You know winter is just around the corner when various ornamental vessels around my farm are covered in burlap.
I’ve been covering my shrubs and hedges with burlap for many years - since I first started to garden. This practice protects branches from splaying and even breaking from the weight of snow and ice. I feel it is equally important to protect all my outdoor garden ornaments from the harsh winter elements. A winter freeze, alternating with thaws, could crack or crumble any kind of stone or cement. Every year, all the outdoor containers, planters and birdbaths, are drained, covered, and then wrapped in the same burlap used for my live specimens.
Here is a look at our process. Enjoy these photos.
This time of year, it is not unusual to see at least one of our Polaris vehicles filled with “burlapping” supplies. I have many outdoor containers and garden ornaments on the farm. Many of them are large and very heavy, so they are covered and protected with burlap and kept in their respected locations for the duration of the cold season.
To sew the burlap, we use jute twine. It is all natural and the same color as the burlap. The needles are specially designed for sewing jute. These five-inch long needles have large eyes and bent tips. Everyone on the crew has his own needle.
Here is Domi working on one of the two stately Kenneth Lynch garden urns flanking the entrance to the flower cutting garden. They are more than 500-pounds each. Because stone and cement can crack from exposure to the winter elements, Domi covers it with heavy duty plastic first. Rolls of this plastic can be ordered online or purchased at a local hardware and home supply store. This plastic will protect the vessels and keep them dry.
Domi secures the plastic around the bottom and the top with twine. Now it is ready for its burlap shroud.
Next, Domi cuts the burlap fabric to fit – one long piece that can completely wrap around the urn.
When we can, we reuse burlap from seasons past; however, it is also available in giant rolls of 40-inches or 60-inches wide. Also called hessian, burlap is made in Pakistan, Bangladesh and India from jute, a tall, grass-like plant grown for its strong fibrous stalks.
Starting from the bottom, Phurba makes small stitches and knots to keep the burlap in place. He also makes sure the burlap protects as much of the bottom as possible.
Here is one of the quick stitch knots that secures the burlap. The ends at the top are tucked under in the same way a gift is wrapped.
Once the burlap is secured and the ends are tucked, Phurba begins stitching the fabric together and pulling the burlap snug.
Here are the two large planters when done. They are completely enveloped in their burlap covers and ready for the cold season ahead.
Here is another giant planter in front of my Winter House. The burlap is sewn tightly, but with some space for air circulation.
And underneath all the vessels are small wooden shims, which keep the urns raised and away from any water or melting snow on the ground.
Depending on the size of the vessel and how much sewing is needed, each piece takes about 20 to 30 minutes to complete. Burlap is so useful for many gardening projects – it is inexpensive, biodegradable, and the color and texture of burlap is so pretty to use. These planters are in front of my Summer House.
On the terrace behind my Summer House is where I keep several smaller and very heavy planters as well as a group of seven faux bois containers that also need covering this time of year. This burlap remains on the stone objects until early spring, so it must be done very carefully to withstand strong winds and heavy snowfall.
The crew moves down to the stable courtyard to cover these items. Before wrapping this birdbath, it is first completely emptied of water and then covered with a piece of plywood. The plywood is cut to fit the top opening, and can be used from year to year. It is also painted in my signature “Bedford Gray.”
Here they are all done. The covered birdbaths and planters sit outside the stable office where my business manager, property director and operations manager work.
The burlap nearly conforms to the shape of the garden ornaments atop the pillars flanking the gate to my Winter House courtyard.
Here are two covered urns inside the courtyard. The crew knows where every stone container is located – and never miss a single one.
Here’s another big birdbath. The burlap can be reused about three times before it needs replacing. In spring, we remove the covers and carefully label each piece before storing, so we know what it fits the next fall. Always store burlap fabric in a cool dry place. It will attract moisture and this can cause it to start molding even in a space with low humidity. If possible, don’t fold burlap because it will get creases and wrinkles that are very difficult to remove. The best option is to roll the it.
Here are two smaller covered urns on the terrace parterre outside my Winter House kitchen. Look closely and see four more in the distance.
Here’s Phurba wrapping burlap around these air conditioner units outside my studio.
We also cover the stone faux bois support for the sundial. There is still so much “burlapping” to do around the farm. The project continues with all the many boxwood shrubs and hedges that will be covered in the weeks ahead. Do you wrap any of your outdoor vessels? And what do you think about my process? Let me know in the comments section below.
I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving! Mine was perfect - celebrated at my Bedford, New York farm with family and close friends.
