The Garden Club of the Back Bay

The North Andover Historical Society’s Beyond the Garden Gate 2009 tickets are on sale now at its 153 Academy Road location or log on to www.northandoverhistoricalsociety.org to purchase online!   Tickets are $20 in advance, $25 on the day of the tour.  Volunteers may purchase their tickets for half price at the Society.  Make a  single purchase of four tickets in advance for only $60.  Plan an outing with your friends while supporting the Historical Society and save.   Details on other ticket locations and an update on the time schedule for picking up the tour map during the week of June 15th will be announced soon.  During this 4th Annual Garden Tour, six beautiful gardens await exploration.  Volunteers and sponsors are still needed!  If you can help, please contact  nahistory@juno.com.

Friday, June 19, 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.    Beauport Reception and Talk $20/$15 members
Enjoy an evening reception with wine, beer, and appetizers in the garden overlooking Gloucester Harbor and hear about the newly uncovered garden staircase that is part of the stunning new garden renovation at Beauport, The Sleeper-McCann House, a property of Historic New England.

Saturday, June 20, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.    Garden Tour $35
Tour glorious gardens with magnificent plantings and stunning vistas. This year new stops on the tour feature sculpture gardens, water views, private quarries and fabulous perennial and herb gardens. In addition several of the homes will be open for visitors’ viewing.

Sunday, June 21,      Workshops, Lecture and Exhibition Tour

10 a.m.-11 a.m. Planning a Garden for People and Pollinators, Kim Smith $15

Author of Oh Garden of Fresh Possibilities! and an inspired designer and illustrator, Kim will talk about the ways to make a garden both beautiful for people and attractive to birds and butterflies.  Join us for a lecture and booksigning.

11:30 a.m. -1:00 p.m. The Herb Garden in 18th Century New England, Judy Hallberg $20

Herbs provide interesting foliage and are also the basis for lotions and salves with healing properties. Learn about herbs and the ways in which they were gardened and used in the 1700s. Judy Hallberg works with the 17th and 18th century gardens of the Ipswich Historical Society and recently completed restoration of the society’s 17th century Housewife’s Herb Garden.

1:30 p.m. -2:30 p.m. Cape Ann Museum, Docent-led tour of the exhibit “A View from the Terrace” Free

Free to Garden Festival ticket holders. The Museum is located at 27 Pleasant St., Gloucester. Call Jeanette Smith at 978-283-0455, extension 11 for reservations.

3:00 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. Growing and Propagating Antique Roses, Peggy J. Flanagan $20, materials incl.

Old Garden Roses are rewarding and easy to grow using organic methods. You’ll learn how to plant, prune and care for these beautiful roses. Each person will take home a potted rose cutting. Bring gloves and a pair of pruners. Peggy J. Flanagan is a landscape designer and an adjunct instructor in the landscape design program at North Shore Community College. She specializes in the history of New England gardening.

For more information, and to purchase tickets on-line, log on to www.sargenthouse.org.  Tickets are also available at the Weathervane, 153 Main Street, Gloucester, and at the Sargent House Museum, 49 Middle Street, Gloucester, Massachusetts.

Tower Hill’s annual tour of exceptional private gardens this year will feature the gardens of Northborough, Massachusetts.  Discover the gardeners’ unique perspectives, and return to your own garden with fresh ideas and inspiration. This special event features lush, meticulously tended gardens in the Northborough area.

As always, a ticket to “City Spaces/Country Places” includes FREE admission all day to Tower Hill Botanic Garden. As a bonus this year, the Rose Society will present a Rose Show at Tower Hill on the same day as the Garden Tour!

“City Spaces/Country Places” is an important fund-raiser for the Worcester County Horticultural Society and helps to support the educational programs and the ongoing care and stewardship of the gardens at Tower Hill. You can show your support for the Garden Tour by purchasing a sponsor ticket at $125 or a patron ticket at $75. These tickets help Tower Hill meet its mission and must be purchased in advance. Order tickets in advance: Members $20, Non-Members $25.  Day of tour Members $25, Non-Members $30.  Call 508-869-6111 x 136 to order your tickets, or log on to www.towerhillbg.org and purchase securely on-line.

The Seaside Gardeners of Squantum present “Secret Gardens of Squantum”, a garden tour in Braintree, Massachusetts, on Saturday, June 27, from 10:30 a.m. to 3 pm, rain or shine.  Ticket prices are $15 each in advance, and $20 if purchased on the day of the event.   For directions, to reserve tickets, and for more information contact Laurie Kelliher at 617-773-4274.

