Hydrangeas are one of the most loved plants in the landscape. Yet many gardeners are unaware of the beauty, sustainability, and benefits of our native hydrangeas. Instead of being disappointed by plants that aren’t suited to our climate, we’ll look at the hydrangea choices available for the enjoyment of both people and pollinators. This online course by Native Plant Trust will take place June 13 at 6 pm with Cheryl Salatino, and is $17 for NPT members, $20 for nonmembers. Register at http://www.nativeplanttrust.org/events/native-hydrangeas/
Silk—prized for its lightness, luminosity, and beauty—is also one of the strongest biological materials ever known. More than a century ago, it was used to make the first bulletproof vest, and yet science has barely begun to tap its potential. The technologies it has inspired—including sutures, pharmaceuticals, and replacement body parts—continue to be developed in laboratories around the world and are now beginning to offer a sustainable alternative to the plastics choking our planet.
Aarathi Prasad, author of Silk: A WorldHistory, outlines the cultural and biological history of the fabric, including its origins, the ancient silk routes, and the biologists who learned the secrets of silk-producing animals. From the moths of China, Indonesia, and India to the spiders of South America and Madagascar and the mollusks of the Mediterranean, Prasad offers a mix of biography and science that brings to life the vast, winding history of silk and looks to its future as a powerful resource.
Butterflies and moths (Lepidoptera) are one of the most abundant groups of insects—one in every ten animals on the planet is a butterfly or moth. What are the secrets of their extraordinary success?
In a lively Smithsonian Associates Zoom presentation accompanied by stunning images, Emmy Award–winning wildlife documentary filmmaker Steve Nicholls presents some of the latest scientific discoveries as he explores the world of butterflies and moths to find out why they’ve been so successful. Along the way, discover the world’s deadliest caterpillars, a moth with a tongue over a foot long, a caterpillar that looks exactly like a venomous snake, and a butterfly that shares its world with polar bears at one extreme and penguins at the other.
Learn about moths whose wing scales have better sound-absorbing qualities than anything we can construct to hide from the sonar of hunting bats. Others have long tail streamers with sound-reflecting surfaces at their tips to give bats a false target. Yet others scream at bats to jam their sonar completely. It seems there’s no end to the tricks that evolution has come up with as it turned the Lepidoptera into one of the most successful of all insect groups.
UMASS professor and author Ethan Carr discusses his 2023 nonfiction book,Boston’s Franklin Park. Franklin Park is one of the great urban parks of the world. Generations of Bostonians have loved this landscape and invested it with many diverse memories and meanings. Today the park is at a turning point. Mayor Wu has approved an Action Plan to guide its future, and the City of Boston and its partners have proposed new multi-million dollar construction projects. The time is right to consider the past, as well as the future, of Franklin Park.
Ethan Carr is a professor of Landscape Architecture and Regional Planning at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. His latest book is Boston’s Franklin Park (Amherst: Library of American Landscape History, 2023).
This event is co-sponsored by the Grove Hall Branch of the BPL, the Dorchester Historical Society and the JP Historical Society. It is free and open to the public. It will use a hybrid format you can attend in-person or via Zoom. Please register here for the Zoom details: https://us06web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_pUtwfzf1RL-U8n5yWxCJdw
In the case of heavy snow, the event will be held virtually.
Kentaro Hoshiba is a fourth generation blacksmith whose family has been supporting fishing and farming villages in Noto, Ishikawa, Japan since the Meiji period by polishing and selling knives. Their company, Fukube Kaji Corp. began in 1901 as traveling knife peddlers, selling and maintaining the vital everyday tools of housewives, farmers, and fishermen. Today they keep the tradition of knife polishing services alive through “Pochisupa,” their unique mail-in knife sharpening service, now with the help of online shipping. They are also currently working to expand business to the U.S., and launch their own knives, the Shinbu and Tafu.
Fukube Kaji and other companies are supported by Bunkei Corp., a consulting firm that aims to continue the culture of traditional Japanese craftsmanship into the 22nd century by providing guidance and resources to aid the transition into the modern age.
Our speakers will not only teach us about the precise art of Japanese knife making, but will also share about their traditions, companies, and current activities in Japan. This is a free, hour-long presentation with Q&A hosted on Zoom. Register at www.japansocietyboston.org
Did you know that your morning cup of coffee has the power to protect birds—or to destroy their habitat? In the 1980s, North American scientists noted that migratory songbirds were in trouble: Each year, fewer and fewer of them were found singing on their summer breeding grounds, but what happened to these birds during the winter remained a mystery. It took many trips to Latin America for researchers to discover that lush, shaded coffee farms from Mexico to Peru were the winter homes for many migratory songbirds. But not all coffee farms protected these birds. Smithsonian Associates presents an online program on February 22 at 7 pm with Ruth Bennett. $25 for Smithsonian Associates members, $30 for nonmembers. Register at www.smithsonianassociates.org
Ruth Bennett, a research ecologist at the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute’s Migratory Bird Center, journeys south to the misty coffee farms responsible for migratory songbird survival, exploring why some coffee farmers are actively protecting bird habitats by growing coffee under native shade trees, while others are eliminating their winter habitat by cutting down cloud forest to grow more coffee. She also reports on how the Smithsonian is taking action to reverse the loss of winter habitats by creating a market for coffees certified to be Bird Friendly®.
The Garden Club of the Back Bay is offering a February Zoom meeting on February 22 at 4 pm Eastern with Dee Salomon. Although her outdoor landscape was designed by the renowned Miranda Brooks, Dee Salomon prefers spending her days ‘ungardening’ in the woods where she is rehabilitating the 15 acres of woodland she and her partner live on. The story of her journey starting as a NY executive to becoming an advocate for the restoration of native woodland habitats – from backyards to land trusts – contains a message we all need to hear. Dee will deliver that message and share her experience, in word and image, of transforming an invasive-filled woodland into a place for human joy and animal survival. If you are interested in attending (registration required before February 20) email HERE or join the Club at https://bostonflora.com.
George Wuerthner is an ecologist and long-time grazing activist. He has published 38 books, many of which address environmental issues, including Welfare Ranching: The Subsidized Destruction of the American West. George has been a member of the Sierra Club for 35 years, and currently serves on the Sierra Club’s national Grazing Committee. George will discuss the ecological impact of livestock grazing on public lands, as well as the economic costs. Livestock grazing is the most common commercial use of this country’s public lands, causing significant damage to ecosystems, especially watersheds. It also leads to severe consequences for native species, both flora and fauna. This Sierra Club virtual talk on February 5 from 7 – 8 Eastern is free, but registration required at the Sierra Club site HERE
John Meiklejohn will speak on The Returning American Chestnut Trees on Tuesday, January 30 at 7 pm Eastern time, courtesy of the Massachusetts Pollinator Network. This free webinar may be accessed with registration HERE on Zoom.
The Massachusetts Pollinator Network hosts monthly meetings for participants from across the state to learn about topics relevant to our work and to exchange knowledge, ideas, and updates about local actions. Whether you’re a seasoned community organizer or new to pollinator protection concerns, all are welcome! Please note that this meeting will be recorded and available on our YouTube channel.
Join the Massachusetts Pollinator Network for a free online Brown Bag Lunch meeting on the first Wednesday of the month, from February 7 through May 1. Speak with the experts and learn what’s happening on the conservation front. Register at masspollinatornetwork.org
