Tag Archives: Kim Smith lecture

PLEASE JOIN ME AT THE MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY FOR “THE HUMMINGBIRD GARDEN!”

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HELLO FRIENDS!

Please join me Wednesday evening, April 20th, at 6:30pm for “The Hummingbird Garden” virtual lecture and slideshow. We’ll talk about how to create a beautiful hummingbird habitat and how to be good stewards of the tender tiny Ruby-throated Hummingbird, Massachusetts smallest breeding bird. We’ll also touch on hummingbirds found in other parts of North America.

I have a full schedule of lectures and program this upcoming week for Earth Day week (Earth Day is Friday, April 22nd). On Tuesday I will be screening Beauty on the Wing in Quebec and screening again later in the week in Connecticut (all virtual presentations!). The public is invited to the Mass Hort presentation, but I am not sure about the screenings. Please email at kimsmithdesigns@hotmail.com if you would like to attend and I will find out more.

THANK YOU MIKE MACK AND THE NORTH SHORE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY!

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Many thanks to Mike Mack and the North Shore Horticultural Society for the invitation to present “The Hummingbird Garden.” We had a great talk and I really want to thank everyone who volunteered what Ruby-throated Hummingbirds like to forage on in their gardens. Hummingbirds are opportunistic feeders and it was so interesting to learn the plants that support RTHummingbirds in other’s gardens. Although Ruby-throated Hummingbirds are the most widely distributed Hummingbird in North America many aspects of its migration, breeding, and ecology remain poorly understood. In addition to what was presented, local gardeners added Cuphea, Penstemon ‘Husker Red,’ Rose of Sharon (all shades), Agastache, and a flowering quince in a rich shade of fuchsia.

Special thanks to the lady who brought a hummingbird nest and shared it with the attendees.

A reader inquired about a photo that I had posted with the announcement of the lecture. The photo is of a Rivoli’s Hummingbird and was taken in Macheros, Estado de México. We were staying in a tiny cottage on the banks of a forested mountain stream. The banks were abundant with blooming Pineapple Sage (Salvia elegans) and both the gently flowing stream and flowering sage were Mecca for all the hummingbirds in the neighborhood. Every morning we awoke to the chattering of dozens of hummingbirds, mostly Rivoli’s and White-eared Hummingbirds, bathing in the stream and drinking nectar from the sage.

A note about Rivoli’s Hummingbirds. They were originally called Rivoli’s, then the name was changed to Magnificent Hummingbird, but it’s name has since reverted back to Rivoli’s Hummingbird.

Rivoli’s Hummingbird and Pineapple Sage (Salvia elegans)

KIM SMITH PRESENTS “THE HUMMINGBIRD GARDEN” FOR THE NORTH SHORE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY THURSDAY OCTOBER 24TH

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THE HUMMINGBIRD GARDEN

OCTOBER 24TH AT 7:30PM

SACRED HEART CHURCH PARISH HALL

62 SCHOOL STREET

MANCHESTER, MA

Hummingbird and Salvia elegans

Please join me Thursday evening at the Sacred Heart Church in Manchester where I will be giving my presentation “The Hummingbird Garden” for The North Shore Horticultural Society. It’s been a phenomenal year for Ruby-throated Hummingbirds on Cape Ann and I am looking forward to sharing information on how you, too, can create a hummingbird haven. I hope to see you there!

“The Hummingbird Garden” is free for members and five dollars for guests.

THE HUMMINGBIRD GARDEN

The Ruby-throated Hummingbird is the only species of hummingbird that nests in Massachusetts. Learn what to plant to help sustain this elusive beauty while it is breeding in our region and during its annual spring and fall migrations. Through photographs and discussion we’ll learn about the life cycle of the Ruby-throated Hummingbird and the best plants to attract this tiniest of breeding birds to your garden.

SAVE THE DATE – “THE HUMMINGBIRD GARDEN” – MY NEW PRESENTATION FOR THE NORTH SHORE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY

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THE HUMMINGBIRD GARDEN

OCTOBER 24TH AT 7:30PM

SACRED HEART CHURCH PARISH HALL

62 SCHOOL STREET

MANCHESTER, MA

The North Shore Horticultural Society has invited me to give a presentation about the Ruby-throated Hummingbird. Over the years I have shared so much info about attracting this tiny avian pollinator that it was exciting to put the lecture together, just a matter of collecting all the bits into a cohesive program. BTW, it’s been a phenomenal year for hummingbirds in Cape Ann gardens!

“The Hummingbird Garden” is free for members and five dollars for guests.

I am looking forward to giving this program and hope to see you there!

THE HUMMINGBIRD GARDEN

The Ruby-throated Hummingbird is the only species of hummingbird that nests in Massachusetts. Learn what to plant to help sustain this elusive beauty while it is breeding in our region and during its annual spring and fall migrations. Through photographs and discussion we’ll learn about the life cycle of the Ruby-throated Hummingbird and the best plants to attract this tiniest of breeding birds to your garden.

HUGE THANK YOU TO THE ROCKY NECK ART COLONY!

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So many thanks to everyone who came out for my talk at the Cultural Center last night. Thank you to old friends who were there and thank you to my new friends; it was a pleasure to meet you!

