Fall 2023

THROUGH NOV. 19

Referencing her deep interest in natural history, Ann Getsinger presents carefully observed and freely rendered objects, each piece serving as a fresh invention.

OCTOBER 7–8

89th Annual Harvest Festival

Our 24-acre Garden is transformed into a vibrant hub featuring family fun and 50-plus regional artisan food and craft vendors. This quintessential Berkshire family event celebrates the autumn harvest with live music and children’s activities.

“The Garden of Curiosity” in the Leonhardt Galleries

On the cover: Ann Getsinger’s “Patch” is among the works in her exhibition “The Garden of Curiosity,” in the Leonhardt Galleries through Nov. 19. See page 7.

our

NOVEMBER 12 Annual Rooted in Place

Ecological Gardening Symposium

Explore the breadth of what regenerative design and land stewardship mean. Topics include landscape design, community outreach, pollination systems restoration, and farming.

BOARD OF TRUSTEES

Matthew Larkin, Chairman

Madeline Hooper, Vice Chairman

John Spellman, Treasurer

Janet Laudenslager, Secretary

Adegboyega Adefope

Nicholas Arienti

Joanne Leonhardt Cassullo

Mary Copeland

Adaline Frelinghuysen

Lauretta Harris

Nancy Hickey

Ian Hooper

Tom Ingersoll

Jane Iredale

Daniel Kasper

Scott Lambert

Roy Liemer

Stephanie McNair

Joanna Miller

Linda O’Connell

Ramelle Pulitzer

Mark Walker

Robert Wlliams

Suzanne Yale

K. K. Zutter

Trustees Emeriti

Jeannene Booher

David Carls

Cathy Clark

Craig Okerstrom-Lang

Gloria McMahon

Jo Dare Mitchell

Judie Owens

Martha Piper

Jean Rousseau

Honey Sharp

Gail Shaw

Jack Sprano

Ingrid Taylor

CUTTINGS

Felix Carroll, Editor

Ruth Hanavan, Assistant Editor

Julie Hammill, Designer

NOVEMBER 19

Film + Wine at the Garden

Join BIFF and BBG for a screening of LIVING WINE, directed by Lori Miller, followed by a wine tasting at the Center House.

STAFF

Co-Executive Directors

Mike Beck and Thaddeus Thompson

Camp Director

Margaret Leahy

Director of Education

Jennifer Patton

Director of Horticulture

Eric Ruquist

Director of Marketing Communications

Felix Carroll

Director of Special Events

Rachel Durgin

Education Coordinator

Shannon Welch

Facilities Assistant

Sean McKenney

Facilities Assistant

Austen Dupont

Garden Educator

Megan Magner

Horticulturalist

Kessa McEwen

Manager of Membership & Development Operations

Mariah Baca

Marketing and Communications Assistant

Ruth Hanavan

Operations Assistant and Volunteer Coordinator

Megan Weiner

Operations Manager

Amy Butterworth

Seasonal Gardener

Kevin Johnson

Visitor Center Manager

Kristine Romano

DECEMBER 8–10

Holiday Marketplace

A glistening marketplace featuring the Gallery of Wreaths, artisan gifts, holiday blooming plants, and much merriment.

This page: Mr. Scarecrow has been a fixture of

Harvest Festival for years. The man behind the mask speaks up for the first time — and says farewell. See page 18.

THE GARDEN CONSERVANCY

O pen Days 2023

Visit America’s most interesting,creative, and inspiring private gardens through the Garden Conservancy’s Open Days Program.

Our 2023 season includes many exciting garden-visiting opportunities, Digging Deeper programs, and other educational offerings throughout Connecticut, New York, Massachusetts, and beyond.

See You in the Gardens!

Open Days is The Garden Conservancy’s signature program, supporting its mission to preserve, share, and celebrate America’s gardens and diverse gardening traditions for the education and inspiration of the public. gardenconservancy.org/open-days

CO-DIRECTOR’S CORNER THADDEUS THOMPSON

VISIT THE BBG GIFT SHOP

Take the Garden home with you! Gifts, garden-related items and souvenirs. berkshirebotanical.org/giftshop

Throughout the garden, one will find any number of pairings that go together as famously as macaroni and cheese, as if they were designed for one another. There is one pairing that I’m looking forward to with particular anticipation this fall: the native asters and goldenrods that will gild our new Wildflower Meadow as the September air begins to cool the land. This extravagant pairing of purple and gold is as aesthetically pleasing as it is ecologically complementary.

Biologists have speculated that the visual effect that makes the clustering of asters and goldenrod so attractive to our eyes works a similar magic on the senses of native bees. It is a hypothesis supported by evidence that shows that, when growing together, both plants receive more pollinator visits than when they grow alone. These plants thrive in proximity and illustrate the value of what we sometimes refer to as “plant communities” — that intricate web of relationships that exist among groups of plants (and fauna) that share a common environment.

These complementary relationships, which you’ll find everywhere you look at BBG, are a reminder that the effect of a well-conceived garden is greater than the sum of its parts. It leads me to think, too, about our place as a garden within our own larger community ecosystem. Just as plant communities help to shape a natural landscape and create a unique sense of place, so do the mission-based organizations within a community help to create a rich and healthy cultural landscape.

At BBG, we’re proud to be a part of that larger cultural landscape that makes the Berkshires such a special and unique place. Our collaborations with organizations like Naumkeag, Community Access to the Arts (CATA), Berkshire Agricultural Ventures, The Clark, and the W.E.B. DuBois Sculpture Committee, as well as our relationships with the regional public schools and many more, help to define and enrich who we are and what we all do. Similarly, as we look ahead to the fall and the tapestry of autumn colors that draw so many visitors to the region, it is interesting to think that visitors are particularly attracted by the visual symphony of our native New England plants. In coming to take in the spectacle, visitors to our region are like the pollinators in our meadow. Upbeat and determined, they buzz from place to place and take in so much of the culture that the Berkshires offers. And, like the asters and goldenrod of our meadow, each of us that makes up this landscape is better off for being a part of something larger than ourselves.

So, as you explore the beautiful Berkshires this fall and winter, I hope you’ll drop in at BBG and enjoy events like our annual Harvest Festival in October, Rooted in Place Ecological Gardening Symposium in November, or Holiday Marketplace in December. Or simply come and stroll our meadow and enjoy the splendor of the Garden’s autumn colors or visit our Galleries and the wonderful exhibit by artist Ann Getsinger. They all complement one another. And I hope you’ll shower a bit of love on our fellow cultural neighbors, too. We’re all better for it.

Gardens are places of complementarity.

Photo: Wit Mckay Garden (Williamstown, MA)

The Curtain Rises

Introducing Our New Wildflower Meadow

BY FELIX CARROLL

Before he removed the “CLOSED” sign, before he helped welcome the crowds, Eric Ruquist stood in the middle of a field of wildflowers at Berkshire Botanical Garden and acknowledged he had a case of the jitters.

Like a producer of a Broadway show on opening day, Eric, BBG’s director of horticulture, would be overseeing the public debut of a three-year, meticulously choreographed creation: a 2.5-acre native-dominated meadow. Now, vibrant with densely interwoven native flora and carved with walking trails, the meadow was ready for its close-up. Eric breathed deeply and acknowledged, “You know, it looks pretty good.”

Just before 2:30 p.m. on Saturday, Aug. 12, down came the “CLOSED” sign. Up went the “MEADOW OPENING” sign. In came a crowd for the inauguration of BBG’s newest showpiece. Dubbed “The

Wildflower Meadow,” the thumbs-upshaped acreage did not disappoint.

“It’s wonderful, beautiful,” said Charlotte Fairweather, a longtime BBG volunteer.

“It’s exactly what we were hoping for,” said Marli Milano, a field operations coordinator for the Pennsylvania-based Larry Weaner Landscape Associates, the group hired by BBG to oversee the establishment of the meadow.

Let’s be clear: This could’ve all been a disaster. When BBG first took ownership of the land back in 2019, the property first had to be divested of a motley throng of invasives, including garlic mustard, bittersweet and knotweed. Then, in

November 2021, a carefully curated mix of seeds was broadcasted out upon the bare land. The seed — 200 seeds per square foot — are native to the Berkshires and the region.

In the spring and summer of 2022, invasive weeds could’ve gotten a running start on the nascent native meadow, potentially smothering out the stated goal. But Eric and his horticulture crew followed a strict mowing schedule timed to slay weeds while encouraging root growth for the newly emergent meadow.

A visit in June 2022, from Larry Weaner and Marli helped allay any

concerns. They identified what they had hoped to find, including encouraging quantities of horsemint, partridge pea, smooth aster, golden Alexander, white beardtongue, Black-eyed Susan, wild quinine, pasture thistle, butter weed, anise hyssop, tickseed, and sedge species.

Still, a year ago, the meadow, sequestered behind a “CLOSED” sign, wasn’t much to look at. As expected, to the casual observer, it remained more of a dream of fields than a field of dreams.

Eschewing the ongoing use of herbicides, and being scrupulous not to disturb the soil, Eric and his crew continued to deal with stubborn invasives by means of scheduled mowings, string trimmers and hand clippers. Last winter he had “August 2023” marked on his calendar as the time when the

YEAR TWO:

What’s Growing in the Meadow?

Seeded Species (the Good Stuff!) Include:

Anise hyssop (Agastache foeniculum), wild columbine (Aquilegia canadensis), butterfly weed (Asclepias tuberosa), smooth aster (Aster laevis), sedge species (Carex spp.), Scarlet Paintbrush (Castilleja coccinea), partridge pea (Chamaecrista fasciculata), pasture thistle (Cirsium discolor), tickseed (Coreopsis lanceolata), wild rye species (Elymus spp.), sweet everlasting (Gnaphalium obtusifolium), Horsemint (Monarda punctata), wild quinine (Parthenium integrifolium), white beardtongue (Penstemon digitalis), hairy beardtongue (Penstemon hirsutus), Blackeyed Susan (Rudbeckia hirta), early goldenrod (Solidago juncea), golden Alexander (Zizia aurea).

Weed Species Include:

Goutweed (Aegopodium podagraria), garlic mustard (Alliaria petiolate), sweet vernal grass (Anthoxanthum odoratum), cow parsley (Anthriscus sylvestris), mugwort (Artemisia vulgaris), orchardgrass (Dactylis glomerata), wild carrot (Daucus carota), teasel (Dipsacus fullonum), quack grass (Elymus repens), field bedstraw (Galium mollugo), yellow bedstraw (Galium verum), dames rocket (Hesperis matronalis), black medic (Medicago lupulina), sweet clover (Melilotus sp.), wild parsnip (Pastinaca sativa), pokeweed (Phytolacca americana), Kentucky bluegrass (Poa praetensis), curly dock (Rumex crispus), Canada goldenrod complex (Solidago canadensis complex), red clover (Trifolium praetense), white clover (Trifolium repens), bird vetch (Vicia cracca).

meadow might show signs of florification such that it could be opened to the public. And he was right.

By August, the land — which includes an open meadow, a ridge and a wetland plateau — was blanketed with the yellows and purples of blooming black-eyed Susan and pasture thistle.

At the meadow opening on Aug. 12, Marli was joined by a colleague, Rebecca Kagle, a restoration ecologist who had helped spearhead the project. The two explained to the 100 or so attendees what they were looking at.

“You’re seeing a second-year meadow,” Rebecca said. “A second-year meadow is like a teenage meadow.”

By that, she meant, that while the meadow is still in its awkward stage — and weeds must be regularly monitored and addressed — there’s more than meets the eye. Namely, underneath that blanket of thistle and Black-eyed Susan are fledgling plants that will make themselves known in

the coming weeks, months and years.

“Our ultimate goal is a lowmaintenance, highly diverse pollinator garden that is pleasurable to walk in,” Rebecca said.

Mike Beck, BBG’s co-executive director, told the crowd that plans are afoot to create educational signage and to incorporate the meadow into BBG’s educational programs. The meadow, he said, reinforces BBG’s longstanding initiative promoting native plantings. Such plantings are aesthetically rich, require far less carbon-heavy upkeep and attract wildlife, including bees, butterflies and other pollinators. These pollinators — under threat over the last century by the proliferation of unnatural, chemically sustained, green toupee turf grass — are essential for the propagation of many plants and for sustaining a healthy, natural habitat.

