While fall is less than a week away, we’re still picking the last of summer’s delicious fruits here at my farm - those small, fragrant, and wonderfully sweet raspberries.
A few days ago, I noticed an abundance of both red and gold raspberries on the bushes. Gold raspberries are much like their red counterparts, but with a beautiful golden color and an especially sweet, honeyed flavor with subtle apricot notes and just a hint of tartness. Raspberries are delicious eaten fresh, but I also love using them in jams and jellies, pies, and tarts.
Enjoy these photos.
Ripe raspberries are rich in color, whether they are red, golden, or black. They are great for use in desserts, but can also be used in cereals, ice-creams, juices, and herbal teas.
I have several rows of raspberries behind my main greenhouse. They all produce many fruits every summer.
Most raspberry plants need additional support to grow properly. I use these granite posts at the end of each row, and stretch strong gauge copper wire in between them to hold up the plants. These antique posts are from China. They were originally used to support grape vines.
Raspberries thrive in temperate climates with cool winters, mild summers, and full sun exposure. I am fortunate to be able to maintain such healthy berry bushes here at the farm. I also grow blackberries, goose berries, strawberries, currants, and blueberries.
Only the ripe raspberries will slip off the stems easily. All of these red raspberries are in perfect condition.
The plants grow on woody, arching stems called canes. And the berries form on the tips and along the sides of those canes.
Although not as bright and easy to see as the red raspberries, these bushes are filled with ripe, gold raspberries. Botanically, all raspberries grow on shrubs belonging to the Rosaceae family, in the genus Rubus.
The raspberry is made up of small “drupe” fruits which are arranged in a circular fashion around a hollow central cavity. Each drupelet features a juicy pulp with a single seed.
Gold raspberries get their distinctive yellow‑to‑amber color from a natural genetic mutation in the common red raspberry that prevents the production of anthocyanins – the water‑soluble plant pigments responsible for the red, purple, and blue colors in many berries, including red raspberries.
The raspberry plant has spade-shaped leaves that are toothed along the edges. It takes about two to three years for a new raspberry plant to produce a significant crop of fruit. Once mature, one plant can produce several hundred berries in a season.
Raspberries are unique because their roots and crowns are perennial, while their stems or canes are biennial.
Here, Enma picks many of the red raspberries. They are quite fragile, so she is careful not to pack them in or press them down.
Raspberries contain vitamins A and E and are also rich in minerals, such as potassium, manganese, copper, iron, and magnesium.
Enma fills this tray with berries in just a few minutes.
Elvira picks an abundance of sweet gold berries from another row.
The berries are placed in one layer on large sheet trays, so they retain their shape after picking.
Looking carefully under the foliage, one can find so many berries waiting to be harvested.
Patricia also fills an entire tray.
Four trays of berries picked in less than an hour. To save berries for use at another time, they can be frozen and used as needed.
These berries were left in the freezer for several hours. Now, they can be moved into plastic containers or freezer bags.
Properly frozen raspberries retain their flavor, texture, and nutritional value for eight to 12 months.
Freshly picked raspberries provide a combination of sweet‑tart flavor, juicy texture, and vibrant aroma that’s unmatched. Check your bushes – maybe you have more to pick before the season ends!
This time of year - late summer to early fall - many roses are still producing abundant blooms, including my Martha Stewart Hybrid Tea Roses. It’s a great time to cut some fragrant stems and enjoy their arrangements indoors.
When cutting roses, try to do so in the morning, when the stems are well hydrated and fresh. Select healthy stems with either open blooms or tight buds. And always use sharp shears for clean cuts - the sharper the blades, the cleaner the cuts, and the longer the roses will last. At my farm yesterday, we had enough roses to make three beautiful and colorful floral bouquets.
Enjoy these photos.
Look at all my Martha Stewart hybrid tea roses freshly picked from my gardens. These will make a stunning arrangement for my Winter House.
My rose has large pink blooms, dark green foliage, and a most wonderful and sweet fragrance. When in peak bloom, it shows off more than 100 lush pink to apricot petals and a citrus-honeysuckle scent.
I have Martha Stewart roses growing in two formal beds outside my main greenhouse and in a cutting garden near my chicken coops.
The leaves are glossy and dark green. Rose leaves are described as “pinnate” – meaning there is a central rib and then leaflets off to each side, with one terminal leaflet. Rose leaves can have anywhere from two to 13 leaflets.