We had a wonderful turnout. The Cultural Center at Rocky Neck and the Rocky Neck Art Colony did a tremendous job hosting. With special thanks and gratitude to Martha Swanson, Suzanne Gilbert Lee, Jane Keddy, Karen Ristuben, Tom Nihan, and Mary Lou. The Beautiful Birds of Cape Ann thank you to!

MUTE SWAN ROCKY NECK GLOUCESTER KIMSMITHDESIGNS.COM 2016

Mr.Swan and Mallards Rocky Neck Gloucester

BEAUTY ON THE WING ~ THURSDAY NOVEMBER 12TH AT THE SAWYER FREE LIBRARY!

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Monarch Butterfly Exposion -2 ©Kim Smith 2014 300dpi copyMonarch Butterfly Explosion

What is a Monarch Butterfly explosion? The butterflies migrate to Mexico to keep from freezing to death in northern climates. The air is cool and moist in the trans-Mexican volcanic mountains, cool enough to keep them inactive and in a state of sexual immaturity, called diapause, but not so cold that they will freeze. As spring approaches and the Earth’s temperature begins to rise, the butterflies sleeping in the oyamel fir forests need to get out of the hot sun. Millions explode from the trees, drink water from nearby mountain streams, and move to a cooler, shadier spot on the mountain.

I hope you’ll come join our program Thursday night at 7pm at the Sawyer Free Library. We’ll be talking all things Monarchs including the current status of the butterfly’s migration, habitat destruction here in our own community, and most importantly, ways in which we can all help the Monarch possibly survive the warming of the earth.

We will be premiering the trailer for my forthcoming film about the Monarchs, too (also titled Beauty on the Wing). I hope to see you there!

For more information, visit the Programs page of my website and the Sawyer Free Library Facebook page.Monarch Butterfly Explosion -1 ©Kim Smith 2014 300dpi copy

Lecture Tuesday Night at the Seaside Garden Club

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Lecture Tuesday night, April 9, at 7:30 at the Manchester Community Center: Oh Garden of Fresh Possibilities! ~ Notes from a Gloucester Garden.

Cabbage White Butterflies mating in Cornus florida ©Kim Smith 2009

Cabbage White Butterflies Mating in the Native Flowering Dogwood Foliage 

The lecture tonight is based on the book of the same name, which I wrote and illustrated. In it I reveal how to create the framework, a living tapestry of flora, fauna, and fragrance that establishes the soul of the garden. Using a selection of plant material that eliminates the need for pesticides and herbicides, and guided by the plants forms, hues, and horticultural demands, we discuss how to create a succession of blooms from April through November. This presentation is as much about how to visualize your garden, as it is about particular trees, shrubs, vines, perennials, and annuals. Illuminated with photographs, and citing poetry and quotations from Eastern and Western cultural influences, this presentation engages us with an artist’s eye while drawing from practical experience.

For a complete lit of my 2013 – 2014 programs and workshops, visit the Programs and Lectures page of my blog.

Cecropia Moth ©Kim Smith 20009

The Cecropia Moth, or Robin Moth (Hyalophora cecropia) is the largest moth found in North America, with a wingspan of up to six inches. He is perched on the foliage of our beautiful native Magnolia virginiana (Sweetbay Magnolia), one of several of the caterpillar’s food plants. You can tell that he is a male because he has large, feathery antennae, or plumos, the better for detecting scent hormones released by the female. This photo was taken in our garden in early June.

The Manchester Community Center is located at 40 Harbor Point, Manchester.

Lecture: The Fragrant Garden Tuesday at the Andover Garden Club

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Thank you Frances Wheeler for the flyer for my upcoming lecture at the Andover Garden Club

The Fragrant Garden

10:00 AM-Noon, April 2, 2013

South Church, 41 Central Street, Andover MA

$10 for guests (includes refreshments); free to members

Refreshments and Brief Business Meeting Precede Presentation

 

The air impregnated with the scents of flowers and foliage imbues a memorable atmosphere in the garden, playing the subtle, and sometimes not-so-subtle, role of strengthening the ambiance we wish to create. Through photographs, examination of historical precedent, and discussion of specific plant varieties, landscape and interior designer, author, illustrator, and photo and film journalist Kim Smith will provide the key elements for creating a fragrant garden. Her discussion will include a list of the most highly scented plants.

Smith, proprietor of Kim Smith Designs (www.kimsmithdesigns.com), is the author of Oh Garden of Fresh Possibilities! (published by David R. Godine), a Boston Globe “Best of 2009” pick. She specializes in connecting the home to the outside and in creating gardens for people and pollinators, with a focus on native trees and shrubs, wildflowers, and fragrant plants.

For more information, contact Betty Chapman, Phone: 978-470-2627, bettychapman@verizon.net.

Founded in 1927, the Andover Garden Club is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization that encourages the study and practice of horticulture, landscape design, and floral design; aids in the beautification of the town of Andover; and helps protect and conserve natural resources. A member of the Garden Club Federation of Massachusetts, Inc., and National Garden Clubs, Inc., the club provides both financial and hands-on support to a variety of municipal, educational, and environmental organizations throughout the region. Information about joining the Andover Garden Club is available from AGC membership chairs Yvonne Glendon (978-247-8960, yglendon@comcast.net) and Dana MacKay (978-475-4451, dmmm51@yahoo.com).