Donna N, providing a sense of scale

Two club members spent most of Wednesday, August 31, at Tower Hill Botanic Garden to see Patrick Dougherty’s stickwork exhibit and wander through the gardens. The Stickwork sculpture was nestled into a clearing in the woods, and was much larger than I had expected. The structures stretched into the tree canopy, with arches and doorways that allow wandering through this exhibit. Tower Hill’s website says that “Dougherty bends, weaves, and flexes locally sourced saplings into architectural sculptures which are unique to the setting and dynamically relate to the landscape and built environment around them.”

Stickwork installed in a woodland clearing

The saplings used in this installation were responsibly harvested in the Boylston area. Saplings were chosen by partnering with the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation to provide benefit to the area’s woodlands and to use saplings that would otherwise be cleared and destroyed.

The gardens and container plantings at Tower Hill were in glorious bloom. Though there were a few signs of drought, most of the plantings were healthy and vigorous. We especially enjoyed the many unusual flowers, trees and edibles. There were so many, that I’ll save those for another post.