Skylands, my well-loved home in Maine, is a winter wonderland.
The recent nor'easter which covered my Bedford, New York farm with almost a foot of snow also hit the Seal Harbor area - residents there got 18 to 20 inches of powder. I don't get to visit my home in Maine as much as I would like during the winter months, but fortunately, Cheryl DuLong, who helps me care for Skylands, is an avid photographer, and always keeps me updated by sending images of the property whenever she can. She sent me these images yesterday. And, just in time - temperatures in Maine are expected to be in the 40s over the next couple of days with lots of rain.
Enjoy these photos.
Skylands is beautiful in every season, but under winter’s glistening snow, it is even more magical. Here are some of the trees just off the main driveway with the morning sun casting shadows of the trees on the clean, white snow.
Many of the tree branches are laden with snow, but fortunately, this snow was light and did not weigh them down too much.
The Council Circle is a favorite summertime spot. My family enjoys gathering around the fire pit, roasting marshmallows, and recounting the day’s activities and adventures.
This photo was taken just to the right of the Council Circle. Beyond are those “Rockefeller teeth” – big granite stones set on the edge to prevent falls from the 30-foot wall.
This is the back door of the main house, where I love to hang Boston ferns during summer. Cheryl stopped to take this photo as she wondered how she would get the shovel through all the snow – look closely and you’ll see it.
Despite all the beauty, it’s a lot of snow to shovel around the house. Various snow drifts topped three feet. These steps run from the back to the front of the house – yes, there really are steps here.
This is a view of the main terrace from the dining room window – the “cracked ice” is completely covered. It is hard to tell the true snow accumulation from the drifts – there is just so much. The Living Hall entrance is under the clock.
Here is a view through the leaded window of my living room looking left of my circular front driveway. Can you see the reflections ahead? They are actually from the window behind Cheryl.
This is a view from the West Terrace looking out through the tall spruce trees to Seal Harbor. On this day, the skies over Skylands are a beautiful bright blue.
These kiwi vines growing on top of the pergola and on the posts are original to the house. All the kiwi vines have endured many snowfalls.
These icicles formed on the kiwi vines just outside the living room window. Icicles are so pretty. Some are a foot long. Icicles elongate by the growth of ice and the right mixture of air temperature, wind speed and the water feeding it. Cheryl, of course, broke off the icicles soon after this photo was taken, so the kiwi vines were not damaged.
This window is nearly all walled in with white.
Here’s another view of the terrace. The “Bedford Gray” colored boxes protect some of my outdoor urns.
Ice crystals formed on this window. These delicate crystals form when water vapor from the humid indoor air condenses on the very cold window glass.
Here is a look at the quiet woodland from the back porch. Notice how the snow fell and drifted just around the tree pits.
Footprints in the snow – I think a deer walked through here.
This is my greenhouse at Skylands. During the cold season, I am able to store a collection of tropical plants inside, but most of the beautiful specimens I keep on the terrace in summer go back to Bedford and winter there.
This shed holds all the pine needles we collect, spin, bag, and then drop along the footpaths in summertime.
This is the expansive garden lawn at Ox Ledge, a home I purchased near Skylands some years ago – the snow is still untouched.
These views are gorgeous. This is Seal Harbor and to the right, just on the other side of the road is a village green – the former site of the well-known Seaside Inn. The Seaside House was originally a private residence built in the 1800s. Over the years, the home went through a few transitions – in 1870, it was a 10-room boarding house. In 1882 a large annex was added. Then in 1891, Amos and James Clement hired Bar Harbor-based architect John E. Clark to redesign the house into a large hotel called the Seaside Inn, which remained until it was completely torn down in 1963. I am already looking forward to my next visit to Maine.
If you grow almond trees, the best time to prune them is now - in winter - when the trees are dormant. Pruning not only helps to develop proper shape and form, but also encourages new growth, promotes high fruit yield, and maintains good tree health. At my Bedford, New York farm, we spend a lot of time maintaining the many, many trees - pruning their branches, limbing them up, and improving their shape at least once a year. Last week, my outdoor grounds crew tackled the two almond trees located just outside my main greenhouse.
