Tis the Season for Garden Lectures

Tis the Season – For Garden Lectures!

I don’t know about other parts of the country – but here in New York City we are so fortunate to enjoy a very robust lecture schedule every winter.

While the gardener in us may miss being in the garden, we are nevertheless busy and happy learning more about the garden and the wonderful world of horticulture.
We also get to network and visit with our fellow gardeners and plant lovers, swapping stories, plant finds, and tips.

We are doubly blessed that the talent pool for guest speakers is so rich and deep here in Gotham.

Following is a Gardening Lecture schedule for me this year. Here’s hoping if you are in the area, that you can attend some, if not all of these events.

The New York Botanical Garden:
I am particularly looking forward to hearing Dan Pearson, who kicks off the NYBG “From the Ground Up: Gardens Re-Imagined” Lecture Series. http://tinyurl.com/ydslbjp

Dan is slated to speak January 21st . His “Into the Wild” talk will “explore recent garden projects including The Millennium Forest in Japan and a private garden in Torrechia, Italy that illustrate his interest in natural landscapes and indigenous flora.

February 18th is Year-Round Gardening with Barbara Damrosch
March 25th is Edible Estates: Full Frontal Gardening with Fritz Haeg

All lectures are 10 a.m. – 12 p.m.

Wave Hill Garden:

I’m excited to hear all three of the speakers in this series. My former BBG associate, Patrick Cullina will speak about the sexy and still-so-new park the High Line. Patrick is an engaging speaker and expert plantsman.

I am especially eager to attend my friend Stephen’s lecture ☺ I first met Stephen when he was an editor at House & Garden magazine. He possesses a very special purview on the world of gardens – and he is very generous in his knowledge. His blog showcases his charming world: http://whatweretheskieslike.blogspot.com/
Here you will also see some previews of his upcoming book (I couldn’t believe it was his first), “Tomorrow’s Garden: Design and Inspiration for a New Age of Sustainable Gardening” published by Rodale Press and due out in the fall of this year.

And I admire and respect everything Dominique Browning does – from her days as editor in chief of House & Garden magazine – she had the best Letter from Editor – so warm and interesting and topical. Always seemed to hit the right note. I also look forward to her reviews in the New York Times Book Reviews: http://tinyurl.com/yj528zy


To purchase tickets visit:
www.wavehill.org

Here is the garden’s overview:
This annual winter series invites distinguished lecturers to discuss their work, providing inspiration for spring gardens. Hosted by Wave Hill's Friends of Horticulture Committee, Wave Hill's Horticultural Lectures are presented at the New York School of Interior Design, 170 East 70th Street in Manhattan, starting at 6pm.

Wednesday, January 20, Patrick Cullina, Vice President of Horticulture and Operations for Friends of the High Line, explores this recent, unique urban landscape from a horticultural perspective.

Wednesday, February 24, writer, editor and self-taught gardener Stephen Orr focuses on a new approach to landscaping, one championed by a number of designers and homeowners, that marries traditional environmental concerns with a flexibility and a sensitivity to aesthetics previously missing from green-gardening orthodoxies of the past.

Wednesday, March 17, writer, editor and consultant Dominique Browning shares musings and readings: Her third book, Slow Love, will be published in the spring of 2010.

Horticultural Society of New York:
http://www.hsny.org/

HSNY always offers excellent lectures and events and this season is starting off with a bang, as Katherine Powis their Librarian wrote recently. I agree.

I will attend the North American Rock Garden Society Program Meeting
Lecturer Colta Ives: "The Impressionist in the Garden: The Avant-Garde 19th Century Painters As Gardeners, Strollers, & Outdoor Loungers." I am especially looking forward to the lecture on the 28th: Morocco: Courtyards and Gardens because joining me will be my garden gals: Donna Dorian (Garden Design magazine), Pat Jonas (BBG) and Zazel Loven, (Organic Gardening magazine)….

