Litchfield Hills & Fairfield County Connecticut Travel
Where To Go, What To See & Do
Monday, April 7, 2025
What’s Your Heirloom Worth? Find Out with Expert Appraisals & a Free Museum Tour of Matthews Curtis House
Monday, March 31, 2025
The Story of Bitter Dock in New England
Although Bitter Dock (Rumex obtusifolius) is not native to New England, this unusual plant has established itself across the region, thriving in wetlands, meadows, fields, and even along the shorelines of rivers and lakes. After its introduction, it quickly adapted to local environments, becoming a common sight across shaded, moist areas. Interestingly, Native Americans discovered several practical and medicinal uses for this perennial herb, integrating it into their traditional practices.
About Bitter Dock
Did You Know?
- Edible Leaves: The young leaves of Bitter Dock can be eaten raw or cooked but become increasingly bitter as they age.
- Seed Dispersal: While the plant’s wind-pollinated flowers do not attract insects, its seeds draw birds, which help spread them to new locations.
- Folklore: Folklore suggests that touching Bitter Dock can act as an antidote to nettle stings—a useful tip for outdoor enthusiasts!
- Weed Status: Due to its rapid proliferation in pasture lands, Bitter Dock was named one of the five injurious weeds in the 1959 Weeds Act.
A Plant of Opportunity
Monday, March 24, 2025
Sip, Savor, Sustain: Craft Brews and Bites for Sheffield Island Lighthouse
The Norwalk Seaport Association invites you to an evening of exceptional craft beer, delicious food, and community engagement at Space Cat Brewery, located at 57 Chestnut Street in Norwalk. Mark your calendar for Monday, April 7, from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m., and prepare to indulge in a night of small-batch brews, hard ciders, and chef-driven appetizers by Ripkas Beach Café. Each carefully crafted pairing is designed to enhance the experience and showcase the brewery’s creative touch. From robust IPAs to crisp lagers, Space Cat Brewery’s dedication to using the finest, sustainable ingredients will delight even the most refined beer enthusiasts.
Monday, March 10, 2025
Medicinal Monday...Spreading Dogbane: A Toxic Treasure with Centuries of Purpose
Apocynum Androsaemifolium, commonly known as Spreading Dogbane, is a striking member of the dogbane family, widely distributed across North America. Found in nearly all U.S. states, including Connecticut, as well as parts of Canada, this plant is recognized for its showy appearance and toxic properties. The common name "dogbane" and its genus name "Apocynum," which translates to "away from dog," reflect its poisonous nature—not only to dogs but also to humans, livestock, and other mammals. Despite its toxicity, Spreading Dogbane has held significant cultural and medicinal importance among Native American communities, where it was used to address various ailments and practical needs.
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photo D. McGrady |
About Spreading Dogbane
Spreading Dogbane is a bushy perennial that can grow up to four feet tall. This plant reproduces both through rhizomes and seeds. Its smooth, blue-green, oval leaves grow in opposite pairs, with pointed tips, while the stems, often light green to red, tend to sprawl horizontally, giving the plant a slightly willowy appearance. During summer, clusters of light pink, bell-shaped flowers emerge at the tips of its branches, adorned with darker pink stripes. These blossoms give way to long, slender pods that turn from green to red as they mature, eventually releasing cottony seeds. When the stems are broken, they exude a milky white sap containing glycosides—compounds that are highly toxic to humans and animals. In Connecticut, Spreading Dogbane thrives in fields, woodlands, and roadside areas.
Cultural and Medicinal Uses
Medicinally, the plant played a significant role in traditional healing practices. Its roots were used to treat ailments ranging from stomach cramps and earaches to heart palpitations and sore throats. Certain tribes, like the Potawatomi, prepared decoctions of green berries as heart medicine and to alleviate kidney pain. Other uses included treating colds, headaches, and even convulsions, as documented by the Chippewa. The Iroquois utilized the plant's milky sap to treat warts, while the Cree used decoctions to support lactation. These applications highlight the plant’s extensive role in addressing both common and specialized health conditions.
Ceremonial and Veterinary Uses
In addition to its practical and medicinal uses, Spreading Dogbane held ceremonial significance. The Ojibwa, for example, regarded the root as sacred, incorporating it into their medicinal lodge ceremonies. The Okanagan-Colville smoked its dried leaves as an aphrodisiac, while the Chippewa chewed the root to counteract malevolent spiritual influences.
Spreading Dogbane was also employed as a veterinary aid. The Cherokee created infusions to wash dogs suffering from mange, and the Iroquois administered root decoctions to horses to eliminate intestinal worms.
Spreading Dogbane is a close relative of Indian Hemp, Apocynum cannabinum.
