I am always on the lookout for new and unusual houseplants to add to my collection.
Earlier this week, during a business day trip to Northeastern Connecticut, I made a stop at Logee’s Tropical Container Plants for Home & Garden in Danielson - one of my favorite sources for tropical specimens. Logee’s was founded in 1892 by William D. Logee. He started the business as a cut-flower shop and then expanded it to include tropical container plants. Over time, Logee’s became well known for its hybridizing achievements in the world of begonias. Today, Logee’s is owned and operated by Williams’s grandson, Byron Martin, and his business partner, Laurelynn Martin. The nursery's extensive inventory offers more than 500 types of fruiting, rare, and tropical specimens.
Here are some photos of the newest additions to my begonia collection, enjoy.
Logee’s is a great source for all kinds of plants – orchids, succulents, fruit trees, exotics, etc. It offers hundreds of unusual tropical flowering and fragrant specimens that perform well in pots.
The greenhouses are packed and neatly arranged and organized. One can learn about new varieties or find old favorites while browsing through the extensive inventory.
One of Byron and Laurelynn’s major interests is citrus which can be found throughout their greenhouses. Many of my citrus come from Logee’s.
I brought home a selection of rare and interesting begonias and citrus specimens.
Among my new plants – this very rare Begonia ferox, which has one of the most dramatic leaves in the world of begonias. It has spiky raised cones on the leaves, known as bullae, that develop as the leaves mature.
This is the foliage of Begonia ‘Snow Capped’ with angel wing shaped leaves and intense silver spotting.
Begonia goegoensis is another rare and hardy species. Brought into cultivation in the late 1800s, it has been part of the Logee’s collection for years. The peltate leaves have an interesting texture and a copper tone on the edges of younger leaves that mature to mottled shades of green. This rhizomatous species can tolerate low humidity, periods of dryness, and low light.
Begonia ‘Midnight Sun’ was hybridized by Byron. It won the Best New Hybrid Introduction in 1980. The variegated foliage has shades of red, pink, and off-white to complement the moss green.
This new compact rex Begonia hybrid is called ‘Watermelon Party.’ Its vibrant reddish-pink center contrasts with the silver and deep green veining. ‘Watermelon Party’ also has sharply pointed leaves with dark green borders and white dots. It is a medium-sized grower with intermittent blooming throughout the year.
Begonia ‘Black Magic’ is a striking plant admired for its dramatic dark foliage and richly colored red emergent leaves.
I saw this one and had to take it. This begonia has giant bold green leaves – each one bigger than one’s hand.
I store many of the empty pots underneath the greenhouse tables where they can be accessed quickly. To successfully grow rhizomatous begonias, It’s a good idea to use clay pots, such as terracotta, as they are more porous and allow the roots to breathe.
When potting any plant, always place a clay shard or stone over the drainage hole in the bottom of the pot to help with drainage and to prevent any soil from falling out.
Begonias grow best in light, well-drained soil. Ryan empties a bag of Miracle-Gro Indoor Potting Mix for Cactus & Succulent into a trug bucket.
And then he adds a bag of Miracle-Gro Moisture Control Potting Mix into the same container.
After adding a generous amount of Osmocote fertilizer, which will provide a good supply of nutrients to the plant for several months. using his hands, Ryan mixes everything together.
Ryan begins to fill the pots with the appropriate mixed medium.
He also adds one Miracle-Gro Organic Planting Tablet into each pot. Each water soluble tablet is great for both transplants and starter plants.
Ryan gently removes the begonia from its previous pot. This is a good root ball – neither rotted nor root bound. He puts it into a pot that’s only one or two inches larger in diameter than the old one. This pot is a good size for this plant.
Ryan plants it at the same depth it was in its original pot, backfills to just under the lip of the vessel, and then presses down slightly on the soil to ensure there is good contact between the plant and the potting mix.
Here are several of the begonias all potted up in their new containers.
Begonias are happy in their pots for some time, but it is a good idea to repot them every couple of years to provide fresh potting mix elements and new well-draining soil.
Here’s Ryan after potting up the big leaf begonia. Once all are potted, he takes the plants into the greenhouse where I have countless others thriving.
For potted begonias, the most ideal light is bright, indirect sunlight — mimicking their natural tropical, dappled-light habitat. My greenhouse is perfect for begonias – my new additions will be so happy here.
