Welcome to the new Edible Berkshires! This summer issue marks the relaunch of the magazine as well as my own debut as publisher and editor. As a Berkshire native (Housatonic girl!), it’s a role that speaks to my heart in so many ways. Taking this publication to its next exciting iteration feels like a full-circle moment to me—a sweet homecoming, of sorts.

The scene of my earliest summer food memories is my Polish grandparents’ garden—of tomatoes propped high on wooden stakes and tied with white rags, sweet peas on trellises, cukes to be transformed into ogorki kiszone (Polish dill pickles), zucchini that seemed to go crazy every year, tender green beans, and even a few rows of the ugliest but most delicious corn. To this day, I’m an insufferable corn snob, spoiled rotten by those sweet ears.

Idyllic? It sure was. But it was a big garden and tending it was often backbreaking work. My parents chipped in as well, often weeding and picking in the evening after both had worked all day. And so my appreciation of the bounty is equaled by my respect for the labor. Growing food is hard work, and it is infinitely harder for the farmers who dedicate their lives to it than it is for home gardeners, no matter how devoted they may be. I’m grateful every day to the people who make it possible for us all to eat locally.

In that, I know I’m not alone. All of us have the opportunity—whether it’s at one of our many farmers markets, through our CSAs, or by visiting a farm—to meet and express appreciation to the neighbors who feed us. Know this: It’s not just the sowing, planting, and harvesting that fills their days, but the strategy, creativity, and innovation required to run a farm. That’s what it takes to run any business and make no mistake, a farm is a business and a farmer, especially now, must also be an entrepreneur.

I’ve spent the bulk of my 40+ year journalism career writing about entrepreneurs. I love their stories and I’m very much looking forward to bringing them to life in these pages, starting with “The Reinvention of Taft Farms”. I have watched this farm—this business—evolve for as long as I can remember, and its story has the same kinds of intriguing and dramatic twists and turns as any company I’ve written about. And it has corn. Very, very good corn!

Farmers are the foundation of a food ecosystem that extends across our local economy, to restaurateurs, caterers, chefs, retailers, and manufacturers. We’ll introduce you to a few of them here, including Carole Murko and Miriam Rubin who generously share their food artistry with us in these pages. You’ll also meet restaurateur Colleen Taylor of Baystate Hospitality Group, a north county entrepreneur with a compelling recipe for success. With “Second Sowings”, gardening guru Lee Buttala gives hope to those of us who didn’t get around to spring planting; sommelier Philippe Jeanjean takes the mystery out of wine and food pairing in his column, “The Grapevine”, and in “Garden Interlopers”, arborist Tom Ingersoll offers guidance on how to protect our beloved trees and plants from uninvited, destructive guests.

I also want to give a special shout-out to Edible Berkshires’ founding publisher, Bruce Firger, who shepherded this magazine for 11 years. The deep relationships that Bruce built and nurtured in our community helped me jump-start my own publishing journey. I’m grateful for all of his wise counsel.

Lastly, publishing Edible Berkshires would not be possible without support from our advertising partners.

They are in these pages because they align with our mission—to celebrate local food culture in the Berkshires, to provide a trusted road map for discovering what’s new, and to broaden your knowledge of what’s familiar. Please support them whenever you have the opportunity!

Enjoy the Berkshire summer!