Boston Flora

Tag: Urban Farming

  • Garden How-To Free Online Workshops

    Horticulture Magazine has a series of free download’s on its website which give you access to great garden speakers from the comfort of your own home. No new live workshops are currently scheduled as of this date, but you may access recordings of past workshops at http://www.hortmag.com/smart-gardening-workshops

    Here are highlights of two presentations of interest. We will feature more in the coming weeks:

    Urban Farming: Rooted In The City

    “Give me a bit of ground the size of a postage stamp, and I will give you an Urban Farm.” For years edible gardening seemed like a trend, but now we view it as a true cultural shift. Edibles are being used in the garden and on the patio in containers as never before. Never mind if your area is small or large—this workshop will offer great tips that you can use in your own Urban Farm. And it’s not just about the edibles; you’ll get a firsthand look at the companion plants that provide much needed nectar and cover for essential pollinators. The speaker is Nicholas Staddon, Director of the New Plants Team at Monrovia.

    Heaven Scent

    Nicholas Staddon, a lifelong plantsman, takes you on a journey of some of his favorite plants that will delight the nose. Nothing is more fun than being in the garden when, from somewhere, you get a whiff of a delightful scent. This workshop will help you create those moments in your own garden.

  • Wednesday, April 6, 4:30 pm – 6:00 pm – Commercial Urban Farming and Design

    Ver-Tex invites you for an exploration of how New England’s design professionals are tackling commercial urban farming within city limits. Green City Grower’s Jessie Banhazl will introduce cutting edge trends and materials used in commercial urban design during an interactive workshop, followed by Q&A, on Wednesday, April 6 from 4:30 – 6.

    For seven years, Green City Growers has been educating designers, consumers and students to the ins and outs of successfully implementing urban agriculture. As a regional leader in urban farming, Green City Growers has provided the expertise and ongoing maintenance to make projects like Fenway Farms for the Boston Red Sox, and a 1/2 acre rooftop farm for Whole Foods Market Lynnfield a reality. Urban farming is taking off in some of the most densely populated places around Greater Boston in interesting and unexpected ways. This lecture will highlight the ever-changing landscape of growing technologies that is making this possible and how to apply these techniques in your community. Jessie is a past speaker with the Garden Club of the Back Bay.

    Following the presentation, light refreshments and beverages will be served at the Ver-Tex Experience Center, 263 Summer Street, Boston. This is a free event, however due to limited space, an RSVP is required to attend the presentation and reception. To RSVP visit www.ver-tex.eventbrite.com

  • Wednesday, February 11, 10:00 am – New Technologies and Unique Set-Ups

    Urban farming is taking off in some of the most densely populated places around Greater Boston in interesting, unexpected ways. Learn about the ever-changing landscape of growing technologies that is making this possible and how to apply these techniques at home or in your community. Jessie Banhazl, CEO and founder of Green City Growers, will join The Garden Club of the Back Bay at The College Club, 44 Commonwealth Avenue, Boston, on Wednesday, February 11 at 10 am for this informative talk. Green City Growers are experienced and passionate organic urban farmers who specialize in year-round raised bed urban farms for yards, rooftops, decks, and unused lots. They maintain production-level urban farms for hotels, grocers, and restaurants, and pioneer farming education programs for businesses, municipalities, homeowners and schools. Garden Club of the Back Bay members will receive written notice of this meeting.  If you are not a member but are interested in attending, please email info@bostonflora.com.

  • Wednesday, April 4, 6:30 pm – 8:30 pm – Living Walls: Verticulture ™ Life Off the Wall

    Though the idea of living walls and green facades is not new, the modern day applications and the infinite design and business possibilities are.  Explore the benefits of living wall technology, the opportunities it presents, and learn how to incorporate the artfulness of living walls into your landscape or home.   Learn about the environmental value of living walls and see how they can serve as an innovative way to overcome landscape challenges in confined spaces with dynamic results, and learn to take Urban Farming to new heights.  This Ecological Landscaping Association seminar is co-sponsored by the New England Wild Flower Society, and will take place Wednesday, A;pril 4, from 6:30 – 8:30 at Garden in the Woods in Framingham.  Your instructor Trevor Smith is a landscape designer and LEED Green Associate with Land Escapes.  Fee is $24 for ELA and NEWFS members, $29 for nonmembers.  Register on line at www.newfs.org.

  • Monday, June 7, 7:00 pm – 9:00 pm – Novella Carpenter

    Porter Square Books, 25 White Street, Cambridge, will host author Novella Carpenter on Monday, June 7, from 7 – 9. Carpenter, who grows greens and raises livestock on a dead-end street in the ghetto, is the author of Farm City: The Education of an Urban Farmer. For the past decade, the 38-year-old has cultivated land in the city, the last six years on GhostTown Farm, the sunny, squat lot in Oakland, California next to her rundown, coral-colored flat — complete with a back porch covered in goat poop — where she lives with mechanic boyfriend Bill and a menagerie of her so-called edible pets, including rabbits, chickens, and, on occasion, a turkey or two.

    The ‘hood is also dotted with long-shuttered businesses, drug dealers, prostitutes, multiethnic neighbors, and what Carpenter affectionately refers to as “fellow freaks.” She feels right at home there. “The neighborhood had a whiff of anarchy,” she notes in her memoir. “Spanish-speaking soccer players hosted ad hoc tournaments in the abandoned playfield. Teenagers sold bags of marijuana on the corners. The Buddhist monks made enormous vats of rice on the city sidewalk…And I started squat gardening on land I didn’t own.”

    A child of back-to-the landers, Carpenter has received stellar reviews, most notably in the New York Times, for chronicling her exploits in the urban jungle.  She’s been featured everywhere from mainstream outlets like Time, foodie circles, like Culinate, and eco-green arenas like Grist. Log on to www.portersquarebooks.com for more information.

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  • Friday, November 13, 5:30 pm – Urban Farming

    Slow Food Boston will sponsor an evening called “Urban Farming Discussion with Two Experts” on Friday, November 13 beginning at 5:30 pm at the Fort Point Artists Community Store, 12 Farnsworth Street in Boston.  You may reserve your spaces by logging on to www.slowfoodboston.com/events.cfm.
    Novella Carpenter lives in Oakland. I mean, really IN Oakland. As in downtown. But that certainly hasn’t stopped her from farming – and she has now written a memoir chronicling the transformation of her backyard from bare land to full-blown animal & veggie paradise!

    The book, Farm City: The Education of an Urban Farmer, is newly released, and Slow Food Boston coaxed Novella out of sunny California to cool New England to read from it and talk more about her experiences. By doing so, they hope you will be inspired to make a little more out of available space on rooftops, outside windowsills or in yards.

    In order to tie Novella’s work back to local issues, they’ve invited Belmont resident (& resident chicken expert) Joan Teebagy to join Novella. More people are opting to raise their own hens for eggs, and Joan teaches classes on the subject at Codman Farms in Lincoln. But be sure to check your town laws! As many of you may have read, there is an on-going battle in Arlington about residents rights to keep backyard chickens.

    So come on Friday, November 13th at 5:30pm.  There will be some light nibbles, a little cider, and then enjoy the reading & discussions that commence. Advance RSVPs and a $10 donation to the Slow Food fund that supports local agriculture are duly requested!

    Directions:
    Made in Fort Point, the FPAC Store is located at 12 Farnsworth St, just off Congress Street and next to the new Flour Bakery.

    The gallery space is a 5 to 10 minute walk from the South Station Red Line T, or the Court House stop on the Silver Line. There is also street parking in the area.

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