Every year, my holiday begins with careful planning and preparation. This Thanksgiving, my dining tables were set for 16 adults and children. We cooked three large turkeys - one that was raised right here, one from Mike's Organic in nearby Stamford, Connecticut, and one D'Artagnan. The turkeys were cooked using my tried and true Perfect Roast Turkey 101 recipe and stuffed three different ways: fruits and nuts, herbed corn bread, and vegetarian. And of course, we had all the traditional sides including mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes Anna, Brussels sprouts, cranberry sauce made in my fanciful turkey molds, and more. For dessert, a variety of beautiful pies I baked the day before and a delicious jello dessert made by my daughter, Alexis, and my granddaughter, Jude.
In all, it was a most enjoyable holiday gathering - enjoy these photos, and please see more on my Instagram page @MarthaStewart48.
Whenever I entertain, I try to set the table so it is a little different every time. I work with my housekeeper, Enma, on choosing just the perfect combination of plates and linens. Here, we used decorative blue Staffordshire turkey plates with light blue linen napkins on green leaf placemats.
Here is my long 18-foot table all set for the all-important Thanksgiving meal. One tip is to always be prepared for extra guests just in case someone decides to bring another along – it does happen.
In the same room, I also set a children’s table of four; however, the kids wanted to sit at the adults table, so they all moved their plates over and joined us.
I love taking out all the turkey decorations I have amassed over the years, including these dark amethyst turkey dishes. I have a large collection of turkeys. After all, I once lived on “Turkey Hill Road”.
My Operations Manager, Stephanie Lofaro, made lovely place cards. We cut around each name and whimsical turkey illustration and then placed them next to each plate in the Brown Room.
Every year, I like to cook three turkeys. This year’s birds were all about 20-pounds each and each very well-shaped. Here they are all covered with cheesecloth and ready for the oven.
This is one of my large turkey plates – a Staffordshire turkey platter, brilliantly-colored. Do you know… these decorative bird platters have been in production for more than 100 years? That’s right, when Abraham Lincoln proclaimed Thanksgiving official back in 1863, English potters seized the opportunity to target the growing American market by producing turkey-themed dinner plates and platters. I have collected many platters and plates over the years.
Here’s another amazing platter from Meissen – a town of approximately 30,000 just northwest of Dresden on both banks of the Elbe river in the Free State of Saxony, in eastern Germany. Meissen is the home of the famous Meissen porcelain.
And I love this blue and white illustrated platter – it’s English, I believe. To save time, take the serving dishes out the day before and label them with the food it will hold. I served all the dishes on one of my long kitchen counters in the kitchen – everyone helps themselves and then sits down in my large dining room.
And here’s my dear Empress Tang coming out to see all the activity.
Here I am with one of the perfectly roasted turkeys.
Each turkey was stuffed differently and plated on beds of herbs grown right here in my gardens. I am so fortunate to have fresh herbs growing all year long.
This turkey was plated with citrus and pomegranate.
My Perfect Roast Turkey 101 recipe, which is found on Martha.com, really creates a well bronzed and glistening bird. See my video on TikTok @MarthaStewart.
We also prepared potatoes Anna using sweet potatoes. But don’t worry, we had a big bowl of mashed potatoes too. The mashed potatoes were made using my mother’s recipe, which incorporates cream cheese for a rich and delicious taste.
This is a bowl of fresh pomegranate seeds from the big pomegranate fruits I received from our friends at POM Wonderful.
Here is one of the cornbread turkeys fresh out of the oven. The turkey molds I use are five-cup turkey molds from Nordic Ware. They can be used for cornbread, cranberry sauce, or even cake. I’m glad we made several cornbread turkeys – they went very quickly.
We used similar molds to make these beautiful cranberry turkeys.
One of my guests brought some delicious cheese crackers and Macadamia nuts. On the right, a bowl of roasted pecans.
My daughter and granddaughter made this gorgeous jello dessert using purple-grape jello, white grape jello, and pomegranate jello – all held together with a creamy blancmange, a sweet dessert popular throughout Europe and made with milk or cream and sugar thickened with rice flour, gelatin, and corn starch.
Here is my plate filled with scrumptious Thanksgiving foods. Everyone walked away with a full plate – and then went back for seconds, and some even thirds.
And here is my piece of jello – so creamy, so light, and so flavorful.
I was so pleased with all the pies I baked. If you saw my Thanksgiving Day blog, you know I made 22-pies – most to give away to my hardworking staff – a tradition I do every year. I saved three to share with my friends and family. Not one crumb was left over. I hope you all had a warm and memorable holiday with your loved ones.
At my Bedford, New York farm, I have thousands and thousands of trees. Many were already well-established when I purchased the property, and the rest I've planted - in gardens, in allees, in groves, in the woodland, and as privacy hedges. One type of tree, however, stands out around this time every year - the mighty ginkgo.
