The Garden Club of the Back Bay

Arthur Dion and Meg White, Directors of Gallery NAGA invite Garden Club of the Back Bay members to an opening reception with photographer Mary Kocol this Friday, September 10, from 6 – 8 at the Gallery, 67 Newbury Street, Boston.  They were struck by the similarity of the titles to our annual fund raising party in June and the September exhibition by the artist, and feel the affinities run even deeper.  The show will be on view through October 2, so all are invited to stop by during the run of the show and see these beautiful photographs.  Complete images can be seen on their website, www.gallerynaga.com.  Below is Conifers, October, Arnold Arboretum, Boston, 2009 archival inkjet photograph (1/10) 23×23″  We thank Arthur and Meg for their hospitality.

The Cactus and Succulent Society of Massachusetts will hold a show and sale at Tower Hill Botanic Garden in Boylston, Massachusetts on Saturday, September 18, from 12 – 5 pm, and on Sunday, September 19, from 10 – 4.  Since the founding of the group in 1991, the CSSM has participated in the New England Spring Flower Show several times, winning ribbons and other awards.  You will be able to purchase plants as well as learn about care and propagation.  This judged show contains 100 categories of cactus and succulents.  There will be guided tours of the show twice daily, a plant auction of special varieties, and specialty vendors selling both beginning and collector plants.  Also, you will enjoy the kids planting station.  For more information log on to www.ccsma.org or www.towerhillbg.org.

Come to the Boston Children’s Museum, Congress Street, on Saturday, October 2, from 9 am – 6 pm, for the first annual Boston Local Food Festival, put on by the Sustainable Business Network, with support from the USDA in combination with the Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources. This festival will be an outdoor autumn celebration of the many virtues of locally grown and produced food. Held in Boston overlooking the historic Boston Harbor, it will showcase and support a cornucopia of food grown and produced in and around greater Boston and stretching across Massachusetts into other New England states. The festival will also provide opportunities for local food- related businesses, initiatives and nonprofits to share their products, services and programs.  Festival attendees will be able to eat great-tasting local food, learn the benefits of fresh, sustainably grown/produced food, take home food from farmers and vendors, and on top of all this, have a lot of fun. For more information log on to www.sbnboston.org.  (image courtesy of www.treehugger.com)

The North Quabbin Garlic and Arts Festival at Forsters Farm,  60 Chestnut Hill Road in Orange, Massachusetts, to be held this year on Saturday and Sunday, October 2 – 3,  is a celebration of the artistic, agricultural and cultural bounty of the region. The purpose of the festival is to unite North Quabbin people whose livelihoods are connected to the land and the arts, and to invite both local residents and those who do not live in the region to experience the richness of an area that is often overlooked. The festival emphasizes what is homegrown and high quality, as well as what helps preserve and support the environment. The festival is an engaging, fun and educational celebration for all ages. Everyone involved-organizers, vendors, volunteers, performers, attendees, a supportive community-makes the festival what it is and we are grateful and look forward to celebrating the richness of our communities for many years to come.

The Agricultural Vendors at the Festival offer amazing, locally grown and produced products that celebrate the bounty of the North Quabbin and surrounding regions. Through on-going demonstrations and workshops you’ll learn to grow your own garlic, experience live honeybees, make an herbal tincture, or delight in a flower garland or wheat weaving. Celebrate this feast of the land, honor the good work of farmers, and rejoice in the harvest season. Don’t forget your shopping bag!

The food vendors at the festival celebrate the bounty of the harvest through their delicious garlic infused creations. Individuals and restaurants that sell food at the festival are committed to culinary creativity and local agriculture. Some vendors are community organizations that raise funds through this event. Many vendors use organic and local ingredients. There is a ‘no polystyrene’ policy, and highlight biodegradable utensils and plates which are composted after the festival. Compostables from past festivals are now fertile soil rather than filling landfills!

The wood fired oven at the Garlic and Arts Festival was built 3 years ago for use at the festival and for the local community. It is used for baking loaf and flat breads like foccacia and pizza and for preparation of many other types of dishes. It can roast and even grill using the coals from the fire in the oven.