Are the hydrangeas blooming where you are? Here at my farm, the hydrangeas are just starting to put on quite a show with more blooms showing up every day.
Over the last couple of years, I've planted many hydrangeas. I added hydrangeas to a border along the carriage road to my chickens. I have hydrangeas growing around my tennis court, outside my goose and peafowl pens, along the fence of my run-in pasture, behind my main greenhouse, in my living maze, and beneath the London plane and Cotinus trees in the middle field. Last autumn, I also surrounded part of my half-acre vegetable garden with hydrangeas. Hydrangeas are popular ornamental plants grown for their large flower heads, which are excellent in cut arrangements and for drying. And, depending on the species, variety, and one's local climate, hydrangeas can bloom from mid-spring through early fall.
Here are some photos, enjoy.
I have long grown hydrangeas. Hydrangeas are one of the most popular ornamental garden plants because of their large spherical bloom heads that come in varying shades of pink, purple, blue, and white.
I transferred about 30 hydrangea plants from my former East Hampton gardens to my farm years ago and have added many more ever since. The name hydrangea originates from two Greek words – “hydro” meaning “water” and “angeion” meaning “vessel” or “container.” Together, the rough translation is “water vessel” which refers to their exceptional thirst for water.
In general, leaves are relatively thick and crisp, shiny, and often heart-shaped. They range in size from four to six inches long by three to five inches wide.
Hydrangea is a genus of at least 70-species of flowering plants native to southern and eastern Asia and the Americas. By far the greatest species diversity is in eastern Asia, notably China, Japan, and Korea.
Hydrangeas are long-lived, and extremely vigorous specimens that offer lavish and varied blooms. They thrive best in partial shade with four to six hours of direct sunlight daily.
Many of my latest hydrangeas come from the First Editions and Endless Summer Collections by Bailey Nurseries. I also have some from Star Roses and Plants.
Mopheads are the most popular flower style of hydrangea.
In addition to the mopheads, there are also hydrangeas that bloom in lovely lacecaps.
The lacecap is very similar to the mophead, but instead of growing round clusters of showy blossoms, this hydrangea grows flowers that resemble flat caps with frilly edges.
Panicle hydrangeas are known for their more cone shaped flower heads.
Around my tennis court, I have a combination of white and pink blooming shrubs.
They include a selection of First Editions Diamond Rouge hydrangeas, Hydrangea paniculata ‘Rendia’ – small, bushy, deciduous shrub that produces large, rounded flower heads that change color over the season – creamy white in summer, changing to pink, and then wine red in fall.
All these hydrangeas thrive here and have grown so much since I planted them two years ago.
These plants are Little Hottie® Panicle Hydrangeas from First Editions. They’re compact, mid-sized white hydrangeas – perfect for this side of the court.
This is Hydrangea ‘Eclipse®,’ a dark bigleaf hydrangea from First Editions. Its blooms are bold cranberry or amethyst depending on the soil ph. I planted these along the carriage road heading toward my Japanese Maple Woodland.
The foliage is bold dark purple to green to almost black.
I decided to put these BloomStruck® Bigleaf Hydrangeas outside the peafowl and goose enclosure. These mophead blooms measure three to five inches across. They bloom in rose-pink or violet blue, depending on pH of the soil. Some have become more pink this year because of the lime added to my compost.
It’s always important to do research before planting. Make sure to consider the plant’s mature size and light needs when selecting a space. And remember, perennials grow slowly the first year, faster the second year, and then usually reach full size in the third year.
The Endless Summer Original Hydrangea is a popular, cold-hardy shrub known for its vibrant blooms that can also change color based on soil pH. A selection of these is across from the bird pen.
On the side outside my tropical hoop house, I planted FlowerFull hydrangeas also from First Editions. These stand out with bold white blooms and sturdy upright stems.
Under optimal conditions, hydrangeas can bloom from spring to fall for about 10 to 12 weeks. And even with the recent uncomfortable high heat and humidity here, these flowers are doing excellently.
And these Little Hottie® hydrangeas are planted outside my vegetable garden. Take time to admire the hydrangeas where you live – their beauty, versatility, and cheerful colors make them standouts in any landscape.
Gardeners, think ahead - you can start more seeds indoors now to extend the harvest window.
