It looks like the first week in November is the new peak foliage point in Boston.
"In order for the light to shine so brightly, the darkness must be present." Francis Bacon
About Today in Boston: We keep hearing that people miss our cover photos that ran for years in the Back Bay Sun. That assignment was to provide a photo that showed what the week was like in the neighborhood. Often the photos illustrated favorite quotations. Today in Boston is an occasional offering to our BostonZest readers featuring photos along the same theme but taken wherever we happen to be.
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It looks like the first week in November is the new peak foliage point in Boston.
"In order for the light to shine so brightly, the darkness must be present." Francis Bacon
About Today in Boston: We keep hearing that people miss our cover photos that ran for years in the Back Bay Sun. That assignment was to provide a photo that showed what the week was like in the neighborhood. Often the photos illustrated favorite quotations. Today in Boston is an occasional offering to our BostonZest readers featuring photos along the same theme but taken wherever we happen to be.
Do you have an Amazon Gift Certificate to use? Or do you need to buy one for a gift? Remember to click over to Amazon from here to support this site!
"Gardeners instinctively know that flowers and plants are a continuum and that the wheel of garden history will always be coming full circle." Francis Cabot Lowell
About Today in Boston: We keep hearing that people miss our cover photos that ran for years in the Back Bay Sun. That assignment was to provide a photo that showed what the week was like in the neighborhood. Often the photos illustrated favorite quotations. Today in Boston is an occasional offering to our BostonZest readers featuring photos along the same theme but taken wherever we happen to be.
Do you have an Amazon Gift Certificate to use? Or do you need to buy one for a gift? Remember to click over to Amazon from here to support this site!
"Gardeners instinctively know that flowers and plants are a continuum and that the wheel of garden history will always be coming full circle." Francis Cabot Lowell
About Today in Boston: We keep hearing that people miss our cover photos that ran for years in the Back Bay Sun. That assignment was to provide a photo that showed what the week was like in the neighborhood. Often the photos illustrated favorite quotations. Today in Boston is an occasional offering to our BostonZest readers featuring photos along the same theme but taken wherever we happen to be.
Do you have an Amazon Gift Certificate to use? Or do you need to buy one for a gift? Remember to click over to Amazon from here to support this site!
On a popular travel site, a visitor from the Midwest asked the local volunteers why information about tides was included in so much media. He or she wanted to know why we needed this information and what we did with it.
Unlike some bodies of water with minimal tides, we can have some pretty substantial changes in water depth when the tide flows in and out. Above is a house we rent on Provincetown Harbor, pictured at low tide. You can see the marks on the seawall and on the piles that support the deck showing a more than 12-foot change in water depth.
Here is what happens to that sandy stretch alongside the house at high tide.
Add a storm and you had better be prepared. Here's a post we wrote after spending a stormy day in this house:
When you are at the helm of a boat, you had better know the tides. In some cases, your boat may be aground for part of the tidal span. Or you may have to anchor it in a part of the harbor that is deep enough to allow it to float even at low tide.
You also need to check your charts and know the depth of your keel to know where you can and cannot go on a given tide. For many years, we sailed on a catamaran that allowed us to pull up the dagger boards and slip over sandbars that would ground other vessels.
If you paddle your boat or row the direction of the tide in or out, it will make your workout harder or easier.
Occupational Needs
Many of the people who provide us with all that delicious New England seafood depend on tide charts and tide reports to schedule their workdays. The same is true for contractors who work on seawalls and piers.
Recreation
Some beaches, like those on Provincetown Harbor, are better for walking at low tide than swimming. Our dog Poppy loves to walk the beach. At high tide, we take her to the stairway and show her that instead of sand at the bottom of the steps, there is water half way up the flight. We schedule her longest walk of the day for low tide.
Climate Change and Real Estate
As waters rise, the potential maximum high tide surge is becoming an issue in real estate matters. The FEMA flood plane maps have recently been revised and requirements for flood insurance will follow those guidelines. Property values in areas impacted by increased storm surges will eventually change. You want to know all about the tides in any area where you might be considering a purchase of property.
My preferred information source is a Tide App for my phone. In fact, I have two installed. I use TideApp most often because it is simple and clear and gives me a calendar that I can use to plan ahead for sailing, clam digging, or walking Poppy on the beach.
I like Tides Near Me because it gives me a map option to help pinpoint the tide measurement station.
Do you have an Amazon Gift Certificate to use? Or do you need to buy one for a gift? Remember to click over to Amazon from here to support this site!
On a popular travel site, a visitor from the Midwest asked the local volunteers why information about tides was included in so much media. He or she wanted to know why we needed this information and what we did with it.
Unlike some bodies of water with minimal tides, we can have some pretty substantial changes in water depth when the tide flows in and out. Above is a house we rent on Provincetown Harbor, pictured at low tide. You can see the marks on the seawall and on the piles that support the deck showing a more than 12-foot change in water depth.
Here is what happens to that sandy stretch alongside the house at high tide.
