Workshops & Events
Botany of Invasives Workshop
Join BFFC and the stewardship team at the Uphams Corner Food Forest for this 2-hour class about invasive plant species in New England food forest environments.
In this workshop, we’ll learn how to define the term “invasive;” we’ll practice identifying invasive and native plants; and we’ll review botanical profiles of common invasive species in Boston.
This workshop will be led by Alex Klein, Boston-area arborist and herbalist.
Boston Nature Center Food Forest New Volunteer Orientation Day
First Wednesday of every month from 6pm to sundown at the BNC Food Forest.
Interested in volunteering? We would love to have you join us!
The first 30 minutes of this session will include a tour of the site, introduction to how we are organized, and ways to get involved. After that, we’ll get our hands dirty with some projects in the food forest. Projects may include wedding, watering, planting...and eating plants!
All supplies including gloves will be provided. Please bring water and some clothes you don't mind getting dirty.
All skill levels are welcome. No registration necessary!
Garden Seeding Party #2
Enjoy spring with neighbors by planting seeds in the raised beds at Hope Garden. In this second seeding session, we will talk about the basics of seeding and garden care and discuss plantings for the year.
Light refreshments will be provided.
No experience necessary!
Please RSVP by emailing alice@bostonfoodforest.org.
Spring Kitchen Medicine Workshop
Spring is here and we're ready to eat locally! Explore the culinary uses & medicinal properties of spring wild edibles. Learn about dandelion, stinging nettles, chickweed, purple dead nettles and enjoy some pesto & infused vinegars.
The workshop will be led by Taina Vargas of Sankofa Anacaona Botanicals. Taina is an herbalist, gardener, and educator.
Foraging Walk
Join us on an evening stroll where you’ll gain basic skills to identify some tasty wild edible plants common in urban settings within the Greater Boston Area. We’ll focus on ethical and safe foraging practices as well as culinary and medicinal applications.
This walk will be led by Celine, who is an interdisciplinary creative who has been foraging in the Boston area for nearly 10 years. After spending seven years working at restaurants as a cook, Celine now works as shopkeep and chef at THE mushroom shop in Somerville, MA.
This program is available to all — no experience necessary — on a sliding scale fee.
This event is free for Leland gardeners and Boston Food Forest stewards, who can RSVP by emailing alice@bostonfoodforest.org.
Residential Food Forest Tour
Get some food forest inspiration by taking a walk in the residential food forest of coalition member Utah Uter. Utah's mature and multilayered green space is a beautiful example of permaculture principles at work, and an inspiring representation of what older, more established food forest spaces look like over time.
We’ll explore the space, hear from Utah on his experience/experiments, see what’s in bloom and taste some fruit!
Reach out to alice@bostonfoodforest.org with any questions.
*Rain date is Thursday, June 13th at 6-7pm.
Boston Nature Center Food Forest New Volunteer Orientation Day
First Wednesday of every month from 6pm to sundown at the BNC Food Forest.
Interested in volunteering? We would love to have you join us!
The first 30 minutes of this session will include a tour of the site, introduction to how we are organized, and ways to get involved. After that, we’ll get our hands dirty with some projects in the food forest. Projects may include wedding, watering, planting...and eating plants!
All supplies including gloves will be provided. Please bring water and some clothes you don't mind getting dirty.
All skill levels are welcome. No registration necessary!
Opportunities of Weeds Workshop
Join BFFC and the BNC Food Forest Stewards for a workshop all about weeds. We’ll identify and practice strategies for using and controlling weedy plants in a food forest/garden environment. We’ll also discuss and demonstrate how to see possibility in the most fundamental of garden ‘problems.’
This workshop will be led by Ben Crouch of Land of Plenty gardening and landscaping.
*Rain date: Sunday, June 9th at 10-1pm.
Communicating with Plants Workshop
Join BFFC and the stewards at the Old West Church Food Forest for this workshop offering on connecting with plants in our environment.
