The gardens at my Bedford, New York farm are changing every single day.
One of the most anticipated sights on the farm is my herbaceous peony garden in full bloom. No garden is complete without these beautiful plants, which show off their large, imposing flowers in May and June. True perennials, herbaceous peonies can live for 100-years, becoming more impressive over time. Last week, my gardeners and outdoor grounds crew staked all the herbaceous peonies in the garden across from my Winter House. At maturity, these plants, which grow to about three-feet tall, need good support, so their massive flower heads don’t droop to the ground.
Here are some photos of our process, enjoy.
It’s almost peony time. In just about five weeks, rows and rows of stunning pink and white herbaceous peonies will be flowering here at my farm. Here is just one of many buds.
Herbaceous peonies are very hardy perennials and thrive in USDA zones 3 to 8. In early April, most of the herbaceous peonies begin emerging from the ground, but they grow very quickly. Here they are April 10…
… And these are the peonies two weeks later. Once the stems are several inches tall, it’s time to stake each of the rows of peonies, so they are well-bolstered as they mature. I planted various peony flower types in this bed: single, semi-double, double, and anemone-type.
The stems of these herbaceous peonies are soft, flexible, and mostly green. They are much different from the woody stems of the tree peonies.
Peonies are native throughout the northern hemisphere and have been cultivated for centuries both in Europe and Asia.
These herbaceous peonies are all surrounded by a hedge of rounded boxwood shrubs, making it a focal point on the property and in the overall landscape here at my farm.
The first step is to weed all the rows. This is still easy to do since the plants are small.
When staking, instead of the round rings that are available at many garden centers, I prefer to use these metal stakes that I designed myself for my farm. Each metal support has two eyes, one at the top and one in the middle. These stakes are about three feet tall.
Phurba starts by inserting a stake every four-feet around the perimeter and down the center of each row. My peony garden is planted with 11 double rows of 22 herbaceous peony plants, 44 in each row of the same variety. Because there are so many rows, Phurba works to position the stakes…
… As Josh follows pushing the stakes several inches deep into the ground.
Each of the stakes is positioned, so the eyes face the same direction.
Here, all the stakes are in place. Herbaceous peonies need an area with fertile, well-drained soil and full sun.
The next day, Phurba begins lacing twine through the lower stake eyes in a zigzag pattern all the way down the row.
Twine is also fed through the stake eyes for a center line.
We use a natural jute twine for this project and for many gardening projects around the farm. Twine like this is available in large spools online and in some specialty garden supply shops.
Once the bottom is done, Phurba knots another string of twine in the upper eye of a corner stake and laces the top row in the same manner.
I designed the eyes to be big enough for the many threads of twine. These have worked so well for me over the years.
Twine is also secured around the entire row through the top and bottom stakes to hold all those heavy blooms at the edge.
It takes several hours to do all the beds, but it’s the perfect time to stake them since they are not yet full height.
Here is what a row looks like all done – very neat and tidy, and every peony plant supported by twine. The stakes and twine create such an artistic and geometric pattern.
This technique allows support from every direction. I am so happy to say, this garden is a huge success and joy every year. Wait until you see all the peonies – it’s a beautiful sight.
I'm back home after a whirlwind business trip to Nevada.
If you follow me on my Instagram page @MarthaStewart48, you may know I flew to Las Vegas earlier this week for a number of business commitments for QVC. Among them - hosting a special luncheon at my restaurant, The Bedford by Martha Stewart. The event helped launch QVC's Age of Possibility, the company's new campaign platform celebrating Q50 female celebrities, leaders, entrepreneurs, and other influencers. I have been part of the QVC family for many years and was honored to be included in this great group of women. In addition, I participated in a panel discussion, appeared in an ad on the famous Sphere Las Vegas, and ate a delicious cheesesteak lunch cooked by non other than Bradley Cooper. But, business trips are always most enjoyable when I can squeeze in a little time to learn about the wonderful places I visit - we also took an early morning drive around the picturesque Red Rock Canyon.
