$35/PP.

Join us for an enchanting afternoon fairy garden tea party. The event will begin with children (and a parent or caregiver) crafting whimsical floral crowns with Nantucket Lighthouse School parent and talented maker Kaity Farrell of Fare Isle. A magical tea party and fairy scavenger hunt, created by Nantucket Lighthouse School parent Leith Kinney, will follow. 

Ages 4+. A parent or caregiver must attend.

$30.

Children ages 2 – 5 will learn what makes a garden grow and create their own mini edible gardens to take home. Class includes planting time (complete with worms) and story-time. Additionally, participants will make branch plant markers to be used in their container garden. Led by Nantucket artists (and Nantucket Lighthouse School parents!) Alana Cullen of Tafari Designs and Michelle Housel of Dancey Pants Disco. Supplies will be provided. 

Please note that a parent or caregiver must be present with children.

$60.

Amy Pallenberg of Amy Pallenberg Garden Design & Care will lead participants on an inspiring tour of in-town gardens. Town gardens are known for their unusual plant materials and clever combinations in a protected oasis. Please find Amy’s bio on page 20. This event is generously sponsored by Nantucket Garden Festival partner Surfing Hydrangea Nursery.

*Meet at the Fair Street Park on the corner of Fair and Main at 8:45am.

$80.

Join Bee Shay for an inspiring day of creating art with materials found in a garden. Participants will print, weave and create botanical inspired art from materials collected in nature. Activities include: painting and printing with sticks, grasses and leaves, off-loom weaving, block printing with potatoes and more. This is a drop-off class for children ages 7+.

A healthy snack and lunch will be provided. Please come with sunscreen and a hat. Children will be outdoors for the duration of the workshop. 

$150

The party of the summer! Celebrate the Nantucket Garden Festival in the historic gardens of the famed Middle Brick. Enjoy creative local cuisine by The Green, Raw Bar by Yoho, and a fabulous silent auction and select art show. Live music by Audio Architechs. The night will feature keynote speaker Gordon Hayward.

About Gordon Hayward:

Gordon has been designing gardens professionally from his home in southern Vermont since 1985 with particular emphasis on gardens in the Northeast, as well as the Eastern Shore of Maryland, though he does work nationwide.

He is a nationally recognized garden writer and lecturer. He wrote for Horticulture Magazine for 25 years and lectured with the magazine on nine multi-city lecture tours across America. He was a contributing editor at Fine Gardening Magazine for six years and a contributing editor at the newly revamped Organic Gardening Magazine. Gordon is the author of eleven books on garden design, two of which have won national awards.

$60.

Join Peter Brace of Nantucket Walkabout and Dr. Sarah Treanor Bois of the Linda Loring Nature Foundation for a two-hour guided walking tour of the flora found on the Linda Loring Nature Foundation property. Located off of Eel Point Road on the west end of Nantucket’s north shore, the Linda Loring Nature Foundation offers easy trails through sandplain grasslands, coastal shrublands and along the North Head of Long Pond. Participants will learn about Nantucket’s native flowering plants, shrubs and trees. This event is generously sponsored by Nantucket Garden Festival partner Surfing Hydrangea Nursery.

*Meet at the Linda Loring Nature Foundation.

$80.

A garden with a soul, clarity, varied emotions and an (un)self-conscious design, (and a feeling of inevitability) comes out of the fusion of three key elements as they pass through the mind and emotions of the designers:

The people who live in and care for the garden and whose style and life stories are embedded in the design.

The style, layout, materials and history of the interior as well as exterior of the house and or buildings associated with the garden.

The land, its features, its history and its light. Light and shadow illuminate everything.

This lecture uses a handful of images of fine European and American architecture and gardens and explores these elements in the context of a Nantucket garden.

About Gordon Hayward:

Gordon has been designing gardens professionally from his home in southern Vermont since 1985 with particular emphasis on gardens in the Northeast, as well as the Eastern Shore of Maryland, though he does work nationwide.

He is a nationally recognized garden writer and lecturer. He wrote for Horticulture Magazine for 25 years and lectured with the magazine on nine multi-city lecture tours across America. He was a contributing editor at Fine Gardening Magazine for six years and a contributing editor at the newly revamped Organic Gardening Magazine. Gordon is the author of eleven books on garden design, two of which have won national awards.

$30.

This workshop welcomes children ages 4 and up, and their parent or caregiver, to the amazing world of gardening with fairies in mind. Participants will make a fanciful fairy dwelling out of natural materials. Vine-woven fences, beach stone paths, driftwood homes – these are just a few of the things your child will create to make their fairy house a home. Led by Nantucket artists (and Nantucket Lighthouse School parents!) Alana Cullen of Tafari Designs and Michelle Housel of Dancey Pants Disco. Supplies will be provided. 

Please note that a parent or caregiver must be present with children under the age of 6. Children who attend this workshop are encouraged to participate in the free and fun Fairy Garden Contest.

This event is sold out. Please call 508-228-0427 to be added to the wait list. 

$175.

A unique opportunity to join one of Nantucket’s iconic artists, Illya Kagan, for a morning of painting en plein air in a beautiful private garden. Bring your easel and supplies to paint in the medium of your choice. Hosted by Polly Hallowell.

This class sold out last year; please register early to avoid disappointment.

$60.

Garden Designer Julie Wood of Hither Creek Gardener will lead participants on a morning tour of Brant Point gardens. Visit a selection of private gardens varied in design, plant materials and style. This event is generously sponsored by Nantucket Garden Festival partner Surfing Hydrangea Nursery. 

*Meet at Children’s Beach at 8:45am.