Add a storm and you had better be prepared. Here's a post we wrote after spending a stormy day in this house:
When you are at the helm of a boat, you had better know the tides. In some cases, your boat may be aground for part of the tidal span. Or you may have to anchor it in a part of the harbor that is deep enough to allow it to float even at low tide.
You also need to check your charts and know the depth of your keel to know where you can and cannot go on a given tide. For many years, we sailed on a catamaran that allowed us to pull up the dagger boards and slip over sandbars that would ground other vessels.
If you paddle your boat or row the direction of the tide in or out, it will make your workout harder or easier.
Occupational Needs
Many of the people who provide us with all that delicious New England seafood depend on tide charts and tide reports to schedule their workdays. The same is true for contractors who work on seawalls and piers.
Recreation
Some beaches, like those on Provincetown Harbor, are better for walking at low tide than swimming. Our dog Poppy loves to walk the beach. At high tide, we take her to the stairway and show her that instead of sand at the bottom of the steps, there is water half way up the flight. We schedule her longest walk of the day for low tide.
Climate Change and Real Estate
As waters rise, the potential maximum high tide surge is becoming an issue in real estate matters. The FEMA flood plane maps have recently been revised and requirements for flood insurance will follow those guidelines. Property values in areas impacted by increased storm surges will eventually change. You want to know all about the tides in any area where you might be considering a purchase of property.
My preferred information source is a Tide App for my phone. In fact, I have two installed. I use TideApp most often because it is simple and clear and gives me a calendar that I can use to plan ahead for sailing, clam digging, or walking Poppy on the beach.
I like Tides Near Me because it gives me a map option to help pinpoint the tide measurement station.
Do you have an Amazon Gift Certificate to use? Or do you need to buy one for a gift? Remember to click over to Amazon from here to support this site!
After last weekend's tropical rain and the first warning of frost in our area, gardeners began moving the Public Garden tropical plants to their greenhouse winter quarters in Franklin Park.
Standing guard over the plants is gardener Josh Altidor. You can read more about him and his love for his job in this Boston Globe article. He told the Globe, “I want the design to be eye-catching.” He certainly caught our eyes this year. (And, from the number of photos in our files of his flower bed designs, he caught our camera lenses too!)
Bed-by-bed the plants were lifted and set in neat rows on the back of Parks Department trucks for the ride across town.
Once upon a time, the Victorian tropical plants would have been walked to the greenhouse that was once located on the Beacon Street side of the Public Garden. The 1862 Public Garden photo above is from the Boston Public Library's collection.
Here's a photo (circa 1924) of the palm greenhouse at Franklin Park also from the Boston Public Library's collection.
Be ready for a change of scene on your next visit to Boston's gem of a park. It's time for the fall foliage and mums to take over the spotlight. And, before you know it the caretakers will tuck in the flower beds for winter.
Do you have an Amazon Gift Certificate to use? Or do you need to buy one for a gift? Remember to click over to Amazon from here to support this site!
After last weekend's tropical rain and the first warning of frost in our area, gardeners began moving the Public Garden tropical plants to their greenhouse winter quarters in Franklin Park.
Standing guard over the plants is gardener Josh Altidor. You can read more about him and his love for his job in this Boston Globe article. He told the Globe, “I want the design to be eye-catching.” He certainly caught our eyes this year. (And, from the number of photos in our files of his flower bed designs, he caught our camera lenses too!)
Bed-by-bed the plants were lifted and set in neat rows on the back of Parks Department trucks for the ride across town.
Once upon a time, the Victorian tropical plants would have been walked to the greenhouse that was once located on the Beacon Street side of the Public Garden. The 1862 Public Garden photo above is from the Boston Public Library's collection.
Here's a photo (circa 1924) of the palm greenhouse at Franklin Park also from the Boston Public Library's collection.
Be ready for a change of scene on your next visit to Boston's gem of a park. It's time for the fall foliage and mums to take over the spotlight. And, before you know it the caretakers will tuck in the flower beds for winter.
Do you have an Amazon Gift Certificate to use? Or do you need to buy one for a gift? Remember to click over to Amazon from here to support this site!
When we think of autumn colors in New England, we conjure up images of reds, yellows, and brilliant oranges. But, with this year's drought, we may be seeing russets and browns. Here's a link to the drought map to give you some idea of the places where colors will be weak.
On my morning walks this week, I've only seen a few hints of bright color on trees, even in well watered gardens.
In most cases, the trees are turning a russet brown.
Obviously trees are suffering in places where no one cares for them. This week's rain will help, but making a habit of watering the trees in your area into November would help even more!
When we think of autumn colors in New England, we conjure up images of reds, yellows, and brilliant oranges. But, with this year's drought, we may be seeing russets and browns. Here's a link to the drought map to give you some idea of the places where colors will be weak.
On my morning walks this week, I've only seen a few hints of bright color on trees, even in well watered gardens.
In most cases, the trees are turning a russet brown.
Obviously trees are suffering in places where no one cares for them. This week's rain will help, but making a habit of watering the trees in your area into November would help even more!
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