Category: Outdoors

Where to find egg hunts and Easter Bunny visits

By Zachary Lewis
[email protected]

If Santa spans the globe by reindeer-powered sleigh, and the Tooth Fairy has her wings, then how exactly does the Easter Bunny travel? By airplane, of course. On Saturday, March 23, at 9 a.m., the Aviation Museum of New Hampshire in Londonderry (27 Navigator Road) welcomes the Easter Bunny into the Granite State as he lands a two-seat light sport aircraft, an RV-12iS, constructed by students from the Manchester School of Technology.

“We’re thrilled the Easter Bunny has chosen to arrive in an airplane built by students right here in New Hampshire,” said Jeff Rapsis, the museum’s executive director. “It’s a great honor to have such an important celebrity make use of this aircraft [and] not just have him hop around but arrive in spectacular fashion.”

The Manchester Airport Fire Department will create a grand water arch to greet the plane. In the event of inclement weather, the Easter Bunny will meet families and friends inside the museum’s workshop.

During the visit, the Easter Bunny will take photos with visitors and hand out candy. The Granite State Candy Shoppe has “donated lots of chocolate,” Rapsis said. The Common Man Roadside will provide free apple cider, coffee and other treats.

From 9 to 11 a.m., museum entry will be free with activities where kids can design hot air balloons and create pilot licenses, and there will be areas for coloring and Legos. The museum ask thats families arrive no later than 8:30 a.m. to be able to park and safely make it to the landing on time.

Around 11 a.m. the Easter Bunny will ride off in a Manchester Airport Fire Department fire truck.

After 11 a.m., regular admission applies to the Aviation Museum: $10 for ages 13 and up; $5 for ages 6 to 12 and ages 65 and up, and veterans/active military; kids 5 and under are free. Visit aviationmuseumofnh.org

Here are some more Easter-related area events:

• An Egg-Citing Egg Hunt will be hosted at Charmingfare Farm in Candia (774 High St.) on Saturday, March 23, and Sunday, March 24, as well as Saturday, March 30, and Easter Sunday, March 31, with various times between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. Children age 2 to 12 will have the chance to hunt for a dozen eggs, each filled with fun surprises and perfect for taking home after a day of fun. See visitthefarm.com.

• Another Egg-citing Egg Hunt will be hosted at Joppa Hill Farm in Bedford (174 Joppa Hill Road) on Saturday, March 23, at two ticketed time slots, 10 a.m. and noon. Visitors may gather 15 eggs containing nut-free candy and toys. According to the website, participants have a chance to find a golden egg that grants a special prize as well as getting to meet and take a picture with the Easter Bunny. Tickets are $20 for ages 1 through 12. There is no fee for adults. See theeducationalfarm.org.

• The Governor’s Easter Egg Hunt will take place on the Statehouse Lawn in Concord on Saturday, March 23. Mr. Aaron performs live from 10 to 11 a.m. There will also be face painting, balloons, prizes, refreshments, the Easter Bunny and his friends, and lots of fun, according to a press release. The Egg hunt begins exactly at 10 a.m. The governor asks that you please bring your own basket.

• The Well Church’s annual free Easter egg hunt will be held at Greeley Park in Nashua (near the bandstand, 100 Concord St.) on Saturday, March 23, from 10 a.m. to noon. Their website welcomes participants to see the Easter Bunny, hunt some eggs, and enjoy face painting, among other festivities. The Well Church asks that participants bring their own baskets, only reserve tickets for children, and notes that certain times are only for younger kids only. Visit thewellnh.org/egghunt.

• The 32nd annual Easter egg hunt for Merrimack residents at Wasserman Park in Merrimack (116 Naticook Road) is happening on Saturday, March 23. Their events page mentioned a total of 6,500 Easter eggs ready to hand out between five different egg hunt groups. Times are: special needs at 10:10 a.m.; ages 1 to 3 at 10:30 a.m., ages 4 and 5 at 10:50 a.m. ages 6 and 7 at 11:10 a.m., and ages 8 to 10 at 11:30 a.m. They ask that children bring their own baskets. The Easter Bunny will be available for photos at the basketball court from 10 to 11:30 a.m. This free event is open to Merrimack residents only. Visit merrimackparksandrec.org/easter-egg-hunt.

• The Salem Community Easter Egg Hunt hosted by Rockingham Christian Church will take place at Hedgehog Pond in Salem on Saturday, March 23, from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Bags will be provided for the two egg hunts. The first is at noon for kids 5 and under and the second at 12:30 p.m. for kids 6 to 11. The Rockingham Christian Church mentioned on their event page that the event will be a day of egg hunting and activities for the family like face painting, crafts, raffles, pictures with the Easter Bunny, and a visit from the Salem Fire Department. They ask participants to register for the event to give them a head count. Parking is located next door at the Bus Company or across the street at the Ice Center. Visit rccsalem.com/events or email [email protected].

