It's always fun to plant a new garden - especially when it includes lots of beautiful, fragrant roses.
Over the last several weeks, I've been working on a new formal garden. The bed was previously planted with beautiful lilacs as well as roses, but it was in need of a complete overhaul to revitalize the space and add some new young plants. The roses are from Star Roses and Plants, a company of brands that focuses on breeding and introducing specimens offering longer-lasting, disease resistant blooms. I planted more than 140 new roses to add to the existing rose bushes and surrounded them all with a border of boxwood. I'm looking forward to seeing this garden mature and fill the area with gorgeous color, form, and fragrance.
Here are some photos, enjoy.
This garden was once my allée of lilacs, Syringa vulgaris. The garden was filled with sweet-smelling lilacs in white, lavender, and purple – with some shrubs reaching 15 to 20 feet tall. After 20 years, the garden needed to be refreshed, so I replanted it with young roses and a border of boxwood.
The roses were planted in two rows – each variety in groups of four all the way down. I shared the planting process in a previous blog.
After they were planted, I decided to put down industrial strength weed fabric to deter the pesky weeds. Wide strips were cut and secured with landscape staples.
This fabric is durable and long lasting.
Next is a layer of mulch. Small, manageable amounts are dropped in between the plants.
I make this mulch right here at the farm. Mulch is great to maintain moisture, suppress weeds, regulate soil temperature, and improve soil health.
Chhiring spreads the mulch to create a two to three inch layer across the entire bed.
In the end, both sides look so gorgeous. On the left are older rose bushes – some of which were transplanted from my previous home in East Hampton. I love roses and have been growing them for decades.
Every row is perfectly lined up. The boxwood that surrounds the garden will grow into a nice formal hedge.
Rose leaves are borne alternately on the stem. In most species, they are about two to five inches long, pinnate, with at least three leaflets and basal stipules. The leaflets also usually have a serrated margin. and remember, rose stems are often armed with sharp prickles, not thorns. A prickle can be easily broken off the plant because it is really a feature of the outer layers rather than part of the wood, like a thorn.
Among the varieties now planted here – Parfuma® Earth Angel™
‘KORgeowim’ – a beautiful, peony-shaped rose with blooms in cream and warm pink in the center. (Photo provided by Star Roses and Plants)
Bolero™ ‘Meidelweis’ is a compact Floribunda rose with a strong sweet fragrance. (Photo provided by Star Roses and Plants)
I also planted Raspberry Cupcake™
‘KORcarmsis’ which has a strong raspberry and lemon fragrance. Its blooms are medium to light pink with large, cup-like petals. (Photo provided by Star Roses and Plants)
Parfuma® Bliss ‘KORmarzau’ is a delicate, creamy pink blend rose with an apricot colored center. (Photo provided by Star Roses and Plants)
This is Michelangelo™ ‘Meitelov.’ It has a sweet, lemony scent with vibrantly saturated, golden yellow petals. (Photo provided by Star Roses and Plants)
Sunbelt® Savannah™ is a very hardy and disease-resistant pink Hybrid Tea Rose with an extraordinary fragrance. (Photo provided by Star Roses and Plants)
Romantica® Moonlight ‘Meikaquinz’ has large, light yellow flowers that are great for cutting. (Photo provided by Star Roses and Plants)
Princesse Charlene de Monaco®
‘Meidysouk’ is a charming Hybrid Tea Rose with double flowers in light apricot to shell pink in color. (Photo provided by Star Roses and Plants)
Dee-Lish® ‘Meiclusif’ is a tall Hybrid Tea Rose with a strong fragrance of verbena and citrus. It has large, deep pink, non-fading blooms. (Photo provided by Star Roses and Plants)
Top Cream™ ‘Meiroguste’ has large, old-fashioned blooms of creamy-white with light pink blush. All are very disease resistant and beautiful for use in arrangements. This garden is sure to bring years of fragrant beauty to my farm. (Photo provided by Star Roses and Plants)
Spring is always a wonderful time for a garden tour.
