June 17 | Bromeliad Society Meeting
topic: Shades of Chantinii
speaker: Alan Herndon
location:  Fairchild Tropical Garden, 10901 Old Cutler Road, Miami, FL  33156
time: 7:30 PM
web: http://www.bssf-miami.org/

A photo essay on the tremendous variation seen within 'Aechmea chantinii'.  Alan Herndon, a native southern Floridian, is a longtime cog in the success of the BSSF -- chairman of our annual sale, author of an informative monthly column in the BromeliAdvisory, and immediate past treasurer of our organization.  He is also well-known in worldwide plant circles through his contributions to the Bromeliad Society International.  Alan and his wife, Rhonda, own Tradewinds Tropicals nursery, and in their spare time, they have taught their dogs to catch squirrels.

June 20 | The M-Path: An Urban Oasis  Panel & Luncheon
time: 12:00 pm – 2:00 pm
location: Miami Center for Architecture and Design | 100 NE 1st Avenue | Miami, FL 33132
Cost: $20 in advance, $25 at the door (reduced rate for APA FL and AIA members)
Contact: Gold Coast Section 305-389-4737
web: http://www.floridaplanning.org/june-m-path-month-gold-coast/

Join the Gold Coast Chapter of the American Planning Associations at their new home at the Miami Center for Architecture and Design (MCAD), for the second event of M-Path Month! A panel of experts will discuss a possible transformation of the M-Path, the corridor that runs from Dadeland South station to Brickell stations under the Metrorail, into a first-rate urban greenway. Hear from them about the elements that make up great urban spaces in cities around the US, and what it may take to bring about a similar vision for Miami’s M-Path.

MCAD is located three blocks east of Government Center MetroRail Station. We encourage you to take transit. If you must drive, parking lots and garages are available on NE 2nd Street.

The panel includes:
Rocco Ceo, Professor, University of Miami School of Architecture
Meg Daly, Founder, Friends of the GreenLink
Anthony Garcia, Principal, The Street Plans Collaborative
Maria Nardi, Chief, Planning & Research Division, MDC Parks, Recreation and Open Spaces
Isabel Padron, PE, Chief, Design & Engineering Division, Miami-Dade Transit

Moderator:  Anamarie Garces, Executive Director, Urban Health Partnership

Register today! Boxed lunches are offered through registration, and advance registration gets you a discount.

June 21 | The Miami Design Charette
time: 8am - 5pm
address: The Light Box | 404 NW 26th Street | Miami, FL 33127
website: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/the-miami-design-charette-tickets-11683715307

The Miami Design Charette will be held on Saturday, June 21st in the Wynwood Arts District. This event offers the unique opportunity to shape a vision for smart and sustainable growth across Miami Dade county, offering key strategies to cope with the imminent threats of our time: rising seas, diminishing resources and an increasing population. Workshop participants will consider how to accommodate the county’s ever-growing population, while continuing to protect vital environmental resources and providing residents with higher quality of life.

Join the group for a fun and dynamic day: start with a bike tour of Wynwood, refuel on Panther Coffee while listening to local experts over breakfast, feast on local & organic lunch, and bring your ideas and solutions to the table as you focus on the challenges in your community! We will close the evening with a Happy Hour at Gramps.

March 24 | Tropical Fern and Exotic Plant Society
topic: Botanical Gardens:  The Good, the Great & the Weird
location: Fairchild Tropical Garden, 10901 Old Cutler Road, Miami, FL  33156
time: 7:30 PM
web: http://tfeps.org

March 25 | East Everglades Orchid Society
location: UF Miami-Dade
County Extension 18710 SW 288th ST
date: Fourth Tuesday of
each month
time: • Mini-class - 7:15 p.m. • General meeting
& program - 8:00 p.m.
web: www.orchidseeos.com

March 26 | Redland Tropical Fruit & Vegetable Society
topic: New topic and speaker each month
location: Fruit and Spice Park | 24801 SW 187 Avenue | Homestead, FL 33031
date: Last Wednesday of each month
time: 7:30 pm
web: Facebook

March 30 | Garden Dialogues: Oak Garden at Silver Bluff
Get exclusive access to private gardens in Miami and Palm Beach and hear directly from the landscape architects and designers about their collaborative process. How do clients and
designers work together? What makes for a great, enduring collaboration? The Cultural Landscape
Foundation's Garden Dialogues provides unique opportunities for small groups to visit some of
today’s most beautiful gardens created by some of the most accomplished landscape designers currently in practice.

