If you're ever in Bantam, Connecticut, try to stop in and visit my favorite potters, Guy and Ben Wolff.
I first met Guy years ago during one of my many trips through Litchfield County, searching for antiques, plants, and content ideas for my magazine, Living. I was so impressed by his pots, I became a regular customer. Recently, I was in the area again for a television shoot and had just enough time afterward to stop for a brief visit. I love both Guy's and Ben's pots and according to Guy, I have the largest single collection of his beautiful clay vessels. My plants look so pretty displayed in the historical shapes that Guy and his son create - each and every one of them is so very beautifully handcrafted.
Here are some photos, enjoy.
Guy’s shop is located in the small borough of picturesque Litchfield County – originally in Woodville and now in Bantam. The front is a restored 1740 post and beam structure, which houses his showroom. An addition on the back is his work space.
Guy and his son, Ben, are both master potters. Here they are at the entrance of the shop. I was so happy to have some time to stop in and visit with them after a long day of shooting.
Outside, Guy displays some of his red terra cotta pots. These pots were made by Guy or his wife, Erica.
Here is the inside of the terra cotta containers. All of the pots are made with proper drainage holes at the bottom.
The term terra cotta comes from the Italian term for “baked-earth,” ceramic pottery. It is made out of a coarse, porous type of clay that is high in iron oxides. These are Guy’s Peabody pots.
The showroom and studio is a charming space, filled with redware and stoneware in the front, and his signature white pots in the back. Redware is an unglazed or dry-bodied stoneware. These redware pieces are etched with animals and trees.
More terra cotta pots are displayed here. Fine quality terra cotta clay is fired at 2000 degrees Fahrenheit in the kiln.
These shelves display his collection of stoneware. These pieces are waiting to go to their final homes.
And on the other side – dozens of beautiful white clay vessels. The antique wide boards and beams are a lovely backdrop for the pottery.
Some are made with plain rims and others with more decorative edges.
On the side of his pots, Guy also stamps his name and the wet weight of the clay used. This standardized system for horticultural pots was adopted by Victorian potters.
Any pot with this pottery stamp was made by Guy’s wife or someone visiting under Guy’s personal teaching, and was fired and sold by Guy from the Connecticut shop. this is also stamped with the pot’s wet clay weight and the year it was made.
Through a small doorway is the additional room where all the pots are created. Look closely – the corner wall behind the potter’s wheel is filled with small tools called coggles, roulettes, or rolling stamps, which are used to decorate the pottery.
On the opposite side of the room are the kilns, manufactured by Skutt, that fire up the pots.
The inside of each kiln is lined with electric coils that provide the high temperatures necessary for firing pottery.
Once a pot is made, it is left to dry. These pots are some of the newest creations.
Ben also makes a large selection of pots using different clays, glazes and finishes. Here are some of his gray pots also marked with the wet weight of the clay.
Of course, I noticed the gray pieces right away. Here I am with Ben holding some of his beautiful pottery.
On this shelf are stacks of pot saucers also made by Ben.
And here is one of Ben’s orchid pots. A good orchid pot will have holes on the sides to promote water drainage and encourage proper air movement around the plant’s root system.
All of Guy’s and Ben’s pots are hand thrown, so no two are exactly alike.
I encourage you to purchase some of Guy’s and Ben’s pots. Follow them on Instagram and visit their web sites. My plants grow better in their pots – I know yours will too. Happy gardening!
Here at my Bedford, New York farm, I always encourage my crew to "use the right tools for the right jobs." Among our favorites are the tractors and mowers from Kubota, a leading manufacturer of farming machinery, hay tools and spreaders, and other turf products.
If you follow my blog regularly, I am sure you've seen our Kubota equipment used all over the property - to mow the pastures and fields, pull the hay wagons and aerators, transport compost and mulch, and many, many other chores. I’ve been using Kubota products for years and love how easy they are to maneuver. These machines are dependable, efficient, and great additions to my working farm. #KubotaUSA #KubotaCanada #KubotaTractor #Loan #LandPrideDoesThat
Here are some photos, enjoy.
I always enjoy doing work around the farm – it provides good exercise and allows me to spend quality time outdoors in the fresh air. Here I am on our new Kubota M4-071 tractor – a vehicle that is used every day here at the farm to do a multitude of tasks.
I am very fortunate to have two tractors – the M4-071 and the M62. Both of them have front loaders, and one of them is equipped with a backhoe.
The bucket attachment is used for so many things – from transporting mulch and compost to carrying heavy potted plants to delivering heavy stone.
Many of our pieces are delivered from Kubota through Marshall Machinery, Inc. an equipment distributor here in the New York.
This is our Kubota M62 Tractor Loader Backhoe. This is essential for planting all our large trees. We’ve been using it quite a bit, especially in the maze. It has a 63 horsepower engine, a front loader with a lift capacity of 3,960 pounds, and a powerful Kubota backhoe with 169.8 inch digging depth.
Here’s Chhiring extending the tractor’s stabilizing feet in our maze to keep it well balanced and safe.
Chhiring controls the backhoe from the safety of the tractor’s cab. He can turn and sit facing either direction to maneuver the backhoe or the loader.
And here’s the backhoe lifting some of the soil from the trench where our new privets were planted.
After the field is aerated, Chhiring switches the attachment for our 3-point spreader to drop the grass seed in one of my paddocks.
On another day, Chhiring uses the M4-071 tractor to mow and condition the hayfields, so the hay can be cut for my horses.
Then the same tractor is used to bale the hay a few days later. Here it is pulling the baler and the hay wagon.
The tractor pulls it around and around the field. This year, we filled the wagon multiple times and had more than 2600 bales from our first cut – the most we’ve ever had!
