(Routes 20 and 41)
Pittsfield, MA
(413) 443-0188 or (800) 817-1137
www.hancockshakervillage.org
More than 100 varieties of herbs, medicinal plants, heirloom vegetables and seed beds. The historic gardens include crops of Shakers who lived at Hancock during the 19th and early 20th centuries. Herb gardens provide insight into Shaker use of herbs for culinary and medicinal purposes and heirloom vegetable gardens are planted and tended using techniques from the 1843 Shaker "Gardener's Manual." Varieties are based on Shaker seed lists from the 1800s, many of which rare and difficult to find today. In the autumn, gardeners collect seeds from heirloom varieties as part of the Village's ongoing conservation efforts.