“This beautiful meadow constitutes 10 percent of BBG’s land, so it adds a big

Left, an aerial view of the meadow, which is located on the northernmost end of BBG’s property, just behind the Center House. Below, Mike Beck and Eric Ruquist said the next steps for the meadow include incorporating it into BBG’s educational initiatives. They hope to encourage BBG visitors to incorporate native flora into their own yards to support crucial pollinators.

footprint to the Garden for our guests to enjoy,” said Co-Executive Director Thaddeus Thompson. “More than that, it is arguably the most ecologically beneficial purpose to which we could put this land. It’s a win-win for our visitors and our environment. Looking ahead, we’re excited to conduct citizen-science projects in this space, monitoring and assessing the health of the meadow and the fauna that it supports.”

Just moments before the opening, Eric was out at the far end of the meadow when he gave the universal sign for shush, his finger pressed to pursed lips.

“You hear that?” he said.

He was drawing attention to a sound not heard at this spot for decades: a deep, low hum, a sleepy, surroundsound of bees in flight.

The pollinator equivalent of praise and applause.

“... it is arguably the most ecologically beneficial purpose to which we could put this land.”

–THADDEUS THOMPSON

‘The Garden of Curiosity’

Featuring Works by Ann Getsinger, through Nov. 19

BY FELIX CARROLL

Ann Getsinger’s “Leaping Deer,” oil on linen.

If you’ve seen the art exhibit “The Garden of Curiosity,” now showing at Berkshire Botanical Garden, it probably wouldn’t surprise you to learn that the artist behind it, Ann Getsinger, spent her formative childhood years occupied outdoors, on hands and knees, creating worlds for her toys out of sticks and dirt.

Probably other things wouldn’t surprise you, either.

She wanted a horse and couldn’t have one, so as a young girl, she proceeded to draw horses — skillfully so, and from all angles.

It probably wouldn’t surprise you to learn she has had a longstanding experience of observing and connecting with animals — of talking to them, like you’d say hello to the UPS driver. Along the 40 or so paces of the loosely laced path leading from the back door of her home to her standalone studio in New Marlborough, Mass., a chipmunk has allowed her to stroke its head, and the rabbits and birds rarely flee for the shrubbery or skies.

She has close friends — humans — who bring her things, “gifts” or “loans,” she calls them. Maybe gourds from their gardens. Maybe wild mushrooms found in the forest. Maybe vertebrae of unknown origin.

Maybe it wouldn’t surprise you to learn that last winter, her friends Susan Sellew and Martha Bryan bequeathed her with the gift of a dead red-tailed hawk that Susan had found — a barrel-

chested bird of prey, lying in state, its soft feathers intact, its beak clinched like a bent nail.

“They knew I’d want it,” Ann recalls.

Overcoming her hesitancy, Ann held it, felt its magnanimous weight, imagined the mechanical working of its miracle wings and then proceeded to do with it what she does with so many other such “gifts” and “loans.” She translated her awe into artwork — intricate artwork, meditative, venturesome, challenging, forceful, often odd and always stunning. Ann is an observer of nature, a participant within it, an adorer and advocate.

Her rendering of that noble red-tailed hawk is among the 30plus works — oil paintings, mixed media drawings and sculptures — that comprise “The Garden of Curiosity,” showing in Berkshire Botanical Garden’s Leonhardt Galleries through Nov. 19.

The exhibition might best be described by what it is not. This is not an escape from reality, but rather a forward plunge into

life’s vibrant forces and convolutions. It’s a world that can still hurt you.

“Art feels more essential to me than ever before, directly mirroring a world that feels more overwhelming than ever before,” says Getsinger, 66, a native of Watertown, Conn., who settled as a teen in the Berkshires in the late 1970s, where she proceeded to work odd jobs, study painting under the late Sheldon Fink, live in nature, and create art.

Beginning in the early 1990s, her paintings found their way into many private collections and have been exhibited in museums and galleries around the country. She refers to her show at Berkshire Botanical Garden as “a dream come true.” Indeed, she describes her artistic process in gardening terms, “where things grow, rest and grow again.”

Maybe it’s not surprising that the title of her exhibition pays homage to a famous work of art that has most inspired her: the mystical, sensual, ecological, and poetic triptych oil painting “The Garden of Earthly Delights,” painted on oak panel 500-plus years ago by Hieronymus Bosch.

The title of her show, “The Garden of Curiosity,” properly describes Ann’s collection, which showcases both her abundant technical skills and her inclination to see — and to present — familiar objects as puzzlingly new.

“Creating visual art is the closest I’ve ever come to having my life make any sense at all,” Ann says. “It’s both indulgent and essential. It’s about balancing freedom and discipline in order to explore this temporary existence, to consider the meaning and sensuality of nature and my personal

“Art feels more essential to me than ever before, directly mirroring a world that feels more overwhelming than ever before.”

–ANN GETSINGER

connection to it. I’m always challenged to go deeper.”

Her work often combines Realism and Surrealism, creating a captivating effect of paintings within paintings. Centrally placed, life-size subjects — bones, insects, plants, seashells, fruit, leaves, and orange peels, accurately detailed, non-stylized — often are set against, or integrated with, dreamlike and sometimes disjoined landscapes. She often references the Berkshire Hills in her backgrounds, along with occasional ocean locations inspired by her frequent visits to the Maine coast.

Her artwork reveals a profound unity, where everything in the world is intricately connected on both biological and metaphysical levels. A glass ball in the woods can completely transform the surrounding scenery, challenging familiar perceptions and inviting new discoveries. She compares her artistic process to wandering through imaginative halls, armed with both binoculars and a magnifying glass, allowing her inner scientist to observe and marvel, and translating her wonder into visual form.

Among her new discoveries are squirrels.

“Have you ever just watched squirrels, the way they move?” she asks. “Their tail is always doing something that’s counteracting the body. They are really underappreciated.”

Curiosity, indeed, is what draws Ann to her studio each day. Through a two-story wall of glass, natural light from the north rummages around the room as if looking for an idea to anoint.

Ann ties on her apron. The fun — the freedom — begins.

Film + Wine at the Garden

Sunday,

Nov. 19 | 4 to 6:30 p.m.

Join Berkshire International Film Festival and BBG for a cozy afternoon of film and wine. We will present a screening of LIVING WINE, directed by Lori Miller, followed by a wine tasting of organic and biodynamic wines at the Center House. “The idealism, selflessness and commitment of the growers and producers is inspiring” New York Times. See BerkshireBotanical.org for more details.

Ann Getsinger’s “Visitation,” oil on linen.

Horticulture Graduate Makes a Discovery for the Record Books

A2023 graduate of Berkshire Botanical Garden’s Horticulture Certificate Program has been credited for what one state botanist has called an “extraordinary” discovery. Syke van der Laan was on a walk in the woods with his family in southern Berkshire County on July 5, when something curious caught his eye.

“It was a little red plant, about eight inches tall and no leaves to speak of and just this red stalk with these dangly flowers, and I was like, ‘What is that?’” Syke told us. “First, I posted it on a Facebook group, and somebody pointed out to me that it had never been seen before in Massachusetts.”

MassWildlife’s State Botanist Robert Wernerehl and retired MassWildlife Biologist Tony Gola met Skye on site and confirmed the plant was the first record in the state of pine-drops (Pterospora andromedea). “The discovery of a new native plant here in Massachusetts is extraordinary,” said Wernerehl.

We extend our congratulations to Syke, a self-described amateur botanist from Albany, N.Y. Syke said enrolling in the Horticulture Certificate Program in the fall of 2022 marked a critical life change after having become burned out from a 30-year carpentry career. He now works as a trail steward in Bethlehem, N.Y. He credits his keen eye for rare plants to the training he received through BBG. Following his graduation from the Horticulture Certificate Program in April, he attended BBG’s spring wildflower field study in May and natural plant communities field study in July, both led by the ecologist Ted Elliman.

“It all influenced me greatly,” he said. “I kind of rediscovered my former passions. And after that first field study with Ted,

it just got me really interested in seeing what was out there. I kind of got excited about finding rare plants.”

Rare orchids and yellow lady slippers had been among his more noteworthy finds until he came upon the pine-drops, a plant most common in the Rocky Mountains and listed as endangered in New England.

Native Plant Trust describes pinedrops as “a nonphotosynthetic, parasitic plant that obtains nutrients from its host via mutualistic fungal hyphae that form connections between the roots of the parasite and its host plant. In New England this species is represented by a few populations each in New Hampshire and Vermont, in coniferous or mixed woods over limestone or clay.”

MassWildlife said it’s unclear whether more pine-drops exist in the state or why they went undetected for so long.

“The pine-drops prefers dry pine forests, and we have plenty of that,” said Wernerehl. “We’re grateful to the sharp eyes and careful observations of naturalists like Syke that help us expand our understanding of biodiversity in the Commonwealth.” Felix Carroll

The pine-drops discovered in the Berkshires in July by Syke van der Laan.

Photo: MassWildlife

Syke van der Laan (left) with the ecologist Ted Elliman, during a BBG field study in July in Sheffield, Mass.

Mother Earth Lodge

Enlarged Education Campus Helps Revitalize Farm in the Garden Camp

By Ruth Hanavan

It’s a steamy Monday morning in July at Berkshire Botanical Garden’s Farm in the Garden Camp, and young campers pop out like gumballs from cars and minivans. With lunch boxes and sun hats, and rain gear stashed in their backpacks, they make their way down the new driveway to the recently completed camp building, the Mother Earth Lodge. There, Julian Vallen, the camp director, awaits, along with his camp staff.

As Julian checks in each camper, he chats with parents, grandparents and other caregivers. One family is interested in the best way to plant and tend the seeds that their camper came home with the day before, while another asks for advice about the squash growing in their home vegetable garden.

“Our goal for the Farm in the Garden curriculum is to connect children to the Garden, to our food system, the environment, and to one another,” Julian says. “We send home seeds and seedlings for them to plant in their home gardens, plants that they have grown here at

Camp, so they can keep experiencing Camp even when they aren’t here.”

The Mother Earth Lodge, completed in June, is a game-changer for BBG. The 30-by-50-foot building, built by local craftspeople from bare boughs and milled and scribed posts and beams, provides BBG with the opportunity to increase the number of campers from 30 children a week to 50.

The Lodge is cool inside, giving the campers a break from sunny, summer days, and the sliding doors on the side of the Lodge open to a grassy lawn that leads to the Children’s Vegetable Garden, providing a refreshing breeze and helping to make the campers feel that even when they are indoors, they are also outdoors.

This proved particularly helpful this past summer, when the unpredictable weather necessitated that campers and

staff quickly toggle between indoor and outdoor activities. Part of the new, expanded education campus includes an adjacent pergola classroom, which served as a perfect venue this summer for the camp’s weekly Farm Feast, a time when all the campers and counselors gather around the long, wooden table to share a meal at the end of each weekly session.

The sheltered space also provides room for the Camp Farmer’s Market, held every Thursday, where campers sell the harvest from their vegetable garden as well as baked goods they prepared in the kitchen. Other perks of the Lodge itself include the deep prep sink built at kid-height, dedicated camp restrooms, a mudroom and cubby space, and an underground root cellar.

Immediately outside the sliding doors of the Lodge is the vegetable garden, planted and tended by the Farm in the Garden campers. Again, camper height factored into the design, including the height of the raised beds and the garden’s wide paths. A row of higher, accessible garden boxes line the end of the garden closest to the Lodge, near a new watering system that — if

needed — emits a timed amount of water to ensure that not a drop goes to waste.

The Lodge and its vegetable garden and pergola classroom were built thanks to the generous support of Barbara and Melissa Leonhardt. Through the New York Community Trust, the sisters donated the construction funds in the memory of their mother, Anne Leonhardt, who died in 2017 at the age of 92.