Every now and then, I agree to open my gardens for a small number of private walking tours. Yesterday was the first one of the season. It was for two winners of a charity auction run by the Seattle, Washington based nonprofit FareStart. The guided walk took them through various gardens, groves, and allées. They learned a bit about the history of my farm, the many changes I've made over the years, and about the plants and trees they saw along the way.
Here are some photos, enjoy.
Every group experiences a different tour when they visit the farm depending on what is blooming at the time. It’s extra special when the peonies are in flower.
These peonies are behind my main greenhouse where the guided walk began. My peonies are just starting to bloom around the farm.
The pergola garden is also hard to miss with all its beauty.
The blue Camassia and purple alliums are prominent right now. Allium species are herbaceous perennials with flowers produced on scapes. They grow from solitary or clustered bulbs. Camassia is a North American native perennial bulb with tall, star-shaped flowers that thrive in moist, sunny environments.
Nearby is my Soccer Field, which is adjacent to the pergola. It is looking so lush and green. On one side are six rare weeping hornbeams, Carpinus betulus Pendula. And in the distance is the old corn crib, which is original to the property.
The tour also viewed my pool – now open and ready for warm season swimming. The six Ginkgo biloba Goldspire™ Obelisk trees are just starting to leaf out now.
The tour then walkd down my Pin Oak Allée. A recognizable trait of the pin oak is that its lower branches hang down. It also has horizontal middle branches and upright upper branches forming a most interesting growth habit.
Susan Maki and Julie Hart are both avid gardeners and work at Squak Mt. Nursery in Issaquah, Washington. They admired so many of the gardens and asked such wonderful questions. It was interesting to hear what plants and trees do well in their area of the country. Here they are at one end of my long Boxwood Allée.
Susan and Julie learned about the giant sugar pots I have around the farm. I use them as fire pits and as coolers when I entertain, but originally sugar kettles like this were used on 19th century Louisiana plantations for the production of sugar. Sugar cane was placed in the large, spherical vessels and cooked down to make syrup. Because they could withstand such high heat, they were also used for cooking.
The horse chestnut trees at the stable end of my Boxwood Allée always grab everyone’s attention. Aesculus hippocastanum is a large deciduous tree also known as conker tree. All the horse chestnuts are blooming right now.
Anyone who visits my farm always saves a little time to see my handsome, well-mannered horses. Susan stopped to greet young Ulysses, one of two horses I rescued last year.
In the stable chick nursery – lots of baby turkeys and chickens. This poult is already learning to perch – it is standing on one of its glass feeders.
Next, a stop to see the peafowl. While it is breeding season for the peacocks and peahens, none of the males were interested in fanning their tail feathers…
My head gardener, Ryan McCallister, answered many of their gardening questions – in particular, how I care for all my roses here at the farm.
Then it was a walk through the azalea grove. The smaller, younger azaleas, which I’ve planted in the last few years are bursting with color. Some azaleas bloom as early as March, but most bloom in April and May with blossoms lasting several weeks.
Azalea petal shapes range from narrow to triangular to overlapping rounded petals. They can also be flat, wavy, or ruffled. Susan and Julie loved these light pink flowers.
Some of the most beautiful growth this time of year is outside my Summer house. Susan and Julie saw my long tree peony border planted in a semi-shade of giant maples. Many of the specimens were transplanted from my Turkey Hill garden in Westport, Connecticut and continue to thrive here at my New York farm.
There are very few plants that can compete with a tree peony in full bloom. The pink varieties are more fragrant than others. This one has slightly ruffled petals with a yellow gold center. Tree peonies come in colors that include all ranges of white, yellow, pink, magenta, and dark maroon.
Julie admired the Lady’s Mantle bordering the garden. Lady’s mantle, Alchemilla mollis, is a clumping perennial which typically forms a basal foliage mound of long-stalked, circular, scallop-edged, toothed, pleated, soft-hairy, light green leaves. The pale chartreuse flowers blend softly with the green foliage.
Across the carriage road are my old pink azaleas that are flowering with gorgeous deep pink color. My azalea collection starts in a lightly wooded area where they get lots of filtered sunlight throughout the day. When I extended the garden down the carriage road, I planted more than 400-azaleas, and continue to add more every year.
