Do you have all your seeds for the next growing season?
This time of year is when many gardeners peruse, study, choose, and order seeds from the many purveyors who send out catalogs each winter. My head gardener, Ryan McCallister, and I, sow thousands of seeds in my greenhouse every year. We order seeds from our favorite sources, but I also get seeds from friends, find them during my travels, and save them from years past. Growing from seed is an affordable alternative to purchasing plants, but one can also choose from a greater variety of seeds than what's typically available at a nursery. K Greene is the co-founder and creative director of Hudson Valley Seed Company, a national seed business and regional seed farm devoted to producing seed and celebrating seeds through art. Yesterday, K spoke to members of The Bedford Garden Club about the importance of seeds and his passion for preserving them.
Here are some photos, enjoy.
Before we know it, the gardens will be bursting with color once again. This is my large flower cutting garden in early June, when so many vivid lupines and other flowers are in bloom.
Here is a section filled with poppies – those colorful tissue paper-like flowers that look stunning both in the garden and in the vase.
Poppies produce open single flowers gracefully located on long thin stems, sometimes fluffy with many petals and sometimes smooth.
These are poppy seed pods – what’s left on the stem once the flower blooms and the petals fall off. As the seed heads turn brown with ripeness, it’s time to cut them and harvest the seeds.
Here, the top is cut off to show all the seeds. These seeds can be tossed randomly in the garden to self-sow the next year. Each seed pod can hold more than 200 seeds, which, in nature, eventually shake out on their own as the winds blow.
Look at all those seeds – tiny bluish-black poppy flower seeds.
Much bigger are the sunflower seeds. These are ready to harvest when the foliage turns yellow, the petals die down, and the seeds look plump. Some of the seeds on this flower have already been eaten by birds, but there are many that can also be harvested and saved for planting.
Aside from purchasing our seeds, every year Ryan collects the flower seeds from plants we like best, separates them, and stores them in a cool, dry, and dark location.
We grew all of these pumpkins and winter squash from seed also – again, some bought and some saved from fruits I’ve enjoyed over the years.
Many are from heirloom seeds. Heirlooms are old-time varieties, open-pollinated instead of hybrid, and handed down through multiple generations of families.
Pumpkin and squash seeds are planted directly into the ground between the last week of May and the middle of June. They take between 90 and 120 days to grow.
Yesterday, K Greene traveled down to Bedford and spoke about the “Art of Seed.” He explains the cycle of seeds – seed germination, seedling formation, growth, development, pollination, fertilization, and ultimately the formation of fruit and more seeds.
He explains the diversity of seeds, their beauty, and the importance of saving those seeds that may otherwise disappear. K says seeds evoke stories and are much more important than just their commodity – they pass down a rich history and value from generation to generation. Here, K shows members a bowl filled with seeds, showing the varied sizes and types.
In this slide, K shows how seeds have changed over the years – how wide the variety options were a century ago, and how much they have lessened in the years following. More effort is needed to understanding the origin of seeds, the science of seeds, and ways we can preserve them.
One way to raise awareness for the importance of seeds is through art. K feels seed packages communicate a particular seed’s story. At Hudson Valley Seed Company, K and his partner, Doug, pair up with various artists who resonate with individual seeds and interpret their stories.
Hundreds of artists apply each year from across the United States, sharing their works. Here is one submission for Honeynut Squash. (Photo from K Greene)
And here it is folded up and packed with seeds inside. This art pack tells a story tens of thousands of years old. Look closely and see the mastadon. Mastadons, wooly mammoths and prehistoric elephants, ate and spread the seeds of ancient wild squash across North America.
This art pack was done for a beet blend showing how diverse the mix is. (Photo from K Greene)
Here are other art packs from this year. This initiative has led to the commissioning of more than 250 works of art as well as a traveling gallery show called “The Art of Seed.”
