October is a very important month here at my Bedford, New York farm. It's when my gardeners and outdoor grounds crew are rushing to get all my warm weather container plants inside the greenhouses.
I have quite a large collection of tropical specimens. Because I live in a four-season region, during colder months it’s vital these plants move indoors where the temperature and humidity levels can be controlled. Plants that spent the summer at Skylands, my home in Maine, are also brought back to Bedford for storage. Most of them are kept in one of four hoop houses designated specifically for these plants. It’s a tedious process to put all these container plants away, but a very important one that helps keep my plants thriving.
Enjoy these photos.
Before storing, all the plants are brought to their designated greenhouse and placed outside, so each one can be inspected, and trimmed or repotted if necessary. Then, by size each one is carried into the structure where they will stay for about seven months.
This hoop house is located next to my Stable Barn and across the carriage road from my vegetable gardens. It is currently one of four hoop houses at the farm.
This hoop house is 60-feet by 26-feet. It is covered with a heavy-duty, woven polyethylene plastic that features an anti-condensate additive to reduce moisture buildup and dripping. It is also covered with a layer that contains UV additives that allow the fabric to maintain its strength. I am very fortunate to have these structures for storing all my tropical specimens.
We repurpose stumps from downed trees to use as risers for some of the potted plants. It’s important to make use of both horizontal and vertical space when storing. This is a stump from an ash tree. Notice the damage done by the emerald ash borer. The ash borer, also known by the acronym EAB, is responsible for the destruction of tens of millions of ash trees in 30 US states since it was first identified in this country in 2002.
Already inside are these dendrobium orchids. Native to Southeast Asia, the genus Dendrobium is among the largest of all orchid groups. There are more than 1000 individual species that vary in size, bloom color, and appearance. Dendrobiums grow in all climates, from hot, wet lowlands to high-altitude, colder mountains. All Dendrobiums are epiphytes, which means they grow on other plants. In nature, they grow on the branches of trees. Some are deciduous and some hold onto their leaves all year round.
Dendrobium orchids have roots that creep over the pot rims or through the pot’s holes, and in nature over the surface of trees or rocks, rarely having their roots in soil.
All around the farm, my gardeners and outdoor grounds crew are busy gathering all the plants and taking them to their designated enclosures. Here are two of many sago palms, Cycas revoluta, ready for storage. The sago palm is a popular houseplant known for its feathery foliage and ease of care. Native to the southern islands of Japan, the sago palm goes by several common names, including Japanese palm, funeral palm, sago cycad, or king sago.
Last June, we potted up and displayed a group of pretty bromeliads around my pool. These are also removed from their decorative urns and repotted in plastic pots for storage.
Brian uses the soil from the container to pot up the bromeliads. If one has room to store them, it is always a good idea to save the plastic pots from the nursery. These containers come in very handy and can be used from year to year.
Most bromeliads grow as stemless rosettes of leaves that may be symmetrical or twisted and curled.
The leaves may be broad and leathery or fine and wiry. Many are colorfully banded and variegated.
Here’s Pasang carrying a bromeliad out to the carriage road, where it will be put on one of our trusted Polaris vehicles and driven down to the tropical hoop house.
Meanwhile, Chhiring carefully wheels in a potted Bird of Paradise into the hoop house. He moves this very carefully on a hand truck, so the container is not damaged and the branches of the plant are not hurt along the way.
Once it is inside, Ryan trims any old foliage. Bird of Paradise, Strelitzia reginae, is a species of evergreen tropical herbaceous plant, native to South Africa.
Next, Ryan grooms one of several stephanotis plants. Stephanotis is a genus of flowering plants first described in 1806. The name derives from the Greek stephanōtís fit for a crown. It is a climber that can grow to more than 20 feet with glossy, leathery oval leaves and clusters of pure white, waxy, intensely fragrant tubular flowers in summer.
These are the plant’s seed pod fruits that form after flower-bearing. They look like elongated mangos or avocados, but they are not edible.
I also display plants behind my Winter House kitchen in a gravel courtyard. This project of moving the plants is a big undertaking and takes several days to complete.
For really heavy potted specimens, we load them onto the bucket of a tractor that is lined with a moving blanket, so the pots do not sustain any damage during transport.
Here are more plants under the small pergola next to my main greenhouse.