And I keen to attend a special HSNY fundraiser that is part of their Important Books & Authors Series. Tuesday, January 26th at 6 pm, my friends, Suzy Bales
Suzy will offer an exclusive, first-look at her latest book, Garden Bouquets & Beyond. For more information about the book and to reserve a copy:
http://tinyurl.com/y9ab4sn

This evening sounds a bit swankier than the usual talk ☺ The event is to take place at Doubles restaurant in the Sherry-Netherland hotel at 783 Fifth Avenue. The evening kicks off with cocktails (Can’t beat that as a sure fire winner!) and Light Fare. Suzy will speak to the guests starting at 7 p.m., followed by the book signing.
Promises to be elegant and informative.

HSNY Schedule:
Last evening featured: Stories from Tree Project
Hiroshi Sunairi conducted an illustrated discussion with several project participants who presented their personal documentation of their trees and shared their experiences with growing plants from hibaku seeds.

Tuesday, January 19
The Hort Library Book Club reads
The Natural History of Selborne by Gilbert White
Join us for a fun and thoughtful discussion. Open to the public.
6pm at The Hort Library

Thursday, January 21
Green Screen Film Series presents
Visual Acoustics, A film by Eric Bricker
Narrated by Dustin Hoffman
Visual Acoustics celebrates the life and career of Julius Shulman, the world's greatest architectural photographer, whose images brought modern architecture to the American mainstream. Shulman, who passed away this year, captured the work of nearly every major modern and progressive architect since the 1930s including Frank Lloyd Wright, Richard Neutra, John Lautner, and Frank Gehry. His images epitomized the singular beauty of Southern California's modernist movement and brought its iconic structures to the attention of the general public. This unique film is both a testament to the evolution of modern architecture and a joyful portrait of the magnetic, whip-smart gentleman who chronicled it with his unforgettable images.

Visual Acoustics won the Mercedes-Benz Audience Award for Best Documentary at the Palm Springs International Film Festival, the Audience Award at the Austin Film Festival, the Grand Jury Prize at the Lone Star International Film Festival and Outstanding Achievement in Documentary Filmmaking from the Newport Beach Film Festival.

At The Horticultural Society of New York
Doors open at 6pm; film starts promptly at 6:30pm
Refreshments served
RSVP via email
Visit the Filmmaker's website and view the trailer!

Monday, January 25
North American Rock Garden Society Program Meeting
Lecturer Colta Ives: "The Impressionist in the Garden: The Avant-Garde 19th Century Painters As Gardeners, Strollers, & Outdoor Loungers"
Colta Ives is a NARGS Manhattan Chapter Member and Curator of Department of Drawings and Prints at the Metropolitan Museum of Art
6pm at The Horticultural Society of New York

Thursday, January 28
An illustrated lecture and book signing with Achva Stein
Director of the Landscape Architecture Program At City College
Presented in partnership with the New York Chapter of
The American Society of Landscape Architects

February
Tuesday, February 9
The New Taste of Chocolate: A Cultural & Natural History of Cacao with Recipes
Lecture and book signing with Maricel E. Presilla
6pm - 7:30pm at the Hort Library

For full details and to register, visit the HSNY website:
http://tinyurl.com/ydh7xyf


MetroHort Group:
http://metrohort.org/

While you must be a member to attend this group’s lectures and events – usually held at the Armory in Central Park -- you can always join! MetroHort is an association of horticultural professionals in the New York City Tri-State Region.

The first of the season’s lectures was January 7th . As host of the event, our ever-popular & successful Commissioner of New York City Department of Parks & Recreation, Adrian Benepe, http://tinyurl.com/cs2c4f welcomed the attendees remarking, “Now I know what gardeners do when it’s too cold outside to garden. They come to lectures!”
The featured speaker was to have been Michael Van Valkenburgh, architect. However, he was taken ill and Matt Urbanski, lead designer on many of the firm’s public projects, gamely stepped in. He was spectacular! Witty, smart, and a very knowledgeable plant person (he and his father run a nursery in the Garden State) – he had the standing room only crowd in the palm of his hand.

His topic was:
“Plane Trees to Plain Trees - and Beyond: A Personal Horticultural Odyssey from the Cornell Hort Department to Designing Parks and Gardens in New York City”

Matt highlighted the fantastic new park being installed along the Brooklyn waterfront.  It's being built on what once were piers from ships bringing flour to New York!  Consequently, there is good soil - meaning it wasn't contaminated as food was loaded and unloaded on these terminals.
The park will also have a fabulous view of the Manhattan skyline - and the ethereal spires of the Brooklyn Bridge.

