeds, drying them, packaging them, and shipping them around the country, well before Sears or Montgomery Ward sent out their first catalogs. 

    Thomas Mickey, from Quincy, MA, is Professor Emeritus of Communication Studies at Bridgewater State University, where he taught public relations writing and directed student interns. He is also a graduate of the Landscape Institute at the Boston Architectural College. He is a Master Gardener and has been gardening for over 30 years. Professor Mickey posts weekly on his blog americangardening.net. He is the former garden writer for the Seacoast Media company that publishes newspapers on New Hampshire’s seacoast and southern Maine. He is the author of three books, including Best Garden Plants for New England. The Council on Botanical and Horticultural Libraries nominated his book America’s Romance with the English Garden for its annual Literature Award. The UK magazine Spectator named the book ‘best garden book of the year’. He is a past speaker with The Garden Club of the Back Bay.

    BBG members $15, nonmembers $20. Register at https://www.berkshirebotanical.org/events/victorian-flowers-we-still-love