• The Saint Anselm College Alumni Association invites Granite Staters to its 28th Annual Easter Egg Hunt at Saint Anselm College (100 Saint Anselm Drive in Manchester) on Palm Sunday, March 24, at 12:30 p.m. Registration opens at 11 a.m. and the Easter egg hunt commences exactly at 12:30 p.m. Admission is $25 per family, which includes a $5 donation to the Saint Anselm Fund. The website mentions that there will be snacks, coffee, a petting zoo, crafts for kids, and pictures with the Easter Bunny. Visit alumni.anselm.edu/annual-easter-egg-hunt.

• The Easter Bunny Party is back at Carriage Shack Farm in Londonderry (5 Dan Hill Road) on Saturday, March 30, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Visitors can spend time with the Easter Bunny and friendly farm animals. There is an Easter Bunny trail where kids can collect Easter egg treasures. There will be opportunities for Easter egg decorating, dancing and bubbles, and the Olde Schacht’s Mining area will be open for additional fun, according to the website. The animals at Carriage Shack Farm include a Tibetan yak, bearded dragons, baby doll sheep and a 100-pound Sulcata Tortoise named Homer. Tickets are $12.95 for ages 16 and over, $11.95 for seniors and military, $10.95 for ages 15 and under. Children 1 and under are free. Adults must be accompanied by another adult or child. No pets of any kind are allowed, for the safety of the farm’s animals. Tickets can be purchased at the gate. Visit carriageshackfarmllc.org.

• Hudson’s Best Easter Egg Hunt will be Saturday, March 30, at Inner Dragon Martial Arts (77 Derry Road in Hudson) with times at 10 a.m., 11 a.m. and noon featuring more than 5,000 eggs, pictures with the Easter Bunny and more. Reserve a spot at funnels.hudsonmartialart.com/egghunt-2024.

Featured Photo: The Easter Bunny NH Aviation Museum of New Hampshire. Courtesy photo.

LeUyen Pham talks book illustrating, touring

On Friday, March 29, at 6:30 p.m. at Gibson’s Bookstore in Concord, readers of all ages can meet LeUyen Pham, part of the multiple award-winning writer and illustrator duo of the newest Kitty-Corn story, Bubbly Beautiful Kitty-Corn. The book is the latest in the series illustrated by Pham. and authored by Shannon Hale (who will also be at Gibson’s). Pham, an illustrator and a writer herself, has inked more than 140 stories and received a Caldecott honor in 2020 for her illustration of Bear Came Along. In an interview, she spoke about the partnership, life as an artist, and the connections forged on book tours.

“When we started doing the Kitty-Corn series,” Pham said, “it was kind of an experiment between me and Shannon. We were talking about how writers and illustrators never get to come together to write books, it’s just the way the industry is designed.” Pham and Hale wanted to change that paradigm. “What if we didn’t have the medium of the editor in between and could we still come up with good stories?”

This was the genesis of the first Kitty-Corn book, a New York Times bestseller and Cybil’s Award Finalist.

“I was able to contribute as much to the story as Shannon did,” Pham said, “and vice versa with the illustration.”

Bubbly Beautiful Kitty-Corn, the fourth installment of the series, came about through a conversation during travel.

“I do believe we were running through an airport,” Pham recalled, “and I had mentioned how I really wished I could do a mermaid story. I don’t want to do just a typical mermaid story because I don’t know how to swim, and so it would have to be something where it was a mermaid, maybe, that couldn’t swim, and that was the seed for this particular story.”

Their friendship over the years through multiple collaborations allowed Hale to pen their newest story.

“She knew what I was trying to do or what my fear was behind that story, the fear of the water, and because she understood me so well … she pretty much wrote that one on her own and brought it back and I remember laughing, thinking that’s exactly the story I wanted to do, and that’s where Bubbly Beautiful came from.”

“You gotta be excited about what’s on the horizon and not where you currently are. You’re constantly trying to agitate the pool that you’re in because if you’re comfortable then you are doing something that you have already done before. Like, you always have to be slightly uncomfortable to be growing in some way.”

Pham enjoys the challenge of expanding a story through images from what an author has put into words. “I think that is why I like to illustrate manuscripts so much … because I really enjoy that process of picking a manuscript apart and figuring out why it works and what’s the story that’s being told and the alternate story being told.”