Explore these connections and learn techniques to expand your ability to learn directly from plants. Directly connecting with plants and trusting our own experience is a powerful way to learn herbal medicine and to live in the world. You’ll receive resources and tips for practicing and embodying these simple techniques at home and in your food forest.
This workshop will be led by Lauren Almquist, founder of Heartspace Herbals & Garden Design. Lauren is an herbalist, garden designer, and a steward at the Boston Nature Center Food Forest.
Loving Our Hands Workshop
Dive into the art and science of DIY skin care and learn simple methods of herbal oil infusion.
We’ll explore the medicinal properties of common garden herbs and transform infused culinary oils into healing balms to care for our hands during the growing season. Plants we’ll work with include calendula, chickweed, and plantain.
The workshop will be led by Taina Vargas of Sankofa Anacaona Botanicals. Taina is an herbalist, gardener, and educator.
Loving Our Hands Workshop
Dive into the art and science of DIY skin care and learn simple methods of herbal oil infusion.
We’ll explore the medicinal properties of common garden herbs and transform infused culinary oils into healing balms to care for our hands during the growing season. Plants we’ll work with include calendula, chickweed, and plantain.
The workshop will be led by Taina Vargas of Sankofa Anacaona Botanicals. Taina is an herbalist, gardener, and educator.
*Rain date is Sunday, August 4th.
Garden Seeding Party #1
Welcome spring with neighbors and fellow gardeners by joining BFFC’s Garden Seeding Party at Hope Garden. We will talk about the basics of seeding and garden care, work primarily in the garden’s raised beds, and discuss plantings for the year.
Light refreshments will be provided.
No experience necessary!
Please RSVP by emailing alice@bostonfoodforest.org.
Leland Cooperative Garden Monthly Work Party
Join the Leland Cooperative Garden stewardship team for their monthly Work Party!
Hosted on the third Saturday of each month from 10:30-3:30pm, Leland Work Parties are filled with garden work, planting, harvesting, weeding, and general community fun outdoors!
All are welcome — no previous experience or registration required.
Gardening clothes and gloves are encouraged!
Email lelandgardeninfo@gmail.com with any questions.
Boston Nature Center Food Forest New Volunteer Orientation Day
First Wednesday of every month from 6pm to sundown at the BNC Food Forest.
Interested in volunteering? We would love to have you join us!
The first 30 minutes of this session will include a tour of the site, introduction to how we are organized, and ways to get involved. After that, we’ll get our hands dirty with some projects in the food forest. Projects may include wedding, watering, planting...and eating plants!
All supplies including gloves will be provided. Please bring water and some clothes you don't mind getting dirty.
All skill levels are welcome. No registration necessary! May be postponed in cases of inclement weather. Email alice@bostonfoodforest.org with any questions.
Egleston Community Orchard Season Kick-off
Interested in getting involved with the Egleston Community Orchard in Jamaica Plain?
Join the stewardship team, volunteers, and neighbors of this food forest garden on April 10th at 6pm for the kick-off meeting of this season! You can expect to meet other folks engaged in this space, learn about and contribute to ambitions/plans for the year, and get started on a few projects in the space.
No registration is necessary!
Reach out to alice@bostonfoodforest.org with questions.
Leland Cooperative Garden Monthly Work Party
Join the Leland Cooperative Garden stewardship team for their monthly Work Party!
Hosted on the third Saturday of each month from 10:30-3:30pm, Leland Work Parties are filled with garden work, planting, harvesting, weeding, and general community fun outdoors!
All are welcome — no previous experience or registration required.
Gardening clothes and gloves are encouraged!
Email lelandgardeninfo@gmail.com with any questions.
Winter Pruning for Fruit Trees Workshop
Join BFFC at the Boston Nature Center Food Forest for a 3-hour, hands-on workshop on winter pruning for fruit trees.
Learn the *why* behind winter pruning, as well as the methods, approaches, considerations, and tools needed. This three-hour workshop will be a mix of explanation, demonstration, and hands-on practice. No experience is necessary. Just bring your pruning questions, and a pair of garden gloves if you have them!
