For your reading pleasure as you dream "Symposium dreams," here's a bit of background on one of our exciting 2019 speakers:

Jacqueline van der Kloet's  
personal garden (4)

Since the earliest days of her career, Dutch garden designer and plant specialist Jacqueline van der Kloet has learned from experience, using her own garden to experiment. The Tea Garden ("De Theetuin" in Dutch), Jacqueline's personal display garden in Weesp, The Netherlands, showcases combinations of perennials and bulbs, framed by trees and shrubs. Her goal? To create balance, rhythm and her trademark, naturalistic "painterly effect" by carefully coordinating plants' colors, textures, habits, and bloom periods.

Recognized today as one of the premier bulb designers in the world, Jacqueline aspired as a teen to become an artist but was persuaded by family and friends to take a more practical (but still decidedly artistic) path: studying landscape design. In the early 1980s she opened her own design and landscape architecture business. And the rest is history 

In addition to dozens of noteworthy installations in Europe, Jacqueline has worked extensively in the U.S., designing gardens and/or providing plant schemes for venues such as Battery Park (New York) and The Lurie Garden in Millennium Park (Chicago), where she joined forces with renowned landscape designer and fellow Netherlander, Piet Oudolf. She also created a "Seasonal Walk" plant scheme for the New York Botanical Garden and worked with Martha Stewart to underplant Martha's linden allée using an assortment of 116,000 blue-flowering Dutch bulbs that bloom successively and multiply rapidly. 

Jacqueline has also Designer Jacqueline van der Kloet in the Colorblends show garden (4)    collaborated with U.S. wholesale flower bulb merchant Colorblends on the design and plant scheme for the Colorblends House and Spring Garden Tour in Bridgeport, CT, which is open annually to the public.

On the other side of the Atlantic, one of Jacqueline's best known installations is at storied Keukenhof gardens in Amsterdam, where she created seven "Gardens of Inspiration," a series of borders dubbed "flower ribbons," a Bridal Avenue, and a huge perennial border featuring only tulips.  

Keukenhof's Bridal Avenue 
in bloom in April (4)

Some sources credit Jacqueline with "saving the tulip" by contemporizing how it is used: not in big monochromatic blocks but rather as part of a larger composition, interplanted with perennials. She was also the first designer to use softrather than "screaming" colors in tulip displays. 

Her designs are simple and easy to execute, even for the home gardener with limited space. In a small border Jacqueline typically uses 3 varieties of bulbs; 7 in a large border. Her recommended bulb planting technique -- which she calls "sprinkling" -- involves mixing large and small varieties together in a wheel barrow and then lightly tossing handfuls of them to be planted where they fall.  

Jacqueline will be speaking at this year's Massachusetts Gardening Symposium on the subject of "Magical Mixes." She will start with a series of images detailing the experiments she has conducted in her own garden. From there she will lead us on a virtual tour of her other projects around the world. In addition to inspiration, Symposium attendees are sure to take away a wealth of practical advice! 

Enjoy family art activities and garden tours

Free to all!

Bring a picnic, chairs, or blanket. Wine, beer, and other beverages will be sold. 

Wander the gardens, enjoy live music, and stroll through our art walk. Support local artists showcasing and selling their work throughout our grounds. For more information, or to be a showcased artist, contact Amy Rodrigues:
arodrigues@masshort.org
617-933-4934

THE GARDEN IS OPEN FROM 9:00AM - 6PM

510 WEST MAIN ROAD, LITTLE COMPTON

R.I. 02837

PARKING IS ON THE STREET; ADMISSION 20$

WE WILL BE HAVING OUR USUAL PLANT VENDORS

ISSIMA ( FORMERLY OPUS ) NURSERY

AVANT GARDEN

RARE FIND NURSERY

BROKEN ARROW NURSERY

GARDEN VISION EPIMEDIUMS

BUNKER FARM PLANTS ( unusual annuals )

THE GARDEN IS OPEN FROM 9:00AM - 6PM

510 WEST MAIN ROAD, LITTLE COMPTON

R.I. 02837

PARKING IS ON THE STREET; ADMISSION 20$

WE WILL BE HAVING OUR USUAL PLANT VENDORS

ISSIMA ( FORMERLY OPUS ) NURSERY

AVANT GARDEN

RARE FIND NURSERY

BROKEN ARROW NURSERY

GARDEN VISION EPIMEDIUMS

BUNKER FARM PLANTS ( unusual annuals )

Planting a Rainbow. Please register at www.mhl.org/eventcalendar

NOMENCLATURE:

Many gardeners, even experienced ones, feel confused when botanical names are being bandied about. Botanical names serve several important purposes, and understanding them can tell you a lot about the plant you are working with. In this class we will show you how to understand a plant's botanical name, and discuss strategies for learning them over time. We'll explore botanical nomenclature (the way plant names are organized) in a manner that is accessible and easy to understand, so that you can feel confident the next time you find yourself face to face with a two part Latinate name!

