Arborists Give Back, Helping Keep Riverfront Trails Safe and Healthy

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Below is an excerpt from Berkshire Botanical Garden’s article which describes the annual Arborist Day service project that took place at both the Great Barrington Land Conservancy’s River Walk and Riverfront Trail.

 

GREAT BARRINGTON, Nov. 4, 2026 — Felix Carroll, Berkshire Botanical Garden

 

READ this entire article and the photos online from the Berkshire Botanical Garden, co-hosts of this event.

 

The work of caring for a community’s natural resources often takes a village. On Wednesday, Nov. 4, that village included 22 professional arborists, a local land conservancy, a botanical garden, and a community food cooperative, all coming together for a day of service along Great Barrington’s Housatonic River.

 

The occasion was the annual Arborist Day, sponsored by Berkshire Botanical Garden, which brought together arborists from across the Berkshires to donate their professional skills to the Great Barrington Land Conservancy’s River Walk and Riverfront Trail.

 

“These local arborists made a huge difference today,” said Joe Maleady, project leader for the Riverfront Trail. “We are extremely grateful for their donation of tree care, which will help to keep our trails safe and our trees healthy.”

 

For the Great Barrington Land Conservancy (GBLC), a volunteer- and donor-supported nonprofit dedicated to caring for local trails and natural resources, the contribution was much more than a day of tree maintenance.

 

“I would say that this is an amazing gift to the community,” said Christine Ward, GBLC president and director of the River Walk project. “GBLC is a volunteer donor-based organization, and yet it is our responsibility to care for these community trails. These belong to us through easements. Some people think these are a town trail. We get no funding from the town. We have to raise what we need to hire contractors, and most of our trail maintenance is managed through volunteers.”

 

Ward said the donated professional services make a substantial difference in the Conservancy’s ability to fulfill that responsibility.

 

“This gift of a service day is so incredibly powerful,” she said. “I can’t express my gratitude enough.”

 

Tom Ingersoll organized this year’s service day with Kieran Yaple of Bartlett Tree Service. Participating companies included Ingersoll Land Care, Bartlett Tree Experts, Steinert Tree Care, Kelley Brothers, Arbor Services, Fenton Brook Property Services, and Whalen Nursery.