Somerville Garden Club

Miyawaki Forests and Food Forests

Program A: The Miyawaki Method, pioneered by Dr Akia Miyawaki, creates dense, diverse, multilayered mini-forests of native trees and shrubs in spaces as small as 1,000 sq. feet to restore life to cities, schoolyards, parks and vacant lots, and combat shrinking habitat, rising temperatures, and stormwater runoff.  In this presentation Alexandra Ionescu, of Biodiversity for a Livable Climate, will introduce the Miyawaki Method, share how Biodiversity for a Livable Climate is putting it into practice, and highlight emerging scientific insights from the mini-forests already planted.

Alexandra Ionescu is Associate Director for Regenerative Projects at Biodiversity for a Livable Climate, where she leads the Miyawaki Forest Program.

Program B: Orion Kriegman, founding Executive Director of the Boston Food Forest Coalition, will share the story of the Boston Food Forest Coalition, its mission, and the four pillars of its operation: local leadership, community ownership, nature-based park construction, and stewardship & education. Food forests are public edible parks maintained by community members, for community members. They are a diverse arrangement of plants that attempts to mimic the ecosystems and patterns found in nature. Inspired by the style of land management known as permaculture, which focuses on growing perennials and viewing the whole ecosystem rather than individual parts, food forests build environmental resilience.

Orion Kriegman is the founding Executive Director of the Boston Food Forest Coalition, a community land trust. He played a major role in the conception of Egleston Community Orchard in Jamaica Plain, which was the first food forest site to be adopted into the BFFC land trust. Orion has collaborated with the city of Boston, colleagues and local neighbors to expand the number of healthy food forests included in the land trust and the number of Bostonians included in the movement.

In-person meetings are held on the second Wednesday of the month at the Tufts Administration Building, (TAB), 167 Holland Street, second floor, wheelchair accessible. Parking is available for a small fee, and the building is a ten-minute walk from the Davis Square MBTA stop.

All Somerville Garden Club meetings are free and open to the public. 7-9pm. The SGC has been informed that the entry doors to the TAB will be locked at 8pm, effective immediately, including on our meeting days. Please arrange your arrival times accordingly.

Growing Citrus in New England

The talk will cover basic botany of citrus and touch on the genus’s history.  The majority of material will be an overview of how to successfully grow citrus, specifically in New England.

Collins Riggan is a plantsman with a passion for growing citrus.  He’s been growing citrus and boxwood for over 10 years.  He recently made several trips to Italy to work with nurseries and deepen his knowledge and expertise as a backyard citrus grower.  He is currently a Docent at Harvard’s Arnold Arboretum where he researches and studies various trees and shrubs.  He is additionally pursuing a Master Naturalist certification through Cornell University.  During summers, he takes full advantage of his backyard and patio space for summer gardening, including citrus!

In-person meetings are held the at the Tufts Administration Building, (TAB), 167 Holland Street, second floor, wheelchair accessible. Parking is available for a small fee, and the building is a ten-minute walk from the Davis Square MBTA stop.

All Somerville Garden Club meetings are free and open to the public. 7-9pm. The SGC has been informed that the entry doors to the TAB will be locked at 8pm, effective immediately, including on our meeting days. Please arrange your arrival times accordingly.