Forbes Library Leads Off Garden Tour Season

  • Post published:05/29/2013
  • Post comments:0 Comments

Julie Abramson' s garden  is just one of six garden that will enchant garden lovers on the Forbes Library Garden Tour on Saturday, June 8, from 10 am til 3 pm. Julie's is a collector's garden that features some notable trees, clematis, and a colorful array of perennials and a rock garden. I was intrigued by the description of a rustic arbor covered with climbinbing hydrangea, PLUS two other arbors covered with roses, honeysuckle and clematis. Pure romance!…

Bridge of Flowers Plant Sale – Saturday May 18

  • Post published:05/17/2013
  • Post comments:1 Comment

One thousdand perennials are ready for the Bridge of Flowers Plant Sale on Saturday, May 18. When the starting bell rings at 9 am (no sales before that hour) the buying begins. From this photo you might be able to pick out lady's mantle, candelabra primroses, hostas, Solomon's seal, ferns, and bleeding hearts, pink and white. I can tell you that there are also peonies, fairy bells (new to me) campanulas, yarrow, achillea, shasta daisies, and some shrubs…

Winterfare – Always a Delicious Success

  • Post published:02/04/2013
  • Post comments:3 Comments

Saturday more I went down to Greenfield for Winterfare - always a delcicous success. People in our area are so happy to be able to buy fresh vegetables directly from farmers, even in winter. Of course, this winter farmer's market isn't limited to vegetables. Real Pickles had a booth selling - Pickles! Sunrise Farm was selling maple syrup, Apex Orchards was selling apples, Warm Colors Apiary was selling honey and other bee products, Barberic Farm was selling  lamb…

Full Moon Getaway at Stump Sprouts in Hawley

  • Post published:01/20/2013
  • Post comments:0 Comments

A Full Moon Getaway will be held at Stump Sprouts Guest Lodge and Cross Country Ski Center in Hawley to benefit the Franklin Land Trust on Sunday, January 27 from 1 pm on. Snowshoeing, skiing and hiking. Bring the kids! Soup and snacks for sale. Come for a full day, overnight or just for a Moonlight Frolic. Ski, Snowshoe, Hike and enjoy the beauty of rural western Massachusetts,  For full information about cost and events, which include a…

Gifts of Christmas

  • Post published:12/28/2012
  • Post comments:3 Comments

As we race around shopping and buying Christmas gifts for the people we love, the Salvation Army bell-ringers seem an appropriate accompaniment. The Holy Family was poor, and enduring so much bad luck, that they had to find shelter in a stable for the birth of the Christ Child. It is not hard to imagine the fear that Mary must have felt as she labored to bring this baby into the world. Where were they to go from…

I Made This Christmas Wreath

  • Post published:11/28/2012
  • Post comments:4 Comments

One of the pleasures of belonging to the Greenfield Garden Club is the November meeting at Chapley Gardens where we have help and materials to make our own wreath.  This year I did pretty well. At least better than I did before. Mother Nature decorates like this. For more Wordlessness this Wednesday click here.

Cookies for Moonlight Magic

  • Post published:11/21/2012
  • Post comments:1 Comment

  I'm still baking for the Family Feast tomorrow, but I just finished my cookies for Moonlight Magic in Shelburne Falls on Friday, November 23. Lots of  cookies for sale at the Visitors Center and lots of magic throughout the town. For more Wordlessness this Wednesday click here.  

Cynthia Boettner and the Silvio O. Conte Fish and Wildlife Refuge

  • Post published:11/17/2012
  • Post comments:0 Comments

    The first thing Cynthia Boettner had to explain to me about the Silvio O. Conte National Fish and Wildlife Refuge is that the Refuge consists of  the 7.2 million acres of the Connecticut River Watershed that runs from the far reaches of New Hampshire, through Vermont, Massachusetts and Connecticut before it exits in Long Island Sound. That is an enormous charge and responsibility. As Boettner explained how she works to monitor, control and eradicate invasive plant…

Mary Lyon and the Annual Spelling Bee

  • Post published:11/09/2012
  • Post comments:4 Comments

Mary Lyon, the founder of Mount Holyoke College, was born in Buckland in 1797. Nowadays the Mary Lyon Foundation supports local education in the hilltowns of western Massachusetts which include the town of her birth. Last night my team, the Prescriptive Orthographers sponsored by local Baker Pharmacy, was one of 25 teams who participated in our Annual Spelling Bee. Every team got themselves up in more or less outrageous costumes. The Woodward Wordsmiths even brought the car that…

The Bridge of Flowers is Closed

  • Post published:10/31/2012
  • Post comments:1 Comment

The Bridge of Flowers was prepared for closing, just before Superstorm Sandy - that did no damage this year. Unlike Irene last year. For more Wordlessness  this Wednesday click here.