Berkshire Botanical Garden to host annual Bulb Show
Stockbridge — Berkshire Botanical Garden’s Fitzpatrick Conservatory will become a harbinger of spring beginning Monday, March 4, when the public is invited to enjoy hundreds of flowering bulbs in an annual exhibition featuring New England springtime favorites and a collection of South African bulbs rarely seen in the Northeast.
Visitors to the greenhouse will see an evolving collection of blooming plants over a four-week period including traditional New England favorites such as narcissus, tulips and grape hyacinths along with BBG’s unique collection of South African bulbs. Grown by collectors for their late winter floral displays, the bulbs evolved in Fynbos, South Africa, which is considered one of the richest areas in the world for plant biodiversity.
The Bulb Show runs through Friday, March 29, and is free and open to the public. For more information, contact Berkshire Botanical Garden at (413) 298-3926 or info@berkshirebotanical.org.
–E.E.
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David Reed releases ‘Gypsy Davy’ album
Great Barrington — Long-time Berkshire County resident, Max Creek founder and cigar-box guitar hero David Reed has released his fourth solo album, “Gypsy Davy,” on the Dry Duck Records label. Recorded and mixed by Luke Germain in his Stockbridge studio and mastered by Ian Stewart in Housatonic, Reed’s blend of folk rock, blues, country and Caribe-vibe showcases his deft acoustic guitar picking and his own handmade cigar box slide guitars.
Spotlighting his own Band of Introverts featuring Sam Earnshaw on drums and Scott McKenney on bass, a number of guest artists join Reed on the record, including lead guitarist Scott Murawski and keyboardist Mark Mercier of Max Creek and Berkshire County musicians Eric Martin on violin and viola, Dave Vittone on accordion, Brendan Reed on djembe, Mark Tuomenoksa on saxophones, and Claudia d’Alessandro and Lee Everett on backing vocals.
–E.E.
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Young adult novel ‘Charley’s Horse’ wins regional awards
Great Barrington — The young adult novel “Charley’s Horse,” written by Judith Shaw, was recently named Children’s Book Winner and Young Adult Winner in the 2018 New England Book Festival. Since its release in 2018, the novel has also received a Maxy Award and a Readers’ Favorite Book Award.
Set in 1959, “Charley’s Horse” tells the story of Charley, an 11-year-old girl who knows everything about horses—except how to ride them. When her parents split up, she’s sent to a riding camp in Vermont and expects everything to be okay—but her horse hates her, riding lessons scare her and a bully in her cabin sees her as an easy target. Eventually she fends off bullying attacks, finds help in unexpected places, and makes a few fast friends.
New Yorker Shaw has lived in Berkshire County for over 20 years, the first 17 on a horse farm in Richmond where she was a longtime contributor to the Richmond Record. She is married to an Australian and raised two children in Indonesia, Singapore and the Blue Mountains west of Sydney, Australia. When a riding accident ended her active involvement with horses, Shaw focused on her other lifelong passion: writing. After decades as an editor and journalist, she began to explore fiction. “Charley’s Horse” is her first novel.
–E.E.
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Fairview Hospital to host mindful eating class
Great Barrington — Fairview Hospital will host the eight-week health series “Mindful Eating: An Effective Approach to Weight Loss,” Thursdays from 6 to 7:30 p.m. in the Fairview Hospital conference room. The program will begin Thursday, March 7, facilitated by Robert Hoechster, R.D., L.D.N., of Fairview’s outpatient nutrition services.
The Mindfulness-Based Eating Awareness Training program uses mindfulness meditation, eating exercises, instruction and self-reflection to cultivate awareness and help repair the relationship an individual has with food. The program is modeled after mindfulness-based stress reduction practices that help treat stress, addictions, anger problems, relationship problems and more. The program is not a clinic for eating disorders or a program focused on losing weight. Past participants report more success applying mindfulness to food choices and eating behaviors, greater meditative practice, and healthier emotional attitudes and awareness of eating and food choices through techniques designed to support better health.
The program fee is $75. For more information or to register, call Robert Hoechster at (413) 854-9661.
–E.E.