For Kitty-Corn, “I do everything digitally,” Pham said. “I made this specifically digital because it was a lot easier to communicate with Shannon that way.” Although computer-based illustration works perfectly for the series with Hale, who is based in Utah, Pham is partial to other forms. “My favorite medium is watercolor. If I could do every book in watercolor, I absolutely would,” and added, “I love to ink. I love, love, love, to ink.”

Most of her work is completed inside her home studio in California. While Pham shares the studio space with her husband, artist Alexandre Puvilland, who has worked on such feature films as Prince of Egypt and Mr. Peabody and Sherman, Pham looks forward to the promotional journey. “The part of the tour I like the best is actually spending time with the writer because they are usually my friend.” Pham is also a big fan of “going to bookstores and meeting with owners.”

“I always like to remember that at the end of my pen, that’s what’s happening. Every piece of art that gets created goes into the hands of one of these people,” whether it is a bookstore owner, librarian or teacher. “It makes me want to make sure I appreciate that process and that what they’re getting is the best of what I can offer.”

Shannon Hale and LeUyen Pham
What: book launch author visit for Bubbly Beautiful Kitty-Corn
When: Friday, March 29, 6:30 p.m.
Where: Gibson’s Bookstore, 45 S. Main St., Concord
More: gibsonsbookstore.com

Featured Photo: Shannon Hale and LeUyen Pham. Photo by Alex Puvilland.

Stick to the 25 percent rule and enjoy the work

March, April and May are good months to prune your fruit trees. Traditionally farmers pruned their fruit trees in March. I think they did so because they had less other work they could do at this time of year — it was too early to plant, weed or harvest. You can prune fruit trees any time of year without harming the trees, but since the snow is gone now, pruning on a sunny afternoon will give you a good excuse to be outside. Let’s take a look at how to do it.

First, you need good sharp tools: hand pruners, a pair of loppers, and a pruning saw. A pole pruner is also helpful, and you may want to use a 4- or 5-foot stepladder. Don’t buy cheap tools; they will not do a good job for long. Buy the best you can afford, and take good care of them. Pruners and loppers can be sharpened with a simple and inexpensive diamond-studded sharpener, but most pruning saws are not suitable for sharpening.

Pruning fruit trees is not complicated. Your goal is to thin out branches that clutter up the tree and shade out other branches. Every leaf should get direct sun at some point during the day. My pruning mentor told me that a robin should be able to fly through a mature apple tree without getting hurt.

The biggest culprits, and the most commonly ignored, are the water sprouts that pop up vertically from bigger branches. They are, by far, the most numerous new branches each year; they shoot straight up and new ones are just the thickness of a pencil. But ignored for a few years, they gain mass and produce lots of leaves. Get rid of them.

Water sprouts are partly a tree’s response to a need for more food for the roots. Trees that haven’t been pruned in years have many of these. After a heavy pruning, a tree may produce lots of water sprouts to replace food-producing branches that have been removed.

It is important to know where to make your cuts. Each branch has a “collar” at its base, a swollen area where it attaches to the trunk or a bigger branch. This is where the tree heals best and it should not be removed. Cut just past the collar. But if you cut too far out the branch being removed, you will be leaving a stub that can take years to rot away. Once the stub has rotted and fallen off, it can properly heal — but in the meantime it is a place where infections can occur.

I like to begin work on a tree by walking around it a few times and really looking at it: Are there dead branches? Are there big vertical branches that once were water sprouts? Do some branches head into the center of the tree? All of those culprits need to be removed.

I generally take out the dead branches first. I look for dry, flaking bark. Try bending the branch. A dead branch will crack and break instead of bending. For small branches you can scrape the bark with your thumbnail. If it shows green, it is alive; if not, it’s dead.

Then I look at the overall branching of the tree. It is quicker and easier to remove larger branches first, rather than making 50 small cuts on that same branch.

You should not remove more than 25 percent of the leaves on a tree in any given year. Leaves are the engine of the tree: they make the sugars that feed the roots and the beneficial microorganisms in the soil. They provide the energy that allows the tree to make flowers, fruit and seeds. I once pruned a mature apple with just three cuts. I removed three large problem branches, and each would have had hundreds of leaves, come spring. I had reached my 25 percent limit. The next year I was able to remove lots of smaller branches.

Pruning every year, or at least checking each tree each year, is a good plan. It is much easier to remove a small branch than one that is 5 inches thick. If you do need to remove a big branch, take steps to prevent it from falling prematurely and tearing the bark of the trunk. Do this by first making an under-cut a couple of feet from the trunk, but just go part way through the branch. Then, just past that cut, cut from the top all the way through. Most of the weight of the branch will fall to the ground, allowing you to make a cut through the branch just past the branch collar without risk of tearing the bark.