Here are some photos, enjoy.
My trip started right away with a visit to The Bedford located in the Paris Las Vegas. We had a delicious dinner followed by a review of some of the new menu items. If you’re ever in the area, make reservations – you’ll love every dish.
Early the next morning, we visited Red Rock Canyon. Red Rock Canyon features scenic desert cliffs, buttes, and rock formations. The park is located where the southernmost tip of Sierra Nevada converge with the El Paso Range.
The National Conservation Area encompasses 195,819 acres within the Mojave Desert. Visitors can see it via a 13-mile driving loop, but there are also hiking trails, camp sites, and lots of wildlife and plants.
Then it was back to the restaurant. As many of you know, I opened The Bedford by Martha Stewart in August 2022 in a partnership with Caesars Entertainment. We all worked hard to make it feel just like my home in Bedford, New York.
Here I am before hosting our wonderful lunch for QVC. My silk attire is by Balenciaga. (Photo by Gaby Duong)
These House-made Bread Baskets are so popular. Each one includes Garden Flatbreads, Sour Cherry-Rosemary Focaccia and Parker House Rolls.
These tables are surrounded by floor to ceiling windows that look out to Durantrans, or large backlit transparency photos, of my farm. This background shows my Summer House Spring Garden. And of course, everything is changed seasonally.
All the décor inside and out was inspired by my 1925 farmhouse. Some of you may recognize the color palette. (Photo by Gaby Duong)
At each table setting, we place a menu of all the foods to be served. (Photo by Gaby Duong)
And of course, we had Martha’s Chard… work hard, play hard, and drink Martha’s Chard. (Photo by Gaby Duong)
We also had Martha’s Lighter Chard – both have bright citrus fruit notes and a distinctly sweet, oaky flavor. (Photo by Gaby Duong)
Some of the hors d’oeuvres passed around to guests included these Jumbo Lump Crab Cakes with Tartar Sauce. (Photo by Gaby Duong)
The entrées included this Honey Mustard Salmon with Wilted Spinach and Confit Shallots. So many of the dishes are the same ones I serve to family and friends when I entertain at home. (Photo by Gaby Duong)
There was also a lovely dessert buffet which included Upside-Down Lemon Meringue Pie, Mile High Chocolate Cake, New York Style Cheesecake with Raspberry Sauce, and Brown Butter Shortbread Cookies. (Photo by Gaby Duong)
Here is a closeup of the decadent chocolate cake. (Photo by Gaby Duong)
And the shortbread cookies. These cookies are a big hit at my own parties. (Photo by Gaby Duong)
We also visited the Sphere Las Vegas – the grand music and entertainment arena in Paradise, Nevada, just east of the Las Vegas Strip. If you have not seen it up close, you may not realize just how big it is. Designed by Populous, the Sphere is 875,000 square feet, 366-feet high and 516-feet wide at its broadest point.
Here it is from the ground. The Sphere is the largest spherical building in the world and includes seating for 18,600 visitors.
Here, one can see how big it is behind the small parked cars.
My photo went up as part of a 90-second QVC Age of Possibility ad that ran through the evening. It was a very busy, but fun and productive trip.
I hope you caught a glimpse of my recent Instagram post @MarthaStewart48 - the sunken garden behind my Summer House is bursting with spring growth.
I began this formal garden more than 15-years ago and have added many different kinds of plants, shrubs, and trees ever since. It is a kind of "room" walled by a tall hedge of boxwood. The focal point is the great old ginkgo tree at the back of the space that is original to the property. Over time, I've planted American and English boxwood, smaller ginkgo trees, smoke bushes, Siberian weeping pea shrubs, peonies, hostas, lilies, Leucojum, and so much more.
Here are some photos, enjoy.
This is the sunken garden behind my Summer House. When I first designed this garden, I called it my Boxwood Room. It measures 60 by 120 feet.
The garden’s main focal point is the mighty old ginkgo tree in the back of the space. This tree is about 250-years old. Although not as large as others I’ve seen, my tree is quite massive.
