Temperatures at the farm today are expected to be in the 40s with a big winter drop tonight and snow showers over the weekend.
So far, this December weather has been very erratic. Just a couple of days ago, we had springlike conditions with temperatures reaching almost 60 degrees Fahrenheit. The day before, I woke up to white covered gardens and grassy fields - the temperatures dipped just enough for a dusting of snow and then rose again for a full day of rain. It was a dreary, wet day, but still an opportunity to capture some pretty images.
Enjoy.
Earlier this week, we got enough snow at the farm just to cover the ground. Here are the trunks of the mighty pin oaks that grow alongside my large Equipment Barn.
In general, warmer winters have become more common in the Northeast. Forecasters say this season is expected to bring above normal temperatures and below normal snowfall. Here, the snow piled on this 100-year old white spruce fencing I purchased in Canada.
These garden beds are behind my gym building and Tenant House. 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 the low 40s by midday.
This is an allée of lindens between the paddocks. A long building at the end, perpendicular to this allée, houses a carport, my flower room, a generator room, and my studio.
The Boxwood Allée looks so different in winter. Our annual “burlapping” chores continue, but I am glad these boxwood are draped in burlap shrouds to keep everything protected from the snow, even if it’s light.
Japanese maples can tolerate snow pretty well, but when heavy snow accumulates on the branches it’s important to brush it off to prevent them from breaking, especially on younger trees. Thankfully this snow was not problematic.
Also covered in a light layer of snow – the evergreens in my pinetum. My pinetum is where I keep a collection of pines, spruces, firs, and others.
Just off the carriage road leading to my tennis court is this grouping of dawn redwoods, Metasequoia, with their straight trunks. They are impressive trees by any standard and beautiful in any season. They have a very uniform conical shape with horizontal branching.
The base of the trunk is fluted and well buttressed. The bark of a dawn redwood is reddish in color and peels. As the tree ages, the trunk also develops a deeply fissured appearance, similar to a bald cypress.
My back hayfield is bordered on one side by these growing evergreens. A light coating of snow can be seen on the branches.
Thankfully, the wind was not strong on this day, so none of the trees suffered any damage.
And not far is my majestic sycamore tree, the symbol of my farm. It is one of the largest trees on the property.
More dawn redwoods are near the sycamore along the carriage road.
In October, the stream beds were empty. Now that we’ve had some rain, they’re filling up again.
Here are two of my handsome Friesians, Hylke and Geert, taking a morning nap in their pasture. Do you know… horses only get about 30 minutes of REM sleep a day? During this time, they often lie down. Horses sleep in multiple cycles, which can be as short as 15 minutes. These cycles include deep sleep, REM sleep, and an intermediate period of somnolence, or drowsiness.
In the middle field is my allée of London plane trees and smoke bushes. I planted 46 London planes in all here and they are doing so well.
On the left is my long clematis pergola bordered on both sides by boxwood. 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.
Next to my old corn crib is a row of six weeping hornbeams, Carpinus betulus Pendula. They line one side of my soccer field I set up for my grandson, Truman.
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. On the right is my peafowl enclosure. These birds have quite the view, don’t you agree?
Here are young evergreens planted in the field. I am so proud of all the trees I have planted around my farm – thousands and thousands. It’s one way I can give back to the Earth and help to create a cleaner, healthier, and more sustainable planet.
This tome is a collection of my most treasured recipes and tips, along with photos from my personal archives and the stories behind them. Since it was released last month, I've been on a busy book tour, signing books in Massachusetts, New York City, Long Island, and South Carolina. Over the weekend, I conducted another event at Orangerie Garden + Home, a charming shop and nursery owned by my friend Anthony Bellomo in Millbrook, New York, about one hour north of my farm. I signed a total of 290 books. It was a successful and most enjoyable celebration of MARTHA, THE COOKBOOK. If you haven't already, be sure to get your copy today. You'll love every single recipe.
Here are some photos.
I am so proud of this book. I, along with a very small team, worked very hard on it – cooking, testing, and photographing every single recipe in my own kitchen. It’s filled with spectacular images, tips, and my personal stories. (Photo by Guisela Photo)
MARTHA, THE COOKBOOK: 100 FAVORITE RECIPES WITH LESSONS AND STORIES FROM MY KITCHEN is a #1 New York Times Bestseller published by Clarkson Potter, my publisher since 1982 when I released my first book, Entertaining. These stacks of pre-purchased books were on display – many bought multiple copies. (Photo by Guisela Photo)
Anthony Bellomo is a landscape architect, passionate gardener, and owner of this lovely shop. Orangerie sells many home items and has two greenhouses filled with seasonal plants. (Photo by Guisela Photo)
Anthony’s husband is designer potter and lamp maker, Christopher Spitzmiller. This spruce colored hand thrown lamp from his collection is called “Patricia.” Many of his lamps can be found at Orangerie. (Photo by Guisela Photo)
Orangerie was fully decorated for the event. Anthony decorated this tabletop tree – yes, all the ornaments are for sale. (Photo by Guisela Photo)
Other items in the store include these dishes and antique cabinet from the boutique Creel and Gow, also in Millbrook. (Photo by Guisela Photo)
Guests enjoyed lots of delicious bites while they waited for their books to be signed. All of the recipes are from the book. Christopher made my daughter Alexis’s famous Chocolate Chip Cookies. (Photo by Guisela Photo)
