Modern Barn Raising

Old will meet new Saturday, January 21st, when Berkshire Botanical Garden combines old world post-and-beam construction with innovative engineering and design elements to raise a barn on its grounds.

The barn-raising will take place between 11AM and 1PM. With its final touches set for completion by spring, the 30-by-50-foot building and its adjoining spaces will serve as the new heart of BBG’s Farm in the Garden Camp.

The barn raising event includes live fiddle and guitar music and cider pressed on the spot.

Roof trusses will be set in place and a coniferous bough will be affixed to one of them, a traditional ceremony that pays homage to the trees that went into a particular construction and symbolizes the establishment of the building’s “roots.” The bough is referred to as a “wetting bush.”

With the new building, BBG can increase the number of weekly campers from 30 to 50. Farm in the Garden Camp is held for eight weeks in the summer and on the two weeks corresponding with the public school system’s February and April breaks.

The day camp, which serves children aged 6 through 14, provides children with the opportunity to care for plants and animals, plant and harvest vegetables, collect eggs, go on nature walks, create botanical crafts and learn about the natural world.