Cinco is one of my two stable cats – she followed the tour all the way up to the Summer House sunken garden.
My herbaceous peony bed is just coming to life with the bold green foliage and all the many buds waiting to open. My herbaceous peony collection includes 11-double rows of peonies, and 22 different varieties of peony plants – two varieties in each row. Susan and Julie studied the grid pattered staking in hopes of doing something similar with their peonies back home.
As the two finished the tour, they admired my stand of bald cypress trees along this carriage road. Taxodium distichum is a deciduous conifer. Though it’s native to swampy areas, the bald cypress is also able to withstand dry, sunny weather and is hardy in USDA climate zones 5 through 10. The day was perfect for a tour of the gardens – sunny, mild, and so pleasant. Thanks for visiting my Cantitoe Corners Farm, Susan and Julie.
Planting a pineutum, an arboretum of pine trees and other conifers, provides shelter and nesting sites for small birds, and continuous, year-round interest and greenery in the landscape.
I started my pineutum about 20 years ago, and every year I try to add a few more specimens like pines, junipers, spruces, cypresses, etc. in a variety of sizes and forms. Yesterday, my outdoor grounds crew planted a handful of pines, including Japanese varieties Pinus parviflora 'Tanima no yuki' and Pinus parviflora 'Bergman.'
Enjoy these photos.
Whenever I am home and have time, I enjoy visiting my favorite nurseries to see what’s in stock and what interesting specimens I can bring home. Among my go-to sources is Hardscrabble Farms, a wholesale dealer that specializes in native species, ornamental conifers, and perennials in Westchester County, New York.
Once I get them home, I take them to where they will be planted right away. When developing a garden, it’s a good idea to plant a little at a time, so one knows what grows well and what doesn’t – it takes careful planning and patience.
Because pines are evergreens, they provide year-round shade and shelter. Their dense, needle-covered branches also act as effective windbreaks in the garden, reducing wind chill in winter and blocking the hot summer sun.
Phurba starts by digging the hole at least twice the size of the plant.
He also makes sure the plant will sit at the proper depth. Any tree or shrub should be planted “bare to the flare,” meaning do not bury above its flare, where the first main roots attach to the trunk. The roots need oxygen to grow. By placing the root flare at or slightly above ground level when planting gives the specimen the best chance for survival and growth.
And always remember to sprinkle generous amounts of food. I use Miracle-Gro Organic All Purpose Plant Food. It’s good for both outdoor container and in-ground plants and feeds for up to three-months.
Using a hori hori Japanese knife, Phurba scarifies the root ball, meaning he makes intentional cuts along the side to stimulate growth. I do this with all new plants before they are placed in the ground.
He also teases the roots on the bottom. Scarifying the root ball also helps with nutrient absorption by loosening the roots and allowing them to expand into the new soil.
Next, Phurba places the pine into the hole and checks that it is straight. Step away and see how it looks before backfilling.
Phurba positions it so its best side is facing the carriage road – this is what will be seen so take time to place it perfectly.
Finally, Phurba backfills.
Phurba uses the other side of the shovel to tamp down on the soil to establish good contact between the root ball and the soil.
And then rakes the area, so it is neat and tidy.
It will thrive in this area under the partial shade of my weeping willows.
Each new planting gets a good watering – about 10-seconds. It had also rained the night before, so the soil was already wet.
Pine trees provide shelter for birds, squirrels, and other small wildlife. The cones are also a nutritious food source for many animals.
Pine needles always grow in clusters. The amount varies by species, but most often there are about three to five needles per bundle. These needles are the evergreen leaves of the tree.
As a serious and passionate gardener, I am always looking for ways to add more beauty and texture to all my garden beds. This area is really filling in so nicely.
Everything grows well because of the excellent soil which I amend often with nutrient rich compost, made here at the farm, and organic fertilizer.
Many of these plants are young and small now, but they already provide such wonderful textures, color contrasts, and interesting growing habits to this space.
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