From 1916 to 1979, Long Hill was the summer home of noted author and editor of The Atlantic Monthly, Ellery Sedgwick, and his first wife, Mabel Cabot Sedgwick, an accomplished horticulturist, gardener, and author of The Garden Month by Month. The Federal-style house was completed in 1925 and contains original woodwork from the ca.1812 Isaac Ball House in Charleston, South Carolina.

Mrs. Sedgwick designed and planted the original gardens. After her death in 1937, Mr. Sedgwick’s second wife, the former Marjorie Russell, herself a distinguished gardener and propagator of rare plants, added many plants to the gardens, including unusual species and varieties of trees and shrubs, some introduced by the Arnold Arboretum.

Today the gardens reflect the collective interests and tastes of both women. Five acres of cultivated grounds are laid out in a series of separate garden “rooms” surrounding the house. Each area is distinct in its own way and is accented by garden ornaments, structures, and statuary. The gardens are flanked on all sides by more than 100 acres of woodland as well as an apple orchard, meadow, and agricultural fields.

Grow Long Hill’s signature plants from your own cuttings. Experienced propagators demonstrate setting up a propagation box, caring for your cuttings, and transplanting rooted plants. All materials provided.  $15 to Members of the Trustees of Reservations, $20 non-members. To pre-register, call 978-921-1944, x4018, or email needucation@ttor.org.

Come down to the Westport Town Farm on Saturday, June 20, from 9 am – noon,  to learn about The Trustees of Reservations’ new community initiative to grow and harvest food that will be donated to local social service agencies.  At Westport Town Farm, livestock graze on open fields that boast an expansive view of the Westport River.  An antique farmhouse, dairy barn, corn crib, and stone walls dating back to Colonial times complete the picture of this working farm that served as a “poor farm” and infirmary for more than 100 years.

With its 10-acre working hayfield, extensive salt marsh, and broad tidal river, Westport Town Farm is not only scenic, but of historic and ecological value.  The farm’s dual legacy of nurturing those in need and raising vegetables and livestock weave together at this remarkable coastal landscape, where you’ll see ospreys, gulls, and the occasional bald eagle soar overhead.Learn about gardening and help grow the food! Volunteers welcome. For more information, call 508-636-5780, or email bioreserve@ttor.org. Free to all.

The Food Project ( a past recipient of Garden Club of the Back Bay grants) invites you to join them for lunch on summer Mondays between 12:30 – 1:30.  Each Community Lunch features the culinary creation of a local chef and highlights produce harvested fresh from the farms.  Please come and enjoy a farm-fresh meal right on the land where it is grown.  And, while you dine, Food Project interns will talk about their work.  The lunches take place in two locations:  Baker Bridge Farm on Route 126 in Lincoln: July 6, July 13, and August 3, and on the West Cottage Street Farm in Boston on July 20, July 27 and August 10.  $15 reserves your seat (seating is limited).  RSVP today: 781-259-8621 x30, or email events@thefoodproject.org.

The Trustees of Reservations (www.thetrustees.org) will sponsor “Invasive Plants Primer for Homeowners and Volunteers” on Friday, June 19 beginning at 5:30 pm at Horsemunn Farm in Monson, Massachusetts.  Why is there such concern over these (often quite beautiful) plants? How can you get rid of them once they have gained a foothold in your yard? We will review some common local “invasives” and discuss some techniques for their control. There will be a walking tour of the farm to see the culprits up-close and, in honor of the solstice, the farm’s meditation labyrinth will be open for a pleasant meander. We will order takeout pizza or the like if there is enough interest.  Free to Trustees members, $5 suggested donation for nonmembers. To pre-register, and for directions, call 413-532-1631, x 13, or email pvregion@ttor.org.

From 11:00 AM to 3:00 PM this Saturday, Joe Kunkel, horticulturalist extraordinaire, and David Fiske, Mass Hort’s Gardens Curator, will be on hand to show our great selection of plants for sale and to answer any questions you may have.

The plant sale will be outside the Greenhouse area of our site. You’ll find a wide selection of annuals and perennials, many brand new to the area.  On hand are new varieties of petunias, Vinca, and many unusual species.  Most plants are in 4″ pots at $2 a piece with a special tray price of 15 for $20.  You can mix and match on full trays.

We also have a wide selection of perennials in gallon containers at the great price of $8 or six in tray at $35.  You’ll find brand new varieties of Achillea and Echinacea that are being seen in the latest horticultural magazines.  We also have plenty of tried and true favorites as well.