Ginkgo biloba, commonly known as ginkgo or gingko, and also known as the maidenhair tree, is the only living species in the division Ginkgophyta. It is found in fossils dating back 270-million years. Native to China, the ginkgo tree is widely cultivated, and was cultivated early in human history. In the sunken garden behind my Summer House, I have a stunning ginkgo tree that's probably more than 250-years old. Although not as large as others I've seen during trips to Asia, my tree is quite massive - its trunk circumference measures at least 14-feet. Ginkgo trees have beautiful green leaves that turn a luminous gold-yellow in fall. And on one day, after the hard frost sweeps down the east coast, this ginkgo, along with others at my farm and countless more in the area, drops its leaves to the ground leaving a gorgeous carpet of color below.
Here are some photos - enjoy.
This is the great ginkgo tree in the back of Summer House sunken garden. This parterre garden is very formal and focused on the giant 250-year old ginkgo tree. This photo was taken in late June when the tree was lush with green foliage. Growing beneath the ginkgo is a beautiful chocolate mimosa tree, a fast-growing, deciduous tree with a wide, umbrella-shaped canopy.
The leaves of the ginkgo are unusually fan-shaped, up to three-inches long, with a petiole that is also up to three-inches long. This shape and the elongated petiole cause the foliage to flutter in the slightest breeze. They are bold green in summer.
The trunk of the ginkgo tree is a light brown to brownish-gray bark that is deeply furrowed and highly ridged. The ridges become more pronounced as the tree ages. The trunk circumference of the giant tree measures more than 14-feet.
The younger ginkgo trees are planted on both sides of the footpath. The ginkgo is considered both a shade tree and an ornamental tree. It features a spreading canopy capable of blocking sunlight and adds visual interest and beauty to the landscape. The ginkgo grows to about 50 to 80-feet tall with a spread of 25 to 35-feet at maturity.
In October, one can see a slight change to the color of the leaves – they’re starting to turn.
By the first week of November, many of the changing leaves are two-toned, with separate bands of gold and green.
Look at the top of the great ginkgo – the leaves are taking on a golden hue.
Here’s a view looking toward my Summer House – one side is still green, while they other side is showing off its fall colors.
My great ginkgo tree is a female specimen. Female ginkgo trees produce tan-orange oval fruits that fall to the ground in October and November. Look closely to see hundreds of tiny fruits on the branches.
By mid-November, the trees are still quite full and the leaves all bright golden yellow.
Each mature leaf often has a single vertical slit in the top center. This forms the fan with a cavity in the middle separating it into two lobes. Bi-loba means “with two lobes”.
Just before Thanksgiving, many of the leaves had fallen – in almost a synchronized leaf drop. Wish such mild temperatures this autumn, the “great fall” seems less dramatic. Some of the leaves blew off in the wind, with some still clinging to the branches.
Many of the leaves have fallen to the ground in the garden beds and on the footpath below. Ginkgoes are grown as hedges in China to supply the leaves for western herbal medicine. The leaves contain ginkgolides, which are used to improve blood circulation to the brain and to treat many cardiovascular diseases. It is usually Europe’s number one selling herbal medication.
The lawn outside the garden is also covered in ginkgo leaves. To explain the phenomenon, deciduous trees form a scar between their leaves and stems to protect themselves from diseases and cold. Most flowering trees form scars at different rates, in different parts of the tree, over several weeks. Their leaves then fall off individually. However, ginkgo trees form scars across all their stems at once. And when a hard frost arrives, it finishes severing every leaf, and they fall to the ground in unison.
Now the fruits are also falling. They can be found all along the footpath. The most noticeable thing about these is their smell – it is hard to miss, and the stench is quite disagreeable. The outer, nasty smelling pulp is known botanically as sarcotesta.
Inside is a single hard-shelled seed enclosing an edible kernel. The kernels are often roasted and used in Asian cuisines.
Here is a closer look at the fruit. It is small and fleshy – about the size of small jujube, or Chinese date.
This is a photo of one of the smaller ginkgo trees at a corner of my herbaceous peony bed – there is one on each corner of this garden. These trees also lost all their leaves.
Here is a photo of a younger ginkgo tree outside my donkey paddock. It was taken in late October when the tree was full.
And here it is in late November – completely bare. At its base – a tree pit of gold. The ginkgo biloba is one of the most distinct and beautiful of all deciduous trees. And every year, it puts on one of autumn’s most beautiful performances. Have the ginkgo trees dropped their leaves where you live? Share with me in the comments below.
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