This workshop will be led by Ben Crouch of Land of Plenty Organics. Ben has been teaching tree pruning with BFFC for years, and is an expert in fruit tree care and maintenance.
**Rain date is Sunday, March 24th.
48th Annual Gardeners Gathering
Celebrate the start of the gardening season! The 48th Annual Gardeners’ Gathering brings Boston-area growers of all kinds together for a free day full of informative workshops, engaging exhibitors, networking, and inspiration.
In honor of the 50th anniversary of Mel King’s Massachusetts Gardening and Farm Act, the Gathering will focus on celebrating our invaluable legacy gardeners, taking a look back on the incredible community growing work in Boston over the last half a century.
This event is organized by the Trustees, and is free and open to all.
Winter Pruning for Fruit Trees Workshop
Join BFFC at the Ellington Street Community Food Forest Garden for Winter Pruning for Fruit Trees Workshop.
Learn the *why* behind winter pruning, as well as the methods, approaches, considerations, and tools needed. This three-hour workshop will be a mix of explanation, demonstration, and hands-on practice. No experience is necessary. Just bring your pruning questions, and a pair of garden gloves if you have them!
This workshop will be led by Ben Crouch of Land of Plenty Organics. Ben has been teaching tree pruning with BFFC for years, and is an expert in fruit tree care and maintenance.
*Content in this workshop will be the same as the content in the 2/10 workshop of the same name.
**Rain date is Sunday, February 18th.
Winter Pruning for Fruit Trees Workshop
Join BFFC at the Boston Nature Center Food Forest for Winter Pruning for Fruit Trees Workshop.
Learn the *why* behind winter pruning, as well as the methods, approaches, considerations, and tools needed. This three-hour workshop will be a mix of explanation, demonstration, and hands-on practice. No experience is necessary. Just bring your pruning questions, and a pair of garden gloves if you have them!
This workshop will be led by Ben Crouch of Land of Plenty Organics. Ben has been teaching tree pruning with BFFC for years, and is an expert in fruit tree care and maintenance.
*Content in this workshop will be the same as the content in the 2/17 workshop of the same name.
**Rain date is Sunday, February 11th.
Maple & Walnut Sugaring Workshop
Join BFFC for a winter workshop: Maple & Walnut Sugaring!
Learn the basics of the sugaring process, including identifying suitable trees to tap and tapping and collecting. We’ll also explore storage techniques, tips on boiling down and diluting sap into sweet syrup, and other maple/walnut sugar products.
The process of making maple syrup allows for endless creativity, so we’ll discuss what kind of professional and ‘lying-around-the-house’ kind of equipment you can use to tap, as well as how to conceptualize what a feasible tapping and boiling setup might look like for you.
*Rain date: Saturday, February 24th, 1-3pm, same location.
Leland Cooperative Garden Monthly Work Party
Join the Leland Cooperative Garden stewardship team for their monthly Work Party!
Hosted on the third Saturday of each month from 10:30-3pm, Leland Work Parties are filled with garden work, planting, harvesting, weeding, and general community fun outdoors!
All are welcome — no previous experience or registration required.
Gardening clothes and gloves are encouraged!
Email lelandgardeninfo@gmail.com with any questions.
Resting the Land & Seasonal Celebration
Join the stewards of the Old West Church Food Forest for a resting of the land and seasonal celebration event. We’ll join together to close out the 2023 season through some hands-on work and shared acknowledgement toward the gifts from the land this year.
No registration is necessary and all are welcome.
Leland Cooperative Garden Monthly Work Party
Join the Leland Cooperative Garden stewardship team for their monthly Work Party!
Hosted on the third Saturday of each month from 10:30-3pm, Leland Work Parties are filled with garden work, planting, harvesting, weeding, and general community fun outdoors!
All are welcome — no previous experience or registration required.
Gardening clothes and gloves are encouraged!
Email lelandgardeninfo@gmail.com with any questions.