Enjoy these photos.
Here are my two almond trees. This photo was taken in July when they were full of leaves. These trees thrive in mild, wet winters, and hot, dry summers. The almond belongs to the rose family Rosaceae, making it a relative of several well-known fruit trees. There are different types, ranging from small ornamental shrubs, Prunus glandulosa, grown only for their pretty flowers to medium-sized trees, Prunus dulcis, that produce edible nuts, such as these.
Almond trees produce drupes. These drupes grow from fertilized flowers and mature in autumn. In previous years, we’ve harvested hundreds and hundreds of almonds. The hairy, green fruits are oblong in shape and the leaves of the almond tree are long – about three to five inches.
Many of the drupes fall to the ground in October. The almond fruit measures about two inches long and is not edible.
Some of the drupes will open on their own, exposing the shells, but most will have to be opened manually. At maturity, the flesh of the fruit becomes leathery and splits to reveal the hull.
Once dried, they are shelled. Shelling almonds refers to removing the hull to reveal the seed, which is what is eaten. I always have multiple crates full of these almonds ready to shell and enjoy.
In this late fall photo, one can see that the trees need trimming to maintain good shape and to improve air circulation through the centers.
And now that the trees are bare and dormant, the crew can easily maintain these handsome specimens. Here is Pasang, our resident tree expert. As with any tree, when pruning it is important to remove any damaged, dead or diseased limbs as well as those that are disruptive – branches that crisscross and impede air or light circulation.
He uses his handy STIHL Pruning Saw. We use a lot of STIHL tools here at my farm – they are durable, dependable, and easy to use.
Here’s my outdoor grounds crew foreman, Chhiring, stopping for a quick photo. He was here when I first planted these almond trees, when they were just a few feet tall.
There are two basic types of pruning cuts, thinning cuts and heading cuts. Thinning cuts reduce the number of branches to allow more air and sunlight through the specimen. Heading cuts remove just a portion of an existing branch encouraging new side growth.
It is also crucial to always use sharp tools whenever pruning so that the cuts are clean. Dull tools are difficult to use and could even damage the tree. A straight, clean-cut promotes quick healing of the wound and reduces stress on the specimen.
Pasang uses his Okatsune bypass shears to cut thin suckers – those fast growing, vertical stems that originate from the root system. Pasang trims them cleanly as close to the tree as possible, leaving the collar, where the tree sucker meets the tree, to help speed the wound recovery.
Here, one can see the left side is pruned and the right side still needs work.
These trees did not take long to do – look how much was pruned before lunch.
Chhiring uses a telescoping pole pruner for harder-to-reach branches. This tool is great for trimming branches that are at least an inch thick. As I always say – the right tool for the right job.
During the pruning process, Pasang stops periodically to assess the shape of the tree and to see where he needs to prune next. They are looking so much better already. Well maintained almond trees can live for at least 40 to 50 years. And careful, regular pruning will encourage good shape and ensure a long productive life.
As a rule of thumb, 20-percent of the canopy should be pruned back each year in order to allow new wood to grow.
Almond trees have brown or gray bark. These trees trees also have lichens growing. Lichens are often found on tree trunks, branches and twigs as the bark provides a stable place to grow and get needed sunlight, rainwater and air. Lichens are simple slow-growing plants that form low crusty, leaflike, or branching growths on rocks, walls, and trees.
All the pruned branches are collected and added to our large pile for chipping.
When deciding to grow almond trees, keep in mind, they do not fruit the first couple of years. Almond trees do not produce a good yield until the 6th or 7th year. These mature trees produce lots and lots of almonds.
After a good pruning, these trees look so much better – round and full in shape. I am looking forward to seeing these bloom with white to pale pink flowers in spring and then lots of natural delicious and nutritious nuts next fall.