K is passionate about the company’s original mission of “protecting seeds, increasing seed diversity, fostering an ethical seed landscape, and celebrating the art of seed.” I hope this inspires you to look more closely at the seeds you sow and appreciate the wonderful purveyors who save and develop them from year to year.
Here in Bedford, New York, we're expecting mostly sunny skies today and temperatures in the low 30s - one day after our first major accumulating snow storm of the season.
The swift moving weather system started early yesterday morning and ended by early afternoon dropping more than eight-inches of beautiful white snow in the area. This snow was heavy and stuck to everything - the tree branches and shrubs, stone posts, walls, and steps, and the tops of all the burlap-encased urns and boxwood. Unfortunately, I was away on business and missed it all, but my crew back at the farm took many images to share. I hope you saw some of them on my Instagram page @MarthaStewart48.
Here are some more, enjoy.
It’s always nice to tour the property while the snow is still coming down. For several hours, the farm was truly a veritable winter wonderland. These are the branches of a horse chestnut, Aesculus hippocastanum – one of two large specimens in front of my stable.
This linden tree-lined path between the paddocks runs from my Winter House and carport down to the chicken coops.
Here is the little Basket House nestled in the grove of bald cypress, Taxodium distichum. The snow dropped about eight inches – the most snow we’ve had from one storm in quite some time.
On one side of my pergola is this weeping copper beech tree, Fagus sylvatica ‘Purpurea Pendular’, an irregular spreading tree with long, weeping branches that reach the ground.
The 100-year old white spruce fencing has stood the test of time. I love how the snow collects on the fence rails. I have photographed sections of this beautiful fence many times through the seasons.
This is a row of six weeping hornbeams, Carpinus betulus Pendula. They line one side of the soccer field I set up for my grandson, Truman. These are such graceful and shapely specimen trees, very densely branched and adaptable to various soil conditions.
Looking up are the high branches of the mighty pin oaks, Quercus palustris, that grow alongside my Equipment Barn.
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.
This is the espalier of Asian pear trees we planted in front of the goose and peafowl pens. Espalier refers to an ancient technique, resulting in trees that grow flat, either against a wall, or along a wire-strung framework. Many kinds of trees respond beautifully to the espalier treatment, but fruit trees, like apple and pear, were some of the earliest examples.
This snow on the coop fencing is like a privacy wall. Snow stuck to nearly every surface and crevice.
Notice the holes in the burlap. It’s a “Good Thing” I developed to help our avian friends during winter – they love to take cover inside, especially during storms. On the left, my handsome Friesian, Hylke.
Along this carriage road on both sides are my young azaleas – very different looking from mid-May when they erupt with swaths of beautiful bright colors.
On one side is this Japanese Stewartia tree. Looking closely, one can see its distinctive multi-colored bark which peels in strips of gray, orange, and reddish-brown.
Here, it is easy to see which direction the snow was falling. This was a wet snow. Wet snow occurs when the air temperature near the surface is above freezing, causing the snowflakes to partially melt before reaching the surface. This causes the snowflakes to become “sticky.”
Here is a view looking through my orchard that surrounds the pool. More than 200-fruit trees are planted in this space.
Just outside my tennis court is this old apple tree. This is a favorite here at the farm. It grows delicious juicy sweet green apples.
Here’s a look through the woodland. Thankfully, the wind was not too strong, so none of my trees suffered any damage.
In this “pine paddock,” with its snow covered ground still undisturbed, it is hard to miss the stand of great eastern white pine trees, Pinus strobus. White pines are the tallest trees in eastern North America.
The Boxwood Allée looks so different in winter. I am so glad the boxwood is covered under burlap shrouds to keep everything protected from the snow.
Here’s a stand of dawn redwoods, Metasequoia, with their straight trunks – impressive trees by any standard, and beautiful in any season.
On the right, one can see a bit of the old corn crib, which is original to the property. The unique “keystone” shape, flaring from bottom to top, was designed to shed water. The snow stopped falling by early afternoon, but I am so glad we captured some of the fresh beauty while it lasted.