Upcoming with MetroHort:

Wednesday, 
February 10th, 2010

Time: 6:00pm

Steve Castorani – North Creek Nurseries:

Native plants play a critical role in sustaining the natural environment, while at the same time providing striking interest and beauty in our landscapes. Steve Castorani will explore the many new varieties of native plants now available or soon to be introduced through North Creek Nursery and the American Beauties Native Plant® program. 

Steve Castorani is co-founder with Dale Hendricks of North Creek Nurseries, Landenberg, PA, where he is currently the COO and CFO of this progressive nursery that specializes in perennial plant plug production with an emphasis on Eastern regional natives. In 2004, Steve co-created the American Beauties Plant® brand, a portion of whose sales benefit the National Wildlife Foundation’s wildlife habitat program. A past president of the International Plant Propagator’s Society, he was awarded the honor of Society Fellow in 2005. Steve currently serves on the Delaware Invasive Species Council developing guidelines for the implementation of an invasive species policy for the state.

Dick Lightly – Gardening on Earth: One Couple’s 46 Years on 7 Acres
Wednesday, March 10th, 2010, Time: 6:00 pm

Avatar Taxonomy

I am still over the moon :) about the movie Avatar, mainly for the visual magic found on the Pandora -- especially the amazing, dream-like world of the Native Plants found on the planet.

Now I learn there are web sites that offer botanical listings of the Flora on Pandora.

It is Fantasy Botany!

http://tinyurl.com/ydaf2wt


Just like Jake, it's easy to see how fans are having difficulty separating the real from the world of avatar and Pandora...
The New York Times reported on fans that can't seem to shake the blues ^:^ after seeing the movie:
http://tinyurl.com/ycauzhu




Here, for example is the data for Octoshrooms:

Biology: Octoshrooms ( style="font-family: Times-Roman;">Na'vi name: Torukspxam, meaning "great leonopteryxfungus") are large mushroom-like organisms that live on Pandora. They are bioluminescent and extremely toxic. These fungi possess a giant underground filament network that enable them to feed.

Reproduction:  To reproduce, octoshrooms release spores that germinate and grow filaments wherever they land.

Feeding: Some mycelia penetrate plant roots to absorb carbohydrates while providing the body with a greater supply of mineral nutrients. Octoshrooms are able to absorb and break down nearly everything in the soil such as chlorine, ammonia, and methane

Study: Following the 1986 Chernobyl incident on Earth, a similar fungus was discovered, but not fully understood. When scientists realized that the octoshroom used ionizing radiation as energy for growth, scientists were able to further understand the metabolism of the Chernobyl fungus. Because it is an effective antivenom, there are currently studies underway regarding the octoshroom in the pharmaceutical and bioremediation industries.

Uses: The Na'vi use the octoshroom's roots to make tea. It is a powerful antivenom effective against the sting of many venomous animals. Too much tea, however, has been proven toxic and sometimes lethal

On Earth: It is possible that octoshroom spores have stowed away on an interstellar vehicle and germinated on Earth. However, no specimens have been found and data regarding its survival in the terran atmosphere is incomplete. Some believe that an octoshroom "forest" in Nevada could help restore the entire region


And there's lots more!  Check it out.  

.

I love all the fervor surrounding Avatar and can only hope it gets people more interested and active in learning about plants and taking care of planet earth...and OUR native plants -- they are just as heart-stoppingly beautiful, mysterious and magical – if you just take the time to look and explore….

Holiday Greens & Festive Food

In what I hope is now a Holiday tradition with my fellow/former Junior League girlfriends, we ring in the holiday season the Gotham apartment.

We enjoy a memorable evening with laughter, wine, good food, wine, family stories, wine, and well, you get the idea.

I start the planning with the decorations, naturally.  I visit the Greenmarket for plants and natural and organic creations to fulfill my idea of creating a warm, candle-infused, magical evening of good food and  friends.

Greenmarket at Union Square always delivers organic options. The conifers were inspiring to say the least.

