Here at my Bedford, New York farm, we're expecting temperatures in the 60s this weekend - almost springlike after a day of light snow.
Even if you’re not a big fan of cold weather, it's hard not to love a gorgeous snow-covered landscape. Yesterday, we got a light coating of white powder. Thankfully, my tropical plants are tucked away in temperature-controlled greenhouses, but we're still in the process of covering all my precious boxwood shrubs and hedges with protective burlap.
Enjoy these photos.
There’s always a bit of excitement with the first snow. The area got just a coating, but enough to cover almost everything in white. The light fluffy 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 just about 32-degrees Fahrenheit in the early morning with temperatures rising to nearly 40-degrees by midday. Hard to tell this is pachysandra underneath the snow.
We got enough snow just to cover the ground. Here are the trunks of the mighty pin oaks that grow alongside my large Equipment Barn. One can see the rounded tree pits clearly marked by the snow.
This is a view looking down from the end of my clematis pergola. The uprights for this pergola are antique granite posts from China – originally used as grape supports. They’re perfect as posts because they don’t rot over time like the wood overhead. I love the shadows these uprights cast on the ground below.
This is a row of six weeping hornbeams, Carpinus betulus Pendula. They line one side of my soccer field and the archery range I set up for my grandson, Truman.
This paddock fence borders my grove of American beech trees, Fagus grandifolia. The snow covers the area showing just a hint of the green grassy lawn.
American beech trees are slow to grow, but can live up to 300-years. It’s interesting how some drop all their leaves, while others hold onto them as long as possible.
Tucked away between the Equipment Barn and a grove of weeping willows is my pinetum where I keep a wonderful collection of evergreens I started planting about 12-years ago. This area includes pines, spruces, firs, and others. The Alaska cedar is an interesting medium-sized evergreen tree with gray-green to blue-green foliage that droops from widely spaced branches.
The snow accumulated on almost every branch of this oriental spruce, but did not weigh any down too much.
The bright white snow looks so pretty against the golden-green foliage.
Just off the carriage road leading to my tennis court, is this stand of dawn redwoods, Metasequoia, with their straight trunks. They are impressive trees by any standard, and beautiful in any season.
One can sometimes tell the direction of the wind by the way the snow collects on the trees – it creates such interesting patterns on the tree trunks.
I love how snow piles on this 100-year old white spruce fencing I purchased in Canada.
Here is one of my five greenhouses not far from my stable and chicken coops. My citrus plants have been ready for winter for quite some time – we moved them into this temperature controlled structure back in October. Bales of hay are placed around the greenhouse to keep it more insulated.
This is my original Allee of Lindens. As these trees grow, the trunks stand like pillars with their branches covered with dense foliage, making them a great choice for a beautifully sculpted allee.
All the ornamental urns, birdbaths, and troughs are well-covered with burlap. These three vessels are located in front of my stable office, where my property director, operations manager, and business manager have their offices.
And just up the hill is the donkey paddock, where Truman “TJ” Junior, Rufus, Jude “JJ” Junior, Billie, and Clive stay during the day. They love this weather and have naturally thick coats that protect them in the cold.
The snow lightly coated the stone walls. Temperatures remained in the 30s through the day with a mix of sun and clouds.
Here is an allee between the paddocks. The long building at the end contains a four-bay carport, a flower room, a generator room, and my studio.
In the center of this part of my farm, it is hard to miss the stand of eastern white pine trees, Pinus strobus. White pines are the tallest trees in eastern North America. To the left – the snow covered roofs of the chicken coops.
The snow fell overnight, stopping by early morning. Here, one can see the sun trying to shine through the clouds. The Boxwood Allee looks so different in winter. Wait until you see it all covered under burlap shrouds to keep everything protected from the snow. Warmer weather is on its way. We’re expecting to hit 62-degrees Fahrenheit tomorrow at my farm.
My dahlia tubers are now well-protected for the winter... I hope.
When in bloom, dahlias provide some of the garden's biggest and most spectacular flowers in many different sizes, forms, and colors. However, native to Mexico, dahlias are not winter-hardy and tend to split in freezing temperatures or mold in soggy, wet soil. In most areas outside the warmest regions of the United States, dahlia tubers must be dug up and stored or covered before the cold season. In previous years, we've always uprooted our dahlias and kept them indoors for the winter. This year, in an effort to find an easier and more efficient way to protect them, we covered the entire bed with burlap and a very thick layer of hay - in hopes that it is enough to ensure we have viable plants come spring.
Here are some photos, enjoy.
Remember all the gorgeous, colorful dahlias we had this year? Dahlias are among my favorite flowers. They begin to bloom with great profusion just as other plants pass their prime, and they last right up until the first frost.