One by one, they’re wheeled inside and positioned carefully, so none of the plants touch. Plants are sensitive and if left touching could cause a defense response reducing growth. Plants can also become more easily infested with pests or diseases if left touching. These are two Australian Brush Cherry topiaries, Eugenia myrtifolia. Each day, more and more plants are brought to the hoop houses for storing. We still have a lot more to put indoors, but I am glad we’re getting it done quickly, neatly, and efficiently. What plant chores are you doing this weekend?
British horticulturist Gertrude Jekyll once said, “A garden is a grand teacher. It teaches patience and careful watchfulness; it teaches industry and thrift; above all it teaches entire trust.” Here at my Bedford, New York farm, we've all had to be very patient and careful in planting my new living maze. It's taking lots of time and hard work to create, but now it is about a third complete and it's looking better and better with each new row.
I started this maze a year and a half ago. I wanted to create a maze of mixed hedges, espaliers, and shrubs in the pasture across the carriage road from my Winter House terrace. I started with European beech, European hornbeams, boxwood, and espaliered apple trees. I designed the maze with various plantings to add texture and interest. Each row includes pathway options and dead ends - with only one correct route to the center. It's all meticulously planned on a map, and each week, we add another group of specimens.
Here are some of the latest photos, enjoy.
Remember this view looking north through the pasture? The fenced in apple trees are original to my farm. Beyond, one can see my long Boxwood Allée and the chicken coops. On the left is my stable. This three acre parcel is now home to my maze. I chose this paddock located just outside my Winter House, where I could see it from my terrace parterre. I knew it was the perfect space for this garden of trees and shrubs.
In April of 2022, we planted the first rows. They included European beech, European hornbeam, boxwood, and a variety of espaliered apple trees.
For a maze, it’s best to use relatively fast-growing trees that will be at least six feet tall and two feet wide at maturity.
Every few weeks, we add a new row to the maze. Each row is carefully measured according to a map we have for the entire maze.
Earlier this summer, we planted this row of privets. Look at the foreground – still quite a lot of room to fill.
But look, earlier this week we filled in most of the area. One can see the privets behind this newest grouping of European hornbeams.
Every row starts off with a careful measurement of the intended planting space.
Then Chhiring goes over the same lines with our Classen Pro HSC18 sod cutter. The sod cutter goes over the lines smoothly and deeply.
The sod is removed in sections by hand. I never like to waste anything around the farm. I always try to repurpose and reuse as much as possible, so the sections are replanted in grassy areas that have gotten bare over time.
Here is the new cleared out area for the next grouping of specimens – this week, hornbeams and parrotias.
Next, we tilled the soil with our Troy-Bilt Pony Rear-Tine Tiller. Rototilling is one method of turning up the soil before planting. All the plants and trees do very well here at the farm, in part because of the excellent soil. I have worked very hard to ensure my soil is constantly amended and rich with nutrients. If you are unsure of your soil’s quality, have it tested. Kits are available at garden shops, online, and through your area’s cooperative extensions.
These are European hornbeams. Botanically known as Carpinus betulus, the hornbeam is a fast-growing deciduous tree. In fact, it can grow about four to five feet per year. It is native to Western Asia and central, eastern and southern Europe, including southern England. Because of its dense foliage and tolerance to being cut back, this hornbeam is popularly used for hedges and topiaries.
Hornbeams are often confused with the common beech because of their similar leaves; however, the hornbeam leaves are actually smaller and more deeply furrowed than beech leaves. The leaves are deciduous and alternate, with serrated margins.
Then, each hole is dug. Remember the rule of thumb for planting trees – dig a hole that is two to three times wider than the root ball, but only as deep as the height of the root ball.
I always say, “if you eat, so should your plants.” For all of these, we’re using a fertilizer with mycorrhizal fungi, which helps transplant survival and increases water and nutrient absorption.
All the burlap wrapping and any twine are removed from the root balls. Some leave them in the ground, but I prefer to remove them completely, so there is nothing blocking the growing roots.
The tree is placed into its designated hole and then turned so its best side faces the path.
Next, the hole is carefully backfilled. Another rule of thumb is “bare to the flare” meaning only plant up to the flare, where the tree meets the root system.
Here is the row all planted – every tree lined up straight.
These smaller trees are young parrotias. Parrotia persica is in the family Hamamelidaceae, closely related to the witch-hazel genus Hamamelis. It is native to northern Iran and southern Azerbaijan and it is endemic in the Alborz mountains. It grows best in USDA Zones 5 to 8.