The oven is built to an ancient Italian design fundamentally the same as larger ovens that still exist in the Pompei archeological site. There are many thousands of similar ovens in Italy today where backyard cooking and roasting is very popular. There have been similar ovens in many parts of the world for millenia along with other forms such as the pit and open topped ovens in Central and South Asia.  There will be music on two solar powered stages.

A complete list of demonstrations, games, activities, chef demonstrations, family stage productions, and workshops, along with directions, can be found at www.garlicandarts.org. You may also email deb@seedsofsolidarity.org.

Verrill Farm, 11 Wheeler Road in Concord, is the setting for the annual Farm Day & Barbecue on Sunday, September 12, from noon to 4 pm.  Food served a la carte includes Verrill Farm’s own barbecue pulled pork, chicken, ribs and sides, plus a baked potato bar, live music by Boston Road Blue Grass, farm demonstrations, and hayrides.  Log on to www.verrillfarm.com for directions and information.

The Country Fair at Hancock Shaker Village on Saturday and Sunday, September 25 – 26 from 10 – 5 celebrates the bounty of the harvest with agricultural demonstrations, wagon rides, a fabulous Farmers Market, and huge tents full of the work of the best local and regional crafters and artisans. Come out to the farm and see all the Country Fair has to offer. At the Country Fair, vendors fill the Village with delightful fresh produce, finished farm products, and crafts of all sorts. The Farmers Market tents boast vegetables, flowers, maple sugar treats and hand-made cheeses. Artisans have furniture, Shaker style oval boxes, original paintings, candles and hand-woven textiles available for purchase. Plan plenty of browsing time for this amazing marketplace! Don’t miss the Food Tent with area restaurants and brews! Try your hand as a Shaker Baker in our Country Fair Pie Contest – in 2009, thirteen pies were entered, and this year’s judges include New Yorker writer Susan Orlean, Berkshire Living editor Lesley Ann Beck, Berkshire Eagle executive editor Tim Farkas, and RuralIntelligence.com co-founder Marilyn Bethany.  A display of quilts in the Round Stone Barn ell has become an integral part of the Country Fair each year.  Over 60 antique and newly made quilts are displayed in this juried show, fine examples of craftsmanship and tradition. You can submit a quilt for exhibition.   Adults – $17, Children 13 – 17 – $8, Children under 12 and Hancock Shaker Village Members Free.  For directions and more information, log on to www.hancockshakervillage.org.

The fields are overflowing! And thanks to the work of Chefs Collaborative and their RAFT Grow-Out, certain chef’s kitchens are the happy recipients of wonderful heirloom varieties of produce.

Chef Greg Griffie at 606 Congress has risen to the challenge of creating a five course vegetarian meal with wine pairings included. Slow Food Boston supporters will be gathering at the restaurant at 6PM on Wednesday, September 15th for this lovely meal. Can I hear a ‘Hurrah’ for local produce?

Cost for the evening will be $45 including the wine, with beer and cocktails available for an extra charge. There is limited seating, and registration and prepayment are required. If you’ve had the pleasure of attending one of the previous Slow Food meals at 606 Congress, you know that it will be sure to amaze your senses – so sign up today, on line at www.slowfoodboston.com!

Directions:
606 Congress is located in the Renaissance Hotel at 606 Congress Street in the Seaport area. There is lots of parking, and the Silver Line lets off just a few blocks away. Feel free to contact them with questions by phone: 617.476.5606 or on Facebook.

In conjunction with the American Horticultural Society’s 17th Annual Gala, taking place this year on Saturday, September 25 from 6 – 10 pm at River Farm in Alexandria, Virginia, the AHS is proud to announce its second annual online auction, “One on One with Great American Gardeners.” This is your chance to bid on an opportunity for you and three friends to spend time as exclusive guests of a prominent American horticulturist, botanic garden director, or landscape designer.  One such local experience will be hosted by Michael Dosmann at the Arnold Arboretum here in Boston. Visit www.ahs.org/auction for a sample of available experience options and more information about the auction.  The deadline to bid is October 25, 2010.