“She had a lot of passions,” said Barbara, who lives in Stockbridge. “Children’s education, the environment, helping people who are underprivileged, and empowering women and girls” were chief among those passions.

“She loved having the opportunity to give where there was a need,” Barbara

said. “And now, to keep her legacy going: this building. … It’s amazing. She’d be so happy.”

The day camp serves children ages 4 through 12, providing them with the opportunity to care for plants and animals, go on nature walks, create botanical crafts, and learn about the natural world.

A good part of the day at the Farm in the Garden Camp includes specific farm chores — feeding and caring for animals, collecting eggs, and planting, watering and harvesting vegetables. Campers this year learned flora and fauna identification. They made balms and natural bug sprays. They created art using the materials in the natural world. On a typical day, campers march around the

Garden’s Bumper Crops Include Generations of Educated Youth

Berkshire Botanical Garden, established in 1934, has always included children’s education in its programming. The official “Report of Berkshire Garden Center,” dated Oct. 1, 1935, references “children’s activities carried on under the chairmanship of Mrs Simpson, including a contest for collecting tent caterpillar egg-clusters throughout the winter … a Children’s Flower Show … and distribution of gourd seeds” that would be displayed at the upcoming Harvest Festival.

From those humble beginnings, the Garden continued its youth programming through the years, including holding an annual Children’s Nature Walk in the spring, a flower and vegetable show in August. In 1942, the first Children’s Vegetable Garden was established, “cared for by one small boy under the direction of the 4-H Club.” In 1959, the first Summer Youth Workshops were developed, and in 1971, the original Youth Building was completed, adjacent to the greenhouse.

Amy Butterworth, BBG’s current operations manager, remembers coming to the Garden as a child for art and garden classes.

“When we moved here, my mother immediately became involved with BBG,” she recalls. “And my sisters and I and all of our classmates spent time at the Garden. It was the thing to do. There were drawing classes that we would take and gardening classes, of course. The gardening classes were taught by Mrs. Boutard,” Amy recalls, referring to Sherry, the wife of Roy Boutard, the Garden’s venerable executive director from 1955 to 1985. ”My own children attended classes here and volunteered in the summers as well.”

Since then, the Farm in the Garden Camp has become a crown jewel of BBG’s youth education initiatives. The Camp, in its modern form, became a reality in 2010, when 15 campers showed up for the first session. Now, with the new Mother Earth Lodge, the Camp can accommodate up to 50 campers, with eight full-time seasonal counselors. — Ruth Hanavan

garden, holding flowers and singing songs, as they move between activities.

Each year, Camp begins the last week in June and continues through August – eight, week-long sessions. The Camp also runs during school breaks in February and April.

For years, the Farm in the Garden camp operated out of the Education Center. The large exhibit hall, small classroom and full kitchen worked well for the small group, but there were also limitations.

“It felt more like a classroom than a Farm Camp,” Julian explains. “Now that we are in the Lodge, we can expand the number of kids at camp and utilize the outdoor space so much more.”

Amy Butterworth, BBG’s operations manager, is 99.9 percent certain that’s her in this photo — front row, second from the right (the girl wearing the cardigan). Since its founding, Berkshire Botanical Garden has emphasized children’s education in its mission. In this photo, Roy Boutard leads Amy and her peers in a garden class in the 1970s. “I could’ve been home watching ‘F Troop,’” jokes Amy, who has been a BBG mainstay for more than 50 years.

‘Does This Predate the Botanical Garden?’

An Old Stone Wall Transforms into a Seemingly Ancient Amphitheater

Marcia Downing came up the wooded path, stood at the foot of the Garden’s amphitheater and paused. A first-time visitor from Indiana, she couldn’t help but express her awe. Turning to a staff member, she posed a question that would bring joy to the creators of this new, ancient-looking masterwork of landscape design.

“Does this predate the Botanical Garden?” Mission accomplished.

While the Berkshire Botanical Garden has been in existence since 1934, the Williams Family Amphitheater was merely a dream until this spring. Last year, the

dream took shape as a rough sketch, followed by a stroke of good fortune, followed by an astonishing achievement of craftsmanship.

BBG had long recognized the Garden’s need for additional outdoor event space for children’s programming, performances, presentations, and weddings. Last year, Matt Larkin, BBG’s chairman of the Board of Trustees, met up with fellow Trustee Tom Ingersoll, an arborist and landscape designer, and the two agreed in general terms on what the amphitheater should be. Namely,

it should be something spectacular, preferably made from native stone.

Good fortune came earlier this year when Matt was approached by the stonemason Mark Mendel of Monterey Masonry, who has taught many classes at the Garden over the years. Mark had clients nearby who wanted an old stone wall on their property removed.

BBG seized the opportunity, conducting a reconnaissance mission to measure and inventory the wall. Constructed from locally quarried marble long ago, the wall provided just enough

The Williams Family Amphitheater was made possible through funding provided by longtime Berkshire Botanical Garden supporters Rob and Carol Williams.

material to meet BBG’s needs. The rough stones were also the right size for seating. They were blocky. They were perfect.

“This was a heaven-sent opportunity,” Tom said.

By then, Matt had secured funding for the amphitheater’s construction from Rob and Carol Williams, who have long supported the Garden’s mission, especially its education programs both at the Garden and in local schools.

By April, the stone wall had been disassembled and transported to its new home upon a sloping site in the wooded southern portion of BBG’s property. The project had begun.

Notably, the amphitheater that emerged over the next two months was not the result of high-tech engineering or computer-aided design. It was a testament to old-school oomph and artistry.

“Literally,” said Tom, “it was figuring out how it was going to work, on the ground, in person, live.”

Tree removal was kept to a minimum, primarily targeting ash trees already under attack by the emerald ash borer. Matt and Tom were particularly careful to preserve two stunning cherry trees and a beautiful silver maple, which now contribute to the amphitheater’s cathedral-like canopy.

“Even as we got half-way done the project, Matt and I were looking at each other and going, ‘Holy moley!’” said Tom. He hastens to give credit to his crew — members of the Gomez family — a father, son and uncle who originally hail from Puebla, in Mexico.

Visitors who come upon the amphitheater are surprised to discover this 65-seat marvel in the woods. Newly planted native flora accompany the intricately tiered stonework, along

with a pergola and presentation screen, both built by Aaron Dunn out of locally harvested locust trees. The materials used in the construction all are local. In fact, the Goshen stone — used on the stair treads and elsewhere — came the furthest distance, a mere 30 miles away, Tom said.

“From the beginning of Matt’s concept, we talked about, ‘Can we build something that complements the existing landscape, as opposed to making something deliberately modern, angular and imposed upon the landscape?’” Tom said. “We wanted it to look as if you’ve just come upon ancient ruins.”

The Williams Family Amphitheater is built in honor of Rob and Carol’s two sons and their five grandchildren.

“This is just better than we could have imagined,” said Rob, a 20-year BBG trustee. “I love it.”

“It’s just right,” said Carol.

The amphitheater was swiftly put to use this summer, the site of activities for BBG’s Farm in the Garden Camp, special presentations, classes, and the Family Fridays series.

By the way, if you find yourself questioning the comfort of the stone seating, fear not. Krissy Romano, Visitor Center manager, has thoughtfully provided cushions (paid for by Rob and Carol) that can be borrowed during events for added relaxation. — Felix Carroll

An ecological landscape company

HARVEST FESTIVAL

A Quintessential Berkshire Event Returns

By Ruth Hanavan

When the fall foliage is at its peak, that’s when the Berkshire Botanical Garden’s annual Harvest Festival comes alive. Mark your calendars for Saturday and Sunday, Oct. 7 and 8, as this iconic event returns.

During these two days, the 24-acre Garden undergoes a remarkable transformation into a vibrant hub for the celebration of community, the natural world and our agricultural heritage.

Offering an array of family-friendly activities, live music and a wide selection of regional artisan food and crafts vendors, the Harvest Festival has been a beloved tradition in the Berkshires for generations, dating back to 1935. Originally envisioned as a

harvest-season family and community festival, it has grown to become one of the largest and longest-running events of its kind in the country.

Relax in the BBG Beer Garden and enjoy a selection of craft beers. Wander through the booths of vendors, and sample the international cuisine of our Food Truck Corral! Once again, BBG Volunteers have been hard at work sorting, cleaning and organizing items for the giant tag sale, featuring repurposed housewares, dishes and glasses, tchotchkes, art, and more.

Be sure to visit the Accessorize! Pop Up shop, selling gently used clothing, hats, shoes, jewelry, purses, and other fun accessories.

Bring the entire family and enjoy our Children’s Area, which includes the ever-popular obstacle course, the Haunted House, pony rides, pumpkin carving, the hay jump, hay maze, face-painting, and a cider press. And right around the corner is the Main Stage, a continuous music venue featuring regional performers, including folk crooner Cierra Fragale and the groovy O-Tones.

The Horticultural Tent will be selling garden books and supplies, as well as mums, pumpkins and seasonal bulbs.

Harvest Festival is first and foremost a celebration of community, showcasing local artisans of the highest quality, supporting local services and promoting a wide array of Berkshire area products.

To put things into perspective, our first Harvest Festival boasted one booth and a cider press. In 2023, our vendors include woodworkers, jewelry-makers, candles, glass artisans, pottery, hand-made apparel, resin art, alpacawool mittens, puzzles, and many more.

The Harvest Festival is also the Garden’s largest fundraiser, with proceeds supporting adult and children’s year-round, educational programming, including the summer Farm in the Garden Camp.

Admission to the Harvest Festival is $10 for adults; children under 12 are admitted free. There is no charge for parking in several fields near BBG, and pre-registration is not necessary. Dogs (with the exception of registered service dogs) are not permitted at the Harvest Festival.

CREATING BEAUTIFUL LANDSCAPES

HARVEST FESTIVAL

‘The Most Priceless Thing’ Mr. Scarecrow Says Farewell

Allen Timmons, the kindly, blue-eyed man with an Alabama accent whose sweet-filled syllables stretch like taffy, has a message to share with his many friends here at Berkshire Botanical Garden, particularly the children who attend the annual Harvest Festival.

Diagnosed earlier this year with Stage-4 lung cancer, he wishes to extend his gratitude — and a fond farewell.

Let it be known here and now, that was Allen behind that mask. For more than a dozen years up until last year, he served as the Harvest Festival’s ubiquitous Mr. Scarecrow, a character of his own creation. As he recalls it, the scarecrow plan was hatched after he and his wife, Nancy, were invited to attend the Festival by BBG members the late Karl and Marianne Lipsky.

“I noticed there was no scarecrow,” he said recently at his home in Ashley Falls, “and I just thought, ‘You know, gosh, you’ve got to have a scarecrow at a harvest festival.’” The next year, a live scarecrow showed up, unannounced. He was a hit.

“The only thing I could think of was, I put a pumpkin over my head,” Allen recalls. “I got a large pumpkin, and I carved it out, paper thin, and I barely squeezed the thing over my head, and it rested on my shoulders, and it was just the most hilarious thing.”

He and Nancy modified the costume over the years. They replaced the pumpkin with a woven burlap hood. Copious hay or corn stalks issued from flannel and denim.

Allen’s relationship with the Garden would grow over the years. A professional builder of birdhouses and tree forts, he submitted one of the 11 structures included in the Garden’s 2017 outdoor exhibition entitled “PlayDate!: Playhouses in the Garden.” His playhouse remains here, the focal point of the Children’s Discovery Garden. He donated it.

“Those are the moments he treasure. He liked that no one knew it was him. He felt free. He loved it.”

“Allen has always been a gentle soul, a big guy, full of heart,” said Nancy. “His love for life is always bright. He’s the man I love, and I can’t bear the thought of losing him to this terrible disease.” The couple has a grown daughter, Emilie.

As Mr. Scarecrow, he chose not to speak but instead freely roamed the Garden, warmly greeting people and often posing for pictures with them. One little girl once asked him if he was a “real scarecrow.” He shook his head “yes,” and she replied, “I knew it, I knew

VOLUNTEER AT THE HARVEST FESTIVAL! October 7-8, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Help needed with: Admissions, Plant Sale, Kids Activities (Pumpkin Painting, Hay Jump, Cider Press), Silent Auction, Tag Sale, and much more! Email mweiner@berkshirebotanical.org or call 413-305-1714.

it!” She then proceeded to tell him all about herself.

