Berkshire Botanical Garden Celebrates Its 78th Annual Harvest Festival on October 6-7

(STOCKBRIDGE, Mass.) – The Berkshire Botanical Garden’s 78th annual Harvest Festival takes place on Saturday and Sunday, October 6 and 7, 2012. Always a highlight of the fall season in the Berkshires, the festival features much-loved autumnal activities for the whole family, including continuous live entertainment, a two-day silent auction, distinctive regional crafters, a farmer’s market, giant tag sale, and an Opportunity Clothing and Plant Sale featuring mums and bulbs. New this year is “Accessorize,” a second-hand pop-up shop offering gently used purses, hats, and ties.

Spinners, weavers, leatherworkers, handcrafted jewelry, wood accessories, ceramics, wreaths, photography and more will be featured at a crafts fair, a renowned showcase for 70 local and New England-based artisans. Drop-in workshops for gardeners include informal classes on seasonal topics such as seed saving, garden wrap-up, pickling and invasive plant control.

Continuous music all weekend long includes bands such as Alan Chartock’s Berkshire Ramblers, Terry a la Berry’s songs for kids, The Lucky Fives, 8 Mile River Band, Higher Help, Down Home, Frank Schapp, and a wandering banjo player.

In addition to classic festival fare like cotton candy, a plethora of local food vendors will serve farm-fresh sausages from Raven and Boar, and a great variety of tasty treats from Ronnybrook Farm, Berkshire Mountain Bakery Pizza, and Lakota’s Barbeque. The Garden’s own Botanical Bakery and Cafe will be serving hot mulled cider, home baked pies and cookies, sandwiches and the Red Lion Inn’s famous Butternut Bisque.

Family activities include the hay jump, hay maze, hayride, haunted house, hula hooping, face-painting, bounce house, Misfit Farm’s petting zoo, Western -style horseback rides, treasure hunt, magic show, crafts tent, and an obstacle course.

Berkshire Botanical Garden’s Harvest Festival runs from 10 am – 5 pm both Saturday and Sunday, October 6-7.  Parking is free. Admission fee will be $5 for adults; children under 12 are free. Proceeds from this popular festival, one of the largest and longest running of its kind, support educational programming at the Garden.

Berkshire Botanical Garden is one of New England’s oldest and most treasured public gardens.  Established in 1934, its mission was to inspire and educate the community about responsible horticulture and home-grown food.  Today, with a year-round schedule of garden classes and workshops, prestigious guest lecturers and a horticulture certification program, in addition to many especial events, it is still dedicated to these founding values and to the preservation and improvement of the local environment.  Its 15 acres contain 23 Zone 5 display areas representing over 3,000 regionally appropriate plant species, significant trees, unique shrubs and exotic botanical collections.

The Garden is open daily, 9 am – 5 pm and is located at the intersection of Routes 102 and 183, Stockbridge, MA.  To register for classes, or for more information on Garden programs, events and courses, visit the Garden web site: or call 413.298.3926.

 

 

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