This summer, I decided to move the dahlia garden to this area behind my vegetable greenhouse. In early June, we cleaned and cultivated the soil. This area was previously used for growing grapes. On the left are a few berry bushes.
In mid-June, we took out all the dahlia tubers that had been stored in our greenhouse basement and planted them. This spot gets great sun, and dahlias grow more blooms with six to eight hours of direct sunlight. And because the area is behind this large structure, it is also protected from strong winds.
By September, we had a bed filled with gorgeous blooms. Dahlias typically last through October in this area – as long as we’re not hit with an early killing frost.
In November, Ryan and Brian cut all the stems down leaving about five to six inches of the main stems and then left them to dry. Always wait until the foliage has turned brown before any winterizing. This is important so that the plant can gather energy for the following year. It will store starches in the tuber which will fuel initial sprouting in summer. The best time is a couple weeks after the first frost when they’re well into dormancy yet haven’t been harmed by the cold.
Dahlia stems are hollow making them quickly susceptible to rot. This is also why dahlias often have to be staked to help support their very large flowers.
This year, we wanted to keep the dahlias in place, so we decided to try a different method for protecting them. First, Phurba and Brian covered the bed with old burlap – burlap fabric that was too timeworn to use as boxwood coverings. We save these older pieces in a dry area of barn, so they can be repurposed. I always try to reuse, repurpose or recycle everything at the farm.
Brian and Phurba carefully line the entire bed cutting small slits around the granite posts.
Phurba goes over the entire space, making sure every dahlia is covered.
I grow a lot of hay here at the farm. The newer bales for my horses are kept in the stable hayloft; however, the older bales that my horses won’t eat are stored here above my run-in shed. This hay is saved and used to help winterize the hoop houses – and now our precious dahlia tubers.
Bales are delivered to the dahlia garden in large batches.
A standard two-string square hay bale weighs between 40 and 75 pounds. Brian and Phurba carry them to the garden bed one by one.
And then place them on top of the burlap. Phurba ensures the bales are positioned tightly together – it is important to cover the area completely, so the tubers are well-insulated.
This thick layer of hay acts as a barrier to protect the plants, much like a thick layer of soil or mulch would do.
Any spaces between the bales are filled with loose flakes of hay.
To keep excess moisture from saturating the tubers, I then instructed the crew to also cover the bales. The crew uses old tarps, also saved from another project, to cover the hay.
Brian and Phurba spread the tarps across the bed and in between the posts.
Phurba and Brian put down another tarp, overlapping it slightly with the first one and making sure it all looks neat, tidy, and covered.
To keep them in place, the tarps will be weighed down with logs cut from felled trees right here at the farm. And hopefully we’ll have lots of healthy plants next spring. How are you protecting your dahlias? Share your methods with me in the comments section below.
And what do you think, my peafowl friends? My peacocks and peahens are back behind the greenhouse sitting on the ledge watching all the activity around the farm.
My outdoor garden beds are cleared, cleaned, and ready for winter, but fresh, delicious vegetables are growing beautifully indoors - in a special greenhouse I had constructed several years ago that was inspired by Eliot Coleman, an expert in four-season farming.
Here at my farm, we practice succession planting - the process of seeding crops at intervals of seven to 21 days in order to maintain a consistent supply of harvestable vegetables throughout the season. My gardeners, Ryan and Brian, began planting in the greenhouse earlier this fall, and over the last few weeks, we’ve seen wonderful crops of beautiful organic produce emerge.
Enjoy these photos.
During the colder months here in the Northeast, it’s so nice to go inside my vegetable greenhouse. It is located near my Equipment Barn next to the Hay Barn and Tropical Hoop House. This structure uses minimal artificial heat, where many cold hardy crops and other greens can be grown and harvested through the winter. Some beds look more full than others. The beds are planted at different times as part of succession planting.
Most of the energy in the greenhouse comes from the sun through these giant windows, which can be programmed to open for ventilation or cooling, when needed.
Inside the head house, we always keep a number of our favorite seeds. Many are from Johnny’s Selected Seeds, but we also love to use seeds from Seed Savers Exchange, Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds, Vilmorin, a French seed producer, and others. I am always on the lookout for different seeds when I travel, but seeds are also widely available online and at garden centers. Ryan keeps track of what seeds do well at the farm – indoors and out.
I love fresh lettuce. It’s a real treat to have lettuce like this all year long. I share it with my daughter and grandchildren, as well as friends and those who work here at my farm. And of course, I enjoy it for my own lunches and dinners when I am home.
These lettuce heads are ready for harvesting. A handful are picked, so I can take them to my daughter’s later in the day.
These lettuces are younger and need a little more time, but look how beautiful they are – these lettuces love the greenhouse.
My gardeners keep a good eye on this vegetable greenhouse – temperatures are monitored and the beds are kept clean and weed-free. Here is one side cultivated and ready to plant more lettuce seeds.