The River Garden stand where I purchase my eucalyptus -- and this year's elegant lamb's ear wreath:

I  found charming beeswax candles shaped into angels and christmas trees -- and in gold -- perfect colors to match the kitchen!

All the girls chip in for the food and I plan the menu with Celeste from Marquette Restaurant (www.DiFioreMarquetcafe.com), located around the corner on 12th Street between Fifth Avenue and University Place.  

Celeste is a doll!  She makes the entire catering experience fun, easy and exciting. 

The restaurant is so charming - I think I'm back in France when dining there - and there is art on all the walls.  Heavenly.

Celeste too keeps a file so that she can pull up what the menu was I ordered in previous years.  

For this party, I like to serve a hot soup  -- like fennel carrot -- or this year's no-cream cauliflower.  

I serve the soup in fun, interesting terrines that look like squash, pumpkins, and other winter vegetables that I got from Williams Sonoma a few years ago (www.williams-sonoma.com and www.wshome.com)  Perfect size too.   

I put two or three of the terrines on the buffet kitchen table and use clear glass expresso cups for soup servers - so the guests can scoop the soup into the cups and walk around while sipping the delicious soup. I find this is a very social -- and healthy and delicious - appetizer.  

Celeste and I enjoyed a lively discussion about food possibilities. She knows  how to work with a budget too :)

And she is most creative. For example, I had an idea for sweet potato "cupcakes." 

Celeste and her chefs were able to deliver beyond expectations.  The "cupcake" concept or "caper" :) was not a dessert but rather a side dish or vegetable -- Just a whole lot more interesting and elegant.  Celeste and I talked about how we/she could do this. But in the end, she took the concept and as always -- just ran with it and achieved a culinary wonder!  

We also agreed on a scallop and a crab meat creation with a roasted red pepper sauce. 

I LOVE what she wrote and did with the salmon.  Celeste suggested  poached salmon and a Scotch salmon.  Why, I asked.  What is the difference between the two salmon??  

It is the "look" she instructed me.  She said there is an old saying that "The eyes eat before the stomach." She said it in a much more eloquent way.... But you get the idea. Celeste explained that the two different shades of pink in the salmon is glorious and visual. 

It made me think the seduction of the glamorous salmon, as she explained it, was indeed perfect for us! 

We then agreed on the more, ahem, mundane items, such as the salad with endive, and the cheese platte.

I love a goat, a brie, a stilton and especially this time of year, a cheddar.  

Marquette also provides great baguettes for my cheese fondue that I love to serve at these kind of fetes. It's decadent (who eats cheese like this any more?); goes perfect with wine :) and from my school days and holidays in Switzerland, I embrace the social and convivial experience fondue offers.

I also added our caviar that is, in turn, a gift from our long time friends, the DiMasi's.  They are truly amazing friends and parents ( more about that later). But I get to sing their praises every year with a select few family and friends, as we share the unbelievable good fortune of this spectacular treat.  

And make no mistake. I LOVE caviar more than you can imagine. 

Accordingly, we must offer great champagne to accompany the caviar. 

And god forbid there is any left over - ha - we will carry over to the chocolate dessert.  And this year - I went with the social fondue theme and we enjoyed chocolate fondue with strawberries and dried fruit, including apricots.  

Thank you Celeste. 

And my Tannins.

Glorious, glamorous, memorable evening.

And New York cleans up from Christmas faster than anyplace I know... Too soon...

Coming back into town after New Year's, I saw the trees on the curb for take away.  So pretty.

But they must not realize there is a mulchfest every year the city provides to turn the trees into mulch...

Nevertheless, the trees still look beautiful to me as they await their next chapter:

And the First Presbyterian Church across the street (always gorgeous) is still dripping in wreaths and red  berries.

and our foyer tree (resplendent with decorations and train tracks underneath) came down right after this was taken - and prior to Little Christmas.

What day is that exactly?  I thought it was the 12th...

Cheers.  

You Won!

What are just about the two sweetest words in the English language? 

“You Won.”

The subject line on the email did indeed read, “You Won.”  As I know the sender, Irene Varig, I didn’t fret that the winning notice might’ve been some snarky come-on from a third-world mambo jambo nation offering bazzilions of dollars for a mere small $$ investment…Ha.