Oak Garden at Silver Bluff
date/time: Sunday, March 30th | 5:00 to 7:00pm
location: Coconut Grove, Florida
Designer: Carlos Somoza of Carlos Somoza Landscape Design

Perched atop an ancient limestone ridge, Oak Garden was created beneath the canopy of two dozen, mature Southern Live Oak trees.  Visitors will tour three outdoor rooms: entrance garden, secret garden and pool terrace. Each garden is embraced by drifts of native flora, accented with subtropical vegetation that create a distinct plant palette and garden narrative.

March 18 | Bromeliad Society Meeting
speaker: Dr. Terrie Bart
topic: Ostentatious and Picturesque Bromeliad  Genera, Part II
location:  Fairchild Tropical Garden, 10901 Old Cutler Road, Miami, FL  33156
time: 7:30 PM
web: http://www.bssf-miami.org/

Dr. Terrie Bert is a longstanding member of the  Sarasota Bromeliad Society and the Caloosahatchee Bromeliad Society and has held  multiple offices. She also served the Florida Council of Bromeliad Societies  (FCBS) as a representative and officer for eight years.  For the
Bromeliad  Society International, she has been a Florida Director and chaired several  international committees. Shecurrently is Librarian, Curator of the Wally Berg  of Excellence, and an internationally accredited Master Judge. She's given over  100 presentations on bromeliads to numerous U.S. and international bromeliad  societies and other groups. She has authored articles for the BSI Journal and  the FCBS newsletter. She cultivates more than 2,000 different bromeliads in 24  genera. She's won multiple top awards in local bromeliad shows and BSI world  conferences and is a volunteer for and contributor to the BSI Bromeliad  Identification Center. Terrie has a Ph. D in marine biology and is research  scientist for he Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. 

March 20 | Kampong Garden Lecture
topic: David Fairchild in the South Florida Landscape
speaker: Patricia Houle, M.S, FIU Department of Earth and  Environment
time: Reception 6:30 p.m. | Lecture 7:00 p.m.
rsvp: 305-442-7169 or email [email protected]

March 22/29/30 | Garden Dialogues: Miami + Palm Beach
Get exclusive access to private gardens in Miami and Palm Beach and hear directly from the landscape architects and designers about their collaborative process. How do clients and designers work together? What makes for a great, enduring collaboration? The Cultural Landscape Foundation's Garden Dialogues provides unique opportunities for small
groups to visit some of today’s most beautiful gardens created by some of the
most accomplished landscape designers currently in practice.

Palm Beach Residence
date/time: Saturday, March 22th, 10:30 to 11:30am
location: Palm Beach, Florida
Designer: Keith Williams of Nievera Williams Landscape Architecture

This elegant and exotic British West Indies style estate was an empty lot just two years ago. The home has three gardens that feature tropical, drought-tolerant plants rich in texture, color and foliage, with an emphasis on sustainability. The front garden has succulents and uses minima instead of lawn, the back garden allows for entertaining, dining and swimming, while the “secret garden” – which the owners consider an intimate work of art – fulfills the quest to see a garden from every first floor window and door.