We do a lot of prep work to get the beds ready. In this greenhouse we use a compost-based potting soil mix from the Vermont Compost Company in Montpelier, Vermont. This soil is specifically developed for organic gardening called Fort Vee potting mix. Ryan uses a hoe to make the furrows for the seeds. The furrows don’t have to be deep. In general, seeds should be planted at a depth of two times the width, or diameter, of the seed. A seed that’s about 1/16-of-an-inch thick should be planted an eighth-of-an-inch deep.
These are pelleted, or coated, lettuces seeds. Pellets make seed handling easier for small-seeded crops such as lettuce, carrots, and some flowers.
Ryan drops the seeds about two inches apart in the furrow of the raised bed. Raised bed gardening allows good drainage, prevents soil compaction, and provides protection for those plants that may otherwise get trampled. My raised beds were designed for easy reach from all sides.
Do you know what this is? If you said daikon, you’re correct. Daikon or mooli, Raphanus sativus var. longipinnatus, is a mild-flavored winter radish usually characterized by fast-growing leaves and a long, white, napiform root. Compared to other radishes, daikon is milder in flavor and less peppery. And, when served raw, it has a crisp and juicy texture.
These are scallions. Scallions have a milder taste than most onions. Close relatives include garlic, shallot, leek, chive, and Chinese onions. Growing scallions is actually easier than growing onions since they have a much shorter growth period. Varieties sown in spring can be harvested just 60 to 80 days after planting or when transplants reach about a foot tall.
In between the scallions and the mature daikon, Ryan carefully drops more daikon radish seeds. This variety, ‘KN-Bravo’, features sweet-flavored, attractive purple roots. The internal color ranges from pale purple to white with purple streaks. It adds beautiful color to kimchi or fresh salads.
The seeds are very small now – it’s hard to believe these tiny seeds produce such beautiful vegetables within weeks.
I also grow a lot of spinach. Spinach is an excellent source of vitamin K, vitamin A, vitamin C, folate, and a good source of manganese, magnesium, iron and vitamin B2. We use a lot of spinach at the farm for my daily green juice.
New Zealand spinach is a trailing plant that forms a mat of triangular soft fleshy foliage. It is not the same as true spinach, in fact the two plants are not related but can be used fresh or cooked in the same way.
This is a beautiful head of radicchio – a perennial cultivated form of leaf chicory sometimes known as Italian chicory. It is grown as a leaf vegetable. Radicchio has a bitter and spicy taste which mellows if it is grilled or roasted.
Other vegetables already growing in this greenhouse include the Swiss chard. Swiss chard colors are so vibrant with stems of white, red, yellow, rose, and gold. Chard has very nutritious leaves making it a popular addition to healthful diets. The most common method for picking is to cut off the outer leaves about two inches above the ground while they are young, tender, and about eight to 12 inches long.
Kale is related to cruciferous vegetables like cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, collard greens, and Brussels sprouts. There are many different types of kale – the leaves can be green or purple in color, and have either smooth or curly shapes.
These are the baby leaves of Arugula. Arugula is a lesser known cruciferous vegetable that provides many of the same benefits as other vegetables of the same family. Arugula leaves, also known as rocket or roquette, are tender and bite-sized with a tangy flavor.
Here’s our bed of parsley. Parsley is a flowering plant native to the Mediterranean. It derives its name from the Greek word meaning “rock celery.” It is a biennial plant that will return to the garden year after year once it is established.
Cilantro, Coriandrum sativum, is also known commonly as coriander or Chinese parsley. Coriander is actually the dried seed of cilantro. Cilantro is a popular micro-green garnish that complements meat, fish, poultry, noodle dishes, and soups. Everyone here at the farm loves the cilantro, but some don’t. Do you know… some even say it tastes like soap. For those, the issue is genetic. These people have a variation in a group of olfactory-receptor genes that allows them to strongly perceive the soapy-flavored aldehydes in cilantro leaves. Among those who strongly dislike cilantro – the late Chef Julia Child.
Pronounced bee-KEE-nyo, the name of this pepper from Brazil means “little beak,” and adds great flavor to many dishes. The bright one inch pods taper to a point like an inverted teardrop. The pepper has the distinctive smoky flavor like other members of this species, but also a rich fruitiness that is enhanced by sugar or sweet-and-sour marinades. It also makes the perfect garnish for barbecues and pickles. My family loves these peppers. I pickle them every year. I am so glad they are thriving indoors.
In this bed – growing beets. Beets are sweet and tender – and one of the healthiest foods. Beets contain a unique source of phytonutrients called betalains, which provide antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and detoxification support.
I am so pleased with my vegetable greenhouse this year. We’re looking forward to a winter filled with bountiful harvests – there’s nothing quite like the taste of fresh organic vegetables from one’s own garden.
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