“Those are the moments he treasured,” said Nancy. “He liked that no one knew it was him. He felt free. He loved it.”

Despite now being paralyzed in half his body due to his illness, Allen wants this to be known: “I’m a very happy man. I’m incredibly blessed. I’m so grateful.”

We’d like to share with you some particular thoughts of the man behind the mask, our dear friend:

I found that when I looked through the mask, all I saw were the eyes of the children and the adults, and that, to me, was very magical. Mr. Scarecrow’s view

of the world is very narrow; there’s no peripheral vision. Everything is only what’s in front of him at that moment, and so most of the time, I was looking into the eyes of these children. And what I discovered, something really quite profound, is that children, when they look at us, they look deep into our eyes because they’re looking for truth and meaning. Our eyes are the windows to our soul. So that’s what Mr. Scarecrow gave me. He gave me an opportunity to look into the souls of people, of children, and to see the power that Mr. Scarecrow possessed, this incredible joy that he has in his own life, to bring a smile upon that face — wonderment, laughter, a moment of joy — it’s just the most priceless thing I can think of in life.

I don’t think there’s anything in life that can give us more than that, than seeing the evidence or the power that we have within our own self to affect other people’s lives in a very real time. That to me is the magic of Mr. Scarecrow. — Felix Carroll

WINDY HILL FARM

Questions? Comments? Concerns?

A Master Gardener Is Standing By

By Felix Carroll

The phone was quiet on a recent Monday morning at the Master Gardener Hotline, and the master gardeners who run the hotline acknowledged that a friendly reminder of the hotline’s existence might be a good idea.

Oh, it exists all right. The number is 413-298-5355. Again, that’s 413-298-5355.

Call on a Monday between 9 a.m. and noon, from May through September, and you’ll get a real, live master gardener who won’t steer you wrong. Call any other time, any day, any month, leave a message, and a master gardener will get back to you within a week, likely reading from a set of meticulously prepared notes that render a verdict, that counsel and encourage.

If, say, you find yourself with a pair of shears in your hand standing in front of

your azaleas questioning if now might be an excellent time to prune, lay the shears aside and call.

This is not to say that Monday mornings the hotline volunteers aren’t busy. Voicemails await from home gardeners, professional landscapers, from a caller named Debbie (town unknown) seeking help to identify and eradicate a weed that’s flat with spaghetti-like arms. Or Robert of Westfield seeking information about a certain species of fruit fly attacking his late-blooming raspberries.

If the caller admits to having tried an insecticide, you can bet the master gardeners will wince and worry.

The hotline, a free service provided by the Western Massachusetts Master Gardener Association since the 1990s,

operates from space donated by the Berkshire Botanical Garden, in the Center House’s Henriette Granville Suhr Library, with its venerable glass-fronted shelves, comfortable seating and 1,500-plus tomes.

In addition to those tomes, the hotline volunteers have built up their own impressive reference library that includes books, fact sheets and bulging binders. Yes, they utilize the internet, eschewing the dot coms for dot edu’s and dot org’s, thank you very much. A rotation of more than a dozen volunteers field about 100 inquiries a year, the bulk of which come in June and July, when gardens are growing and so are the problems.

Still, the master gardeners prefer the phone to ring between 9 a.m. and noon on Mondays. It’s a “hotline,” after all; a

Master gardeners Margy Gwozdz (left) and Donna Meczywor are in the house — BBG’s Center House. The Western Massachusetts Master Gardener Association provides volunteers at BBG to answer questions from callers and walk-ins.

little more sense of urgency would seem in order. This is gardening — gardening! — a battle between good bugs and bad, alkaline and acidic, droughts and floods, life and death. Not that the weed of boredom could ever take root in a room of master gardeners.

On a recent Monday, master gardeners Margy Gwozdz of Cheshire and Donna Meczywor of Adams were staffing the hotline. They had placed a sandwich board out in front of the Center House inviting Garden visitors to step in with questions, comments and concerns. BBG horticulture staff are among the frequent visitors.

By 9:15 a.m., Margy and Donna had already listened to the hotline messages and then listened again. Now they are taking notes, thinking and tapping pens to their temples. They are researching a caller’s question regarding the safe and effective removal of moss from a roof and another caller’s question about a frostdamaged Japanese maple.

But in between the research, a day on the hotline can easily turn into an amusing, informative confab about everything and anything involving the natural world — why a hydrangea might not be blooming this year; or the lime content in Berkshire County soil; or the fiendish battle of aphids versus rose bushes; or how people blame moles for root damage caused by voles; or about the master gardener who found an invasive jumping worm in a bag of MOO DOO;

or an observation on how caretakers of malls and shopping plazas will beautify their parking lots with fresh plants in spring and then proceed to never water or weed around them for the rest of the season.

“You drive by and you watch it all dry out,” says Donna, a retiree with a new grandchild she’d soon be visiting in Florida. She’s among western Massachusetts’ newest master gardeners, having graduated in January from the intensive 13-week class, all for the honor to volunteer.

With a curious walk-in visitor, the two volunteers shared the best piece of advice they could give.

“You’ve got to be an optimist to garden,” said Margy. “If you’re a pessimist you can’t garden.”

“Yes,” said Donna. “Gardens are living things, ever changing.”

A good portion of the hotline volunteers’ time is spent counseling the public on the benefits of native gardens that support pollinating insects. In other words, said Margy, there’s a lot of “plant this instead of that” and “do this instead of that.”

The master gardeners are the first to admit that in this online, digital, information age, a landline hotline may seem conspicuously anachronistic. But they point out that some gardeners, particularly in the hill towns, still lack reliable internet service. Moreover,

Margy said, many people still prefer to hear from a human on the other end of a telephone call. And so the verdict stands: The hotline will exist for as long as people keep asking questions.

“Our mission,” said Margy, a master gardener since 2009, “is to try to educate the public on good gardening organic practices so they don’t do any more damage than what’s already been done to the poor earth.”

She hastens to add, “You still have the people who want to spray all the bees off their roses, and you just want to cringe.”

Contributors

The following constituents made contributions of $150 or more during BBG’s 2022 fiscal year from Jan. 1, 2022 to Dec. 31, 2022. Contributions include membership dues, unrestricted contributions to the Annual Fund, donations to designated funds, as well as grants and sponsorships.

$50,000+

Joanne Leonhardt Cassullo

The Dorothea L. Leonhardt Foundation

The Frederick H. Leonhardt Fund / New York Community Trust

Carol and Robert Williams

$25,000-$49,999

Maria and David Carls

The Non Nobis Solum Foundation

$10,000-$24,999

Estanne Fawer

Madeline and Ian Hooper

Tania and Mark Walker

$2,500-$9,999

Anonymous

Jeannene Booher

Rachel and Justin Carafotes

Carol and Paul Collins

Susan and Ronald Collins

Mary Copeland and Jose Gonzalez, Jr.

