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By MICKEY RATHBUN

Although Emily Dickinson is now considered one of America’s greatest poets, during her lifetime she was better known for her horticultural skills, as Dickinson scholar Judith Farr has observed. From a young age Dickinson was fascinated by the natural world. She enjoyed helping her mother in the gardens that she kept both at the Dickinson Homestead and the house the Dickinson family lived in for several years on North Pleasant Street where Ren’s Mobil Station now stands. During her year at Mary Lyon’s Female Seminary (1847-48), now Mount Holyoke College, she studied botany and made an extensive herbarium, a collection of pressed flowers and plants from the local area, that eventually contained more than 400 specimens. A family friend is said to have commented, “Emily had an uncanny knack of making even the frailest growing things flourish.”

By JACOB NELSON

Some restaurants are once-in-a-while places. Maybe they’re a bit fancy. Maybe their menu is a bit one-dimensional. Maybe they’re great for grabbing a sandwich to-go between meetings, or a sit-down Sunday morning brunch while your parents are in town, but not both.

By JIM BRIDGMAN

A Northampton banker, William A. Burke, was elected president of the board of directors of the Northampton Chamber of Commerce yesterday. Burke, consultant at the Pioneer National Bank, was elected at the chamber’s annual meeting, held during a luncheon at the Hotel Northampton.

By BILL DANIELSON

Anyone who makes a regular habit of watching birds will recognize that there is a predictable rhythm to the seasons. Winter is the harshest time of year and as a result there are fewer species to look for. At my house, in the month of January, I have managed to see a maximum of 31 different species. Different people living in different places will probably see a smaller number than that, but there may be the occasional yard that has more species to offer.

By JACOB NELSON

“Yes, you get some veggies to take home,” says Liz Adler of Mountain View Farm in Easthampton about becoming a member of their community supported agriculture (CSA) program. “But if you want it, the whole experience is a lot more than that.”

By AMY NEWSHORE

It’s that time again for thinking about the new year ahead and what aspirations we may have for ourselves. The beginning of a new year can awaken motivation to engage in habits, activities and goals that are good for us. For example, we might want to stop drinking or smoking, exercise more, be more patient with our spouse and children, eat healthier, treat ourselves with more kindness, or carve out more opportunities for fun and pleasure.

By JIM BRIDGMAN

Twenty-four employees at Pro Brush Division, Vistron Corp. were notified this week that today is their last day at work there for an indefinite period. The figure brings to 146 the number of fulltime employees who have been laid off since the plant began a trial cutback Dec. 1, personnel manager Charles Gaudry said today.

By JOAN AXELROD-CONTRADA

Life is like a washing machine – complete with cycles and plenty of agitating to get at the messy stuff. If I were a songwriter (spoiler alert: I’m not), I’d pen a catchy tune about that simile, weaving together verses and a killer refrain set to the...

By BILL DANIELSON

The final week of 2024 was particularly calm and delightful for me. After the hustle and bustle of hosting a family gathering, my wife and I were able to nestle down into the “holiday bunker” and enjoy some much-needed R&R. For one solid week we were...

By MOLLY PARR

After frying and freezing dozens of latkes in preparation for Chanukah this year, I am now convinced anything can be latke’ed. Of course there were the typical potato with-a-little-grated-onion latkes, and then typical-for-me were the broccoli and...

By EVELINE MACDOUGALL

A rollicking group who bonded through a class at Franklin County’s YMCA in Greenfield have produced a calendar for 2025 that celebrates beautiful humans in their 60s, 70s, 80s, and 90s. Let’s meet some water nymphs who could grace your wall if you get...

By JIM BRIDGMAN

50 Years Ago■The Northampton National Bank became the first in the city to sell gold bullion to the public, following new regulations that allow United States citizens to own gold bullion for the first time in more than 30 years.■Ryback’s Pastry...

By MELISSA KAREN SANCES

Five years ago, Muriel “Monik” Johnson watched her friend transform. Leah was a vibrant artist who loved going dancing. Though only 4-foot-9, she delighted in kissing Johnson’s face, starting at her chin, working clockwise to her forehead while she...

By RICHARD MCCARTHY

I was biking in the countryside of Montague one summer day (remember those?), and I pedaled past a house with a substantial side yard furnished only with a small table and two simple chairs. Later, when I was home, I watched the sunset from my back...

By BILL DANIELSON

Happy New Year everybody! I was delighted to have a snowy celebration for this iconic winter holiday and I hope that you are sitting happily with your feet up and a warm beverage in your hand. I am just finishing an hour of bird watching at my kitchen...

By AUSTIN CHEN

Massachusetts has long been at the forefront of providing and protecting access to reproductive health care. Its role in doing so — in a national context — will likely increase once President-elect Donald Trump returns to the White House.Throughout...

By MOLLIE DOYLE, AMI DEL BENEand MAEVE KEENAN HAFF

NORTHAMPTON — Becca Frank, a clinical social worker at ServiceNet in Springfield, keeps careful boundaries in place to prevent career burnout.“My phone is off at 5, which is why you couldn’t get ahold of me,” Frank says. “And then I have a...

By GREG VINE

Local officials and members of the area’s congressional delegation say Jimmy Carter, the nation’s 39th president, left a legacy of public service that will live on.In a statement issued Sunday night, U.S. Rep. Jim McGovern said, “Jimmy Carter, both...

By BOB FLAHERTY

Jimmy Carter, the nation’s 39th president, died at 100 on Sunday, and for Valley residents, he may be remembered for a great deal more than four bruising years in the White House.“He was the greatest former president in the country’s history. Lived a...

By ZICHANG LIU

For decades, Massachusetts’s adoption procedures have been a catalyst for happy endings for families across the state, including out-of-state birth parents who just want their child to be smoothly transferred to a new, welcoming home.However, within...