So if you are still looking for plants for your garden and you want beautiful specimens at a great price, come down to Elm Bank this Saturday for a rewarding experience.

Joe Kunkel will be on hand to help you choose the right plant for your garden.  Joe is a dedicated Trustee of the Massachusetts Horticultural Society and oversaw the planting of the MHS Gardens on the Rose Kennedy Greenway.  For more information, log on to www.masshort.org.

Each Sunday morning in June the experts at Old Sturbridge Village will conduct a meeting on the grounds of this treasured site.  On June 14, meet in the Herb Garden to hear about The Dangers of Herbs.  On June 21, Fashion in Flowers will be discussed at the garden near the Towne House.  June 28 brings Garden Pests and Problems at the Freeman Farmhouse kitchen garden. These programs are free with admission to Old Sturbridge Village.  Old Sturbridge Village is a “must-see” destination to experience early New England life from 1790-1840. One of the country’s largest living history museums, OSV has a large staff of historians in costume, 59 historic buildings on 200 acres, three authentic water-powered mills and two covered bridges. Visitors can ride in a stagecoach, view antiques, heirloom gardens, meet the farm animals, and take part in hands-on crafts year-round.  For more information and directions, log on to www.osv.org.  Also, attention heirloom gardeners:  head to the Museum Gift Shop to browse flats of perennial flowers and heirloom tomatoes — museum admission not required!

The Wellesley College Friends of Horticulture has organized a fabulous day trip on Thursday, June 25.  Meet in the Gray Parking Lot to carpool at 7:30 a.m.  Expected return time is 6:45.  The first garden stop is Braveboat Harbor Farm in York, Maine, the home of Cynthia and Calvin Hosmer.  These gardens were hay fields which rise from the rockbound coast.  Visit the formal front garden, a vegetable garden, an orchard, a woodland garden, and collections of hostas, lilacs and magnolias.  This bit of paradise was featured in last summer’s issue of “La Vie Claire” and has been a participant in the Garden Conservancy’s Open Gardens Day for the past eight years.

The lovely home of Vance and Anne Mitchell Morgan on Gemish Island in Kittery Point will be the setting for lunch.  The garden, largely designed and created by them, overlooks a tidal inlet and features a rock garden, perennial beds, a fountain garden and a wonderful shady woodland garden.  Colorful containers on the deck show off choice plants.  The Morgans moved to Maine when Anne retired from the Wellesley College Alumnae Association.

Fuller Gardens in North Hampton, New Hampshire, is a turn-of-the-century estate garden established by then-Governor of Massachusetts Alvan T. Fuller to please his wife, Viola, who loved flowers and especially roses.  Today Fuller Gardens is known primarily for its extensive collection of roses, and Garden Director Jamie Colen will give a short talk about the roses and other features of the Gardens.  A stop at the nearby home of Anne Sinnott Moore for refreshments preceeds heading back to Wellesley.  Members $48, Non-Members $60, includes lunch, snacks, and gardens.  To sign up, log on to http://www.wellesley.edu/WCFH/Courses/OnTheRoadJune09.pdf,  or mail a check to Wellesley College Friends of Horticulture, 106 Central Street, Wellesley, MA 02481-8203.

For the past 56 years, White Flower Farm has been pleased to welcome old friends and new for iced tea and cucumber sandwiches on the lawn by their house. This informal tea party provides an opportunity for some garden chat, a leisurely view of the white border, and a cameo appearance by the pair of Shire horses used to mow grass. The date of the annual Open House this year is Saturday, June 20. The hosts for this gathering will include some or all of the owner’s children, and they are looking forward to meeting you. Service begins about 2:30, weather permitting, and continues until the grub runs out. The hat contest is in its second year. Last year some two-dozen ladies appeared in stylish sunbonnets and the winner, Ms. Donna Ferri, created a design that won our $100 gift certificate hands down.

The annual Open House coincides with a spring Tent Sale that will be held Friday and Saturday from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. at the store. Bring a friend and enjoy bargains on plants and garden accessories, as well as a stroll around the display gardens to see what we’ve been up to. New this year, you’ll find products from the Gardener’s Supply Company in Burlington, Vermont.  For directions, log on to www.whiteflowerfarm.com.