Lynn and Stewart Edelstein

The Frelinghuysen Foundation

Adaline Frelinghuysen

Lainie Grant and Matt Larkin

Guido’s Marketplace

Lauretta Harris and Louis Cohen

Nancy Hickey

Sherry and Daniel Kasper

Melissa LeVangie and Tom Ingersoll

Geri and Roy Liemer

Joanna and Warren Miller

Caitlin and Mitchell Nash

Linda O’Connell

Governor Deval and Diane Patrick

Ramelle and Michael Pulitzer

Mary Ann and Bruno Quinson

Georgeanne and Jean Rousseau

The Estate of Elizabeth Ford Sayman

Suzanne Yale

Kathleen and John Zutter

$1,000-$2,499

Anonymous

Susan Abramowitz

Francine and Nicholas Arienti

Elizabeth Bean and Lynn Bertelli

Michael Beck and Beau Buffier

The Berkshire Taconic Community Foundation

Stephanie and Carl Bradford

Kathi Cafiero

Patricia and John Chory

Mary and James Cooper

Nynke Darhout

Nathaniel Day

Janet and John DePiero

Michele Dodge

Susan and JW Dunlaevy

Thomas Evans

Charlotte Fairweather

Nancy Fitzpatrick and Lincoln Russell

The Green Pastures Fund

Carol and Joseph Green

Maura Griffin and Joseph Carry

Harold Grinspoon

Ellen and Scott Hand

Elise and Carl Hartman

Donna and James Hurley

Jane Iredale and Robert Montgomery

Genet Jeanjean

Laura and Eric Jordahl

The Guttman Family Foundation

Karen Kaufman

Trent and Steven Kinney

Larry Klein

Joan and Larry Kleinman

Leslie Lassiter

Janet Laudenslager and Maxime Aflalo

Mary and Gregor Leinsdorf

Barbara Leonhardt Buffoni and Mark Buffoni

Lyn Mason

Cindy McCollum and John Spellman

Leonard and Barbara McCue

Kate and Hans Morris

Jeryl Oristaglio

Pamela Pescosolido

Lauren and Scott Pinkus

Rodney Pleasants and Steve Godwin

Adam Rolston

Carolina Schulze

Joseph Shapiro

Lauren Smith

Anna and Starbuck Smith

The Marcia Brady Tucker Foundation

Margot and Kip Towl

Lisa Townson Seaman

Shari and Jonathan Turell

Greg Ward

Ed and Judy Warren

Harriet Wetstone

Jane and Christopher White

Robert Williams

Susan Wolf

$250-$999

Robin and John Abbott

Margaret Abbott and Theresa Johnson

Emily Aber and Rob Wechsler

The Academy Garden Club of Lenox

Mary M. Ackerly and Michael Sconyers

Lauri Aibel and Tim Sleeper

Laura and Richard Allen

Samantha Anderson

Jane Angelini

Pauline and Anthony Archer-Wills

Leah Barber

Marisa and Robert Becker

Gregory Beck

Jack Benmeleh

Francine Bernitz

Juliana Biasin

Jackie Blombach and Michael Duca

Chase Booth and Gray Davis

Royden Booth

Sheryl Boris-Schacter

Ben Boyd and Dennis Adamson

Sarah and Bronly Boyd

Mary Lou Bradley

Patty and Timothy Burch

Carolyn Butler

Lee Buttala

Terri Chegwidden and Nathan Casto

Lauren Clark

Tess Coon

Ellen Cooper Klyce

Deborah and Gary Crakes

Clayton Crawley

Catherine Culver

Christine Davis

Marilyn and Michael Dee

Christina and Paul Del Balso

Jacqueline Del Rossi

Susan Dempsey

Matthew Deres

Caroline Devereux and Robin Devereux

Page Dickey and Bosco Schell

Adrian Doherty

LizAnn and Adrian Doherty

Katharine Dufault

Carol Edelman

Janet and John Egelhofer

Pamela Evans

Barbara Fabiani

Nancy and Fred Fagelman

Judith Fetterley and Sara McCain

Susan Fisher and Gary Schieneman

Susan and Henry Flint

Robert Fried and Karen Kowgios

Joseph C. and Esther Foster Foundation

Debbie Gangemi

Sherry Donovan and John Gelb

Olivia Georgia and Steve Oakes

Mary Michelle Gilligan and Lester Ettlinger

Barbara and Steven Glicksman

Linda Goff

Jennifer and Rob Goldwasser

Rocky Greenberg and Susan Popper

Samuel Grubman and Paul Morris

Mary Hamel

Hilary Harley

Amy Harren

Marilyn and Nathan Hayward

Anita Heller

Callie Herzog and Frank Walton

Maureen and Paul Hickey

Paul Hirt and Lynn Campana

Dale Hoctor

Katherine Holbrow

Stacey Horner Hawkins

Amal Hussein

Marianne and Richard Jaffe

Nancy Johnson

Richard Kalb and Karl Laird

Michael Kelly

Anita and John Killea

Emily Kirshen

Patti Klein

Phyllis Klein

Jane Kresch

Scott Lambert

Taylor Lamme

Pam Lassiter

Jorie and Steve Latham

Robert Lee

Burt Levering

Benjamin Liptzin

Katinka Locascio

Susan and Tom Mann

Judy and Dennis Mareb

Mary Trev Thomas and Richard Matturro

Judith and Kim Maxwell

Camilla and Hugh McFadden

Dorothy McTeigue

Dorinda Medley

Brian Mikesell and John Weinstein

Jo Dare and Bob Mitchell

Barbara Kahn Moller

Susan Morris

Ann and Donald Morrison

Anne and Peter Most

Elizabeth and James Murray

Frank Muytjens and Scott Edward Cole

Anjani and Barbara Nelson

Judy Ney and Lee Elman

Lukasz and Dana Niedzielski

Sarah and Glenn Novak

Andrea O’Meara

Lauren Pacifico and Jason Rosa

Gale Page

Jim Panichella

Sally Parrott

Evelyn Pascal

Wendy Philbrick and Edward Baptiste

Jane Pinckney

Alexandra Pinheiro

Barbara and Michael Polemis

Nanda Prabhakar

Patrick Riordan

Adele Rodbell

Frank Rosa

Carol Rossetti

Catherine Cave and Peter Rothstein

Rosa Ruales

Debbie and Eric Ruder

Deborah Sagner and William Dineen

Lorraine Santhay and James Lindler

Loretta Scheel

Gary Scheft

Mitchell Schlansky

Erik Sebesta

Carol and Richard Seltzer

Peter and Lynn Shaffer

Honey Sharp and David Lippman

Gail Shaw

Mark Smith and John O’Keefe

Suzanne Smith

Amy and David Sorkin

Katie and James Stewart

Appy and John Stookey

Elizabeth Strand Cimini and Dean Cimini

Mark Strieter and Anthony Machado

Lenore and Paul Sundberg

Lucia and Thaddeus Thompson

Sheila and Randy Thunfors

Lisa Townson Seaman

Barri Trott

Lisa Trumble

Barbara Tsarnas

Barbara Turner Hart

Edward Wacks

Franklin Walton

Judy Warren

Celeste and William Watman

Andrew Weiss

Western Massachusetts Master Gardener Association

Cynthia Wick and R. Channing Gibson

Marianne and Howard Zimberg

$150-$249

Jennifer and David A. Anderson

Ruth Abram and Herbert Teitelbaum

Deborah Adams

Mary Ann Aiello

Paul Allen

Elizabeth and Kevin Allen

Naomi Alson

Judith Ambery

Paula Angerstein and Paul Grosso

Abraham Avni-Singer

Maureen Banner

Leah Barber

Emmett Barcalow and Deb Patterson

Francesca Barstad

Maureen Barton

Joanne and Stuart Beck

Lisa and Chris Beede

Elizabeth Bellows

Cindy and David Berger

Jillian Bergman

Pamela Berkeley

Ricky Bernstein and Elisabeth Cary

Marc Bernstein

Alfred Bingham and Paula Kelley

Laura and James Blodgett

Jared Boesse and Colin Levy

Margie and Michael Bogdanow

Elizabeth Bone and David Cook

Penelope Borax and John Donald

Anselm Bradford

Nancy and Stephen Brenner

Iona and Robert Brigham

Marcia Brolli

Heather Brookman

Jytte and John Brooks

Richard Brousseau

Cipora Brown and Steven Feiner

Mary and David Buehl

Susan Bues

Harriet and Abby Bussel

Edward Cabot

Rebecca Caine

Kevin Cantor

Karen Carmean and Thomas Doane Perry III

Kristin and Patrick Carnahan

Virginia Carrington

Lisa Carullo and Eric Bachman

Linda and David Cass

Claudine Chavanne and Harry Stuart

Luis Chavez

Joshua Cheslow

Tory Chlanda

Kathleen and Neil Chrisman

Axel Clark

Elaine R. Cohen

Licia and Michael Conforti

Laura Conklin

Jacqueline and William Connell

Deb Cox

Marta and Gregory Cutter

Lori and Marek Danek

Liz and John Darley

Leslie Davidson and Rob Gennari

Helen and John Davies

Jennifer and Steph DeFranco

Daniel DelRoccilli and Michael Kantrowitz

Barry and Judith Dichter

David Draper and Janet Lanphier

Heather Dunhill

Constance Eagan

Marilyn Elie and Roger Witherspoon

Dan and Jo England

Wendy and Eric Federer

Deborah Fenster and Edward Seliga

Mary Ann Fernandez and Richard Pierce

Chris Ferrero and Marty Sennett

Patty Fili-Krushel and Kenneth Krushel

Peter and Elizabeth Finn

Richard Fitzgerald and Bernadette Kennedy

Terry and Bonnie Flynn

Christine Fontana

Fort Orange Garden Club

Liz Foulser

Audrey and Ralph Friedner

Don Fries and Janice Tassinari

Steve Gabel and Deborah Garry

David Gallager

Mara Gandal-Powers and Jan Gandal

Leslie and John Garwood

Laura Gates

Marie and Donald Gelston

Ellen Gendler and James Salik

Virginia and James Giddens

Karen Gingras and Daniel Barowy

Susan Ginns

Elizabeth Gioia

Pamela Goguen and Peter Conzett

Susan and Marc Goldman

I. Michael Goodman and Judith Uman

Allyson Gray

Melissa Greenlaw

Adrienne Gruskin

Neil Gutierrez

Margy Gwozdz

Catherine and Eric Haines

Crocus Hale

Dan Harden

John Hartman

Donna Hassler

Teresa and Steve Hayner

Holly and Ralph Hebb

Robert Hegeman

Melissa and Joseph Henaghan

Frances and Robert Herman

Pat Hogan

Chris Holmes and Anne Rocheleau

Lisa Holmes

Natalie and David Hosford

Nancy and John Howell

Katherine Huh

Kevin Humphrey

Stanley Hurwitz and Gloria Hurwitz

Janet and John Hutchison

Brian and Sistine Jarvis

Claudia Jasinski and Tom Jasinski

Heather Jassy and Jon Jassy

Marie and David Johnson

Jane Johnson

Helga Kaiser

Elisa Kammeyer

Jillian Kasow

Kathleen Keresey

Diane Kern

MD Kerswill and Laureen Vizza

Hannah King

Thomas and Rosanna Koelle

Iris and Louis Korman

Arthur Kreiger and Rebecca Benson

Ilana Krishnamurti

Andrea Kust and Stephen Shapiro

Sherilyn LaCerra

Gregory Lalley and Constance Miner

Kendra and Rich Lassor

Emily Laurenti

Travis Layton and Caitlin Layton

Jaeok and Kang Lee

Sally and Stuart Lesser

Elizabeth and Peter Levin

Regina Little and Pamela Little Tripsas

Jens Lobb

Roger and Jane Loeb

Susan and Michael Lynch

Jane Lyon

Maggie Mailer

Keith and William Marman

Samantha Marturana

Christopher and Dawn Masiero

Diane McAveeney and Candace Palangi

Wendy McCain

Cynthia McCallister

Colleen McGuinness-Clarke and Charles Clarke

Helen McIver

Margaret McLallen

James McNaughton

Andrea and Fred Mensch

Debra Meyers

Lynden Miller

Ann Millett Ozawa and Edwin Ozawa

Susan Mitrano

Kevin Moody

Don Moon and Lucy Ferriss

Megan Moore and Joby Baker

Pat Murtagh

Margaret Muskrat

Marianne and Eric Nadel

Christine Neill and Lew Fifield

Phyllis and Marc Newman

Linda and Robert Noonan

Sandra Northrup and Dean Walton

Ellen Nuffer

Susan O’Donnell

Ann O’Donnell

Christine OConnor

Christine Orena

Charles Pardoe and Mariet Westermann

Gregg Pasternack

Bonnee Pecquex

Steven Peddy

Tom and Chris Pepper

Thomas Doane Perry and Karen Carmean

Marlene and David Persky

Susan Pettee

Mary Jane Piazza

Martha Piper

Bonnie Podolsky and Douglas Rich

Steven Porter and Douglas Stroup

Audrey Proto

Ronald Prunty and Connie Congdon

Elaine Radiss

William Rafelson

Jeremy Rawitz and Nancy Tomasovich

Cheri Reed

Michael Roberts and Jay Corcoran

Elizabeth Roberts

Robert Roggeveen

Eileen and Marc Rosenthal

Julie and Tim Ross

Susan and Jeremy Rudd

Cecelia Rufo

Katherine Rupert and Sean Blinn

Julia and James Russell

Carol Saginaw and Joachim Frank

Irene Samuels and David Gonsalves

Carey Samuels Hochberg and Mark Hochberg

Dale Scalise-Smith

Louise Schaper and Leonard Schaper

Christopher Schiavone and Rome Bautista

Jessie Schilling

Sally Schoenknecht

Janice and John Schott

Richard Schulhof

Emily and Jake Scudder

Susan and David Shapiro

Jane and Terrence Shea

Elizabeth Sheffer-Winig

Evelyn Shen and Jason Tong

Susan and Al Shurtleff

Ben Silberstein

Yael and Tacy Silverberg-Urian

Doris and Michael Simon

Linda Sirois

Tom and Paula Skinner

Michelle Slater and Dmitri Sinenko

Jane Smith and Jules Anderson

Carol and Irving Smokler

Alison Sneider

Donna and Robyn Spector

Carmel and Christopher Steger

Cynthia Stewart

Wendy Strothman

Csilla Szabo and Brian Baxter

Thomas Taylor and Karen Erickson

Susan Tercek

Emily Terry

Theresa Terry Michney and Gerard Michney

Andrew Urbanowicz

Karen Valiasek

Joyce Vandemark and Alan Zablonski

Reinout VanWagtendonk and Kristine Huffman

Louise Vargas-Levy and Jay Levy

Emily Vasiliauskas and Ryan Riley

William and Diane Vogt

Ellen and Wade Walbrun

Theresa Walker and Eileen Rice

Alison Walter

Kathleen Ward

Phyllis and Dale Webb

Brigitte and Robert Weible

Judy Wein

Betty and Edward Weisberger

Judeth Wesley

Marriel Weston

Carolyn White

Heather Wittmann

Michael Wolkowitz

Jeff Zimmerman and Lauren Behrman

Honorary & Memorial Contributions

In Honor of Phyllis W. Coldwell

Audrey Proto

In Honor of Madeline & Ian Hooper

Ramelle Pulitzer

In Honor of Mary Carol Lodge

Dory and Walter Lodge

In Honor of Jo Dare & Bob Mitchell’s Anniversary

Phyllis Patti Klein

Janet Egelhofer

In Honor of Ramelle Pulitzer & Fete Des Fleurs

Phyllis Klein

In Honor of Bridgette Stone

Heather Dunhill

Jane Kresch

In Memory of Diane Antonazzi

Emily Laurenti

In Memory of Glenn DeVries

Rodney Pleasants

In Memory of Eileen Duncan

Anne Wild-Rocheleau

In Memory and Honor of Lucy Jensen

Deborah Dean

In Memory of Wendy T. Linscott

Taylor Lamme

In Memory of Erica Leopold

Jonathan Yetto

In Memory of Nancy Nirenberg

Allison Forsman

In Memory of Harriet Sturtevant

Bill Oberst

In Memory of Edmund Strzepa

Elizabeth Leonard

Thank you to our Plant Sale Donors

Amherst Nurseries

Andrew’s Greenhouse

Bay State Perennial Farm

Beardsley Gardens

Becker’s Farm

Botanic Barn Garden Center

Broken Arrow Nursery, LCC

Brookside Nursery

Callander’s Nursery & Landscaping, Inc.

Campo de’Fiori

Chatham Berry Farm

Clark’s Garden Center

Countryside Landscape

Cricket Hill Garden

Faddegon’s Nursery, Inc.