Anthony baked Brown Butter Shortbread Cookies. I love this recipe and often bake them for my own hosted dinners at the farm. (Photo by Guisela Photo)
Also from the book, Vegetable Flatbread, the most popular appetizer item at my Las Vegas restaurant, The Bedford. This version was inspired by my friend Julie Williamson, Junebug, who first served them to me at a party many years ago. And who made this batch? Junebug herself. (Photo by Guisela Photo)
This is my Christmas Punch with pomegranate, cranberry, Cointreau, sparkling water, lemon, and simple syrup. (Photo by Guisela Photo)
More than 300 visitors came through the doors during the two hour event. (Photo by Guisela Photo)
In between signings, I always try to take photos with guests. Here I am with Lois Mander. (Photo by Guisela Photo)
And I always enjoy talking with guests – it’s a great way for me to meet people and to hear lovely stories of how my books have inspired them over the years. This is Molly Levine, owner of Westerly Canteen, described as a “sort of” restaurant uniquely housed in a 1971 airstream in the Hudson Valley. (Photo by Guisela Photo)
I have signed tens of thousands of books and I always like to use a colored pen that best coordinates with the colors of the book – it is a detail that is very important to me. (Photo by Guisela Photo)
Some four legged friends also attended the book signing. This handsome Yorkshire Terrier is Figgy owned by Cece Kieselstein Cord. (Photo by Guisela Photo)
This guest brought in her dog-eared copy of Weddings for me to sign. This book was first published in 1987. (Photo by Guisela Photo)
And this young gentleman gifted me with these beautiful drawings that he did of me and my Summer House sunken garden. (Photo by Guisela Photo)
In this photo – Anthony, his friend Ashley Whitaker, and my friend and colleague, Patsy Pollack. (Photo by Guisela Photo)
This is Matt, who helps care for the plants at Orangerie. He was so excited to get his copy. (Photo by Guisela Photo)
And here I am with Anthony and Christopher. Thank you Anthony for a lovely gathering and celebration of my milestone 100th book, “Martha, The Cookbook.” (Photo by Guisela Photo)
This holiday season, if you come across a winter market or crafts fair where you live, try to attend and support the small businesses in your area - it's inspiring to meet the artisans and to learn about their specialties.
Over the weekend, I took a drive up to Stissing House for the second annual Holiday Craft Feast. Stissing House is a charming country restaurant in the historic town of Pine Plains, New York in Duchess County. For two days, Stissing House opened its doors to 50 collectors and craftspeople selling many collectibles and handmade items such as ceramics, baskets, wooden bowls, woven textiles, knits, etc. More than 1200 ticketed guests walked through the space and shopped. There were carolers, bagpipe players, jugglers, and lots of refreshments. It was a wonderful place to meet local entrepreneurs, shop for gifts, and celebrate the holidays.
Here are some photos, enjoy.
Here I am with chef and proprietor, Clare de Boer. She took over Stissing House in 2022. The quaint country inn restaurant serves delicious, simple yet elegant fare. I’ve visited several times and enjoyed every dish. @clare.deboer
The property was originally built in 1782 and housed a tavern, inn and America’s first domed ballroom. (Photo by Gabe Zimmer @catskillimage)
This past weekend was Stissing House’s second annual Holiday Craft Feast. It was cold, but sunny – bagpipe players and jugglers from @madison_shulkin greeted guests as they arrived. (Photo by Gabe Zimmer @catskillimage)
Inside, 50 collectors and artisans set up tables around the main dining room.
There were visitors at all times through the two day event. (Photo by Gabe Zimmer @catskillimage)
The oysters on ice were provided by @islandcreekoysters, a company that harvests oysters daily from Duxbury Bay in Massachusetts.
Chef Clare served her famous ginger cake in bite sized pieces held in a five-foot long grapevine basket.
Here’s the basket in the middle of the room. It was so nice to see such an enthusiastic group talking with talented artisans and entrepreneurs. (Photo by Gabe Zimmer @catskillimage)
There was fresh butter from @ronnybrookfarm and sourdough bread from @sparrowbushbakery.
Thee were lots of sweets to try including the quince jelly donuts from @_gazoz. If you’ve never tried a quince jelly donut, it adds a sweet and floral flavor to the dough.
Here, @mgamwell uses her foraged, homemade black walnut ink for custom calligraphy gift tags.
These are Wendy Jensen baskets – all handwoven in the Berkshires.
Several tables showed beautiful ceramics. This one from @arc_ceramics.
And look who else was there, Frances Palmer. I’ve known Frances for many years. @francespalmer has been in my magazine and on my television shows.
Here are some of the wonderful wheel-thrown and hand-decorated pieces as well some from her manufactured Pearl Collection.
Here’s a table of charming collectibles from Country Mouse @sarahjean_c and @cassandra_dawn.
This collector’s table is set up by Warren Battle, co-owner of @battle_brown from nearby Hudson, New York.
These are handwoven textiles from @hetchellhandwovens inspired by 19th century overshot, Bronson lace, and huck weaves and made on an 1800s century barn loom.
@sawduststudioturnery sells these wooden bowls. The company is owned by food stylist and cookbook author Suzanne Lenzer and former IT specialist Ken Rath who create a limited range of home goods from only salvaged and reclaimed New England wood.
These items are from @curioshop_ where they offer antique lighting, glassware, tableware, art, and other vintage objects reimagined and repurposed for today’s needs.
Here’s a table filled with beautifully forced winter bulbs from @english.garden.grown. (Photo by Gabe Zimmer @catskillimage)
There was a little something for everyone at the Stissing House Craft Feast. @james.mc.grath (Photo by Gabe Zimmer @catskillimage)
I attended last year’s Craft Feast and this year’s Craft Feast. I am already looking forward to next year’s event @StissingHouse.
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