If you are interested in attending the gala, which includes an elegant formal dinner under the stars and silent auction, call Courtney Capstack at 703-768-5700, ex. 127, or email ccapstack@ahs.org.  The gala’s honorary chair is Laura Dowling, celebrated White House florist and owner of Interieurs et Fleurs in Old Town, Alexandria.  Laura and her floral arrangements have been featured on broadcasts on  Home and Garden Television and the Fox network morning news show, and in international publications such as the Journal di Dimanche (Paris).  The event is black tie, advance reservations only.  All proceeds from the gala and online auction benefit the stewardship of River Farm and the American Horticultural Society’s outreach and educational programs.

This year’s Marshfield Fair, August 20 – 29 taking place at 140 Main Street in Marshfield, offers great family entertainment with hundreds of farm animals, daily free shows, free grandstand attractions, arts & crafts, 4 H & Agricultural exhibits, horticultural displays & much more.  Free Grandstand entertainment includes: Demolition Derby’s, Motorcycle Motocross Madness, Empire Pro Wrestling, The North River Blues Festival, truck and tractor pulls, and Battle of the Bands. See web site for dates & times: www.fiestashows.com, or call 617-495-3045.

OK, you can’t get to the Rochester Grange Fair on August 21, but you have a second chance to experience a classic piece of Americana.  The South Middleborough Grange Annual Agricultural Fair will be held on Saturday, August 28, at the SMG Hall, 570 Wareham Street in South Middleborough.  The Fair opens to the public at 1:30 pm, and there will be prize exhibits, a baked goods table, grocery basket, traveling bazaar, and cold drinks for sale all afternoon. Admission to the Fair is free, and there is ample parking.  At 6 pm, a chicken pie dinner will be served, with juice, chicken pie, mashed potatoes, green beans, another fresh vegetable, locally grown tomatoes, rolls and butter, gravy, coffee, punch, and – you’ll love this flash from the past – jello with whipped cream.  Adults may feast for a modest charge of $8, and children will be charged $4.  The Fair auction begins at 7:15, and all are welcome.

The 100th annual agricultural fair of Rochester Grange will be held on Saturday, August 21 at the Rochester Grange Hall, 200 Hartley Road in Rochester (about 50 minutes south of Boston – see map below). Exhibits will be open to the public beginning at 1:30 pm.  The Grange will conduct various raffles, and there are baked goods, handiwork, and cold beverages for sale.  Special musical entertainment will feature Celtic fiddler Tiffany Rozenas.  The traditional ham and bean supper will be served at 6 pm, and will include ham, kidney beans, baked beans, rolls and butter, coffee, punch, potato salad, corn on the cob, and dessert.  The super cost is $7 for adults and $3 for children under 10.  Following the supper, the fair auction will begin at 7:15, and you will have the opportunity to bid on and purchase the prize winning fruits, vegetables, flowers, and baked goods from the fair.

In the fall of 1905 Mr. Allen made rounds of the homes in Rochester with the hope of interesting people in founding a local Grange. He was successful. On February 12th, 1906, the first meeting of Rochester Grange was held in the North Rochester Social Union Hall on Snipatuit Road in North Rochester. The hall was small, lit by oil lamps, with a kitchen and dining hall on the second floor and no running water. Subsequently the Grange Hall on Hartley Road was built. The Grange Fair and the auction are free and open to the public – if you haven’t experienced a Grange Fair, you should try to get to this one, since the Grange members will be pulling out all the stops for the 100th!

The New England Carnivorous Plant Society (www.necps.org) will hold a cookout and show on Saturday, August 14, beginning at 8:30 in the morning with an optional bog walk at the Black Jungle, 370 Avenue A, Turners Falls, Massachusetts 01376.  This annual event is always much anticipated.  You will see all sorts of plants, and there are wonderful discounts for NECPS members.  See the site for information on joining ($20/year for adults), or call Black Jungle Terrarium Supply 413-863-2770 for more information and directions. Below is Drosera capillaris ‘Emerald’s Envy.” Photo by William Joseph Clemens.