Pete attaches our Land Pride PR1690 Power Rake to the back of our tractor earlier this week. This piece of equipment has a 90-inch rake. We use it to rake and grade the carriage roads, but it is also capable of windrowing soil, rocks, and debris in a field.
Kubota also makes excellent mowers. Here’s our Zero-Turn ZD1211 mower. Its ergonomic design and high-back seat make it so comfortable to drive – and look at all the front legroom.
With all my horse pastures and fields, this mower really covers a lot of ground quickly and efficiently. The powerful engine delivers 25-horsepower. It’s also equipped with a rugged transmission for the wheels and mower deck.
This is my outdoor grounds crew foreman, Chhiring, on our Kubota SZ22 Stand On Mower. He’s heading into my new vegetable garden to mow in between the raised beds.
This machine has a smaller frame and can maneuver around the wooden garden beds with ease. We actually designed this garden with the mower in mind, so we were sure to space the beds properly for mowing.
But the stand on mower can also do open areas. Here’s Chhiring again – this time on his way to mow my “soccer field” party lawn, where my grandson, Truman, can often be found playing whenever he visits.
And here is the lawn after a fresh mowing. When mowing, remember it’s always best to do when the grass is dry. And during summer, cut it a bit higher. Having the “right tools for the right jobs” is definitely important and definitely a very “good thing.”
No plants give sweeter returns than fruit trees. And this year, I have so many delicious fruits growing here at my Bedford, New York farm.
Fresh fruit is one of nature's most delicious products. This summer, we've already picked boxes and boxes of raspberries, blueberries, and currants, but all the others - the peaches, apples, pears, medlars, etc., are developing so nicely. I have an orchard around my pool filled with more than 200 different fruit trees. Most of the fruits aren't ready to pick just yet, but it won't be long before we start harvesting our first of many bounties.
Here are some photos, enjoy.
This orchard surrounds three sides of my pool. I wanted it filled with a variety of apple trees, plum trees, cherry trees, peach, pear, and quince trees. Many were bare-root cuttings when they arrived and now they’re beautiful mature specimens.
This time every year, everyone around the farm eagerly awaits the first fruits. Look closely – these trees are filled with peaches.
Last week, the peaches were just starting to turn pink. They’re still hard, but they all look so wonderful this season.
Underripe peaches will still have a slight green undertone, but we’ve had a lot of heat in the last week or so, which helps to mature the fruits. Additionally, those peaches higher in the tree, which are exposed to more sunlight, will also ripen sooner.
And this week – look how pink they are! If the peach is firm to the touch, it’s not ready. It’s ripe when there is some “give” as it is gently squeezed. These need a few more days. Color is another great indicator of maturity. Peaches are ripe when the ground color of the fruit changes from green to completely yellow.
And then what a bounty we will have. Some of the peach varieties in this orchard include ‘Garnet Beauty’, ‘Lars Anderson’, ‘Polly’, ‘Red Haven’, and ‘Reliance’.
Peach trees thrive in an area where they can soak up the sunshine throughout the day. Growing peach trees are self-fruiting, which means the pollen from the same flower or variety can pollinate the tree and produce fruit, so you only have to plant one. I have more than 15-peach trees in this orchard.
On this tree, we have nectarines. Both peaches and nectarines are tree ripened. The tastiest nectarines will have “sugar spots,” tiny pale speckles that indicate sweetness.
In another row are the Asian pears – so many, many pears this year. I planted many types of Asian pear, Pyrus pyrifolia, which is native to East Asia. These trees include Hosui, Niitaka, Shinko, and Shinseiko.
Asian pears are usually smaller than regular pears and have a sweeter flavor. Asian pears are also a bit more crisp.
Some of the other pears in the orchard are Bartlett, Columbia, D’Amalis, Ginnybrook, McLaughlin, Nova, Patten, Seckel, Stacyville, and Washington State.
A medium pear is a good source of vitamin C, potassium, vitamin K, copper, magnesium, and B vitamins. And pears are an excellent source of fiber.
It’s hard to resist picking any of the pears, but summer pears won’t be mature until mid-August to late-September. And the season lasts about six weeks.
All the pear trees are filled with fruit. Some of our fruit trees are staked for added support.
And of course, I have a section of delicious apples. I already grow hundreds of apple trees here at the farm – some that were here when I acquired the property and others I planted soon after moving here. These orchard apple trees include Baldwin, Black Oxford, Cortland, Cox’s Orange Pippin, Esopus Spitzenburg, Fuji, Golden Russet, Grimes Golden, Honeycrisp, Liberty, Redfield, Roxbury Russet, Windham Russet, and more.
As with most fruit, apple trees produce best when grown in full sun, which means six or more hours of direct summer sunlight daily.
We almost always have a good amount of apples during apple season which is late-August to November. My granddaughter, Jude, loves to come up to the farm to make apple cider in the fall.
These are the fruits of the medlar, Mespilus germanica – a small deciduous tree and member of the rose family. These fruits are not ready yet – we’ll pick them in late October or early November.
The fruit is about one to two inches in diameter, and ranges in color from rosy rust to dusty brown. Medlars are native to Southwestern Asia and Southeastern Europe. The fruits have to be eaten when almost rotten in a process called “bletting”. And, because of this, they either have to be eaten right off the tree or picked early and put aside for a few weeks to blet. The medlar is very pulpy and very sweet. Its taste is similar to an overripe date with a flavor similar to toffee apples or apple butter.
Fruit trees need a good amount of room to mature. When planting, be sure to space them at least 15-feet apart. I am very fortunate to have such an expansive paddock space to grow all these trees. In another section, I have quince, apricots as well as sweet and sour cherries. I’ll share more photos when we harvest our first stone fruits – very soon.
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