Village Condominium Association
The Village Winter Landscape
by J. F. Weiler
Yay! The Winter Solstice has come and the days are getting longer. Winter is a time to enjoy the Village evergreens. My favorites are the rhododendrons, which are my winter outdoor thermometer. The tighter the curl of the leaf, the colder the temperature! This is my 30th Garden Column. I still see new and interesting landscape details as I walk around the Village grounds.
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| Rhododendron leaves at 40 degrees F. Photos by J.F. Weiler |
Rhododendron leaves at 30 degrees F. |
Nearby Favorite Parks
Garden Stake Sculpture, Urban Arboretum, The Greenway, Nov. 2011.
Photo by
J.F. Weiler
The Rose Kennedy Greenway was created after Boston’s Big Dig put the
1950s six-lane Central Artery underground. Now the 1.5-mile long, 15 acre
space has been transformed into Boston’s newest major park. The Greenway
stretching from North Station to Chinatown is composed of many small, uniquely
designed parks. Some of my favorite spots include the Urban Arboretum, the
Light Blades, Children’s Carousel and a fun selection of upscale food
vendors.
Visit www.RoseKennedyGreenway.org for more information.
South West Corridor Park, Nov. 2011.
Photo by
J.F. Weiler
The Southwest Corridor Park stretches from the Back Bay's Dartmouth
Street to Forest Hills. The park is 5 miles long and provides 52 acres of landscape
and recreation facilities, including many community vegetable gardens. The
park was the result of communities' rejecting plans for a twelve-lane highway.
The park offers great walks with some spectacular views of Boston.
Book Review
Boston’s Gardens & Green Spaces, recently written by Belmont resident Meg Muckenhoupt, is an excellent guide to all the Boston and suburban area parks. Meg describes the Emerald Necklace, the Harbor Walk, The Greenway, small pocket parks, urban wilds and gardens for healing. It is a comprehensive, heavily illustrated book with lots of parks I have never heard of. Reading her book makes you realize that Boston has continuously built and valued parks from colonial times to today. Two thumbs up. Well worth checking out.
Written for the Jan. 2012 Village Newsletter.