Bloom Where You Are Planted

I’m not sure that Shelburne Falls, Massachusetts, has won the designation “Coolest Small Town In America,” but it ranks high in my opinion.  A thriving downtown, beautiful location amongst rolling hills and public artworks make it a pleasant place to be.  But what puts it over the top is The Bridge of Flowers, a horticultural showstopper that draws thousands of visitors annually from around the world.

Back in 1908, building a bridge across the Deerfield River to carry railway freight and passengers, as well as a water line, seemed like a good idea.  The nearby Iron Bridge, constructed in 1890, wasn’t up to the job (yet, somewhat ironically, it is still in use for motor vehicle traffic today).  In a fit of optimism, The Shelburne Falls and Colrain Street Railway paid $20,000 to have a new bridge constructed.  They built well:  the sturdy structure was formed of concrete and featured five arches.  Soon, the Railway was transporting everything from mill products and farm produce to U.S. mail, and carrying 200,000 passengers each year.  But those heydays were short-lived.  As cars and trucks became more numerous, the fortunes of the Railway declined, and it ceased operations in 1927.  With the trolleys gone, the bridge could have been destroyed, but the necessary water line made that impractical, and it was a costly proposition, anyway.  What could be done with a bridge with diminished purpose?     

It might have been a stroke of genius, or perhaps Yankee ingenuity, but the bridge didn’t sit derelict for long.  While doing household chores, local resident Antoinette Burnham suddenly struck upon the idea of turning the bridge into a garden.  Aided by her husband Walter and a growing cadre of supporters, a fundraising concert was held and funds gathered.  Soil was ordered and the first plantings installed in 1929.  Eventually, the Bridge of Flowers Committee, under the aegis of The Shelburne Falls Women’s Club, germinated to further organize the efforts.  Today, two part-time paid gardeners, assisted by many volunteers, keep the bridge looking beautiful from April to October.  The initial budget of $1,000 has also grown, thanks to memorial gifts, bequests and donations given in secure boxes located at either end of the structure.  And when significant deterioration threatened the structure by the 1970’s, the good folks involved rallied once more, raising thousands to reconstruct and repair so both bridge and garden would survive.

While planting in two narrow beds on a bridge dozens of feet above the water might seem daunting, it turns out to be a pretty good place to grow.  The soil depth varies from 2 ½ to 9 feet, allowing trees to be planted in the deeper areas.  When I visited in August, dahlias in a broad array of colors were featured, supported by daylilies, phlox, crocosmia, hibiscus and coneflowers.  Annuals such as sunflowers and bachelors buttons shared space with woody viburnums, hydrangeas, redbuds and even a hemlock.  All were kept in tip-top form with nary a weed in site.  Happy 90^th Birthday, Bridge of Flowers!