Last Friday night was the premier broadcast of Let's Talk - with Pat Leuchtman on our local cable TV station. I was talking with Lori Pirkot, the owner of Boswell's Books in Shelburne Falls. We had a great time talking about the wonderful books for children that are available this season, many of them by local (ish) authors and illustrators. I think there is no better present for a child than a good book. My grandchildren will tell…
This past weekend we were invited to a celebratory 60th birthday party at our local Butterfly House. We thought it was an apt site for the party because while most of us are familiar with the 12 animal Chinese zodiac, the reality is that the complete Chinese zodiac requires going around the 12 year cycle five times - when you begin again. The 60th year can be challenging, but it can also be a time of new beginnings.…
Yesterday, Christopher Petkanas in The New York Times Design Section called Constance Spry a 'Flowering Inferno." I have written about Constance Spry myself in the past, once after interviewing a neighbor, Charlotte Thwing, who has since passed away, but who in her youth worked for Spry in her Madison Avenue shop just before World War II. Petkanas, in talking about a new biography, The Surprising Life of Constance Spry, bySue Shepard, passed on much juicier gossip than I…
What is a community? A group living in the same area? Yes, but more. A group sharing similar interests? Yes, but more A group sharing similar concerns? Yes, but more. A group sharing friendships? Yes, and when you add all of these attributes of a community you have the Highland Communities Initiative (HCI), a project of The Trustees of Reservations. Last Sunday members of many communities gathered to celebrate the opening of the Bullitt Reservation, the newest of…
The larch tree (Larix) is unusual because it is a deciduous conifer. It has needles that turn golden in the fall and then fall off. It also has little cones. In the spring the larch greens up with soft green needles on graceful branches. The photo above shows my friend's larch and a pine growing in friendly proximity. Early this spring I got a call from the brother of a friend who said he found a larch seedling…
The brilliant colors of fall have blown away, but there is still a richness to the autumnal woodlands that I drive through every day. The sun was warm and low in the sky when I took these photos yesterday, but I know that warmth is ebbing. The day began with the lowest temperatures, 26 degrees, so far this season. And yet, even though the cosmos and salvias finally gave up the ghost, there is still a bit of…
We will have more salads during the winter, but this is the last of the lettuce from our own garden. The seeds were a sample from Renee's Garden, Ruby and Emerald Duet, a combination of a small ruby leaf lettuce, and baby butterhead. They were among the very first lettuces I planted in spring and then throughout the season, and obviously the very last to be harvested. This is a wonderful combo of hardy lettuces with such good flavor!…
Today, just for today, I have nothing on my mind but getting to the polls to vote. I hope that is on your mind, too. In Heath we voted at the Community Hall, in the handicapped accessible downstairs which is also the Senior Center. A lot goes on at the Community Hall, Senior Lunches, Food Coop distribution, meetings, forums, parties - and voting. We use a low tech approach, using a 'machine' that counts the number of ballots,…
We are fortunate to live in an area where our children know where their food comes from. We have farms that grow vegetables and fruits, and sheep, beef and poultry. These farms mean there are barns and tractors - and an autumnal hayride. These hayriders came back to the Charlemont Federated Church to make lunches that included local cider and home made pumpkin cookies. The cookies just looked like pumpkins, but real pumpkins were ready for carving. Parents…
We are supposed to ‘live in the moment,” but that can very hard for a gardener to do as the seasons shift. I am putting the vegetable garden to bed and dividing and cutting back perennials, but I am also thinking about spring. I’m thinking about how long and dark the winter can seem and how hungry for color I get by the time March draws to a close. If you are hungry for early spring color you…