Fruit Tree Pruning Workshop
Join the stewards at the Old West Church Food Forest for a workshop on pruning fruit trees ahead of winter. This workshop will be led by BFFC Landscaper & Food Forest Builder, Shannon Borucke. We’ll cover why we prune, considerations for pruning, and we’ll all get some hands-on practice.
No registration necessary — all are welcome.
Email tye@bostonfoodforest.org with any questions.
Community Work Day — Ellington Street (UPDATED DATE)
Join BFFC at the Ellington Street Community Food Forest Garden in Dorchester for a community work day!
Projects may include caring for fruit trees, tending to plant guilds, cleaning up pathways, weeding, harvesting, winterizing, and more. Please bring work gloves, and wear clothes you’re prepared to get dirty. Tools will be provided!
No registration is required — all are welcome!
Email tye@bostonfoodforest.org with any questions.
Community Work Day — Hope Garden
Join BFFC at Hope Garden in Dorchester for a community work day!
Projects may include caring for fruit trees, tending to plant guilds, cleaning up pathways, weeding, harvesting, winterizing, and more. Please bring work gloves, and wear clothes you’re prepared to get dirty. Tools will be provided!
No registration is required — all are welcome!
Email tye@bostonfoodforest.org with any questions.
Herbalism Workshop
Join the stewards at the Old West Church Food Forest for this workshop on herbs that support relaxation and restoration of the mind, body and soul.
We’ll learn about about herbs that have a calming and restorative effect on the body, the growing habits and tendencies of some common herb species, how to support different plants, and how to respectfully harvest and use them as medicine or food. We’ll drink some tea too!
Some herbs we will cover during this session include lemon balm, mint, sage, lavender, blue vervain, holy basil, and more!
This workshop will be led by Lauren Almquist, founder of Heartspace Herbals & Garden Design. Lauren is an herbalist, garden designer, and a steward at the Boston Nature Center Food Forest.
No registration necessary — all are welcome!
Leland Cooperative Garden Monthly Work Party
Join the Leland Cooperative Garden stewardship team for their monthly Work Party!
Hosted on the third Saturday of each month from 10:30-3pm, Leland Work Parties are filled with garden work, planting, harvesting, weeding, and general community fun outdoors!
All are welcome — no previous experience or registration required.
Gardening clothes and gloves are encouraged!
Email lelandgardeninfo@gmail.com with any questions.
Preserving Our Bounty: Jamming & Canning Workshop (INDOORS IF RAINY)
Join the stewards at the Old West Church Food Forest for this exciting seasonal workshop offering!
We’ll explore the process of preserving seasonal fruits and veggies through a water-bath canning process. In this session, we’ll make peach-pepper jam with some harvest from the food forest. (All jamming and canning materials will be provided.)
The workshop will be led by Taina Vargas of Sankofa Anacaona Botanicals. Taina is an herbalist, gardener, and educator.
No registration necessary — all are welcome!
Black Walnut Processing Workshop
Join the stewards of the Edgewater Food Forest for the annual fall Black Walnut Harvesting and Training Session!
Learn about black walnut trees as a keystone species in food forest design, and explore the steps of hulling, soaking, cracking, and enjoying the walnuts themselves. We’ll also discuss health benefits, recipe ideas, and more.
This workshop is a collaboration between Edgewater Neighborhood Association, Mattapan Food & Fitness Coalition, and Boston Food Forest Coalition.
No registration necessary — all are welcome!
Annual Nature Walk & Tea Party
Join Mattapan Food & Fitness Coalition & Mass Audubon’s Boston Nature Center for a relaxing afternoon tea party. Build relationships while walking on a beautiful Mattapan nature trail. During the walk we will collect mint, pine needles, and sumac berries to make a flavorful tea. Enjoy homemade baked goods, music, and the company of a great community! Please wear comfortable walking shoes.
All ages are welcome! (Free participation for all.)