Verrill Farm will host a one day only Corn & Tomato Festival this year on Saturday, August 21, from 11 – 4, at 11 Wheeler Road in Concord.  A celebration of freshly harvested Verrill Farm grown tomatoes (over 30 varieties) and corn (8 – 10 varieties), the event includes unlimited corn and tomato samples and tastings of corn and tomato dishes made in the farm stand kitchen.  There will be hot dogs, hamburgers & beverages available a la carte, live music by Monadnock Bluegrass, Giddy Up Pony rides, and hayrides.  $8.50 per person, $4.50 for kids under 10.  Log on to www.verrillfarm.com for more information and directions.

The Berkshire Botanical Garden invites you to a benefit event Saturday, August 14, at the home of Honorary Chairs and Benefactors Ann and Dale Fowler.  Enjoy the Fowler Collection of spectacular vintage and classic automobiles, pedal cars, and thousands of toys in their private museum setting.  There will also be an auction of rare and unusual plants, with wine and hors d’oeuvre.  Sponsor tickets – $250 per person; Patron tickets – $150 per person; Supporter tickets – $75 per person.  A special pre-party tour of the car Museum from 5 – 5:30, guided by host and collector Dale Fowler, will be provided to Sponsors and Patrons.  Space is limited for the tour, so please reserve early.  The Museum will be open to all guests for general viewing from 5:30 – 8.  Please call the Garden today at 413-298-3926 to reserve your tickets.  1935 Duesenberg Ssj print below by John Hayes, available through www.fineartamerica.com.

Come to Stockbridge Farm on Saturday, August 14, between 1 – 4, and join the Stockbridge herb community for a celebration of all things basil.  Stockbridge Herbs is a farm-based herbal business located in South Deerfield.  For directions log on to www.stockbridgeherbs.com.

The Town of West Stockbridge will hold its 7th Annual West Stockbridge Zucchini Festival on Saturday, August 14, beginning at 10 in the morning, and running until 10 at night.  The location is at the junction of Routes 41 and 102, 1/4 mile west of Exit 1 of the Mass Pike.  Admission is free.  There are activities for kids and adults, including a pet parade, rides and races, including the new Euro Bungi, a zucchini recipe contest, zucchini decorating, a zucchini weigh off contest, zucchini catapult, zucchini car racing, live music by Bootleg, and entertainment, games, food booths, and more.  For additional information, call 413-232-0222.  A parking shuttle will run from 9:30 until 6 from Rt. 102 Town Hall to Card Pond, Rt. 41 near the Mass Pike.  Log on to www.weststockbridgetown.com.

Brooksby Farm, 54 Felton Street, Peabody, will hold its annual Summer Peach Celebration on Saturday, August 14, from 11 – 2.  Pick your own peaches from an abundant selection of orchard ripe fruit (wear appropriate shoes, please – sandals are not recommended, and flip-flops are just plain silly).  Enjoy some sampling in the farm store: jams, preserves, fruit pies, grilled peaches.  Pick up quick and easy recipes.  There will be a children’s coloring contest, tractor drawn hayrides, and more.  For more information log on to www.brooksbyfarm.org, or call 978-531-7456.

A gardener’s dream: seminar, rare plant sale, gala reception, and tour of exceptional gardens.  Speakers at the Hollister House Garden Weekend, August 27 – 29  include Peter Wirtz, Page Dickey, Margaret Roach, Jill Nokes, Dick Button, Hitch Lyman, and Adam Wheeler. Pre-registration is required.

The art of gardening as a channel of personal as well as cultural expression will be explored in depth in a program of stimulating lectures. The keynote speaker is Peter Wirtz, scion of the renowned Belgian architectural landscape firm Wirtz International, who will speak on Personal Expressions in the Garden, and be joined by other outstanding horticulturists. The weekend gets underway with a gala cocktail supper Friday evening where participants may informally mingle with the speakers and fellow garden enthusiasts in the gardens at historic Hollister House in Litchfield County, Connecticut.