Freund’s Farm Market

Gade Farm

Garden Magic, Inc. DBA as Country Caretaker

Glendale Botanicals

Hadley Garden Center

Holiday Brook Farm

Hudson Valley Organics

Ingersoll Land Care

Kent Greenhouses

Keyes Perennial Farm

Landcraft Environments LTD

Left Field Farm

Litchfield Hills Nursery

Maple Lane Nursery

Markristo Farm

McEnroe Organic Farm

Meadow View Farms

Monrovia Nursery

Mt. Williams Greenhouses

Nasami Farm

North Creek Nurseries

Northern Nurseries

O’Brien Nurserymen, LLC

Old Farm Nursery

Oliver Nurseries

Paley’s Farm Market

Pioneer Gardens, Inc.

Pond Side Nursery

Pride’s Corner Farms

R & C Floral, Inc

Randall’s Farm and Greenhouse

Salisbury Garden Center

Secret Gardener

Sixteen Acres Garden Center

Spring Meadow Nursery, Inc.

Summer Hill Nursery, Inc.

Sunny Border Nurseries

Sylvan Nursery, Inc.

Taft Farms

The Plant Group

The Robert Baker Company

Tomich Landscape Design

Troy’s Landscape Supply

Twin Brooks

Van Berkum Nursey

Wahconah Street Greenhouses

Wanczyk Evergreen Nursery, Inc.

Ward’s Nursery, Inc.

Whalen Nursery Inc.

Whitney’s Farm Market & Country Gardens

Wildflowers Florist

Windy Hill Farm, Inc.

Zema’s Nursery, Inc.

Let’s Not ‘Kill’ Any More Time!

It’s an unfortunate expression that everyone uses: “I was killing time until (fill in the blank).” But if time is our most precious resource, do we really want to kill it? How much better to seize the day and make the most of every moment!

One easy way to do that is to volunteer. If you have any extra time in your week that you are frittering away on not much of anything, you can turn that time into a rewarding experience at Berkshire Botanical Garden. You can volunteer for an occasional event, for a weekly task, or whatever works with your schedule.

Our Volunteer shifts are typically just four hours, morning or afternoon. And even in that short time, you start to experience the pleasures of being part of the BBG family, and doing something for the greater good.

When you help out at BBG, you are supporting our mission of ecological stewardship, and contributing to programs that educate the public, that help preserve a healthy environment, and that support our vital pollinator population of birds and bees, butterflies and more.

You don’t have to be a gardener to volunteer here. There are many ways to be involved. You can assist in the Visitor Center, be a docent in the art galleries, help on special projects, and more. To get started, simply register on the Volunteer page of our website at www.berkshirebotanical.org. You’ll get our e-news announcements of upcoming volunteer jobs.

You can also email our Operations Associate Megan Weiner at mweiner@ berkshirebotanical.org to learn more about volunteer opportunities.

So reach out to us, and dig deeper into the joys of the Garden. You may never kill time again!

Lauretta Harris President, BBG Volunteer Association

Education

Berkshire Botanical Garden is offering a wide variety of classes this Fall and Winter, including arts and science based classes, experiential learning and a symposium exploring biodiverse landscapes. The Horticulture Certificate Program is filling up fast, producing another cohort of graduates re-entering the landscape with new knowledge and a better understanding of plants, soil and design. Please join us for one or more classes, complementing the seasonal fun of Harvest Festival and Holiday Marketplace.

For more information on classes and events happening at the Garden, visit berkshirebotanical.org.

SEPT 23

Field Study: Asters and Goldenrods

Identify the features and habitats of about 40 species of goldenrods and asters and learn to distinguish them in the field. Learn more on page 30.

Classes, Lectures and Workshops

SEPTEMBER

Herbaceous Plants H

IN-PERSON at BBG

Tuesdays, Sept. 5 through 26, 5:30 to 8:30 p.m.

Members: $215/Non-Members: $240

This intensive four-session class led by Lee Buttala explores the world of herbaceous plants, from their identification, selection and use in the garden through their basic botany, life cycle, and propagation. Participants are asked to create a final project highlighting a genus or plant family related to the curriculum. A part of the Level 1 Horticulture Certificate Program core curriculum, this class is essential for the committed gardener and includes lectures, hands-on activities, field study, and group discussion. The class aspires to give participants a deeper understanding of annuals, perennials, and ornamental vegetables and their role in the garden. Students should dress for outdoor field study. All students participating in this class as part of the Horticulture Certificate Program are required to complete a final project.

Fall Flower Fest

IN-PERSON at BBG

Wednesdays, Sept. 6 through 27, 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Members: $235/Non-Members: $255

Join us for four fabulous weeks of watercolor fun with beloved artist Pat Hogan, painting gorgeous fall blooms in the comfort of the studio. We will hone our skills in mixing colors, painting containers and backgrounds, and economical brushwork. Most importantly, we will practice painting light.

Qigong in the Garden

IN-PERSON at BBG

Saturdays, Sept. 9 through 30, 9:30 to 10:30 a.m.

Members: $65/Non-Members: $80

Individual Class Fee: Members: $20/Non-Members: $25

Enjoy the ancient Chinese mind-body practice of Qigong (life energy optimization) in the beautiful garden. Qigong, a simpler form of Tai Chi, combines gentle movements that mimic nature, self-applied massage, breathwork, and meditation with the goal of improving and maintaining our health and well-being. This selfcare practice has been found to relieve stress, calm the mind, and may help reduce pain, improve mobility, balance, posture, strength, immunity and sleep.

*Series includes Qigong on the autumn equinox, Sept. 23.

ONLINE Our online classes are offered over Zoom. Students receive class log-in information and materials lists, when applicable, once they’ve registered.

IN-PERSON The location of onsite classes is subject to change in accordance with state and federal regulations. Students will be notified as soon as possible if classes require a change in location.

HYBRID These classes are held both online and in person. They feature the lecture portion of class online and a hands-on component in-person and outdoors.

OFFSITE These classes are held off-site.

HORTICULTURE CERTIFICATE PROGRAM

HThis symbol denotes Horticulture Certificate Program classes, workshops, and lectures open both to students seeking credit towards one of BBG’s five acclaimed horticulture certificates as well as the general public. Please visit berkshirebotanical.org or call 413-357-4657 for additional information.

Kitchen classes are sponsored by Guido’s Fresh Marketplace with stores located in Great Barrington and Pittsfield.

Overwintering Your Plants

IN-PERSON at BBG

Saturday, Sept. 9, 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Members: $25/Non-Members: $40

At the end of the summer, what do you do with all those special patio plants that you have fussed over for the summer months? This class will give gardeners tricks of the trade to protect their tender perennials, house plants, woody potted specimens, and succulent collections and encourage them to thrive during the winter season. Taught by Jenna O’Brien, this class will include cultivation, fertilizing, watering, and healthcare. Learn by doing, and take home some plant companions.

A Celebration of the Season: Tomatoes

IN-PERSON at BBG

Saturday, Sept. 9, 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Members: $40/Non-Members: $55

Join tomato maven Miriam Rubin as she talks all things tomatoes in this demo class. First, we’ll taste a sampling of heirlooms from Miriam’s garden so we can appreciate the differences in taste, juiciness and texture. Then Miriam will prepare some dishes from her book, Tomatoes, on sale in the Garden Shop. Recipes will include a lively curried tomato soup, a tomato pie and an heirloom tomato salad, all of which we’ll get to devour. She’ll also share tips about putting up the harvest, both canning and freezing, and she’ll explain which types of tomatoes work best for different purposes. You’ll be able to buy a personally signed copy of Tomatoes at the end of the class.

Fall Foliage Eco-Printing

IN-PERSON at BBG

Saturday, Sept. 16, 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Members: $90/Non-Members: $110

Join textile artist Maggie Pate in an introduction to eco-printing. Capture a moment in time with this seasonal workshop. Offered this fall with local foliage. Students will leave with a luscious 100 percent silk charmeuse scarf that they will design and eco-print during the class.

The Language of the Flowers Continues with a Splash of Color

IN-PERSON at BBG

Monday to Wednesday, Sept. 18 through 20, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Members: $245/Non-Members: $265

All flowers hold different meanings, often based on the flower type, the time of year in which they bloom, the flower’s color, or all of the above, but the same is true of the story that makes them so meaningful to us. This introductory class teaches you essential skills in botanical illustration techniques to help you make realistic drawings of branches, stems, leaves and flowers using graphite and colored pencil in hopes of articulating your floral specimen’s singular and brief story. In this class, you will learn that drawing consists of three simple elements: line, shape, and form. Plus, we will explore color theory and colored pencil techniques. Botanical Drawing for all levels, no pre-requisite required. Led by writer and botanical artist Anastasia Traina.

Introduction to Smartphone Photography

IN-PERSON at BBG

Sept. 20, 9 to 11 a.m.

Members: $25 /Non-Members: $40

Need to understand the true photographic capabilities of your smartphone or tablet? Over the course of this two-hour session with Apple-certified teacher Thaddeus B. Kubis, we will review the basic camera operations of your smartphone/tablet, including exposure, filters, zooming, and specific options like LIVE, Portrait, Video, Slow-Mo, Time-Lapse/Hyper speed, Pano and more. This session will include editing, sharing and other related camerabased operations. If time allows and weather is supportive we will walk the garden to apply what was presented.

Asters and Goldenrods

HYBRID

Thursday, Sept. 21, 6 to 8 p.m. (on-line presentation)

Saturday, Sept. 23, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. (field study)

Members: $65/Non-Members: $80

The many kinds of goldenrods and asters are a visually striking and ubiquitous feature of our late summer and fall landscapes. However, since many of them look much alike, they can be a challenge to identify. This class, led by Ted Elliman, will focus on the identification features and habitats of about 40 species of goldenrods and asters, looking closely at the characteristics that help to distinguish them in the field. A Thursday evening Zoom presentation will provide an overview of these species and their identification features, and the Saturday field trip to a location rich in both asters and goldenrods will provide the opportunity to see many of them in natural conditions. *Rain date for field day, Sunday, Sept. 24, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Cyanotype on Paper

IN-PERSON at BBG

Saturday, Sept. 23, 10 a.m. to 12 p.m.

Members: $50/Non-Members: $65

Magical and simple cyanotypes are a camera-less technique that results in graphic blue and white prints. Developed in 1852, this alternative photographic process uses a light-sensitive solution on paper, sunlight, and pressed plants to make beautiful botanical images. All supplies, including pressed plant material, will be provided. Participants are encouraged to bring objects or pressed plants with interesting silhouettes from home to use in their compositions. Led by Madge Evers

Black Ash Berry Basket

IN-PERSON at BBG

Saturday, Sept. 23, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Members: $165/Non-Members: $180

This workshop, led by homesteader Penny Hewitt, is a great introduction to the extraordinary qualities of the black ash tree. Weave a square-to-round basket, approximately 6 inches by 6 inches, with optional leather strap. Included is a discussion on how the material is harvested and processed. Registration includes a materials fee. Please bring lunch.

Mixed Bark Black Ash Basket

IN-PERSON at BBG

Sunday, Sept. 24, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Members: $165/Non-Members: $180

In this hands-on basket course, start with a black ash base and use a variety of native barks including willow, cedar and birch to create your own unique design. This one-day workshop, led by homesteader Penny Hewitt, is appropriate for both adults and teens. Registration includes materials fee. Please bring a bagged lunch.

The Inner Harvest: A Meditation Gathering for the Autumnal Equinox, with mindfulness-in-nature facilitator Sandrine Harris

IN-PERSON at BBG

Saturday, Sept. 23, 5 to 6 p.m.

Members: $20/Non-Members: $30

Experience the turn of the season at the autumnal equinox, on Saturday, Sept. 23. Learn to reflect upon your “inner harvest” time, in the early moment of Fall, with mindfulness facilitator Sandrine Harris. Through a fluid mix of outdoor walking, quiet sitting and guided moments for reflection, you are offered an opportunity to be with the seasonality and energy of this time of year, and of this time in your life. All adults (18 years and older) are welcome, and no experience with mindfulness or meditation is needed. Please bring a yoga mat or blanket for outdoor sitting in the grass, and wear clothing and shoes suitable for outdoor walking. In the event of rain, this event will take place inside BBG.

