A white peacock and two female golden pheasants join my flock at Cantitoe Corners.
Earlier this year, I adopted three male golden pheasants from Animal Nation Farm Sanctuary in nearby South Salem, New York. The males are marked with bright red, orange, and yellow plumage. I knew they would make wonderful additions to my farm. Last week, when I heard two females were available, I adopted them also, along with a young white peacock. I am happy to report all the birds are happy and acclimating well to their new surroundings.
Since most of my peafowl were hatched right here at my farm, they are all accustomed to the loud noises and busy activities. My peafowl live in a large enclosure just outside my stable where they can be monitored closely during the day. Here is one of my mature “blue boys.”
This week, our friends from Animal Nation Inc. came by with a delivery. This organization is a go-to resource for at-risk animals from New York City and the surrounding areas. The peacock they brought over was in need of a home – I saw it during a recent visit to the sanctuary.
Patrick Moore is the president of Animal Nation as well as a New York City firefighter. With him is Lisa Loprinzo, a longtime dedicated volunteer.
And here is our new peacock – a three to four year old male who was found as a stray in Poughkeepsie, New York.
The bird quickly flew to a top perch in the peacock coop. Most white birds have a genetic condition called leucism, which causes pigment cells to fail to migrate from the neural crest during development. Leucistic peachicks are born yellow and become fully white as they mature.
It wasn’t long before the other white peafowl found him and kept him company. My new rescued peacock is on the far right.
I think the three will get along just fine. Peafowl are members of the pheasant family. There are two Asiatic species – the blue or Indian peafowl native to India and Sri Lanka, and the green peafowl originally from Java and Burma, and one African species, the Congo peafowl from African rain forests. All my peafowl are Indian.
My “blue boys” have such gorgeous long trains. I visit the peafowl and all the other animals every day during my tours of the gardens and grounds.
It is mating season, so during this time, the males will show off their tail feathers to the females. This peahen doesn’t look so interested. Males also fan their trains to show dominance, intimidate predators, and communicate with others.
Both peacocks and peahens love foraging. Peafowl are omnivores, meaning they eat both meat and vegetation. In the wild, peafowl eat
ants, millipedes, crickets, termites, centipedes, locusts, scorpions, small reptiles and mammals, as well as seeds, grass, flower petals, and berries. I also fortify their diets with a good seed formula.
Here is one of my peahens. A hen’s plumage is generally more muted than the vibrant colors of male peacocks.
I am so happy all my peacocks and peahens get along. They are outdoors all day in their enclosure, where they are safe from predators. And then put into the coop at night.
I also adopted these two female golden pheasants.
Female golden pheasants, or hens, are completely brown and dotted with black spots.
Pheasants are also foragers and love to spend time on the ground, where they eat waste grain, other seeds, and insects when available.
The two females took to the males right away, and vice versa.
They all seem so happy to be running around together. Pheasants are native to the forests in the mountainous areas of western China.
Inside, the five birds have a ladder where they can roost and rest. These birds are not big. Golden Pheasants can weigh between one and two pounds when full grown.
This is a red golden pheasant with its bright colorful plumage. Males have the golden-yellow crest with a hint of red at the tip. The face, throat, chin, and the sides of neck are rusty tan.
The yellow is a color mutation of the red golden pheasant. It was originally developed in the 1950s. To maintain the yellow coloring, these birds need shaded areas to protect their feathers from the sun.
These hens are already enjoying their large outdoor yard. The males are also coming out more since these two arrived. Do you know… while pheasants are able to fly fast for short distances, they actually prefer to run. And they run very fast – sometimes up to eight to 10 miles per hour.
Right now, they are very content getting to know their new male friends and their farm surroundings.
And already, the hens have laid two eggs. We put them in the incubator right away. I think the pheasants and peacock will be very happy here at the farm.
Lovely, fragrant, and showy, the Japanese snowbell tree, Styrax japonicus, is a beautiful small tree that thrives in full sun or part shade.
In 2016, I planted an allée of Styrax japonicus 'Marley's Pink Parasol' along the carriage road leading to my tennis court. These trees feature bold green foliage and in spring, lustrous pink, bell-shaped, fragrant flowers. A couple years later, I planted a collection of Styrax japonicus 'Evening Light' in the same allée. These are purple trees with white, sweet smelling blooms. Both varieties are developing so beautifully here at the farm.
Here are some photos.
The carriage road to my tennis court is planted on both sides with Styrax japonicus trees, or Japanese Snowbells.
The Japanese Snowbell is a broad-crowned deciduous tree from the woodlands of China and Japan.
Here is a photo of the carriage road to my tennis court taken eight years ago. It looked quite bare then and in need of a pretty allée.