Other branches that need to be removed? Any branch that heads back through the middle of the tree. If two branches form a tight “V,” remove one of them. Otherwise they will grow together and “include” bark that will rot, and can rot the wood. If two branches parallel each other, one shades the other, so remove the least desirable branch.

Learn to identify “fruit spurs” on fruit trees. These are 2- to 6-inch spurs (branches) with buds on their tips. Each bud should produce several flowers and eventually fruit. Vertical branches have few fruit spurs; branches at a 45-degree angle to the trunk should produce many, at least when the tree is old enough to bear fruit. Newly planted trees might wait five years before producing fruit, so be patient!

Pruning is good for trees. Don’t think of it like surgery that removes an arm or a leg. Think of pruning as creating art: A beautifully pruned tree is a work of art, pleasing to the eye all year, especially in winter. Some fruit trees, like pears, will require lots of work every year if you want them to produce fruit low enough to reach from the ground. But all fruit trees will benefit from at least a little trim every year. Learn to enjoy this work and the benefits it offers.

Henry is writing just one gardening article per month this winter. You may reach him at [email protected].

It’s like an artichoke, but with more food per plant

If the city of Manchester could fit inside a mill building, the Millyard Museum at 200 Bedford St. would be the one. Kristy Ellsworth, Director of Education with The Manchester Historical Association, will be hosting an Afternoon Tea with Manchester’s Matriarchs, an American Doll Program, on Sunday, March 10, at noon.

“It is a tea party,” Ellsworth said. “It is a high tea for all ages, really. Not specifically geared toward children.” This tea party will have eight tables celebrating women from Manchester.

“Every one of the eight tables will feature a different Manchester Matriarch from an important time in Manchester’s history, from Molly Stark all the way up to May Gruber, the CEO of Pandora,” Ellsworth said.

“All of the women will have their bios featured but also an American Girl Doll that will replicate their period-correct outfits,” Ellsworth said.

The event is the culmination of funds received from grants and a tradition the Millyard Museum has of putting together similar functions.

“For the last seven years we have been doing American Girl Doll tea parties for young girls as affordable events that focus on history,” Ellsworth said. These get-togethers “have become really popular,” she said. But “every time we had the smaller-scale tea parties we’d always get older women [who would say,] ‘I wish you would do this for adults because I don’t have any children to take.’”

This led to including more women and focusing on specific women from the history of Manchester.

“When we talk about the Revolutionary War doll, Felicity,” Ellsworth said, “on the way up to visit her grandparents in New Hampshire, she stopped in Manchester, and this is what was happening. So that’s kind of where the idea got sparked.”

One of the women showcased is Elizabeth Molly Page Stark, whose waymark in Wilmington, Vermont, described her as “wife of general John Stark, mother of 11 children, homemaker, patriot, and defender of the household.” In addition to Stark and Gruber, the other women included are Elena Crough, Elizabeth Bisbee Hunt, Mary Carpenter Manning, Samantha Plantin, Bernice Blake Perry and Maud Briggs Knowlton.

Stark’s American Girl Doll has been uniquely clothed.

“We have a small piece of Molly Stark’s wedding dress in our collection,” Ellsworth said. “We decided to — the curator and myself — decided to do research as to what her dress actually would have looked like. … so we recreated Molly Stark’s wedding dress based on the information that we had and research we had gathered.”

The tea will be a full-service high tea, catered by the former owners of Roots Café, with petit fours and finger sandwiches. The entire soiree will take place in the Elm Street Gallery and will last around two hours.

“We will have a time for the women to go around and collect … trading cards from each of the tables so that they will leave with a full deck of Manchester Matriarchs,” Ellsworth said. “Then we will just do a short talk about the process of choosing the women and highlighting some of their accomplishments.”

“Manchester is such a women-centric city, starting with the Mill Girls who were half of the workforce of the Amoskeag Manufacturing Company. So much of the story is female-driven — we just don’t tell it as often,” Ellsworth said. “I think it is really inspiring to young girls and to women to hear about these pioneers who sort of changed the history of Manchester and have kind of been forgotten or swept aside a little bit.”

New discoveries continue to happen.

“We have recently discovered in our collection one of Molly Stark’s dresses,” Ellsworth said. “It is the only one in existence that we know of, and it will be on display during the tea party.” The dress will be part of a new exhibit planned for April.

Afternoon Tea with the Matriarchs
Where: Millyard Museum, 200 Bedford St. in Manchester
Cost: $60 per person ($50 for MHA members)
When: Sunday, March 10, with seatings at noon and 3 p.m.
To register: manchesterhistoric.org