The Breakers Palm Beach
date/time: Saturday, March 29th |10:00 to 11:30am
location: One North Breakers Row | Palm Beach, Florida
Designer: Gregory Lombardi of Gregory Lombardi Landscape Design
 
A spectacular resort destination on Florida’s Atlantic coast and listed on the National Register of Historic Places, The Breakers Palm Beach has lured generations of discerning travelers to its idyllic, Italian-Renaissance setting. Gregory Lombardi Design has been honored to work with The Breakers since 2005 on its landscape revitalization and expansion initiative, redesigning key areas and collaborating with The Breakers’ team to preserve, conserve and restore the prevalence of native plants throughout the resort property

Oak Garden at Silver Bluff
date/time: Sunday, March 30th | 5:00 to 7:00pm
location: Coconut Grove, Florida
Designer: Carlos Somoza of Carlos Somoza Landscape Design

Perched atop an ancient limestone ridge, Oak Garden was created beneath the canopy of two dozen, mature Southern Live Oak trees.  Visitors will tour three outdoor rooms:
entrance garden, secret garden and pool terrace. Each garden is embraced by drifts of native flora, accented with subtropical vegetation that create a distinct plant palette and garden narrative.

March 22 | Florida Native Plant Day
time: 9am-4pm 
location: Elaine Gordon Enchanted Forest Park
address: 1725 NE 135 Street, North Miami, FL
web: http://www.dade.fnpschapters.org/

The Dade Chapter of the Florida Native Plant Society invites you to its 19th Native Plant Day.  The annual public outreach and education day will have activities for all ages including walks, programs, plants and merchandise for sale, raffles and more.  Bring your family and friends to enjoy this free day of fun and learning about native Florida plants and landscapes.

March 10 | Tropical Flowering Tree Society Meeting
location: Fairchild Tropical Garden | 10901 Old Cutler Road | Miami, FL 33156
speaker: Debra DeMarco of DDM Horticulture
room: Corbin Building, classroom "A"
time: 7:30 pm
web:  www.tfts.org/

About the speaker: Debra A. DeMarco, B.S., Ornamental Horticulture, is  the owner of  D.D.M. Horticulture Services, Inc. in South Miami, Florida. She is a horticulturist knowledgeable in plant materials from Zone 4 to Zone 10b.  A graduate of Delaware Valley College of Science and Agriculture   (Doylestown, Pennsylvania), she has taken additional business and   professional courses at both Clunyhill College and Harvard University.   Debra has been received the first place award for landscape display   excellence for the Philadelphia Flower Show. DDM has received eight   awards and Recognitions from the FNGA Landscape Award Program.

March 12-13 | Vizcaya Moonlight Garden Tours
time: 6:30PM
contact: 305.860.8423
location: 3251 South Miami Avenue, Miami, Florida
web: http://vizcaya.org/programs-moonlightgarden-tours.asp

Vizcaya's bayfront gardens are breathtaking by day, don't miss the chance to see them transformed
by the glow of a bright Miami moon. With live music in the Courtyard, the allure of Italian-inspired gardens and delicious temptations available in the Cafe & Shop. Tickets $18; $12 for Members, Students and Seniors; available onsite only from 6:00-8:00 p.m. on the evening of the program. 

March 13 | South Dade Garden Club Meeting
location: Fruit and Spice Park | 24801 SW 187 Ave | Homestead, Florida 33031
date: Second Thursday of each month
time: 7:00pm
web: www.miamifruitandspicepark.com

March 13| Herbs and Medicinal Plants with David McLean
location: Miami Beach Botanic Garden
address: 2000 Convention Center Drive | Miami Beach, FL 33139
time: 6pm - 8pm     
web: Miami Beach Botanical Garden

Join one of the Miami Beach Botanical Garden’s most  popular speakers for an intro to
herbs and medicinal plants that you can grow in  South Florida. Nurseryman and landscape designer, David McLean has spoken previously at the Garden on topics such  as balcony and container gardening, and is known for his wit and extensive practical knowledge of plants that everyone
can relate to.  In this discussion,  David will share a list of 20 “A to Z” plants with healing properties, from  medicine cabinet staples such as aloe for sunburns, to fun and flirty aphrodisiacs such as saw palmetto for increased sex drive.