Temperatures here in the Northeast are expected to reach only 30-degrees Fahrenheit today, but rise to the mid-40s by week's end, hopefully melting a good portion of the snow from the year's first nor'easter.
This latest storm dropped about 10-inches of white powder over my Bedford, New York farm with snow drifts as high as two-and-a-half feet. Officials called it a “bomb cyclone” which occurs when air pressure drops and the storm rapidly intensifies. This one strengthened very quickly, bringing driving snow, punishing winds, and whiteout conditions as it moved up the east coast. The winter weather system crippled much of the region, but it left a beautiful coating of white across the landscape.
Enjoy these photos.
Earlier in the day before the storm was very gray with little wind. Flurries started mid-morning, then picked up later that night. Here, above the donkey paddock is the sun covered by the winter clouds.
Here’s a view across one of my paddocks and the stand of great eastern white pine trees, Pinus strobus, on the right. White pines are the tallest trees in eastern North America.
The snow did not seem to start accumulating until late afternoon. Here, the tops of the chicken coops have a light dusting of snow.
We already had several inches of snow leftover from the last storm. The front of my stable is always shoveled first, so my horses have a clear path from the pastures to the stalls.
This photo was taken the next day, after the snow had already been cleared at least once. By this time, strong winds were causing snow drifts to form around all the buildings.
This snow was very light and powdery. Light snow forms when all layers of the atmosphere are below freezing. Because the air is cold, all the way down to the surface, snowflakes don’t melt. It was about 25-degrees Fahrenheit all day.
Here, one can see the snow falling – but this light and powdery snow is useless for snowballs, it’s just too cold.
Here is the Linden Allee just beyond the stable. The linden tree, Tilia, is also referred to as basswood or lime, though it is not related at all to the lime fruit. They are straight stemmed trees with smooth bark. The gravel covered carriage road below is now completely coated in white powder.
This is the carriage road to my tennis court. Along both sides of the road we planted ‘Marley’s Pink Parasol’ Japanese Snowbell trees and a collection of Styrax ‘Evening Light’ trees. They are all growing very nicely. The dark evergreens in the distance look so pretty covered in snow.
I am glad all my precious tropical plants are safe inside their heated hoop houses. This one stores my citrus collection – lemon trees, lime trees, cumquat, calamondin, and orange trees – all growing so wonderfully here at the farm.
Here is my newly organized stone yard – also covered in white. This is where extra inventory of the many types of stones used at the farm are kept – slate shingles, marble flooring, granite posts, etc.
In my herbaceous peony bed, one can see the ripple-like snow drifts against the burlap covered boxwood.
The large linden trees are part of an allee I planted several years ago. The specimens below are all European beech trees, Fagus sylvatica, or the common beech – they hold tight to their leaves.
Here is the carriage road to the woodlands, almost unrecognizable except for the wooden stakes marking its edges.
Tucked away between the Equipment Barn and a grove of weeping willows is my pinetum. It includes pines, spruces, and firs, as well as other evergreens.
These stakes mark my catch basins. We paint the tips black to differentiate them from the road stakes. And we mark them, so they can be found quickly and, if needed, the side openings can be cleared.
This is the sunken garden behind my Summer House – the footpath covered in white, but all the boxwood hedges protected with galvanized steel frames and burlap.
And can you guess where this is? It is actually the terrace parterre just outside my Winter House. The snow collected more than two feet high in between the covered boxwood shrubs. Fortunately, despite the gusty winds, this storm did not cause any serious damage at the farm.
Here are two giant evergreens outside my Tenant House. Thankfully, they stood strong and remained intact during the storm.
During a late afternoon tour of the property, one of the members of my security team made hearts in the snow – a little whimsy during a storm. Groundhog Day is a couple days away – that popular tradition derived from the Pennsylvania Dutch superstition that if a groundhog emerging from its burrow on this day sees its shadow, it will retreat to its den and winter will persist for six more weeks; if it does not see its shadow, spring will arrive early. What’s your prediction for this season?
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