Spreading Dogbane roots contain cymarin, a powerful cardiac stimulant.
Spreading Dogbane is an important source of food for bees, wasps, flies, and butterflies including the Monarch, American Lady and Spring Azure.
Spreading Dogbane is not found in Hawaii, Kansas, Louisanana, Mississippi, Florida, and South Carolina.
Spreading Dogbane is also known as Flytrap Dogbane and Bitterroot.
While its toxicity might suggest otherwise, Spreading Dogbane is a plant of immense historical, cultural, and ecological value. From its use in crafting essential tools and textiles to its role in treating ailments and supporting pollinators, this remarkable plant serves as a testament to the ingenuity and resourcefulness of the communities that have utilized it for centuries.Saturday, March 8, 2025
Pour Sustainability on Your Pancakes: Experience the Sweet Magic of Bird Friendly Maple Syrup at GMF
Tuesday, March 4, 2025
Discover Tina’s Woven Art, and Global Gemstones at Whiting Mills Third Annual Rock and Mineral Show – March 15 and 16
Monday, March 3, 2025
Medicinal Monday... The Fascinating World of Bearberry
While bears don’t truly hibernate, their sleepy state known as torpor ends as they awaken with the arrival of early spring. It’s during this time that their favorite snack, the aptly named bearberry (Arctostaphylos uva-ursi), takes on an even more fascinating role. Beyond being a treat for bears, bearberry holds a rich history of practical and medicinal uses, particularly among Native American communities.
About Bearberry
Bearberry is a hardy, low-growing evergreen shrub that graces rocky sites, dry sandy hills, and open woods with its distinctive beauty. Its white or pinkish flowers, tipped with red, grow in delicate clusters on branches adorned with red shredded bark. Throughout the year, its oval leaves transform in color—lush green during most seasons, red in the fall, and bronze in winter, returning to green in spring. The plant’s vibrant red berries are not only visually striking but also serve as a lifeline, providing sustenance to wildlife, including bears, which inspired its name.
Culinary Uses
The berries of this shrub have long been a staple in Native American diets, used in a variety of creative and resourceful ways. The berries were consumed raw, dried for future use, or turned into teas, broths, soups, and even fried dishes. Different tribes crafted unique recipes: the Cree combined the fruit with raw fish eggs, while the Eskimo Inupiat stored the berries in mixtures of bear fat or seal oil to make ice cream. The Tolowa baked the berries with salmon roe and sugar into bricks, and the Hanaksiala paired them with highbush cranberries or crabapples to serve at grand winter feasts. This adaptability reflects the plant’s incredible versatility and cultural significance.
Medicinal Uses
Bearberry isn’t just a culinary treasure—it also shines as a natural healer. Native American tribes harnessed its properties to treat a wide range of ailments, particularly skin conditions. The Blackfoot made an infusion of this plant and mixed it with grease and boiled hoof and applied it to rashes and skin sores, while the Carrier pounded the leaves into a paste and applied it to boils and skin eruptions. A decoction of the leaves was also used as a mouthwash to treat sore gums and canker sores. It's healing properties extended far beyond the skin. The Cheyenne made bearberry infusions to relieve back pain. The Chippewa smoked the roots to alleviate headaches, the Cree relied on it to prevent miscarriage, and the Flathead made a poultice of leaves to treat burns. The Ojibwa created bark decoctions for internal blood diseases, and rheumatism relief. The Okanagan-Colville made a decoction of the leaves to treat kidney problems and the Thompson made a decoction of the leaves to wash broken bones.
A Sacred Smoking Tradition
One of the most intriguing uses of bearberry lies in its ceremonial role. The dried leaves were often pulverized and smoked, either alone or mixed with tobacco, giving rise to its name kinnikinnick. The smoke was believed to carry prayers to the Great Spirit, making it a vital part of spiritual rituals. Tribes such as the Chippewa, Eskimo, and Pawnee valued bearberry as a smoking herb, and in the absence of tobacco, they creatively blended it with plants like red willow, chokeberry, skunkbush, red osier, and even the bark of dogwood. The ceremonial use of bearberry highlights its role not just as a plant, but as a bridge between the earthly and the spiritual.
Did You Know...
Its scientific name comes from Greek arctos meaning bear and staphyle meaning grape.
Bearberry is an important source of food for butterflies. It serves as a host plant for several species including the Hoary Elfin.
Bearberry was first documented in The Physicians of Myddfai, a 13th century Welsh herbal document.
Whether nourishing bears in the wild or supporting traditional Native American practices, it stands as a unique testament to the relationship between society and the natural world.