Participants will get a chance during the lecture to purchase all of the plants David touches upon, so you can go home ready to immediately plant your own medicinal garden. Each participant will also receive  one aloe plant grown at the Miami Beach Botanical Garden, and one tilo plant grown
by David McLean. Tilo plants (Justicia pectoralis) is used to reduce fevers, and also makes an excellent shade groundcover.

March 15/22/29/30 | Garden Dialogues: Miami + Palm Beach
Get exclusive access to private gardens in Miami and Palm Beach and hear directly from the landscape architects and designers about their collaborative process. How do clients and designers work together? What makes for a great, enduring collaboration? The Cultural Landscape Foundation's Garden Dialogues provides unique opportunities for small groups to visit some of today’s most beautiful gardens created by some of the most accomplished landscape designers
currently in practice.

Biscayne Bay  Water Garden
date/time: Saturday, March 15th | 5:00 to 6:30pm
location: Sunset Islands,  Miami, Florida
designer: Margie Ruddick of Margie Ruddick Landscape Design

This island retreat  begins with a fantastical landscape of royal palms and lush tropical plantings centered on an environmental artwork. There are two wild gardens leading to the bay - and a luxurious swimming pool in a water garden, with floating terraces. 

Palm Beach Residence
date/time: Saturday, March 22th, 10:30 to 11:30am
location: Palm Beach, Florida
Designer: Keith Williams of Nievera Williams Landscape Architecture

This elegant and exotic British West Indies style estate was an empty lot just two years ago. The home has three gardens that feature tropical, drought-tolerant plants rich in texture, color and
foliage, with an emphasis on sustainability. The front garden has succulents and  uses minima instead of lawn, the back garden allows for entertaining, dining and swimming, while the “secret garden” – which the owners consider an intimate work of art – fulfills the quest to see a garden from every first floor window and door.

The Breakers Palm Beach
date/time: Saturday, March 29th |10:00 to 11:30am
location: One North Breakers Row | Palm Beach, Florida
Designer: Gregory Lombardi of Gregory Lombardi Landscape Design

A spectacular resort destination on Florida’s Atlantic coast and listed on the National Register of Historic Places, The Breakers Palm Beach has lured generations of discerning travelers to its
idyllic, Italian-Renaissance setting. Gregory Lombardi Design has been honored to work with The Breakers since 2005 on its landscape revitalization and expansion initiative, redesigning key areas and collaborating with The Breakers’ team to preserve, conserve and restore the prevalence of native plants throughout the resort property

Oak Garden at Silver Bluff
date/time: Sunday, March 30th | 5:00 to 7:00pm
location: Coconut Grove, Florida
Designer: Carlos Somoza of Carlos Somoza Landscape Design

Perched atop an ancient limestone ridge, Oak Garden was created beneath the canopy of two dozen, mature Southern Live Oak trees.  Visitors will tour three outdoor rooms: entrance garden, secret garden and pool terrace. Each garden is embraced by drifts of native flora, accented with subtropical vegetation that create a distinct plant palette and garden narrative.

March 15 | 2014 Annual Tour of Miami Beach Gardens
location: Miami Beach Botanic Garden
address: 2000 Convention Center Drive | Miami Beach, FL 33139
time: 10am - 3pm      
web: Miami Beach Botanical Garden
tickets: $25/members, $30/non-members   

Explore the alluring private gardens of Miami Beach this spring with the Miami Beach Botanical Garden. Bike or drive to six hidden oases, each with its own inspiring character and taste. Tour
participants are  invited to indulge in a special day at the Miami Beach Botanical Garden the day of the tour as well.  From 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. enjoy fresh produce at the  gardenside farmers market, food trucks, live music by Broken Tenure and the Gems & Junque rummage sale.  

March 15 | International Migratory Bird Day
address: Tropical Audubon Society | 530 Sunset Dr.  | Miami, FL 33143
organization website: www.tropicalaudubon.org
time: 10 a.m. to 2p.m.

Join the Tropical Audobon Society and learn more about living in one of the most a species-rich environments, and play a part to support bird populations in North and South America. The Society has hatched an agenda full of activities and games that will teach you and your family all about our precious feathered friends. 