No, Irene is a Pulitzer-Prize winning journalist, she is now the East Coast head of the Garden Writer’s Association, she is the gardening columnist for Newsday, she and her talented and wise husband, Harvey, teach journalism at Stony Brook and she produces her own excellent Garden Party blog (I am a Follower).  Whew – she’s busy – and successful!

All good. J

When I read she had extended the deadline for the photo contest, I quick grabbed my trusty Luminex (love this camera) and took some shots to submit…  The idea for the contest is fun and smart and sustainable.  Kudos, Irene – and thank you so much!

And special thanks, also, to Nancy Thomas, owner of “In the Garden,” Highlands, in the Garden State. (www.inthegardennj.com) 

As I mentioned previously, Nancy and her team keep track of my annual holiday decorating greens so when I place the order, we can readily discuss.  Some of the flowers and plants that I add to the items from my garden I like to repeat from year to year. 
At the same time, I like to make the plant ensemble sparkle with new fashions every season. 

This year it was the hypericum berries – in the lime green and red colors that sparked both the Gotham and Garden state floral designs. 

In the Garden just moved to a new locale in the Highlands and as much as I thought nothing could top their original space, (they had great side yards for the annuals and perennials, which is where I purchase a lot of plants for my garden design clients.)

But when I saw the new digs ^:^, I was immediately smitten.

I love it!  It’s bright and big and right across from the town park that hosts a variety of events, especially the Farmer’s Market.  Nancy is a graduate of The New York Botanical Garden’s School of Professional Horticulture (SOPH) www.nybg.org/edu/soph/

    

SOPH’s Director, Charles Yurgalevitch, Ph.D, is a friend (smooch from your Coco, Charles!)  

He has done an amazing job of not only raising the profile of the school and its mission to “educate motivated individuals to become horticulturists of the highest caliber” and to teach the students “about utilizing art and science to beautify our surroundings so that others may and enjoy and live a better life.”  Well said, Charles.  He also worked very hard in early in his tenure at NYBG to garner accreditation for the school – which is a boon for the students – and the school.

Back to Green Decorating
I picked up my green décor “wardrobe” on Friday the 18^th of December in order to complete the “look book” for this year’s holiday decorations in time for a family party that night.

All was in place when I read Irene’s blog about the Unplug contest. I emailed the images to her blog.

And then this week and for the second time this holiday season, it does indeed appear that I truly am

A WINNER! 

I know, I know. There are those who will recall I just wrote that I have two kinds of luck: NO and BAD and so now probably want to shout, “You Lie.”

But it’s true – outside of that atlas booty from the card party, there was nothing. Ever. Nada. 

Perhaps ushering in the new decade it might be a complete course change when it comes to my luck. 

(Just to make certain, I’m not stepping on any sidewalk cracks, nor walking under any ladders or…)

Here is the winner’s page from Irene’s blog announcing the winners of this year’s “Unplug the Holiday’s contest:

And the link to her terrific blog.  Sign on to become a Follower, too!)

http://tinyurl.com/yeb8wt7

Irene Virag's Garden Party

I'm Irene Virag -- a writer, a gardener, a cancer survivor. I think ideas are like plants. They need nurturing to grow. And gardeners share both. So welcome to my blog. It’s all about what’s happening in my garden and beyond.

SATURDAY, JANUARY 02, 2010

AND THE WINNERS ARE . . .

Thanks to everyone who entered my "Unplug the Holidays" contest this year. Here are my winners:

First Prize to Leeann Lavin of New Jersey,

who tweaked the holiday color scheme with lime green hypericum berries nestled among rich red roses and carnations.

 go to blog to see the images :)

Leeann also hung her stockings on the arms of silver plant cups filled with roses, carnations and seeded eucalyptus.

But she forgot to take pictures of the table designs she created with kumquats, Peruvian lilies and more hypericum berries surrounded with angel beeswax candles. I would have loved to have seen those.

And the outdoor displays Leeann designed from evergreens, birch branches and pine cones gathered from her yard were buried beneath the snow. You can't get any more natural than that.