Bringing the Berkshires Indoors
“A long walk through Berkshire forests and fields should mark the very first step in your preparation to decorate your home for Thanksgiving,” Debby Bennett of Kent Greenhouse and Gardens recently explained. “Don’t limit your holiday harvest to the vegetable garden. Consider the abundance of autumn treasures to be found while hiking along bright trails at noontime. Now that the leaves have fallen, the richness of the woodland floor can provide you with beautiful and unexpected items to use for holiday decorations.”
The floral designers at Kent Greenhouse specialize in incorporating living, natural elements into their creative works. Seedpods, cones, lichen, mosses and bark are some of the items harvested for their centerpieces. The stylists there encourage clients to keep in mind that the longevity of a well-constructed autumn arrangement can be extended into Christmas with a few simple, fresh substitutions.
Remember to decorate the house with the scent of autumn as well. Subtly scented candles placed in each guestroom or bedroom can evoke a feeling of holiday warmth. Try a scent favored by the proprietors of Salisbury’s newly opened Ragamont Inn. The Monarch Quince candle combines light essences of orange and bergamot, crisp apple and pear with a hint of jasmines and roses. It can be purchased at Passports, a wonderful shop replete with tasteful treasures, also located in Salisbury.
Consider bringing in pots of fresh herbs and surrounding them with a selection of colorful gourds, still found in area Farmer’s Markets. Add a deep blue to your floral arrangements with some late blooming monks-hood from your garden. Remember that Thanksgiving preparation can also be an inducement to remove that invasive yet charming bittersweet near your house. Use it to create a lovely, trailing table-runner.
Continue your decorative harvest with a trip by car to Windy Hill Farm on Stockbridge Road in Great Barrington, MA. This will reward you with a selection of late-blooming perennial grasses to brighten your doorstep and plant for next year. While there you can add some bushels of long lasting apples to store in a cool cellar when you return home.
The abundance of the Berkshires surrounds us in November and Thanksgiving marks the perfect time to bring that abundance indoors.