Activities for participants of all ages, dynamic presentations, prizes and more!  Bring your friends, this is a free event- spread the word.  Free parking provided!

March 15 | Dinner in Paradise
organization: Paradise Farms Organic
address: 19801 SW 320th St, Homestead, Florida 33030
time: Arrive at 6PM
website: http://paradisefarms.net/dinner-in-paradise/

Dinner in Paradise at Paradise Farms features the finest chefs in Miami preparing a delicious five course meal made with local organic products and paired with fine wines. The magic and charm of the farm's lush edible landscape coupled with the finest chefs in Miami creates a uniquely
intimate dining experience under the stars.  Each year, Paradise Farm donates proceeds to a local charity or organization philosophically in line with the organization's vision of sustainable, healing, and healthy organic food. This year the farm is sponsoring “Learning in Paradise”, the farm's outreach program to host children’s field trips to the farm.

March 2 | Beautiful Streets of South Florida
speaker: Victor Dover of Dover, Kohl and Partners
location: Coral Gables Museum (next to Books and Books)
address: 285 Aragon Ave, Coral Gables, FL 33134
time: Reception 3pm | Talk 4pm
for more information: Books and Books  Website

Beautiful streets in Coral Gables, South Miami and Miami Beach are featured in the new book Street Design: The Secret to Great Cities and Towns  (Wiley, 2014). To celebrate the launch of the book, the City of Coral Gables and Books & Books are hosting a reception and book signing with local co-author and townplanner Victor Dover and other contributors at the Coral Gables Museum.  Coral Gables' Director of Planning & Zoning, Ramon Trias, will make introductory remarks.

Written by two accomplished architects and urban designers, this  user-friendly street design manual shows both how to design new streets and enhance existing ones. It offers step-by-step instruction and shares examples of excellent streets, examining the elements that make them  successful as well as how they were designed and created. Topics also  include strategies for shaping space in the public right-of-way through correct building height to street width ratios, terminated vistas,  landscaping, and street geometry. This book is a valuable resource for architects, urban
designers, landscape architects, and engineers.

With guest  essays from: Kaid Benfield, David Brussat, Javier Cenicacelaya, Hank  Dittmar, Andres Duany, Douglas Duany, Emily Glavey, Chip Kaufman, Ethan  Kent, Marieanne Khoury-Vogt,  Leon Krier, Gianni Longo, Thomas Low, Laura Lyon, Chuck Marohn, Paul Murrain, John Norquist, Stefanos Polyzoides, Gabriele Tagliaventi and Erik Vogt.

March 4 | Orchid Society of Coral Gables
location:  Fairchild Tropical Garden | 10901 Old Cutler Road | Miami, FL
room: Corbin Building, classroom "A"
date: first Tuesday of every month
time: 7:30 pm
web: www.oscgonline.org

March 2 | The Villagers’ 2014 Garden Tour: A  Cornucopia Of Gardens Tour
time: 10:00 am to 3:00 pm
where: self guided tour throughout Central Gables
tickets: $25.00 for advance orders, $30.00 on the day of the event.
more info:  Julie Petrella Arch 305-460-6030 or [email protected]

The Villagers,  a local organization dedicated to the restoration and the preservation of  historic  sites, presents its annual tour A Cornucopia of Gardens. Participants  will enjoy a garden tour of selected  homes in Coral Gables. Proceeds from the tour will fund scholarships and local  historic restoration and preservation projects. Advanced order tickets are $25 and $30 the day of the event. 
 
Tickets may be purchased the day of the event at either 6915 Granada Boulevard or at 10445 Lakeside Drive in Snapper Creek Lakes.  For more information, contact Sheila Revell at 305-335-3430 or [email protected].

