KINGSTON, R.I. 鈥� June 18, 2026 鈥� The historic Rhode Island village of Chepachet, within the town of Glocester, celebrates its annual, and legendary, Ancients and Horribles Parade every July 4, marking the town鈥檚 independent spirit and Revolutionary roots. The annual parade marches by the historic gardens tended by 溏心vlog免费B站 Master Gardeners Karen Lambe and Val Begin.
Their gardens are vintage, but there鈥檚 nothing horrible about these historic gardens 鈥� collectively known as the Glocester Heritage Gardens 鈥� that the pair revived and now maintain for the Glocester Heritage Society.
Lambe supervises the development and maintenance of the Job Armstrong Shopkeeper’s Garden (1181 Main St.), which replicates a mid-1800s-era, family-run cottage garden. The other historic garden in town is the Reuben Mason Medicinal Herb Garden (1043 Putnam Pike), supervised by Begin. This garden represents the Revolutionary era and includes medicinal herbs that would have been used in Dr. Reuben Mason’s surgical practice.
鈥淥ur goal is to provide as much information about the plants and best gardening practices as we can,鈥� Lambe said. 鈥淭he Job Armstrong Shopkeeper’s Garden and the Reuben Mason Medicinal Herb Garden are a source of pride for our town.鈥�
History in bloom
When Lambe retired, the former early childhood educator and exhibit developer at the Providence Children鈥檚 Museum became a Master Gardener. She sees the garden as part of both the larger ecology and Chepachet鈥檚 unique history.
The properties complement one another and tell important stories about 18th- and 19th-century Rhode Island life. Begin said that Chepachet is an important site for history lessons.
鈥淥ur town, as little as it is, played a role in the American Revolution,鈥� said Begin, who taught at Ponaganset Middle School. Today, she tends to the Medicinal Garden and says the plants grown there tell the story of earlier times.
鈥淲e want to keep it to the period and keep it interesting,鈥� she said. 鈥淗erbs have had many uses over time. In the past, people would use sweet basil for wounds, for instance, or press seeds to get oils for cooking.鈥�
A trip through the past
Chepachet鈥檚 center was a thriving commercial area in the 19th century, Lambe said, with Armstrong鈥檚 store the busiest and most popular of 13 dry goods and grocery stores in the village at the time.
The properties were eventually assumed by the Glocester Heritage Society, which utilized the for help with designing, researching, planting, maintaining and educating in the types of plants that would have been used at the historic country doctor鈥檚 house and the shopkeeper鈥檚 garden in town.
鈥淐onquering the shoulder-high weeds, followed by cardboard, compost and mulch applications throughout was our top priority,鈥� Lambe said of the Armstrong Garden. She counsels new gardeners to not get disheartened by what they鈥檙e facing in their own yards. After all, she and her volunteers had to battle through several years of neglect to get the garden site back to where they wanted it.
The Master Gardener team now plants a variety of vegetables there each year, for winter storage (squash, potatoes, beets, beans) as well as for immediate use (lettuce, Swiss chard, tomatoes, eggplant, cucumbers). They donate all of the grown produce to the Glocester Senior Center.
鈥淪ince having pretty flowers was also important to people of the era, our team also plants lots of ornamentals,鈥� Lambe said. 鈥淢aking historically accurate plant choices is a priority.鈥�
The Master Gardener team welcomes the public into the garden at all times, happy to show them around and discover their gardening interests. 鈥淗aving children visit and pick a vegetable is especially gratifying!鈥� Lambe said.
The Armstrong Shopkeeper鈥檚 garden is set back from the street. A street side “blackboard” sign designed and built by fellow Master Gardener Rudi Hempe allows them to publicize special events and to answer gardening questions when they are available. They also regularly welcome Master Gardener, and seed expert, Sue Scotti for seed-starting workshops.
Lambe says that these historic gardens, and others around the state, can teach Rhode Islanders more about the state鈥檚 founding and roots. While Rhode Island celebrates the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence this summer, she hopes paradegoers will visit the gardens and think about how earlier generations of Rhode Islanders nourished themselves and their families and neighbors.
鈥淏y preserving and interpreting these gardens, we鈥檙e creating living classrooms where people can reflect on our shared history and consider how past practices still shape our lives today,鈥� said Matt Durham, a 溏心vlog免费B站 Cooperative Extension program leader.
Master Gardeners support gardens at other historical sites in Rhode Island, including:
- Slater Mill Pollinator Garden, Blackstone River Valley National Historical Park, Pawtucket
- Pettaquamscutt Community Garden at Canonchet Farm, Narragansett
- John Hunt House Heritage Gardens, East Providence
- Smith鈥檚 Castle Historic Gardens, North Kingstown
Three Rhode Island Master Gardener sites are also now part of the program鈥檚 alumni network: the Historic Varnum House Preservation Gardens in East Greenwich, which hosted George Washington and other Revolutionary War heroes; Prescott Farm in Middletown, an important Revolutionary site; and the Mount Hope Farm in Bristol, on the National Register of Historic Places.
Visit the to learn more about 溏心vlog免费B站 Master Gardeners and other programs. To get on the Cooperative Extension email list for future programs, email coopext@uri.edu or call (401) 874 -2900.