Some of the leaves are already changing colors. Parrotias have a long-lasting, elaborate autumn color display of ever-changing leaves that show off yellow, orange, burgundy and red hues.
All these trees are doing so well, and the maze is looking better with every planted row.
Now that we’ve reached the privets, we’re looking toward our next goal – the London planetrees ahead. Stay tuned…
Here at my Bedford, New York farm, my gardeners and outdoor grounds crew are busy gathering all the tropical plants, so they can be moved into their designated heated greenhouses for the winter season. This is also a good time to do any repotting if necessary - and this year, we're transplanting some of my young agaves into larger containers.
Agave is a genus of monocots native to the hot and arid regions of the Americas. Many of them have elegant symmetrical rosettes made up of succulent, stiff and well-armed leaves with little or no stem. Some plants get up to 20-feet in diameter, while others grow only to dish-size. I love all agaves and have both large and small varieties in my collection. In fact, many of the plants started as offshoots, or pups, which were removed from adult specimens and replanted right in my greenhouse.
Enjoy these photos.
I love agaves and have a pretty large collection. Every summer, I take them out of the greenhouses and display them around the farm.
I collect interesting specimens in all different sizes.
They also come in a variety of different colors. The leaves range from pale green to blue-grey and can be variegated or striped, like this one.
I am especially fond of the blue agave. Do you know… tequila is distilled from the sap of the blue agave? Agave tequilana has sugars named agavins, mostly fructose, in the core of the plant that are suitable for the preparation of alcoholic beverages. In fact, the blue agave is an important economic product of Jalisco, Mexico, where tequila is produced.
Agave plants lend themselves well to container growing since their roots don’t mind being a bit crowded, but several of the younger specimens have outgrown their pots and need transplanting. Ryan and Jimmy removed all the agaves from their existing pots and placed them on this tarp. Using a tarp always makes cleanup much faster.
Agave leaves are fleshy and well-spiked.
Ryan gives the root ball some beneficial scarifying cuts. Never be afraid to give the roots a good trimming – succulents are very forgiving. And, scarifying stimulates more root growth. Do this whenever transplanting any plant.
Ryan uses his hori-hori knife. A hori-hori, sometimes referred to as a “soil knife” or a “weeding knife”, is a heavy serrated multi-purpose steel blade for gardening. The blade is sharp on both sides and comes to a semi-sharp point at the end.
Repotting is a good time to also check any plant for damaged, unwanted or rotting leaves as well as any pests that may be hiding in the soil. Ryan cuts off one leaf from this agave, but overall, it is very healthy. When cutting, grip the leaf and hold it away from the rest of the foliage and carefully cut through at the base.
Here is where the fleshy agave leaf was cut.
Agaves often produce small plant offsets around the base of the parent plant. These perfectly formed miniature plants eventually grow into full-size plants. This baby will be replanted and kept in my main greenhouse until it is more mature.
Here, Jimmy fills half the pot with soil. Agaves grown in pots need a soil that will dry out slowly but offer good drainage. Use a potting mix of equal parts compost and soil. Do not use peat moss; its acidity and its water-holding properties are not desirable for growing agaves.
Jimmy lines up several half filled pots near the plants ready to be repotted. Working in an assembly line fashion is a good way to get the task done if there are many to do.
This agave will be very happy in its new container. These agaves were removed from one-gallon pots and will be transplanted into two gallon pots. A rule of thumb when determining what size is good for transplanting – look for a pot that is about two inches larger than the plant’s diameter.
And always plant agaves so that the crown is well above the soil line and will stay that way when the soil subsides after watering.
Jimmy fills in the pot with more soil, but never overfill – only place potting mix until the bottom of the pot’s rim, so the soil does not spill out when it is watered. This also makes it much easier to lift and carry.
By the afternoon, this entire group of agaves was done and ready to store.
Ryan gives each agave a sprinkling of fertilizer – never forget to feed. It is very important. If you eat, so should your plants.
Use a fertilizer that is specially formulated for succulents – a slow-release granule type food will make nutrients available for up to two months.
These agaves will be very happy in the hoop house for the winter where they will get plenty of light. Potted agave plants will need to be repotted every other year or so to replenish the soil and root prune the plant. Here they are all lined up on a shelf in the greenhouse, where they will remain for the next seven months.
Outside, there is still so much more to be moved and stored. Wait until you see all the plants we fit into these hoop houses. I’ll be sure to show you photos.
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