By adding a progression and variety of easy-to-grow, nectar-rich flowers to your home garden, you can ensure a season-long treat in the form of visiting butterflies. Suzanne Mahler, one of the Garden Club of the Back Bay’s former speakers, is an expert in the subject and she’ll show you how mass plantings of colorful flowers, particularly those tinted pink and lavender, are irresistible to butterflies passing overhead. Butterflies are fragile creatures, and Suzanne will talk about how to ensure your garden is a haven for them. $5 for members of Massachusetts Horticultural Society, $10 general admission.  To register, and for directions, log on to www.masshort.org.

The Garden Conservancy will sponsor an Open Day in Newport, Rhode Island on Saturday, June 20, from 10 – 4.  Visit Green Animals Topiary Garden at 380 Cory’s Lane, Portsmouth, Rhode Island, and Blithewold Mansion, Gardens & Arboretum at 101 Ferry Road and Route 114, for more information.

The Garden Conservancy is pleased to announce that, as part of the Nantucket Open Day on Thursday, June 25, the Nantucket Lightship Basket Museum/1820 Garden at 49 Union Street, Open Days visitors will be admitted free.  For more information on obtaining tickets, log on to www.gardenconservancy.org.

The Allston Brighton Community Development Corporation, Allston Brighton Green Space Advocates, and Whole Foods are sponsoring a walk in support of the CDC’s open space advocacy work.  Register on line or by telephone by June 12.  Check in begins at 9:30 a.m., and walk begins promptly at 10.  Meet at Brian J. Honan Apartments on Everett Street, just south of the bridge over the Mass. Pike.  The walk is just over two hours, with several stops along the way.  Finish at Christian Herter Park by the Charles River.  Celebrate Allston Brighton’s green spaces and places.  Please contact David at 617-787-3874, ext. 217, or email Holtzman@allstonbrightoncdc.org to register.

Explore a Boston treasure! On the longest day of the year, The Forest Hills Educational Trust invites you to join Trustees and Friends of the Forest Hills Educational Trust for a festive evening of twilight tours, trolley rides, al fresco refreshments and vintage cocktails. See masterpieces of sculpture by Daniel Chester French, visit Revolutionary War hero Joseph Warren and poet e.e. Cummings, and view some of the Trust’s innovative contemporary art. Tours will be led by our expert guides Elise Ciregna, Al Maze, Dee Morris, and Trustee Anthony Sammarco; artists Fern Cunningham and Mitch Ryerson will participate in a walk to see their work at Forest Hills.

Special thanks to Samuel Adams Brewery in Jamaica Plain for donating beer to support the event, and to the expert mixologists of LUPEC (Ladies United for the Preservation of Endangered Cocktails) for creating vintage cocktails.

Tickets are $35 and must be purchased in advance. Call 617.524.3354; leave a message with your daytime phone and a representative will call you back for credit card information. Or send an email stating how many tickets and your daytime phone number to: tickets@foresthillstrust.org. Do not email your credit card information.

The Evening Garden Club of West Roxbury presents “We’re Flowering in West Roxbury”, a self-guided garden tour of five different gardens in West Roxbury, on Saturday, June 20, from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m, rain or shine.  Tickets are $15 each in advance and $18 day of tour.  Contact Katherine Lino at 617-327-4019  or 617-469-3368 to reserve your tickets and for information and directions.  Proceeds benefit the Club’s civic beautification projects, including the West Roxbury Branch Library and Reading Garden, the Beethoven Elementary School, the Massachusetts Visibility Site, and Millennium Park, plus annual bulb plantings throughout West Roxbury.  Log on to www.westroxburyevegc.com for more details.  Tickets are available at Auntie B’s, 1881 Centre Street, Halls of Tara Florist, 2051 Centre Street, Stephanie’s Flowers, 1004 West Roxbury Parkway, and Village Books, 751 South Street.

Patti Moreno, “The Garden Girl”, contributor to Fine Gardening, Organic Gardening Magazine, and Farmers Almanac, will be at two Mahoney’s Garden Centers in Osterville and Falmouth on Saturday, June 13, to answer questions and give advice on gardening with vegetables and herbs.  She will be in Osterville between 10 a.m. and noon, and in Falmouth from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m.  No sign up is necessary.  For directions, log on to www.mahoneysgarden.com.  Be sure to log on as well to Patti’s website, www.gardengirlTV.com, and put it on your “favorites” list.  The website is dedicated to informing and educating the world on methods for Urban Sustainable Living, which really is the topic of The Garden Club of the Back Bay’s 2009/2010 speaker series.  Patti is a resident of Roxbury, and her site will make us more aware of ways to live a healthy lifestyle by eating an organic diet, save money by growing our own produce when possible, and consume fewer natural resources.