WINTER in the garden
Join Us this Winter for Events - Free and Open to All!
Participe en nuestros actos: ¡gratuitos y abiertos a todos!
NOTE: Check out our Facebook page to look at our Events on social media.
NOTA: ¡Visite nuestra página de Facebook.
For cancellations & date changes: Visit our Updates page, Facebook, or Google Calendar
Para cancelaciones & cambios: Visite página web Updates, Facebook o Google Calendar
NOTE: Unless otherwise noted, all on-site events limited to 20 participants.
Events listing
JANUARY-FEBRUARY
Seed Sale Fundraiser (Fundraiser)
Early January through mid-February
Soon it'll be time to think spring and consider what seeds you want to plant in the 2026 growing season! Once again, we are happy to be partnering with High Mowing Organic Seeds of Vermont, who offer us a percentage of seed sales to help support the Growing Center's activities. More info soon on our Seed Sale page.
Open Hours / Winter Play
Sunday, December 21: Winter Solstice in the Garden
Sunday, January 11: Texture play in the Garden
1:00-3:00 pm
Come play and explore the garden in winter! Join nature educator Paula Jordan and volunteers for a winter play activity. We’ll look for textures and colors and play with ice. Note that hazardous weather will cancel. Weather updates will be posted on Facebook. Dress for cold weather, as this is an outdoor-only event. May include walking over wet/snowy or slippery pathways. Accessible porta potty.
Pub Sing (Music)
First & Third Tuesdays, 6:00-8:00 pm
A pub-style sing along. Anyone can lead a song, but no-one is obliged to. Drinking songs and sea chanteys always go over well, but anything with a good, singable chorus will be appreciated!
Contact: Jeff at jeff.keller@gmail.com
Introduction to Plant and Wildlife Monitoring (Educational)
for Conservation with Earthwise Aware
Saturday, January 10, 2:00-3:30 pm
Join Claire and Earthwise Aware (EwA) citizen scientists and learn how to observe and record the plants, insects, and animals of the Somerville Growing Center. With these observation events and through the EwA photo documentation using the iNaturalist platform, we contribute to biodiversity science while enjoying the outdoors together in this beautiful little garden. Also learn about EwA’s arthropod (insect and spider) and phenology studies at the Growing Center.
Contact: Claire O’Neill at claire.oneill@earthwiseaware.org
Winter Wander Walks
Sundays: January 18 & 25, February 1 & 8
11:00 am
Grab a cozy beverage, a loved one, and a hat, and join us for a community wintertime nature walk (more like a wander) with Center volunteer and environmental educator Phoebe Grupper.
Open to all ages, these weekly walks invite our Somerville community to enjoy fresh air, gentle movement, and wintertime connection. If conditions allow, we’ll take short, unhurried saunters around the neighborhood. Routes will be mapped to prioritize the clearest, wheelchair-accessible, and least icy paths, but dressing appropriately is essential for comfort and safety —hats, gloves, layers, and sturdy footwear are recommended. Please reach out if you do not have access to those things and we will try to connect you. Each wander will begin and end at the Somerville Community Growing Center. Please register ahead of time at our Eventbrite invitation.
Seed Swap and Free Seeds!
Somerville Winter Farmers Market, 191 Highland Ave
Saturday, January 24, 9:30 am- 1:30 pm
Bring extra seeds to share and/or pick up some free ones, including local natives, for your own 2026 plantings! Learn about the upcoming Maple Syrup Project volunteer opportunities and enjoy the gifts and camaraderie of the winter market.
Growing Center Annual Meeting
Sunday, January 25, 3:30-5:30 pm
NOW VIRTUAL!
Due to the potential for extreme cold and a significant snowstorm in the Boston area beginning on Sunday afternoon, we have decided to move the Annual Meeting online.
Zoom Link for All Participants
Join together with the Growing Center community for a summary of the 2025 season, outcomes from the Volunteer Survey, 2026 planning, and all the ways to get involved. Be part of conversations and dialogues to support the coming season and beyond.
We'll share accomplishments from the 2025 calendar year, including visitor and volunteer numbers and statistics & fundraising and financial data; present the budget for the year ahead; and the proposed slate of Board Members and Officers. Be part of conversations and dialogues to support future planning. We hope you'll be able to join us!
Join the Winter Wonder Virtual Book Club!
January 29 and February 26, 6:30-7:30 pm
Join with other volunteers virtually for a nature-themed discussion in preparation for the 2026 Maple Boil. All details to be made available on Eventbrite. January 29 selection: The Serviceberry, by Robin Wall Kimmerer. February 26 selection: The “Maple Sugar Moon” chapter of Kimmer’s Braiding Sweetgrass, supplemented with other indigenous writings on sugar maples. Books can be borrowed from the library or purchased from Narrative Bookshop or Porter Square Books.
Register for the Winter Book Club here:
Registration link for January 29
Registration link for February 26
DIY Milkjug Greenhouse Workshop
Saturday, February 7, 11:00 am - 12:00 pm
To be led by volunteer Danielle Krcmar. Get some cold hardy plants started for spring. Please bring a clear plastic milk jug, but we will have some extras. Soil and seeds available. Register here to get a spot! Limited to 20 participants.
Open Hours / Winter Play
Saturday, February 7, 2:00-4:00 pm
Come play and explore the garden in winter! Join nature educator Paula Jordan and volunteers for a winter play activity. We’ll look for textures and colors and play with ice. Note that hazardous weather will cancel. Weather updates will be posted on Facebook. Dress for cold weather, as this is an outdoor-only event. May include walking over wet/snowy or slippery pathways. Accessible porta potty.
MARCH
Somerville Maple Boil Down
Saturday, March 7, 11:00 am - 2:00 pm
Rain date Saturday, March 14
All are invited! Join in the fun. As part of this project, a team of volunteers taps a swath of maple trees on the Tufts campus, collecting dozens of gallons of sap over a number of weeks. At the Maple Boil Down, coordinated by the Somerville Community Growing Center, we'll boil it all down into real, true 100% hyper-local maple syrup. At this event, youth and adults alike will have a chance to learn about tree anatomy and physiology and experience the process of making fresh maple syrup first-hand. Read more about the Somerville Maple Syrup Project.