This photo is from April 2016. I planted 44 ‘Marley’s Pink Parasol’ Japanese Snowbell trees along both sides of the road. I knew in time they would mature excellently in this location.
In spring of 2018, I planted Styrax japonicus ‘Evening Light’. I wanted the new row of trees to be planted slightly behind the existing row and spaced evenly between them, so they alternated in color.
In June of 2021, the trees are healthy and established.
And look at these Japanese Snowbell trees now – so lush. And the green and dark purple foliage contrast so nicely.
Styrax japonicus ‘Marley’s Pink Parasol’ is a dainty, weeping dwarf variety that grows eight to 10 feet tall and four to five feet wide at maturity.
This tree has green deciduous, large glossy pointed leaves in summer that transform to a bright and cheery lemon yellow in fall.
A few weeks ago, it was filled with gorgeous pale pink bell-shaped sweet-smelling flowers.
The profuse blooms hang off the weeping branches…
… and smell like cotton candy.
On both trees, each of the small, long-stalked flowers has five petals and prominent yellow stamens.
Also in bloom were the Styrax japonicus ‘Evening Light’ trees.
Its mildly scented flowers are white with brownish stems.
These drooping flower clusters are most showy in May to June.
The flowers stand out against the dark, almost maroon colored foliage.
Look closely and see the drupes, or seed pods, hanging from the branches.
And the bark is smooth and has orange-brown interlacing fissures that are more noticeable as it matures.
The tree has an upright, oval habit and grows to 15 feet tall and 10 feet wide – different from the weeping variety below.
I am so pleased with how well these trees are doing. If you’re looking to plant any trees this year, consider a unique and elegant Japanese Snowbell.
Are the hydrangeas blooming where you are? Here at the farm, my hydrangeas are putting on quite a show.
My hydrangea border is located down the carriage road from my tropical hoop houses and across from my chicken coops. It is home to a selection of colorful hydrangeas including mature mopheads transplanted from my former Lily Pond home in East Hampton. Over the years, I've added several more hydrangea varieties and other plantings, such as irises, ligularia, phlox, Aruncus, Euonymus, catnip, and more. And earlier this week, I added Hydrangea 'Twist-n-Shout' a reblooming lacecap variety of the Endless Summer series of bigleaf hydrangeas and Hydrangea 'Eclipse®,' a dark-leaved Bigleaf Hydrangea from First Editions.
Enjoy these photos.
My hydrangeas thrive in this border. Hydrangeas are one of the most popular ornamental garden plants because of their large spherical bloom heads that come in shades of pink, purple, and blue.
I love hydrangeas and have been collecting them for quite a long time. 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. The most common garden hydrangea shrub is the bigleaf mophead variety, Hydrangea macrophylla. 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.
The secret to the hydrangea’s color is in the soil, or more specifically, the soil’s pH level. Adjusting the measure of acidity or alkalinity in the soil can influence the color of the hydrangea blossoms. Acidic soils tend to deepen blue shades, while alkaline environments tend to brighten pinks. The Hydrangea “flower” is really a cluster of flowers called a corymb.
Most hydrangeas are shrubs, but some are small trees. They can be either deciduous or evergreen, though the widely cultivated temperate species are all deciduous.
In addition to the mopheads, there are also hydrangeas that bloom in lovely lacecaps in this garden.
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. This is a dwarf Little Lime® Panicle Hydrangea shrub, loved for its light green summer flowers that transition to pink in the fall.
Most hydrangea leaves are relatively thick, somewhat shiny, and often heart-shaped with coarsely toothed edges.
Here’s Ryan holding a potted Hydrangea ‘Twist-n-Shout’ – a lacecap variety from the Endless Summer bigleaf hydrangea series. This variety features deep pink or periwinkle blue flowers
Ryan places the pots where they should be planted – for these, about three to four feet apart. Always consider the mature size of a plant when selecting where to put it.
This is Hydrangea ‘Eclipse®,’ a dark-leaved Bigleaf Hydrangea from First Editions.
This variety is a true dark-leaf mophead hydrangea. It has intense, dark purple leaves that hold their color, even in warmer climates.
Its blooms are bold cranberry or amethyst depending on the soil ph.
Sod is removed from the areas to be planted.
Holes are dug about twice the size of the original pots.
Fertilizer is sprinkled into the hole and the surrounding soil.
As with all our transplants, the root ball is teased before planting. Here, the soil is soft, so Chhiring uses his hands to scarify the roots and stimulate growth.
In the ground, the plant should sit at the same depth it was in the pot. All these hydrangeas will flourish in this garden and make nice additions to the beds. How are your hydrangeas this year?
Martha Pins
Martha Tweets