Leland Garden Harvest Hoopla
Join the community of the Leland Cooperative Garden for their annual fall party and fundraiser: the Harvest Hoopla! You can expect food, drink, games, music, performances, and a fundraising raffle with prizes donated by generous local businesses and community members. No RSVP is necessary, and all are welcome!
Email lelandgardeninfo@gmail.com with any questions.
*Rain date is Sunday, September 17th from 1-5pm.
Leland Cooperative Garden Monthly Work Party
Join the Leland Cooperative Garden stewardship team for their monthly Work Party!
Hosted on the third Saturday of each month from 10:30-3pm, Leland Work Parties are filled with garden work, planting, harvesting, weeding, and general community fun outdoors!
All are welcome — no previous experience or registration required.
Gardening clothes and gloves are encouraged!
Email lelandgardeninfo@gmail.com with any questions.
Leland Cooperative Garden Monthly Work Party
Join the Leland Cooperative Garden stewardship team for their monthly Work Party!
Hosted on the third Saturday of each month from 10:30-3pm, Leland Work Parties are filled with garden work, planting, harvesting, weeding, and general community fun outdoors!
All are welcome — no previous experience or registration required.
Gardening clothes and gloves are encouraged!
Email lelandgardeninfo@gmail.com with any questions.
OWC Food Forest Volunteer Day
Every Saturday from 10-12pm (except holiday weekends).
Join the stewardship team of the Old West Church Food Forest for their regular Saturday Volunteer Workdays, held each Saturday from 10-12 pm (except for holiday weekends). Projects may include tending to the annual crop beds, maintaining the pollinator garden, pruning fruits trees, planting, harvesting, and more.
All are welcome! No need to register — just arrive ready to get your hands in the dirt.
OWC Food Forest Volunteer Day
Every Saturday from 10-12pm (except holiday weekends).
Join the stewardship team of the Old West Church Food Forest for their regular Saturday Volunteer Workdays, held each Saturday from 10-12 pm (except for holiday weekends). Projects may include tending to the annual crop beds, maintaining the pollinator garden, pruning fruits trees, planting, harvesting, and more.
All are welcome! No need to register — just arrive ready to get your hands in the dirt.
Boston Nature Center Food Forest New Volunteer Orientation Day
First Wednesday of every month from 6-8pm at the BNC Food Forest.
Interested in volunteering? We would love to have you join us!
The first 30 minutes of this session will include a tour of the site, introduction to how we are organized, and ways to get involved. After that, we’ll get our hands dirty with some projects in the food forest. Projects may include wedding, watering, planting...and eating plants!
All supplies including gloves will be provided. Please bring water and some clothes you don't mind getting dirty.
All skill levels are welcome. No registration necessary!
Uphams Corner Food Forest Community Work Day
Join BFFC at the Uphams Corner Food Forest in Dorchester for a community work day!
Projects may include caring for fruit trees, tending to plant guilds, cleaning up pathways, weeding, harvesting, and more. And, participate in helping to plan a fall workshop at this site.
No registration is required. Please bring work gloves, and wear clothes you’re prepared to get dirty. Tools will be provided!
Email tye@bostonfoodforest.org with any questions.
OWC Food Forest Volunteer Day
Every Saturday from 10-12pm (except holiday weekends).
Join the stewardship team of the Old West Church Food Forest for their regular Saturday Volunteer Workdays, held each Saturday from 10-12 pm (except for holiday weekends). Projects may include tending to the annual crop beds, maintaining the pollinator garden, pruning fruits trees, planting, harvesting, and more.
All are welcome! No need to register — just arrive ready to get your hands in the dirt.
OWC Food Forest Volunteer Day
Every Saturday from 10-12pm (except holiday weekends).
Join the stewardship team of the Old West Church Food Forest for their regular Saturday Volunteer Workdays, held each Saturday from 10-12 pm (except for holiday weekends). Projects may include tending to the annual crop beds, maintaining the pollinator garden, pruning fruits trees, planting, harvesting, and more.
All are welcome! No need to register — just arrive ready to get your hands in the dirt.