Private country paradises marry the artistry of man with the beauty of nature. Join garden designer Jack Staub on a visual garden tour through twenty-one superb private country gardens in Virginia, New York, Connecticut, Maryland, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Massachusetts, each with a unique story to tell. This lecture is based on his latest book Private Edens: Beautiful Country Gardens. From a romantic garden that pays homage to the best of English garden vernacular to a historic farmstead to a splendid Maryland-meets-Himalayas Eden of transcendent serenity, these garden paradises are inspirational on their own terms and together offer up the breadth and depth of what we can all achieve with a little respect for nature and a bit of imagination. Inspired plant palettes and combinations, dazzling views, ingenious water features, splendid outbuildings, artistically crafted fences and gates, and exceptional garden structures and appointments all draw us into these heavenly landscapes and, ultimately and emotionally, into the countryside of our longing. A book sale and signing of Private Edens: Beautiful Country Gardens will follow the August 7 lecture, which will be held at Berkshire Botanical Garden beginning at 4 pm.  BBG members $25, nonmembers $30, and registration and directions may be found at www.berkshirebotanical.org.

Jack Staub is a passionate-edible gardener and locavore advocate, and author of the celebrated “75″ series of edible gardening books, which includes 75 Exciting Vegetables for Your Garden, 75 Remarkable Fruits for Your Garden, and 75 Exceptional Herbs for Your Garden. His latest book with photographer Rob Cardillo is Private Edens: Beautiful Country Gardens. With his partner, landscape designer Renny Reynolds, he is the owner of historic Hortulus Farm in Wrightstown, Pennsylvania (pictured below.)