Before the Bud | Todd Trzaskos of Stockbridge head-trains St. Pepin grape vines in his experimental vineyard on the evening of April 30 while his family's sicilian donkeys, Mojo and Rosalita graze near the garden bed below. Trzaskos is currently experimenting with over ten varieties of grape in his homestead vineyard. Situated in the basin of river valley, the hilly layout is designed to allow for easy observation of the phases of grape growth, in order to test which grapes might best flourish in the shorter and colder growing seasons here. "If you've got land, you use what you've got," he said. (Herald / Seth Butler)