We’re expecting more mild weather here at my farm with temperatures in the upper 40s - a good time to continue with some outdoor gardening tasks before the winter chill returns.
My crew is busy with many projects, including pruning and grooming various trees and shrubs, pollarding the London planes, fertilizing and mulching the garden beds, and clearing any late season leaves. Here at Cantitoe Corners, it's crucial to take advantage of every good day we get.
Here are some photos, enjoy.
It’s mid-January, but some of the snowdrops are already giving a sweet welcome to spring. Snowdrops, Galanthus, are the nodding, crisp white flowers that dangle above clumps of strap-shaped leaves from now through March. I have planted lots of snowdrops around the farm.
Ryan feeds the area with Azomite, a natural mineral substance used primarily as a fertilizer and soil amendment. It is rich in potassium,, magnesium, iron, and calcium which are essential for plant growth and soil health.
While the temperatures have been pleasant these last few weeks, my outdoor grounds crew has been able to get a lot of chores done. These “ancient” apple trees, which have been here since i acquired the property have just been pruned. Good maintenance always pays off – these trees continue to provide delicious fruits in autumn.
My dwarf apple espalier was also recently pruned. Espalier refers to an ancient technique, resulting in trees that grow flat, either against a wall, or along a wire-strung framework. There are four rows of espaliered apples here.
I also have these espaliered Gravenstein apples across the carriage road which were also just pruned and groomed.
Yesterday, Pasang pruned the European hornbeams, Carpinus betulus, surrounding my vegetable garden.
These are fast-growing deciduous trees and are being grown as a hedge along the inside of the half-acre space.
Pasang works efficiently and quickly. Here he is cleaning up all the dropped branches and late season leaves after the chore was completed.
This is also a good time to prune my hydrangeas. I have hydrangeas growing in a large bed across from my chicken coops, around my peafowl pen, outside my tennis court, under my allée of London plane trees, and along one side of my large “run-in” horse paddock.
Here, Matthew trims the hydrangea stem. When cutting hydrangeas, it is important to cut just above the bud or node to ensure the plant can continue to grow and produce flowers. To be certain this is done properly, all the pruning is done by hand, one shrub at a time.
In my middle hayfield allée, the London planes and smoke bushes were also given some attention. I planted the allée in 2019. In December 2024, I started pollarding the London planes, a pruning technique that involves the removal of a tree’s upper branches to promote the growth of club-headed stems and dense new foliage. London planes are well-suited for pollarding and respond well to this practice.
One can see the developing “knuckles” or “boles” made by removing growth back to the main stem.
Outside the vegetable garden, Alex works on a long stand of American hornbeams. I instructed him to trim them down two feet from the top, keeping the entire line of trees level and square in shape.
These trees grow about 12 to 24 inches per year.
Alex does a lot of the work by hand. These Japanese Okatsune shears are specially made for trimming hedges. These shears are user friendly and come in a range of sizes.
For the tops, he makes sure they are all cut to the exact height by using the STIHL HLA 86 Powered Extended-Reach Hedge Trimmer. I’ve been using STIHL for many years and find all their tools durable, efficient, and easy to use.
Here, Phurba and Adan work to clear the late season fall foliage from gardens outside my Tenant House. My crew works in teams getting so many tasks done every day.
Back down in my Japanese Maple Woodland, Pete spreads a layer of good mulch made right here at the farm. He transports loads using my Kubota tractor.
Mulch has a lot of benefits – it insulates the soil to protect plants from extreme temperatures in summer and in winter, gives the beds a finished look making them very neat and tidy, and because I make my own, I know it is filled with nutrients, which improves the overall health of the plants.
Here are some snowdrops with a new layer of mulch insulating their young and delicate flowers and leaves. Maintaining a farm depends largely on the weather. These last weeks have given us a chance to check many jobs off the list, thanks to Mother Nature.
Even in winter one can enjoy beautiful fresh flowers - some of my orchids are blooming so wonderfully right now.
On many mornings after checking the greenhouses, my head gardener, Ryan McCallister, brings cut flowers or blooming potted plants up to my Winter House for display - whatever looks best at the time. Yesterday, he brought me some gorgeous cut Cymbidium orchids. Cymbidium, or "boat orchid," is a genus of evergreen flowering plants in the orchid family Orchidaceae. They are prized for their long-lasting sprays of blooms. In another few weeks, the greenhouses will also be filled with flowering Dendrobiums, another type of orchid, with abundant pastel-colored flowers.
Enjoy these photos.
These are some of the white Dendrobium orchids in my greenhouse. These are just beginning to bloom.