DISEASES AND PESTS:

This class will cover common plant diseases and take a look at common pests -- both insect and animal -- and how to treat them.

The Power of Flowers Project will be holding their annual plant sale on Saturday, May 4th, 9-1 at the Tewksbury Senior Center. THey repurpose flowers from funerals, weddings, corporate conferences and we send them back out to senior citizens in nursing homes, assisted livings, COA's and many other places to spread joy....one flower at a time.

WOODY PLANTS:

We’ll start by discussing the different types of woody plants, their architecture and growth habits, and how to plant them properly. We will also show you all the reasons you might want to prune your woody plants and how (and when) to prune them properly. We will also go over techniques and tools to make you a successful caretaker of your woody plants.

LAWN CARE & ALTERNATIVES:

This class will look at how you can create a healthy lawn by eliminating the “steps” and working on the fundamentals. We’ll also examine other options for use of your space beyond turf.

A native meadow is an ecologically vibrant landscape, providing food and habitat to native pollinators and other wildlife. The deep, undisturbed roots of mature meadow plants capture and store carbon. Meadows rarely need visits from lawnmowers or leaf-blowers, thus reducing air pollution and neighborhood noise. But meadows are not simply lawns or perennial beds gone wild. Understanding why meadows are different is critical to success. Designer Kathy Connolly will lead this intensive seminar, covering everything from the definition of a meadow, to site selection and preparation, the relationship of grasses and flowering species, and useful maintenance protocols. Class enrollment includes Kathy’s extensive plant lists and design resources. This is a great course for anyone, from home gardeners to professional landscapers, looking to take a deep dive into the ins and outs of meadow-making.
 
Kathy Connolly is a landscape designer, writer, and teacher, who brings over 20 years of experience in creating and tending meadows. She works with a range of clients, from homeowners to state parks, to develop meadows and other naturalized plantings, and has taught workshops throughout New England. Kathy has a Master’s degree in landscape design from the Conway School.

$78 Member | $88 Non-Member

Register for Grow a Meadow, Large or Small

Uncovering the Earth. Please register at www.mhl.org/eventcalendar

Someone once said that peonies are the “Show Girls” of the spring garden, but with Dahlias it’s all about late summer-early fall “Royalty”! This program will provide a brief history of the discovery of dahlias and their introduction into the American garden.  You will learn how to select dahlia tubers, where to plant, how to water, and fertilize.  To stake or not to stake, to dig or not to dig – these are the questions!  If you dig tubers, how to store, overwinter, and then how to wake them up and perhaps make cuttings.  This will be followed by a brief discussion of American Dahlia Society Classification (ADS) and how to enter a Dahlia Show.

This Seminar is free.

Please read our Registration & Cancellation Policies Here.

VEGETABLE CULTURE:

You don’t need a big yard with long straight rows to grow vegetables! Vegetable gardening can be part of almost any home garden. We’ll look at different types and methods of vegetable culture and discuss layout, variety choices, and growing techniques.

Gardens with verticality give eye-level pizazz. Landscape designer and garden coach, Andi Ross will present the annual and perennial vines adaptable in our growing zone, including a visual guide to clematis - a must-have plant in any New England garden. She'll cover other aspects of the new trend in vertical gardens.

Andi Ross is an artistic landscape designer, certified organic land-care professional, private garden coach, and horticulturalist. She speaks throughout New England, including at the Boston and Portland Flower Shows, green industry accreditation schools, New England Grows, botanical gardens, and garden clubs and libraries. 

Sponsored by the Friends of MHL, Andover Seed Library & Spade and Trowel Garden Club.

Register online or by calling 978-623-8430.

Save the Pollinators Make your garden a haven for pollinators. Ben Sellew with Pride's Corner will be will assist you in learning how to attract all kinds of pollinators from birds, bees and other beneficial insects. This Seminar is free. This Seminar is free.

Please read our Registration & Cancellation Policies Here.

PERENNIALS:

This class will cover perennial plant selection, defining cultural needs and site evaluations. It will look at zone hardiness and micro climates and how they affect perennials. The class will also cover perennial care: watering, fertilizing, deadheading, and dividing. We will also discuss gardening with natives as well as pollinator, butterfly and wildlife gardens.

Laura Davis runs our Farmers’ Market and she and her husband own Lifelong Farm, an organic CSA farm located in Hopkinton, MA.

Laura will present seed starting tips from 9:00 to 10:00 am on March 30, 2019.

This Seminar is free.

Please read our Registration & Cancellation Policies Here.

SOIL:

There is no such thing as a great garden without great soil. So what is soil? And how do you get great soil? We’ll look at soil and talk about compost. And we’ll tell you how to make your soil great and keep it that way.