After weeks of hard work cleaning the woodland, transporting the organic debris - bark, stumps, logs, and brush - to the compost yard, and then seeing it all go through the tub grinder, we now have a massive pile of usable mulch - the biggest we've ever had here at my farm.
Every couple of years, I call in the hardworking team from Material Processors, Inc., located in Warwick, New York. Their large machinery grinds all the material into small chips. Then it is all passed through a second time to make it even finer and mixed with leaf mold, aged horse manure, and chicken droppings. What's left is nutrient-rich "black gold" for all my gardens.
Here are the photos, enjoy.
Here is a drone shot of logs being dropped into the tub grinder. It’s amazing what these machines can do. All of these logs are ground in just a couple of minutes. (Photo by Brett Albright)
Here at my farm, we have a very systematic process for preparing material for the tub grinder. For several weeks before the tub grinder arrives, and during its visit, large piles of organic debris are collected along the carriage roads.
Hundreds of these felled trees are diseased ash trees – infested and killed by the emerald ash borer. The borer larvae kill ash trees by tunneling under the bark and feeding on the part of the tree that moves water and sugars up and down its trunk.
All of the cut trees and brush is brought to the compost yard in a back field.
Once a good amount is collected, I call in the team from Material Processors, Inc. – a company that focuses on recycling green waste, and clearing and preparing land spaces for development. I’ve been using them for years – so efficient and wonderful to work with every time.
Tub grinders are extremely large and heavy, so the team delivers the tub grinder and excavator to the farm the day before to set it up and prepare it for work. Most tub grinders are powered by diesel engines.
Tub grinders are named for the distinctive in-feed hopper – the large round tub, normally 10 to 14-feet in diameter and roughly six-feet deep. Before any equipment is used, all the controls are checked to make sure everything is in good working order.
These machines have a variety of screens for the output. The screen selection for each job is usually based on the type of material being processed and the desired end-product.
Here is the excavator, which is used to pick up the material using its large “jaws grab” bucket attachment and drop it into the tub grinder.
The jaws can pick up, move and sort several large logs or pieces of debris at a time.
Here’s a drone view of the machinery at work. I drive up to see the progress as often as possible. It is always sad to see the trees go, but I am glad they can be repurposed into usable rich materials for the gardens. (Photo by Brett Albright)
Tub grinders rely primarily on gravity to feed the material into the hammermill at the bottom of the tub. As the tub revolves, the hammermill below, shatters the wood into smaller fragments.
As the tub spins, friction actually causes some of the wood to smoke.
A conveyor belt located below the screens transports the finished product away from the mill to this discharge conveyor which then carries the material away from the machine.
The continuous discharge conveyor deposits the material onto a separate mound.
Every day more and more debris is brought to the compost yard and piled near the tub grinder. I shared some photos at the beginning of this process. The tub grinder is usually at the farm for three weeks.
There is also a pile of horse and chicken waste that gets mixed with the fine wood chips. Do you know the difference between compost and mulch? Compost and mulch are often used synonymously; however, there is a big difference between the two. Compost is biologically active material that breaks down from organic matter. Mulch, on the other hand, is any material, organic or inorganic, that covers a given soil surface.
The machines do this over and over, one load at a time. There is a lot of dust and occasional debris flying around – it is very important to stay several feet away whenever visiting an excavator and tub grinder at work. The team prefers to work on rainy days, which helps to cut down on all the dust.
Here is the output after two weeks. A tractor and bucket help to condense the pile as much as possible.
The entire grinding process is actually quite mesmerizing to watch. It is also extremely loud – the tub grinder can be heard all the way on the other side of the farm.
Here, the process is almost done. The pile is now put through the grinder a second time. The second pass makes it even finer.
And here is the pile at the end of the job – our biggest pile yet. It took a lot of hard work and manpower, but now we have all the material we need to dress all the gardens here at the farm.
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