I have them in pink and white. Native to Southeast Asia, the genus Dendrobium is among the largest of all orchid groups. Blooming times vary depending on species, light, temperature, humidity and watering practices. All my orchids are so well maintained.
And soon these Dendrobiums will all be flowering.
But right now, Ryan is cutting lots of other gorgeous orchids – my Cymbidiums.
Cymbidium orchids are prized for their sprays of long-lasting flowers.
My orchids live in the temperature and humidity-controlled greenhouses where they can be monitored closely every day.
Here’s Ryan with some cut Cymbidiums ready to bring up to my Winter House.
Ryan places the sprays of blooms in a large box tray with a wire bottom. They only go a short distance to my home, but if going a longer distance, be sure they are well-protected and secured during transit.
The colors can vary from shades of pink, white, yellow, red, green, and brown.
The flowers typically have three sepals and two petals each with a prominent three-lobed labellum making them appear “boat like.”
These Cymbidiums are creamy white with dark pink markings.
As soon as they came up to my Winter House, I brought them into my servery to arrange them.
I use my favorite finger vase, also known as quintal flower horn because of its typical five spouts.
I often display flowers and other potted specimens around my home. I put these in my sitting room, which is one of the first rooms I walk through in the morning.
Depending on the variety, Cymbidium orchids can bloom from four to 12 weeks.
Some of them are also very fragrant. Their scents can range from subtle to strong and often with hints of jasmine, vanilla or even citrus.
When displaying cut Cymbidiums, be sure to change the water frequently – every couple of days – and avoid placing them in direct light.
On the other side of my sitting room are these cut Cymbidiums in shades of pink. Always space Cymbidiums appropriately as overcrowding could damage them.
These Cymbidiums are in my servery just off my kitchen. Be careful when handling the stems and flowers to avoid bruising which can also shorten the flower’s vase life.
Cymbidium orchids have exceptional beauty and longevity. I hope you can enjoy some of these impressive flowers this season.
I am using these long days of winter to clean, reorganize, and reset my home. Are you?
Over the years, basement storage spaces can get very disorganized - items are mixed up, shelves are confused, more pieces are added without thought as to where they should be placed, etc. My housekeepers recently tackled one area where I keep my stainless steel sheet pans, tube, tart, and bundt pans, my chocolate and candy molds, giant bowls and cookers, and more. For this clean-up, the shelves were emptied and wiped-down, like-items were grouped together, and finally, everything was returned where they could be found easily and quickly. It's a tedious chore, but it’s always rewarding to see the end result.
Here are some photos, enjoy.
Do you have an area where you store all your less used pans, pots, and baking supplies? These shelves in my basement are used for storing many of the stainless steel items I do not use regularly.
It’s not a large space, so one by one the shelves are emptied and then wiped down thoroughly.
These are industrial warehouse racks. They come in various sizes, and configurations to suit different storage needs.
Enma wipes down a collection of enamelware trays. Enamelware includes items covered with a porcelain enamel finish.
I have a lot of enamelware pans. Once they are cleaned, they are stacked appropriately next to other enamelware bowls, cups, etc.
In the shelf underneath the enamelware are other metal trays of various sizes.
Enma removes each one and wipes it thoroughly before returning. It is a very tedious job.
Loaf pans are also wiped clean and stacked neatly on a shelf.
If you’re an avid cook or baker like I am, you probably have a lot of sheet pans. Sheet pans have raised edges on all four sides to prevent spilling – don’t confuse them with cookie sheets which typically have no sides for fast cookie removal.
Do you know the difference between tube pans and bundt pans? Tube pans have straight sides and a central hollow tube – ideal for light, airy cakes. Bundt plans are more decorative with fluted sides and a central tube and used for denser pound cakes.
I also have a number of chocolate and candy molds.
These molds have a western theme with horses, cowboys, and covered wagons.
And do you recognize these? These are five cup turkey molds I use from Nordic Ware. They can be used for cornbread, cranberry sauce, or even cake. I use them every year for Thanksgiving.
The molds are kept near other tart pans and springform pans where they can be found and accessed easily when needed.
They’re heavy, but cast iron cookware is well known for its ability to retain and distribute heat evenly. They have been used for centuries and are some of the most durable cooking items.
In a back corner – giant bowls. I use the biggest ones for ice at parties – oftentimes with delicious shucked oysters on top waiting to be devoured.
This is a paella pan – a wide, shallow cooking vessel for making the popular Spanish rice and seafood dish, paella, from the Valencia region of Spain.
Enma came across this vintage nut and meat chopper. These are designed with a glass jar base, a metal lid, and hand crank.
The shelves look so much better after cleaning and organizing.
It may still be winter, but it can never be too early for some thorough spring cleaning. I hope you’re inspired.
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