Saturday’s symposium takes place at the nearby Montessori School in comfortable, air-conditioned spaces with up to date lecture facilities. A delicious buffet luncheon, a sale of beautifully written and illustrated garden books and a plant sale featuring a select group of New England’s finest specialty plant growers, plus a ‘show & tell’ plant colloquy are included in Saturday’s all-day agenda.

Other thought-provoking speakers on the roster are:
• Page Dickey, a popular lecturer and prolific garden writer of, among other books, Gardens in the Spirit of Place, the award-winning Breaking Ground: Portraits of Ten Garden Designers, and to be published in the fall of 2010, Embroidered Ground;
• Margaret Roach, a journalist who became a major force at Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia and is now a garden blogger with a devoted following;
• Jill Nokes, a landscape designer and author whose latest book Yard Art and Handmade Places is about 20 Texans who have been astonishingly creative in transforming and decorating their yards and gardens;
• Dick Button, a former Olympian and figure skating commentator whose North Salem, NY garden is an explosion of color, self-described as “an anything-I-like garden.”

In the afternoon – two outstanding plantsmen – garden designer Hitch Lyman and nurseryman Adam Wheeler of Broken Arrow will debate the merits of the best plants for late season gardens during the “Plant Show and Tell.”

There will also be a Rare Plant Sale with opportunities to purchase choice plants for the late season garden from Broken Arrow Nursery (Hamden, CT), Loomis Creek Nursery (Hudson, NY), Falls Village Flower Farm (Falls Village, CT), O’Brien Nurserymen (Granby, CT), Pergola (New Preston, CT), Opus (Little Compton, RI), Rocky Dale Gardens (Bristol, VT), and Sunny Border Nurseries (Berlin, CT).

Garden books, selected by Washington Depot’s treasured independent bookseller The Hickory Stick, will also be for sale, many authored by the symposium speakers and available for signing.

The weekend’s grand finale is on Sunday when the Garden Conservancy opens six exceptional private gardens in New Preston, Roxbury and Washington as part of its Open Days Program. Four of them — Stiteler Meadow, Muddy Rugs, the garden of Norman Sunshine & Alan Shayne, and the garden of Mrs. Michael Wiener — are on the Open Days circuit for the first time. The two others are the esteemed gardens of Martine and Richard Copeland and Georgia Middlebrook.
Hollister House Garden is also featured on the Sunday tour.

The weekend package includes the Friday, August 27 Gala Cocktail Supper, Saturday, August 28 Continental Breakfast, Seminar, Lunch, Plant & Book Sale.  $230 for members of Garden Conservancy or Hollister House Garden, $240 for non-member.  You may register online at www.hollisterhousegarden.org, or call 860-868-2200.

Porter Square Books in Cambridge hosts author Andrew Rimas on Tuesday, August 3, beginning at 7 pm.  Andrew will speak on his most recent book, Empires of Food: Feast, Famine and the Rise and Fall of Civilization. The book vividly chronicles the fate of people and societies for the past twelve thousand years through the foods they grew, hunted, traded, and ate-and gives us fascinating, and devastating, insights into what to expect in years to come. The narrative takes the reader to places as disparate as ancient Mesopotamia and imperial Britain. Discussed are the history of cyclic consumption and also of the future and the impact of food availability and distribution on world events. Rimas is a journalist and the managing editor at the Improper Bostonian magazine; previously he was an associate editor and staff writer at Boston Magazine. His work has frequently appeared in those publications, and in the Boston Globe Magazine and the Boston Globe. For more information, email ellen@portersquarebooks.com, or call 617-491-2220.

Enjoy a fun filled day for families of all ages in Newbury, New Hampshire on Saturday, August 14, from 10 – 3 at The Fells. Take an historic guided tour of the Main House and gardens, enjoy live animals, children’s games, demonstrations and food concessions. Free with admission. The Fells Main House.For information and directions to this historic garden on Lake Sunapee, log on to www.thefells.org, or call 603-763-4789.