$500

New this year, the premier event and opening night celebration features an intimate four-course, garden-inspired dinner with Executive Chefs Kyle Zachary of Topper’s at The Wauwinet and Neil Ferguson of American Seasons. The dinner will be paired with a biodynamic wine tasting with Sommelier Ken Mason of Classic Wine Imports. Music by The Gypsy Jazz Trio.

Hosted in the private gardens of the historic Middle Brick, this evening is sure to delight all of your senses.

Limited to 28 tickets.

About Kyle: 
Kyle Zachary is the executive chef of TOPPER’S at The Wauwinet. A graduate of the Restaurant School at Walnut Hill College, he honed his skills in restaurants including Alinea in Chicago, Wheatleigh in Lenox, the Winnetu Inn on Martha’s Vineyard, and TOPPER’s as sous chef in 2005. Most recently Kyle was the sous chef at the Intercontinental in Dusseldorf, Germany. He returned to take the reigns at TOPPER’S in 2010. Kyle’s seasonally inspired cuisine at TOPPER’s has recently won critical acclaim from Forbes Travel Guide, Zagat, Travel & Leisure, Conde Nast Traveler and Saveur Magazine.

About Neil:
Neil Ferguson, born and raised in Hampshire, England, decided to become a chef at age 12. Missing a school trip because he was ill, he went on vacation to Scotland with his parents instead. As luck would have it, they took him to a restaurant run by British Chef Brian MacPhee. Neil was in awe and his fate was sealed. Neil spent time at the best restaurants in London- Le Gavroche, Claridges, Pied A Terre, La Tante Claire, The Square and Aubergine- taking from each a different skill-set and style. In 2006, Neil moved to the United States to open Gordon Ramsay at The London in New York. Shortly after, Neil was hired to open Allen & Delancey in the Lower East Side, which took Manhattan by storm. Neil was hired by Galley Beach in the summer of 2011 and was made Executive Chef in 2013. In 2015, he and his wife, Shelley, purchased American Seasons where he is now the owner and Executive Chef. 

$60.

Join Katie Hemingway of Grass Roots Gardens for a mid-afternoon tour of ‘Sconset’s exquisitely diverse gardens and learn how they thrive in spite of constant coastal exposure. This event is generously sponsored by Nantucket Garden Festival partner Surfing Hydrangea Nursery. 

*Meet in the square next to the ‘Sconset Market at 2:45pm.

$80.

Spend the afternoon in a spectacular Madaket garden with local artist Bee Shay, creating beautiful prints with leaves and flowers. After two hours of hands-on printing with water based inks and Asian papers, participants will learn how to turn their prints (and bits of prints gone rogue) into cards, gift tags and more. All participants will leave with their creations packed safely into a beautiful portfolio made just for this class, along with a booklet detailing the techniques covered in the workshop.

Hosted in Beverly Hall and David Billings’ stunning and unique Madaket garden.

Please bring a hat and comfortable shoes. You will be standing for the majority of the class. Refreshments provided.

This event is sold out. Please call 508-228-0427 to be added to the wait list. 

$30

This workshop welcomes children ages 4 and up, and their parent or caregiver, to the amazing world of gardening with fairies in mind. Participants will make a fanciful fairy dwelling out of natural materials. Vine-woven fences, beach stone paths, driftwood homes – these are just a few of the things your child will create to make their fairy house a home. Supplies will be provided. Led by Nantucket Lighthouse School teacher Alicia Keller, and Nantucket Lighthouse parent Michelle Housel of Dancey Pants Disco. 

*Please note that a parent or caregiver must be present with children under the age of 6. Children who attend this workshop are encouraged to participate in the free and fun Fairy Garden Contest.

This event is sold out. Please call 508-228-0427 to be added to the wait list. 

$80.

In this two-hour, hands-on course, Floral Designer Mary Beth Ferro will share the fundamentals of floral design as well as priceless tips on how to prolong the life of arrangements. Beautiful fresh-cut flowers and a vase will be provided for each participant, as well as all the supplies needed to create a lovely take home centerpiece.

This event is sold out. Please call 508-228-0427 to be added to the wait list. 

$80

Join us for a vegetable gardening workshop with Russell Morash, legendary creator of the PBS television series “The Victory Garden” and “This Old House.” Tour his gardens and learn from a master.

A wide variety of topics will be covered ranging from staking and pruning tomatoes, seed starting, plant spacing and garden layout. It is sure to be an inspiring and entertaining event for both novice and experienced gardeners alike. 

About Russell Morash:

As creator, director and executive producer, Russell Morash is credited with introducing the “how-to” concept to public television through his many award-winning series including “This Old House,” “Ask This Old House,” “The Victory Garden,” “The French Chef with Julia Child” and “The New Yankee Workshop.” 

Today he and his wife, author and founding chef of Nantucket’s Straight Wharf Restaurant, Marian, spend summers at their home in Shawkemo. There “he” grows and “she” cooks from a vast vegetable garden. Morash occasionally contributes columns in the I&M on gardening as well as monthly items for the magazine “Nantucket Today.”

FREE

Fairy gardens are the sweetest, smallest and most enchanting of all gardens. Participants are invited to work alone or as a team to create and display a magical fairy realm. 

If you are looking for inspiration, sign up for our Fairy Garden Building workshops offered on Tuesday, July 19th and Wednesday, July 20th. Children who participate in either workshop will be able to submit their creations, if desired.

All other participants should drop off and register their fairy gardens on Monday, July 18th between 8-5pm at the Fair Street Park. Prizes and pick up - Friday, July 22nd between 8-Noon. 

Open to all ages. All sizes and types of vessels are welcome.