February 24 | Tropical Fern and Exotic Plant Society
topic: Botanical Gardens:  The Good, the Great & the Weird
location:  Fairchild Tropical Garden, 10901 Old Cutler Road, Miami, FL  33156
time: 7:30 PM
web: http://tfeps.org

About the speaker: Dr. Maunder is Associate Dean for Research Engagement at Florida International University and Interim Director of the Kampong.  He is a graduate of the School of Horticulture at the Royal Botanic Gardens Kew and earned a Msc. And Ph.D. from the University of Reading. Mike has 25 years experience in habitat and species conservation with extensive field experience in the Middle East, Caribbean and Eastern Africa.

February 25 | Native Plant Society of Miami-Dade
topic: A New Look at the Mint Family (Lamiaceae)
speaker:  Roger Hammer
time: 7:30pm – 9:30pm  
location: Pinecrest Gardens,11000 SW 57 Ave (Red  Road), Pinecrest, FL 33156
web: http://www.dade.fnpschapters.org/

The Mint Family (Lamiaceae) has undergone some recent revisions with some members of the Verbenaceae (Verbena Family) being moved into this rather well-known plant family. Thirty-seven genera are represented by this plant family in Florida and some are widely cultivated by butterfly gardeners and even grown as potherbs to add to stews and soups or to make refreshing teas.

February 26 | Redland Tropical Fruit & Vegetable  Society
topic: New topic and speaker each month
location: Fruit and Spice Park | 24801 SW 187 Avenue | Homestead, FL 33031
date: Last Wednesday of each month
time: 7:30 pm
web: Facebook

February 27 | Landscape Architect - Raymond Jungles
topic: Roberto Burle Marx, Raymond Jungles and Recent Work
location: Fairchild Tropical Garden, 10901 Old Cutler Road,Miami, FL 33156
time: 7:00pm - 9:00pm
web: Fairchild Tropical Garden Event Website
admission: Admission is free for Fairchild Members and children 5 and younger. Non-members: $25 for adults, $18 for seniors 65 and up and $12 for children 6-17.

Award-winning  landscape architect, Raymond Jungles, will present recent works designed by his Miami-based studio and speak of the legacy and influence of Brazilian artist and landscape architect, Roberto Burle Marx on his firm's work.

February 28 | Upper Keys Garden Tour
time: 10am-4pm
web: Garden Club of the Upper Keys
location: Key Largo between mile marker 82 and mile marker 102

The Garden Club of the Upper Keys will host its 35th annual Garden Walk on Friday 28, 2014 from 10 am until 4 pm. This popular event is a self-guided tour of private tropical gardens showcasing some of the most beautiful properties in the Upper Keys. Most of these gardens are open to the public only for this one-day event.

This year’s theme is “Through the Garden Gate,” reflecting the different types of gardens seen through their opening gates. The properties include several unique and mature gardens. Located between MM 75 and MM 95, these include a garden of native, naturalized and exotic palms, some reaching 40 feet, along with an abundance of fruit and native trees. Another-- a landscape design by the homeowner -- includes native plants and trees in a salt-tolerant seascape. Behind an artist-designed, tropical-reef-scene gate, another garden is a xeriscape of native and tropical plantings covering over an acre, a garden designed to minimize water usage. Do not miss a 1950’s site in Islamorada, with palms estimated to be 100 years old and bromeliads growing 20 feet up the trees.

Participants are invited to a complimentary garden tea party at the garden club's historic Francis Tracy Garden Center (Mile Marker 94) in Tavernier featuring artisans, landscape plant sales, original art, complimentary refreshments, live music, and the Club’s gardens.  Vendors will be on site throughout the day.

Tickets for the walk are available for a $25 donation to the Garden Club of the Upper Keys and may be obtained in advance beginning February 1 at the following locations:
Key Largo Chamber of Commerce – MM 106 (Bayside)
Key Largo Florist & Gift Shop – MM 99.5 (Oceanside)
Islamorada Chamber of Commerce – MM 87 (Bayside)
The Banyan Tree – MM 81 (Oceanside)

On the day of Garden Walk 2014, tickets will also be available at the Francis Tracy Garden Center.

