roundtables and eco-tours
Managing Fruit Trees in the Edible Landscape
Friday, March 12
noon - 3 PM
393 Estabrook Rd, Concord, MA
$20.00 (ELA Member) or $25 (Non-Member)
Join tour guide, Nick Novick, to visit a small orchard and learn the ecological care of fruit trees using a holistic approach. Until fairly recently, producing a reliable fruit crop required the use of a number of synthetic chemicals with troubling health and environmental profiles. By changing the way we think about "pest control" and utilizing innovative approaches along with improved materials, good results are now possible without the use of environmentally damaging chemicals.
You'll visit a home orchard in Concord where we'll discuss care throughout the year, including pruning, spray materials and timing, and discuss other, practical considerations. The focus will be on apples, but some other fruits will be discussed.
Registrations are limited. Register Online Now! more information------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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| Organic Lawn with Deep-Root, Low Moisture Grass Seed |
Wednesday, March 24
4 – 6 PM
Nordic Hall at the Scandinavian Living Center
206 Waltham Street, West Newton, MA
$20.00 (ELA Member) or $25 (Non-Member)
This Roundtable presentation offers a unique perspective on growing a landscaping business in the midst of uncertain economic times. Jackson Madnick will discuss his approach to organic lawn care in combination with the new drought tolerant, ultra deep-root grass seed options.
Working with the results of a recent state wide survey, Jackson will present strategies to reach the 91% of the public who are not currently using a landscaping company – a large untapped source of clients. Another highlight of this discussion will be Jackson’s methods for producing the ultimate "Green" Lawns; lawns that are not just green in color but are water saving, run off preventing, carbon foot print lowering, and more profitable for you!
Credits: This roundtable has been awarded 2 CEUs by APLD.
Register Online Now. For more information email ela.info@comcast.net
or call 617-436-5838.
Jackson Madnick is an environmental, water-energy, and turf expert. He is currently on the Board of Directors of the Congress of Lakes and Pond Association (COLAP), was the former Chairperson of the Wayland Surface Water Quality Committee, and was instrumental in the successful efforts to renew the National Clean Water Act. He is the recipient of many environmental recognition awards and his work has been commended by two White Houses, the United Nations, John Glenn, the National League of Cities and Al Gore, among others. Jackson lives in a sustainable house that he is renovating to produce 95% of its heating, cooling, and power from the sun and earth.
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Wellesley College Botanic Gardens
Friday, May 7
10 AM – noon
106 Central Street, Wellesley, MA
$10.00 (ELA Member) or $15 (Non-Member)
Mark your calendars for a personal tour of the Wellesley College Botanical Gardens with Tricia Diggins!
Set in the picturesque Wellesley, Massachusetts, the Wellesley College Botanic Gardens are an unforgettable place of beauty. Naturalized plantings as well as specimen trees and shrubs from around the world await discovery just a short distance from Boston. A tiny brook winds through the gardens from a waterfall to Paramecium Pond. Several different habitats comprise the arboretum including a maple swamp, meadow, and fragments of different forest types, with many native species. Other specialized gardens include a green roof planted with native species, a dwarf conifer garden, a butterfly garden, and an edible forest garden designed by David Jacke. Tricia will guide us through the various gardens and explain the ecological methods that are being used to care for the plant communities.
CEUs are being sought for this presentation.
Register Online Now. For more information email ela.info@comcast.net
or call 617-436-5838.
Tricia Diggins is the Senior Gardens Horticulturalist at Wellesley College where she has taken care of the Arboretum/ Botanic Garden for nearly 20 years. She began her horticulture career as an intern at New England Wildflower Society’s Garden in the Woods in 1990 several years after earning a B.S. in Environmental Sciences at UMass Amherst. When Tricia isn’t caring for the plants at Wellesley College, she is developing and maintaining a third of an acre edible landscape.
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| Rain Garden Installation |
A Local Success Story
Thursday, May 20 (rain or shine)
4:30 PM – 8:00 PM
Doyle Conservation Center, 325 Lindell Ave, Leominster, MA
$20.00 (ELA Member) or $25 (Non-Member)
The Ecological Landscaping Association and Massachusetts Watershed Coalition invite you to explore the possibilities of improved water quality through collaborative efforts at stormwater management. Partnerships among city officials, community groups, businesses, state and federal agencies, and the Massachusetts Watershed Coalition are restoring Monoosnoc Brook in Leominster. Rapid runoff had increased frequent flooding that erodes stream banks, and dirty, oily stormwater deposited into the brook created lethal conditions for stream life.
And now for the good news: Thirty-two rain gardens, tree box filters and bio-retention areas are now helping to cleanse runoff from streets and parking lots. Designs for additional treatment practices, including a constructed stormwater wetland, will be installed and continue to improve Monoosnoc Brook and the North Nashua River.
Starting at the Doyle Conservation Center and then traveling out to a variety of installation sites, tour guides Ed Himlan, Bob Levite, and others will discuss and demonstrate the successful installations of a variety of stormwater management techniques. Along the way you will learn:- Stormwater management techniques including Site Analysis
- Rain garden design and plant selection
- Performance enhancement measures
- State and federal guidance for bio-retention practices
- Tips for overcoming challenges when improving municipal water quality
CEUs are being sought for this presentation.
Register Online Now! Walk-ins also welcome!
For more information, email ela.info@comcast.net or call 617-436-5838.This event is sponsored by the Ecological Landscaping Association and co-sponsored by the Massachusetts Watershed Coalition.
Ed Himlan has thirty years experience in natural resources planning and management and is currently the Executive Director of the Massachusetts Watershed Coalition and former Executive Director of the Nashua River Watershed Association.
Bob Levite works for the University of Massachusetts, providing outreach, education and facilitation to town boards, land trusts, watershed associations, other non-profit entities and state agencies in relation to land and water resource protection issues. Bob is the President of the Massachusetts Watershed Coalition and is an environmental attorney concentrating on land and water resource protection.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| Sustainable Landscape Design: An Inspiring Day in the Berkshires Saturday, July 10 10:00 AM – 3:30 PM |
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$65 (ELA Member) or $75 (Non-Member) includes a delicious, locally grown organic lunch.
Come to Shelburne Falls, Massachusetts for an inspiring day in the foothills of the Berkshires. Marie Stella invites us into Beaver Lodge, her LEED Platinum certified home and hands-on sustainability laboratory. Beginning with an introduction to the sustainable systems in the house design, we move into the landscape where Marie will share her ecological design techniques and introduce us to: the innovative use of native plant materials, construction of rain gardens, green roofs, vegetated walls & vertical landscapes, rainwater harvesting (complete with cistern and pond with bio-regeneration area), forest management, and edible landscape elements including an organic vegetable gardening.
Marie encourages touching in her petting zoo of "green" natural materials that are used throughout the project (local wood, stones, glass, and recycled materials are used both indoors and out).
CEUs are being sought for this event.
Register Online Now or call 617-436-5838 to pre-register. Group size is limited. For more information, email ela.info@comcast.net.
Marie Stella, MA, MS, is a landscape historian and designer with Graduate Certificates in Landscape Design and Landscape Design History from Radcliffe College, Harvard University. Her firm, Kirin Farm Landscape Design, specializes in environmental landscapes, thematic gardens, and initiatives to foster the preservation of open space. She lectures and teaches frequently in the Boston area and in New York.
For a leisurely start to the day or for a longer getaway at Beaver Lodge, room and board can be arranged on site. Please contact Marie directly for rate and availability. kirinfarminc@aol.com.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Additional Roundtable events and Eco-tours are under development - check back soon for more information!
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