Here at my farm, I always try to maximize the productivity of the gardens. This week my head gardener, Ryan McCallister, started seeds of Brussels sprouts, broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, and romanesco - all considered brassicas, or cole crops, a genus of plants in the mustard family whose members are informally referred to as cruciferous vegetables. The seeds will remain in the greenhouse until they’re mature enough to be moved outdoors to my vegetable garden, starting a whole new delicious crop of produce.
Here are some photos, enjoy.
Ryan takes out the seeds for those vegetables he wants to plant. Many of my seeds are from Johnny’s Selected Seeds in central Maine – a company I’ve been using for quite some time. Johnny’s Selected Seeds is a privately held, employee-owned organic seed producer that offers hundreds of varieties of organic vegetable, herb, flower, fruit and farm seeds that are known to be strong, dependable growers. Ryan looks at the various types, the growing needs, and hardiness of the plants and decides what will work best in the garden.
Ryan already prepared the containers for seeding. One can use smaller seed starting trays, but these pots will also work very nicely. Here, Using his finger, Ryan makes quarter-inch deep furrows in the middle of each pot. It’s best to use a pre-made seed starting mix that contains the proper amounts of vermiculite, perlite and peat moss. I use Miracle-Gro Seed Starting Potting Mix.
Ryan writes the vegetable and variety on wooden markers. This helps to keep track of the varieties as they grow.
Brassica seeds are very small, so be sure to take time dropping them into the soil-filled containers. It’s also a good idea to keep a record of when seeds are sown, when they germinate, and when they are transplanted. These observations will help organize a schedule for the following year.
Ryan carefully drops a few seeds into each pot.
These seeds will be selectively thinned in a few weeks. The process eliminates the weaker sprout and prevents overcrowding, so seedlings don’t have any competition for soil nutrients or room to mature.
Ryan covers the seeds and fills the holes back in with the soil mix.
Once all the pots of one type are filled, Ryan places a marker into the end pot, so it is clear what variety is growing in the row.
Ryan then transports the pots to an Urban Cultivator growing system, which has water, temperature and humidity all set up in a refrigerator like unit.
He covers the pots with plastic humidity domes until germination begins. These seedlings will remain in the greenhouse for another four to six weeks until they are ready to be separated and transplanted into the ground. We’ll be harvesting from the garden through the next season. Following one crop with another to maximize a garden’s yield is called succession planting.
Meanwhile, other brassicas are ready to pick. This is one of my cabbages. I grow Savoy, red, and green. Savoy cabbage leaves are ruffled and a bit yellowish in color. It has crinkled, emerald green leaves, and a mildly nutty and sweet flavor.
Red, or purple, cabbage is often used raw for salads and coleslaw.
Look how beautiful this crop of kale is. Kale or leaf cabbage is a group of vegetable cultivars within the plant species Brassica oleracea. They have purple or green leaves, in which the central leaves do not form a head.
I use bamboo stakes to support the vining tomato plants. The plants are growing so fast.
Jute twine is used to keep the vines up and the tomatoes off the ground.
I grow both hot and sweet peppers. If growing both, be careful when picking – keep the hot ones separated from the sweet, so there is no surprise in the kitchen.
Here are the colorful stalks of my rhubarb. The leaves are toxic because they contain high levels of oxalic acid, but the fleshy stalks of rhubarb can be cooked and used to make a variety of delicious pies, tarts, cakes, cobblers, crisps, and pavlovas.
And what a difference a few weeks make – my onions have really grown and will be ready to harvest soon. I plant a lot of white, yellow and red onions. Onions are harvested later in the summer when the underground bulbs are mature and flavorful.
Globe artichokes, Cynara scolymus, are popular in both Europe and the United States. Artichokes are actually the flower buds, which emerge from the center of the plants. I have so many!
Buds are generally harvested once they reach full size, just before the bracts begin to spread open. I like to harvest them when they are still small.
The garlic will also be harvested soon. We’ve had lots of rain recently, so we’re waiting for some hot dry weather. The real indicator is the plant itself – when the bottom leaves have turned brown, and the top leaves are still green.
Early July brings long days and steady warmth, helping everything to mature so well. I hope all your gardens are looking great this season!
Martha Pins
Martha Tweets