Tuesday, February 25, 2025
From Parks to Pavement: Haze Gallery Welcomes Xiomaro’s Bold NYC Street Photography
Haze Gallery in Berlin, Germany, has proudly announced its representation of photographer Xiomaro, an artist celebrated for his compelling visual narratives. Known for his National Park photography, which gained national attention through a PBS feature and was the centerpiece of a book with a foreword by Senator Joe Lieberman, Xiomaro now brings a fresh perspective to the gallery’s roster. However, his evocative series of contemporary New York City images truly captivated Haze Gallery's interest. This new partnership aims to showcase Xiomaro’s work to a global audience of collectors and art enthusiasts.
Xiomaro’s transition from an entertainment lawyer to a celebrated photographer is as fascinating as his art. After conquering prostate cancer in 2005, he embraced photography, eventually earning recognition through the Weir Farm Artist-in-Residence program and commissions from the National Park Service. His candid street photography, much like his work in Weir Farm National Historical Park, offers a documentary style with an abstract, surreal twist. His striking images, often captured through the reflective surfaces of Manhattan's store windows, vehicles, and bus shelters, convey a dynamic interplay of chaos and energy. “I wanted to document how things feel – not just how they look – for preservation as future history,” Xiomaro explains. With over 11 percent of Connecticut residents commuting to New York City, his ability to encapsulate the frenetic yet mesmerizing energy of urban life resonates on a deeply human level.A Shared Journey Through Art and Adversity
The personal journeys of both Xiomaro and Haze Gallery’s CEO, Irina Rusinovich, reflect a shared resilience and passion shaped by health crises. Xiomaro’s battle with cancer not only led him to photography but also inspired him to adopt the pseudonym “Xiomaro,” which translates to “ready for battle.” Similarly, Rusinovich’s breast cancer diagnosis in 2016 prompted her move from Russia to Berlin, where she found new purpose in founding the gallery and Purple Haze magazine. Her commitment to making art accessible to all aligns with Xiomaro’s philosophy, making their collaboration particularly fitting.
According to Rusinovich, who founded Haze Gallery in 2019 near Berlin’s iconic Kurfürstendamm, the gallery seeks artists who offer unique narratives and bold perspectives. Xiomaro’s unconventional approach fits this vision seamlessly. As Rusinovich explains, “Art should be accessible to all, regardless of background or prior knowledge. My goal is to demystify art, make it approachable, and spark conversations.” Xiomaro’s work does just that, weaving themes of history, psychology, and politics into his photographs, which he discusses in his forthcoming book, Street Photography of New York City – Street Haunting in the Big Apple (Fonthill Media, 2023).
Bridging Art, Emotion, and Connection
Through this exciting partnership, Haze Gallery continues to expand its mission of presenting art that resonates on a universal level. Xiomaro’s layered compositions and thought-provoking narratives invite viewers to interpret the chaos and beauty of urban life in their own way. His portraits, with surreal elements that float like thought bubbles above his subjects, provoke questions of identity, introspection, and humanity’s place in an ever-changing world.
For more information about Xiomaro and his work, visit www.xiomaro.com . Together, Xiomaro and Haze Gallery are poised to captivate art lovers and collectors, offering a profound exploration of life through the lens of resilience and creativity.
Monday, February 24, 2025
Medicinal Monday The Dogwood Tree: A Symbol of Beauty, Utility, and Tradition
The dogwood tree, standing no taller than 25 feet, is a cherished symbol of spring, thriving across the United States from Maine to Florida and as far west as Texas. With its elegant pink or white blossoms, this tree is celebrated as one of the most stunning flowering trees in America. To Native Americans, the dogwood carries deeper meanings; its blooming season signals the time to plant crops, underscoring its integral role in their agricultural practices. Beyond its aesthetic appeal, Native Americans have long recognized the medicinal and practical value of the dogwood, utilizing its roots, berries, and leaves in inventive ways.
Distinguishing Features of the Dogwood Tree
Tuesday, February 18, 2025
Embrace Winter Magic: Norfolk’s Weekend WIN is Alive with Fun for All Ages!
When winter’s chill settles in, Norfolk, Connecticut, comes alive with warmth, creativity, and community spirit. On February 22 and 23, this charming town invites you to experience the highly anticipated Winter Weekend in Norfolk (WIN). Whether you’re an outdoor adventurer, a foodie, or an art lover, WIN promises an unforgettable celebration filled with activities for all ages. Best of all, most events are FREE and scattered throughout Norfolk’s picturesque surroundings—including the heart of the action at 2 Station Place. Get ready to embrace winter like never before! Explore the full schedule at https://weekendinnorfolk.org.
New This Year: Unique Experiences You Can’t Miss