February 18 | Bromeliad Society  Meeting
speaker: Craig Morell, CPA
topic: Tips and Tricks of the Trade: Growing Better Bromeliads
location:  Fairchild Tropical Garden, 10901 Old Cutler Road, Miami, FL  33156
time: 7:30 PM
web: http://www.bssf-miami.org/

About the speaker:  Mr. Morell is the Horticulturist at Pinecrest Gardens. He's been renovating the Gardens since 2004, a year after the Village of Pinecrest bought the property from Parrot Jungle. A lifelong plant scrounger with a yen for epiphytes, he has a B.S. degree in Horticulture from UF-Gainesville. He previously worked as horticulturist at the Boca Raton Resort, and as manager at an orchid company in West Palm Beach proir to that. Craig is a career horticulturist, travels widely, and spends his free time orchid-gardening at home, scuba divinng, photographing nature and visiting even more gardens.  He sometimes escapes from the Gardens and is occasionally seen in public masquerading as a normal person. 

February 18 | East Everglades Orchid Society
location: UF Miami-Dade County Extension 18710 SW 288th ST
date: Fourth Tuesday of each  month
time: • Mini-class - 7:15 p.m. • General meeting & program - 8:00 p.m.
web: www.orchidseeos.com

February 20 | Landscape Architect - Walter Hood
location: Miami Center for Architecture and Design (MCAD),  100 N.E First Avenue
parking:   Miami Parking  Authority garage on NE 2nd Street & NE 2nd  Avenue.
phone:  305-448-7488
time: 6  p.m.

Walter Hood Re-Imagines Opa-locka’s Ali Baba Avenue, a lecture by Walter J. Hood, Master M.L.A. and M.Arch. Professor of Landscape Architecture & Environmental Planning and Urban Design,  UC, Berkeley. 

Walter Hood is a Professor at the University of California, Berkeley's  Landscape Architecture and Environmental Design Department, and chaired  from 1998 to 2002. He established his Oakland,
California-based studio  in 1992. His firm, Hood Design Studio, has been engaged in landscape architecture  commissions, urban design, art installations, and research for almost  twenty years. Earlier projects located in Oakland such as the Lafayette  Square and Splash Pad Parks are regarded as transformative designs for  the field of landscape architecture and urban design.

February 10 | Tropical Flowering Tree Society
location: Fairchild Tropical Garden | 10901 Old Cutler Road | Miami, FL 33156
room: Corbin Building, classroom "A"
time: 7:30 pm
web: www.tfts.org/

Rob Bobson, former President of TFTS and owner of Biospheric Engineering, a landscape design and installation company sthat specializes in rare plants and trees. His topic: "What Flowering Tree is Growing in your Yard?"

February 12-13 | Vizcaya Moonlight Garden Tours
time: 6:30PM
contact: 305.860.8423
location: 3251 South Miami Avenue, Miami, Florida

Vizcaya's bayfront gardens are breathtaking by day, don't miss the chance to see them transformed
by the glow of a bright Miami moon. With live music in the Courtyard, the allure of Italian-inspired gardens and delicious temptations available in the Cafe & Shop. Tickets $18; $12 for Members, Students and Seniors; available onsite only from 6:00-8:00 p.m. on the evening of the program. 

February 13 | Fairchild Garden Member's Lecture
topic:  From the Caribbean to the Pacific and Back Again: Exploring for plants in the 21st century
presenters:Chad Husby, Collections Manager and Botanist, Montgomery Botanical   Center, Brett
Jestrow, Herbarium Curator, FTBG, and Jason Lopez, Living   Collection Manager, FTBG
location: Fairchild Tropical Garden, 10901 Old Cutler Road,Miami, FL 33156
time: 7:00pm - 9:00pm
web: Fairchild Tropical Garden Event Website
admission: Admission  is free for  Fairchild Members and children 5 and younger. Non-members:  $25 for adults, $18 for seniors 65 and up and $12 for children 6-17.
 
