Homepage

Upcoming Events

/sites/default/files/images/Rebecca_McMackin.jpg

The Language of Flowers: Understanding Pollination Ecology

Rebecca McMackin, Loeb Fellow, Harvard Graduate School of Design
The vast majority of plants rely on pollinators to reproduce, and the coevolution of these relationships gives us much of the beauty we appreciate today. Pollination dynamics are also fraught with trickery, bribery, thievery, and wild sexual acrobatics. Join Rebecca McMackin to learn the true desires of the organisms you cultivate.

Evenings with Experts

When:

April 12 | 7:00 - 8:30pm

Where:IN PERSON at the Cambridge Public Library, 449 Broadway, Cambridge, MA

Register today to reserve your seat!

/sites/default/files/images/edwina-von-gal-high-res%20%281%29.jpg

Messy or Magic? Biodiversity and the Perception of Beauty

Edwina von Gal, Founder, Perfect Earth Project
Biodiverse nature-based landscapes are too often read as “messy,” which poses a barrier to their widespread embrace in many communities. Edwina von Gal discusses how we can change the perception of what a “good” garden is, where healthy habitat is not disparaged as untidy but appreciated for its richness, complexity, and life-giving magic.

Evenings with Experts

When:

May 17 | 7:00 - 8:00pm

Where:IN PERSON at New England Botanic Garden at Tower Hill, 11 French Drive, Boylston, MA ~ ONLINE via Zoom.

Register today to attend either in-person or on Zoom!

Homepage

- Meet Our New Partner
  
  Homegrown National Park
  This initiative, co-founded by Doug Tallamy, is dedicated to catalyzing the collective efforts of individuals and communities to create habitat where we live and work. With a goal of 20 million acres of native plantings, it is the largest cooperative conservation project ever conceived or attempted.
  
  Want to join the movement? Add the land you steward to the Homegrown National Park map today! You can also help spread the word about HGNP and Grow Native by sharing this brochure with your family and friends, and displaying this sign next to your native plantings.
- Native Plant Highlight
  
  /sites/default/files/images/Gray-birch-spring.jpeg
  
  The Lovely and Adaptable Gray Birch
  Gray birch (Betula populifolia) is an underutilized tree with a lot of potential for greater use in managed landscapes. A beautiful tree that is well-adapted to urban and suburban landscapes, it also has significant wildlife value as a host plant for Lepidoptera and as a source of seed and nesting sites for migrating birds. A common sight along roadsides, gray birch is a fast-growing pioneer species that will thrive in sunny, dry sites and in poor soil.
  Read more
- Planting Trees to Sequester Carbon?
  Native species are a must!
  There are a growing number of ambitious tree planting initiatives being undertaken by public and private entities with the goal of increasing carbon sequestration. As reported in the New York Times, while reforestation efforts are one important strategy for fighting climate change, too many of these operations are installing plantations of non-native tree species, with significant negative impacts on biodiversity. This and other decisions that disregard local ecology result in plantings that, in some cases, can actually increase carbon emissions.
  
  To chart a better path forward, conservationists from around the world came together to advance “Ten Golden Rules for Reforestation,” that can be used to create long-term strategies that tackle both the climate change and biodiversity crises. Whether you are seeking to reforest your urban tree canopy, a small suburban lot, or a much larger landscape, always remember that what you plant matters!
  Read the NY Times Article
- New And Noteworthy
  
  We Are The Ark
  
  Mary Reynolds
  
  Timber Press, 2022
  
  From the famed Irish landscape designer and activist Mary Reynolds.
  
  A heartfelt appeal for us to save our planet by creating ARKs (Acts of Restorative Kindness)—patches of restored native ecosystems that act as sanctuaries for biodiversity. The author’s message is rooted in a deep sense of kinship with the Earth and all the beings that inhabit it— both the rooted and the unrooted— weaving together prose and illustrations that evoke a modern-day folktale.
  
  Explore More at Best Books

Grow Native Massachusetts

Homepage

Upcoming Events

The Language of Flowers: Understanding Pollination Ecology

Messy or Magic? Biodiversity and the Perception of Beauty

Homepage

Homegrown National Park

The Lovely and Adaptable Gray Birch

Planting Trees to Sequester Carbon?

Native species are a must!

We Are The Ark

Mary Reynolds

Timber Press, 2022

We Built This Website For You!