Most of the garden is surrounded by a tall American boxwood hedge. And because the Summer House faces a rather busy intersection, the wall of boxwood provides a good deal of privacy.
In this garden, I also have six weeping Siberian pea shrubs with cascading weeping branches that bear pinnately compound leaves. Soon, small yellow pea-like flowers will appear on these branches.
The garden beds are filled with Leucojum vernum – the spring snowflake, a perennial plant that grows between six to 10 inches in height and blooms heavily in early spring.
The plant produces green, linear leaves and white, bell-shaped flowers with a green edge and green dots. Don’t confuse them with Snowdrops – those bloom much earlier. The Snowflake is a much taller growing bulb which normally has more than one flower per stem.
Ipheion uniflorum, commonly called spring starflower, is native to Argentina and Uruguay and features grass-like foliage and solitary star-shaped flowers on six-inch tall stems. Flowers range in color from almost white to violet blue. Flowers have a mild spicy fragrance, and when bruised the foliage emits an oniony aroma.
Guinea Hen Flower, Checkered Lily, and Snake’s Head Fritillary are all names for this charming Fritillaria meleagris – an heirloom species dating back to 1575. It has pendant, bell-shaped, checkered and veined flowers that are either maroon or ivory-white with grass-like foliage intermittently spaced on its slender stems. I have many in my gardens.
Anemonella thalictroides is an easy-to-grow, deer-resistant, durable, but dainty looking plant. The genus name Anemonella roughly translates as ‘little anemone’ because its flowers are miniature copies of the windflower. These are a light pale pink.
Depending on its stage of development, the bloodroot herbaceous perennial plant is about three to 12 inches tall. It produces only basal leaves that are about three to five inches wide.
These double flowers of bloodroot are brilliant white atop single stems.
And here is one of the first peonies to bloom. Tree peonies are larger, woody relatives of the common herbaceous peony, growing up to five feet wide and tall in about 10-years. They are highly prized for the prolific blooms.
This trout lily is ‘Pagoda Dogtooth.’ It produces up to 10 clustered, 12-inch arching stems that bear yellow, nodding flowers with reflexed petals.
It is also known as yellow trout lily, fawn lily, yellow adder’s-tongue, or yellow dogtooth violet. This species of perennial, colony forming, spring ephemeral flower is native to North America. I have them in my gardens and growing wild in my woodland.
All the hostas are also growing quickly. Hostas are a perennial favorite among gardeners. Their lush green foliage varying in leaf shape, size and texture, and their easy care requirements make them ideal for many areas.
These hostas are so healthy. Hosta is a genus of plants commonly known as hostas, plantain lilies, and occasionally by the Japanese name, giboshi. They are native to northeast Asia and include hundreds of different cultivars.
And here is another hosta with shades of dark and light green.
This is the interesting foliage of the variegated Lily of the Valley. It is delicately striped in a creamy white that lightens shady gardens all season. The charming and richly fragrant plants have many bell-shaped flowers in late spring.
The Alliums will be blooming very soon. The Allium, also called Ornamental Onion, is one of the most interesting blooms in the spring and summer garden. With a spherical shape that holds its form throughout the season, it’s one of the longest lasting blooms from a bulb. They appear in a variety of colors, heights, and forms – all are highly attractive to pollinators and are very deer resistant.
Cotinus, also known as smoketree or smoke bush, is a genus of two species of flowering plants in the family Anacardiaceae, closely related to the sumacs. They are a great choice for massing or for hedges. The stunning dark red-purple foliage turns scarlet in autumn and has plume-like seed clusters, which appear after the flowers and give a long-lasting, smoky haze to branch tips.
And all the ginkgo trees are just beginning to show leaves. The leaves are unusually fan-shaped, up to three-inches long, with a petiole that is also up to three-inches long. This shape and the elongated petiole cause the foliage to flutter in the slightest breeze. Ginkgo leaves grow and deepen in color during summer, then turn a brilliant yellow in autumn.
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