Despite  centuries of exploration and horticulture, many of the world's  beautiful, unique and scientifically important tropical plants have  never been grown in a garden, or are little known in cultivation.  Working as a team from two major botanic gardens and partnering with  talented colleagues around the world, the presenters have brought back  hundreds of new tropical plants to enhance botany and horticulture in  South Florida. They will discuss  their adventures on the islands of  Hispaniola and Hawaii, and some of the exciting new plants they  collected.

Feburary 13 | South Dade Garden Club Meeting
location:  Fruit and Spice Park | 24801 SW 187 Ave | Homestead, Florida 33031
date: Second Thursday of each month
time: 7:00pm
web: www.miamifruitandspicepark.com

January 27 | Tropical Fern and Exotic Plant Society
speaker: Georgia  Tasker
topic: The Botanical Riches of Ecuador
time: 7:30pm @ Fairchild  Tropical Botanic Garden
address:  10901 Old Cutler Road. Coral Gables,  Florida

Georgia  Tasker is a writer on staff at Fairchild Tropical Botanic Gardens.  She  writes for The Tropical Garden magazine, has a blog on gardening on Fairchild’s  website, and has written 3 handbooks in her on-going series, Gardening with Fairchild.   Tasker is a passionate traveler, having  been to the Arctic and the Antarctic, Madagascar, Africa, Borneo, Papua New  Guinea, Myanmar, India, Bhutan, Nepal, Australia, China, Japan, all of Europe,  Central America and much of South America.  In this talk she will follow a small group of plant geeks as they  explore Ecuador on their summer vacation.

Prior to joining the Garden staff in 2009, Georgia was garden writer with The Miami Herald and author of 3 garden and landscape design books for South Florida. She is a graduate of Hanover College in Indiana and received the first certificate in  tropical botany from FIU in 1984. She has been awarded the Barbour Medal  from Fairchild and the first lifetime achievement award from Tropical Audubon  Society.

February 1 | Natural Beekeeping for BEEEginners
speaker: Debra Roberts
location: Kampong National Tropical Botanical Garden
address: 4013 S Douglas Rd, Miami, FL 33133
register: 305-442-7169
for more information:
http://www.urbanoasisproject.org/urban-oasis-project-1/workshops--food-crafting-garden-projects

 Join bee advocate Debra Roberts of Asheville, North Carolina, and explore honeybee basics, hive equipment and tools, good stewardship practices, how to go through a hive (without bees), and treatment-free (“natural”) beekeeping. Session tailored for BEEginners with no experience (those who think they might like to have bees in the future or just want to learn more about them). Full- day session $85 per person.

One day option: Full day, Saturday Feb 1 only, at the Kampong in Coconut Grove. 9:00 am to 5:00 pm with hour lunch break. Bring a lunch, we provide the picnic spot! Basic drinks and snacks will be available to purchase. $85 per person.

Weekend intensive option: Both full day Saturday Feb 1 at Kampong in Coconut Grove, 9-5; and half day on Sunday morning, Feb 2, 8:30 am-12 noon at Verde Farm in Homestead (includes hands-on with bees and hive). $125 per person.

Debra Roberts is a Master Beekeeper, Natural Beekeeping educator, speaker, mentor and writer. She consults and collaborates with other artists on honeybee-related projects and mentors new beekeepers in their yards, by email, Skype and phone.

January 21 | Bromeliad Society Meeting
speaker: Mike Michalski
topic: "From Quito to the Amazon - A Visual Tour"
location:  Fairchild Tropical Garden, 10901 Old Cutler Road, Miami, FL  33156
time: 7:30 PM 
web: http://www.bssf-miami.org/

The presentation will detail Mike Michalski's eight-day trip through Ecuador in June 2013.

January 24-26 | 8th Annual International Chocolate Festival
location: Fairchild  Tropical Garden, 10901 Old Cutler Road,Miami, FL 33156
time: 9:30 AM to 4:30 PM
web: Fairchild Tropical Garden Event Website

For two days guests will be immersed in the wonderful and diverse world of chocolate.  From chocolate treats to tree sales, cooking demonstrations to the lectures of the histor of this confection, chocolate will reign supreme.