Field Study: Innisfree and Wethersfield

Thursday, Sept. 28, 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

Members: $75/Non-Members: $90

Transportation: $10

Join Berkshire Botanical Garden for an exploration of two beautiful yet distinctly different public gardens in Dutchess County, New York. Both are large, predominantly green gardens but Innisfree Garden nestles organically in a natural bowl wrapping around a glacial lake while Wethersfield Estate and Garden is a classical idyll atop a hill surrounded by rolling fields and forests. Innisfree is a powerful work of art and an iconic postwar design. During a curator-led tour, experience how Innisfree is a remarkably low-maintenance landscape that merges the essence of Modernist and Romantic ideas with traditional Chinese and Japanese garden design principles in a form that evolved through subtle handling of the site and slow manipulation of its ecology. After the morning at Innisfree and time for a Bring Your Own Picnic, we will travel to Wethersfield Estate and Garden. Wethersfield mixes the formal lines, green hedging, vistas, and water features characteristic of Italian Renaissance gardens, with elements of English Arts and Crafts style. During this curator-led tour, you will learn about the garden’s history of innovative gardening practices with an emphasis on land stewardship and conservation.

Botanical Bounty: Creating and Using Herbal Infused Oils Inspired by the Harvest Moon

IN-PERSON at BBG

Saturday, Sept. 30, 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Members: $65/Non-Members: $80

Delight in celestial inspired tea while making lip balms, skin salves and roll-on perfume inspired by the autumnal full moon! Enjoy a fun and educational experience as you learn about the healing properties of calendula and create your own natural skincare products to take home. Calendula has been used for years internally and externally as a healing herb, and no first aid kit should be without this super all-purpose ointment! With the help of instructor Nicole Irene, you will be guided through the process of making your own products, from selecting the right ingredients to packaging and labeling. You will also have the opportunity to customize your products with essential oils. You will come away from this class with an understanding of how to harvest, dry and use calendula, while sipping farm-fresh herbal tea and enjoying the community of like-minded plant people. The energetics, properties, and myriad of uses for this plant will be discussed. Cost includes all of your supplies and products you will take home.

NEW! Native Evergreens

IN-PERSON at BBG

Saturday, Sept. 30, 10 a.m. to 12 p.m.

Members: $25/Non-Members: $40

Evergreens are an indispensable part of all home landscapes. They provide year-round color and textural interest, give structure to the garden, and offer shelter and food sources for birds. Learn the cultural requirements, ornamental qualities, and various uses of native conifers and broadleaved evergreens that will boost the aesthetic and ecological value of your property. Led by

Duncan Himmelman

New! Knockout Natives for Every Garden

IN-PERSON at BBG

Saturday, Sept. 30, 1 p.m. to 3 p.m.

Members: $25/Non-Members: $40

Great landscapes are brought to life with beautiful, high-performing plants that provide multi-season interest and simultaneously welcome wildlife into the garden. Discover a selection of native plants, from perennials and shrubs to small and medium-sized trees, that have strong ornamental appeal, regional adaptability, and great ecological value. Led by Duncan Himmelman

Clever Design Tips for Everblooming, Low-Maintenance Gardens ONLINE

Saturday, Sept. 30, 10:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.

Members: $20/Non-Members: $25

This inspiring lecture led by Kerry Ann Mendez will surprise you with creative, easy-to-implement strategies for extending the blooms of popular plants for weeks! Also showcased are time-saving design tips including distinctive plant combinations that provide unstoppable color spring through fall, as well as groundcover tapestries that smother weeds and delight pollinators. You will also learn valuable lessons from before and after design projects to avoid costly landscape mistakes.

OCTOBER Understanding Woody Plants H

IN-PERSON at BBG

Tuesdays, Oct. 3 through 24, 5:30 to 8:30 p.m.

Members $215/Non-Members: $240

This four-session course will focus on the bones of the garden with a survey of ornamental woody plants for residential landscape design. Jenna O’Brian will cover ornamental shrubs, small flowering trees, shade trees and broadleaf and needle evergreens. Students will become familiar with the many gardenworthy woody plants that thrive in Zone 5. The course covers plant ID, selection, siting, cultivation and possible design uses. Students should dress for outdoor field study. All students participating in this class as part of the Horticulture Certificate Program are required to complete a final project.

Studio Visit: Ann Getsinger

Friday, Oct. 13, 10 a.m. to 12 p.m.

Members: $50/Non-Members: $65 Transportation: $10

Join the Berkshire Botanical Garden in visiting Ann Getsinger’s studio in New Marlborough, MA, and witness the magic of her painting as she combines Realism and Surrealism to create a captivating effect of a painting within a painting. Ann Getsinger’s exhibit titled The Garden of Curiosity is on view at the Leonhardt Gallery September 1 through November 19, and this studio visit will provide an intimate setting to explore the artist’s centrally placed, life-size subjects often set against, or integrated with, dreamlike and sometimes disjoined landscapes. Enjoy the exhibit at Berkshire Botanical Garden, and then meet the artist where she works to learn more about her process in the studio and beyond.

Poetry in Place

IN-PERSON at BBG

Friday, Oct. 20, 6 to 7:30 p.m.

FREE for Members and Non-Members

Join BBG’s Mariah Baca for an evening of poetry and spoken word meant to bring communities together. The Mohican Lands of Western Massachusetts will be the “Place” for the launch of this poetry series.

Deer Defense

IN-PERSON at BBG

Oct. 21, 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.

Members: $20/Non-Members $30

You don’t have to sacrifice your garden to marauding deer! Learn from Cornell research how to protect your garden with three categories of proven methods: 1. Barriers, 2. Repellents, 3. Lots of Alternative Plant Choices. Our goal is to give you bestodds techniques for shutting down the Snack Bar! Led by Chris Ferrero, a gardening speaker, writer and consultant.

Stonemasonry: An Overview

IN-PERSON at BBG

Saturday, Oct. 21, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Members: $140/Non-Members: $160

This workshop led by Sam Mercier will focus on the steps taken to start new projects and methods for fixing existing problems. It will start with classroom demonstration and Q&A, then a walk of the grounds examining masonry and looking at techniques for fixing stone projects that have been worn down over time. After an in-depth look at the basics on the planning board and in the field, the instruction will move to masonry tools, finishes and fabrication. This will cover cutting stone with saws large and small, splitting stone, chiseling, and other finishes necessary in stone projects. With these new skills each participant will create a birdbath or planter that you take home.

Creative Composition

IN-PERSON at BBG

Wednesday, Oct. 25, 10 a.m. to 12 p.m.

Members: $25/Non-Members $40

Taking pictures has become a simple (nearly) automated function, but how does a photographer move from the realm of taking pictures to the world of creating fine art photographs? This twohour session with Apple-certified teacher Thaddeus B. Kubis will include walking the BBG property with the attendees, learning about and working with the various templated compositions formats, as well as discussing the concept of each photographer creating their own photographic vision.

Four Seasons of Tree Identification

IN-PERSON at BBG

Saturday, Oct. 28, 9 a.m. to 12 p.m.

Members: $50/Non-Members: $65

In this four-part class, we will revisit trees through the seasons, and witness their unique characteristics with and without leaves. We will learn how to identify species of trees, ID a tree by its bark, and understand which trees flower in which seasons. Come join in the journey of the magic of trees, starting with how to identify them in the landscape and forest settings. This four-part, four-season class was created in response to popular demand! Led by Melissa LeVangie Ingersoll, Certified Arborist (MCA, ISA, NH) CTSP and Tom Ingersoll, a Massachusetts Certified Arborist.

Mark your calendars and sign up today:

• Fall – October 28th

• Winter – December 16th

• Spring – May 4th

• Summer – June 29th

Autumn Energetics: Herbs for Self-Care and Ritual

IN-PERSON at BBG

Saturday, Oct. 28, 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Members: $90/Non-Members: $110

The fiery energy of summer has diminished and begins to move inward – into the home and hearth. In this class led by Nicole Irene, you will connect with the energy of the autumnal season through creating anointing oils, prayer candles, bonfire starters and hand-mixed incense.

Understanding Soil Health and Structure H

IN-PERSON at BBG

Tuesdays, Oct. 31 through Nov. 21, 5:30 to 8:30 p.m.

Members: $215/Non-Members: $240

This four-session course, led by John Howell, will explain how plant growth is affected by soils, from drainage to pH and nutrients. Learn how to evaluate soils, improve those that are less than ideal and amend soils for specific garden uses. Fertilizers, soil amendments, making and using compost, moisture management and the pros and cons of mulching will be covered. Students need to get a soil sample before class and bring the results to the first class. All students participating in the Horticulture Certificate Program are required to complete a final project.

NOVEMBER

Canopy Exploration – Tree Climbing

IN-PERSON at BBG

Saturday, Nov. 4, 10 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. (rain date Nov 5)

Members: $250/Non-Members $280 (scholarships available)

Do you remember the sense of freedom you felt when climbing trees as a kid? Are you an avid lover of trees? A birder?

Photographer? Artist? Poet? Musician? Author? Arborist? Any and all of the above are welcome to come explore the arboretum from a new perspective, above, climbing trees. The Berkshire Botanical Garden and the Women’s Tree Climbing Workshop have created a one-day tree climbing experience. This event provides a rare opportunity to just show up, be curious and excited to be in the canopy. Led by Melissa LeVangie Ingersoll and Bear LeVangie

Add Spice to Your Life! Create an Herbal Delight!

IN-PERSON at BBG

Saturday, Nov. 11, 1 to 3 p.m.

Members: $70/Non-Members $85

Looking for ways to use those herbs you grew in the garden this summer? Join members of BBG’s Herb Associates for this handson workshop and learn some of their culinary secrets. Add a bit of spice to your life by creating a delicious herbal salad dressing and exciting herbal dips for the holidays. All materials will be provided.

Establish a Vineyard in Your Backyard

IN-PERSON at BBG

Saturday, Nov. 11, 10 a.m. to 12 p.m.

Members: $25/Non-Members: $40

J. Stephen Casscles, author of Grapes of the Hudson Valley, will lead a discussion on how to establish a vineyard in your backyard. Grow grapes for fresh consumption, jellies & preserves, or for making wine. The class will explore: location of the vineyard, soil types best for a vineyard and how to amend soil, growing conditions needed, and grape varieties that can be easily grown. The class will also look into establishing a trellis system, pruning, and how to manage disease and damage from both fungus and wildlife. These same concepts for a home vineyard can be applied to those who one day would like to establish a small commercial vineyard. There will be lots of time for questions and answers. There will also be some discussion on New England heritage grape varieties that can be planted in your new vineyard. At the end of our class, copies of his book Grapes of the Hudson Valley and Other Cool Climate Regions of the US and Canada, will be available for sale with the author’s signature.

Beginners Chainsaw Skills Workshop

IN-PERSON at BBG

Saturday, Nov. 11, 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. (Rain Date: 11/12)

Members: $165/Non-Members: $175

Learn to use a chainsaw safely! Taught by arborists

Melissa LeVangie

Ingersoll and Bear

LeVangie, this workshop is designed for the novice-to-beginner chainsaw operator

who wishes to gain greater confidence with this powerful tool. The class will combine lecture and hands-on learning, covering topics such as personal protective equipment, the anatomy of a chainsaw, reactive forces, basic chainsaw maintenance, and additional tools for use with a chainsaw. Techniques will include holding and starting a saw, hazard ID, escape options, log analysis (binds), planning cuts, overall plan, and bucking and limbing. Attendees will cut logs on the ground and/or elevated on sawhorses, leave with a better understanding of the safety features of a chainsaw, and will be able to operate a chainsaw based on safety fundamentals. No experience necessary. Note: Equipment will be provided; if you have your own chainsaw or personal protective equipment, please bring it with you. Dress and prepare for the weather including long sleeves, pants and boots. Bring a bag lunch.

Petals and Pigment Bundle Dyeing

IN-PERSON at BBG

Saturday, Nov. 11, 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Members: $85/Non-Members: $100

Students will create a silk scarf that is bright and unique using petals from seasonal local flowers and pigments from natural dye extracts. In this steam color dye technique, each attendee will lay out their design then bundle their fiber into a roll and steam bath the piece. After 1 hour in a steam bath, the scarves will reveal brilliantly saturated atmospheric patterns. Students will pick from the three steam color options to insure diversity - Sunset, Prairie, or Cosmic — and we will mix fresh local florals into the materials as well. Led by Maggie

Pate

Rock Mosaics for the Garden

IN-PERSON at BBG

Saturday, Nov. 18, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Members: $75 /Non-Members: $100

Led by artist/educator Beth Klingher, students will create an outdoor rock mosaic to brighten their garden. Learn how to cut glass, ceramic and other materials and to adhere them to a large garden rock or cement block using colored thinset cement. Your mosaic may represent a flower, a plant, a tiny animal, or an abstract design. These rock mosaics will weather the New England winters and provide a colorful spark for your garden regardless of the season. Bring your own rocks!

Grounded In Gratitude: Mindful Thanksgiving

IN-PERSON at BBG

Saturday, Nov. 18, 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Members: $90/Non-Members: $110

Give thanks for the bounty of the harvest by making Gratitude-Candle centerpieces for Thanksgiving, mixing a delicious spice blend, and creating Blessing-Wax fire starters while enjoying herbal mulled cider. Even if you do not celebrate Thanksgiving as a holiday, add these thanks giving crafts to your daily routines to encourage happiness and blessings every day of the year. Led by Nicole Irene

Plant Healthcare H

IN-PERSON at BBG

Tuesdays, Nov. 28 through Dec. 19, 5:30 to 8:30 p.m.

BBG Members: $215/Non-Members: $240

Is Beaujolais the New Burgundy? An Evening of Wine & Food from this Fabled French Wine Region

IN-PERSON at BBG

Friday, Nov. 17, 6 to 8 p.m.

Members: $90/Non-Members $110

Every November, wine lovers celebrate the brilliant young wine known as Beaujolais Nouveau that goes from field to bottle to table in only two months and produces the loveliest pinkypurple hue. Find out why we love it so much and why we’re firm believers that it’s on track to become the ‘New Burgundy’. Register for this wine tasting seminar and discover a fantastic introduction to the various Crus and styles of this diverse region. Also, you will enjoy a culinary celebration of Beaujolais with a hand-selected, chef-curated tasting menu while a guest wine expert walks you through every flavor and dimension of this world-famous wine region. A night you won’t forget! Led by Benjamin and Mary Daire, owners and operators of Dare Bottleshop & Provisions located in Lenox, MA.

This program, led by arborist Ken Gooch, Tawny Symisky and Nick Brazee, focuses on factors that affect plant health care, including insects, diseases, pathogens, and abiotic influences. Basic diagnostic techniques will be taught. Learn to minimize potential problems through proper site preparation, plant selection and placement. Managing problems using biological, chemical and cultural techniques will be discussed with a focus on integrated pest management. Students’ participatation in Horticulture Certificate Program are required to complete a final project.

DECEMBER

The Quieting: A Meditation Gathering to Welcome Winter’s Energy, with mindfulness-in-nature facilitator Sandrine Harris

IN-PERSON at BBG

Saturday, Dec. 2, 4 to 5 p.m.

Members: $15/Non-Members: $20

Led by mindfulness-in-nature facilitator Sandrine Harris, students will gather by candlelight at sunset for this nourishing process of quiet, guided meditation. Moments of dynamic talking, poetry, and listening are balanced with deep quiet and inner celebration of the gift of slowing down for deep winter. All adults (18+) are welcome, and no experience with mindfulness or meditation is needed. This process takes place inside the gallery space, with chairs for sitting.

The Language of the Flowers on Vellum

IN-PERSON at BBG

Wednesday to Friday, Dec. 6 through 8, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Members: $245/Non-Members: $265

All flowers hold different meanings, often based on the flower type, the time of year in which they bloom, the flower’s color, or all of the above, but the same is true of the story that makes them so meaningful to us. This workshop, with botanical artist Anastasia Traina, will work with seasonal plants such as tree nuts, winter berries, or mushrooms; since our substrate will be vellum (calf-skin.), our subjects need to be small. Dry brush is a watercolor painting technique used in traditional botanical illustration. The method involves a “skin” of dried paint on the palette and a small, slightly damp brush. We will also create botanical tints for the base layer, generating shape by adding a luminous shadow. Students will receive a photograph and an outline of the seasonal flora. This workshop will meet for three consecutive days, for five hours each session.

Herbal Holiday Gifts Workshop

IN-PERSON at BBG

Saturday, Dec. 9, 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Members: $70/Non-Members: $85

Making a gift for someone is an opportunity for you to create something unique and beautiful, something truly useful and practical, and express love from your heart for that special person. The Herbal Holiday Gifts Workshop with Nicole Irene is an opportunity to make rich and diverse herbal gifts for the holidays, or other occasions, feel connected with the gift-giving process, and nourish another person by crafting something special for them from the Earth. You are offering your loved one the opportunity to dip into that vibrant, natural health by gifting them with a handmade herbal gift that will support their well-being.

Chainsaw Maintenance

IN-PERSON at BBG

Saturday, Dec. 16, 1 to 5 p.m.

Members: $75/Non-Members: $90

Does this sound familiar? You’re headed out for a day of cordwood cutting and you pull out your chainsaw, bar oil, fuel, and tools. You get set up at your work site and begin to start your saw and it won’t start. Or your saw starts but begins to smoke. How about your chain is slowly creeping around the bar and your hand is not even on the throttle? Or, you’re trying to cut and you are creating fine dust and not flying out wood chips. This can all be avoided! Come and learn 10 ways (at least) to keep your saw running efficiently and cutting great. BYOS – Bring your own saw, tools, and PPE (and things you have questions about).

Led by Melissa LeVangie Ingersoll and Bear LeVangie

JANUARY Science of Plant Propagation H

IN-PERSON at BBG

Saturday and Sunday, Jan. 6 and 7, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

BBG Members: $215/Non-Members: $240

Learn about the art and science of plant propagation with Broken Arrow Nurseries grafting guru, Adam Wheeler Focus on the basic botany needed to understand and successfully propagate plants. Sexual and asexual propagation methods including sowing seeds, cuttings, grafting, layering, and division will be covered. Students will learn the fascinating science behind propagation along with the various techniques used to create new plants. Students’ participation in the Horticulture Certificate Program are required to complete a final project.

ROOTED IN PLACE

9TH ANNUAL ECOLOGICAL GARDENING SYMPOSIUM

BUILDING RESILIENCY THROUGH ECOLOGICAL DESIGN AND LANDSCAPE MANAGEMENT

Sunday, Nov. 12 | 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Members: $85/Non-Members: $100/Students: $55

Join experts in the field of ecological design to learn about their varied approaches to building resilient landscapes and communities. This day-long symposium will explore the breadth of what regenerative design and land stewardship mean and will feature a range of speakers with experiences as diverse as landscape design, community outreach, pollination systems restoration, and farming. After lunch, there will be a “Tour of the Trees” in the gardens of BBG. Later, participants will have the opportunity to work hands-on with the day’s speakers to design their own projects.

Evan Abramson – Beyond PollinatorFriendly: Designing Landscapes and Corridors to Support Biodiversity and Climate Resilience Evan Abramson is the founder and principal of Landscape Interactions, which, since 2019, has been responsible for over 300 acres of habitat installed in the Northeast, specifically targeting at-risk bee and lepidoptera species for each project location. He holds a Master of Science in ecological design from The Conway School and certificates in permaculture design and biodynamic gardening. He is the author of numerous publications, including “Pollinate Now,” “Lincoln Pollinator Action Plan,” “Egremont Pollinator Pathway,” and “Great Barrington Pollinator Action Plan.”

Jono Neiger – Regenerative Agriculture and Agroforestry: Food, Soil Health, and Diversity on the Farmscape

Jono Neiger leads the Regenerative Agriculture Wing at Regenerative Design Group (RDG). He has taught at The Conway School and was the founding board president of the Permaculture Association of the Northeast. Before starting RDG, Jono worked as a land manager for Lost Valley Educational Center, a conservation officer for the Town of Palmer, Mass., and a restoration specialist with the Nature Conservancy. He holds a Master of Arts in law and diplomacy from The Conway School and a Bachelor’s degree in forest biology from SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry. Jono is the author of The Permaculture Promise and the founder of Big River Chestnuts, a chestnut agroforestry farm in Sunderland, Mass.

Moderator: Elizabeth Keen, Indian Line Farm • Panelists: Marie Chieppo (native plant designer), Owen Wormser (author of Lawns Into Meadows), Jim Schultz (of Red Shirt Farm)

WORKSHOP: DESIGN FOR RESILIENCY

Participate in an ecological landscape design charrette. Participants will be divided into teams and tasked to create a design for a site with a particular set of criteria or purpose.

To register, visit BerkshireBotanical.org

BBG is Going Digital!

In September 2023, Berkshire Botanical Garden will be transitioning from paper to digital membership. By choosing to go digital, BBG is making a conscious decision to reduce our carbon footprint, make a positive impact on our environment and continue meeting our mission of preserving the environment, while making the process of renewing and accessing member benefits more efficient for our dedicated members.

Benefits of the BBG Digital membership include: renewal alert text messages, scannable entry to the Garden, guest passes that can be shared via email, and best of all, the convenience of having your membership card right on your phone – never lose your card again!

As always, your BBG membership includes:

n Unlimited free admission to the garden

n Members only events

n 10% discount at the Garden’s Visitor’s Center Gift Shop

n Early buying privileges and 10% off all purchases at the annual Plant Sale, plus early admission to the Holiday Marketplace.

n Free subscription to Cuttings, the Garden’s magazine, plus a free subscription to Better Homes and Gardens

n Advance notice and exclusive discounts on classes, lectures and workshops, including Rooted in Place, Winter Lecture and Farm in the Garden Camp

n Free or discounted reciprocal admission to over 100 participating gardens, arboreta and conservancies throughout the U.S., Canada and the Caribbean

n Discounts on purchases at local and online nurseries, garden centers and retailers Membership

Beginning in September 2023, new and renewing members will have the option to ‘opt-in’ to digital membership cards. By June 2024, BBG will only offer digital memberships to new and renewing members. Those members who wish to continue with paper membership will be charged a ‘green fee’ beginning in June 2024.

‘A Rollicking Old Time Fair’ A Harvest Festival Is Born

From an article in Nature Magazine, May 1946, titled, “Berkshire Garden Center: A Big Idea that Started Small and Grew”:

The first year, 1935, was largely one of sod breaking and organization. With little equipment and few tools to start with, the new director [A. Kenneth Simpson] went to work with energy and gusto. Land for the trial gardens was plowed and fitted, the house was furnished with simple things mostly donated, Mr. Simpson and his wife occupied one side of the house, the other side being a small assembly room and a tiny combination office and library. On May 22, a pilgrimage of 40 members and officers of the Garden Club Federation of Massachusetts arrived. Although the season was late, and not even the apple trees were in bloom, the visiting gardeners overlooked the sketchiness of the new Center and enthusiastically endorsed the project.

That summer, Mr. Simpson freely admits, was one of trial and error but progress was definitely made. … Autumn found the new Center well on its way, but income from memberships and gifts had not kept pace with expenditures. A Harvest Festival was staged on October 15. It brought young and old together in a rollicking old time fair. Fruits, vegetables, cider, apple butter, homemade bread and cakes were sold. “Pop your own corn” read one sign, and the pony rides made a hit with the children. So successful was this festival, both as a money-raiser and as a social event, that it became an annual occasion to close the garden season.

The Harvest Festival, in the early years, if not its earliest year of 1935. The Festival began as a necessary fundraiser for what was then called the Berkshire Garden Center. The Center was first organized the year before, in November, 1934. The annual autumn celebration continues to this day as a primary fundraiser that enables the Garden to accomplish its mission “to fulfill the community’s need for information, education and inspiration concerning the art and science of gardening and the preservation of our local environment.”

413-298-3926 • berkshirebotanical.org

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