The Martha Stewart rose matures to three feet tall and about three feet wide making it ideal for borders, small gardens, and containers. The fragrance is wonderfully intoxicating.
And remember, rose stems are often armed with sharp prickles, not thorns. A prickle can be easily broken off the plant because it is really a feature of the outer layers rather than part of the wood, like a thorn.
Enma cuts the flowers that are newly opened and fresh looking.
I also have many other roses blooming right now. A rose is a woody perennial flowering plant of the genus Rosa, in the family Rosaceae. There are more than a hundred species and thousands of cultivars.
Roses come in many different colors, such as creamy yellow, pink, peach, white, red, magenta, copper, vermilion, purple, and apricot.
I instructed Enma to cut medium length stems for a shorter, more full arrangement in this glass cylinder.
Enma removes any leaves from the stem that sit below the water line in the vase. This makes the arrangement look clean, but it also prevents leaves and flowers from rotting too quickly.
Working carefully and thoughtfully, Enma fills every space with a beautiful Martha Stewart rose. Using a single variety for an arrangement shows consistent bloom shape, size, and color, making the display dramatic and visually impactful.
Always look at the arrangement from all angles to ensure there are no bare spaces.
And invest in a good watering can for the flowers – one that allows for controlled use without damaging any of the fragile petals.
Enma chooses one of my glass finger vases for the next arrangement. I love these vessels – they fit lots of stems and can be arranged to look very full.
Most freshly cut roses should last up to one week if properly tended. When displaying roses, be sure to keep them away from heat and bright light, which will shorten the vase life.
Enma fills the vase with tepid to slightly cool water. Always leave a little room, so water doesn’t overflow. Vases need enough to keep stems submerged so they can draw water efficiently, without deteriorating.
Arrangements don’t always have to be big. A small glass container like this one will hold four to five stems beautifully.
Size up the stems next to the vase being used, so they can be cut appropriately.
For longevity, change the water every one to two days and recut stems to maintain freshness.
This vase of roses is in my sitting room, where I can see them every morning on my way to the kitchen.
And this arrangement of Martha Stewart roses is in my Winter House kitchen, another nice spot where it can be seen and enjoyed every day. If you grow roses, I hope this inspires you to go out and cut a selection of flowers, so you, too, can enjoy their beauty and fragrance inside.
Sometimes a garden needs a complete redesign — a fresh start that revitalizes the space and makes room for new, young plants.
This week, I decided to transform the large garden bed behind my farm’s vegetable greenhouse. The space had previously been used for growing dahlias, but I thought it would be the perfect location for a beautiful collection of roses, including my own Martha Stewart Hybrid Tea Rose. The bed receives full sun and is protected from strong winds, making it an ideal location. My gardeners and outdoor grounds crew removed the old plants, tilled and amended the soil, and then started planting.
Here are some photos, enjoy.
This bed was once filled with dahlias. They had all served me well over the years, producing many beautiful and colorful blooms, but they were aging and the garden needed a good overhaul. Here it is cleared of plants and sprinkled with a generous amount of fertilizer.
Fertilizer replaces lost nutrients, so levels are acceptable for healthy growth. I use Miracle-Gro Shake ‘n Feed All Purpose Plant Food, a slow-release fertilizer formulated to nourish a wide variety of plants for up to three months.
Rototilling is one method of turning up the soil before planting. It also helps to loosen any other root balls that may have been left deep in the bed. I always rototill the earth before planting a new garden.
As Phurba moves, he makes sure to overlap his passes slightly, so every bit of soil is covered. Tilling also helps to level the ground as it turns over the soil.
The machine is set to till the soil at about six to eight inches deep. It is not a heavy piece of equipment, but does need to be pushed slowly through the soil to work it well.
Here, one can see the tilled dark, rich soil. In the foreground is nutrient-rich soil that has been tilled. In the back is soil that Phurba still has to go over.
Phurba goes over the entire space with a long hard rake to level the bed.
The soil is amended with compost. I am so proud of my compost that is made right here at my farm. Quality compost provides nutrients, improves soil structure, and supports beneficial microorganisms.
Phurba uses a garden pitchfork to lift and drop the compost across the garden.
Then he uses a hard rake, or bow rake, to break up any soil clumps and spread it evenly.
Industrial weed cloth is placed around the perimeter of the bed to keep pesky weeds from growing. I like to use strong landscape staples in the center and edges to keep it in place.
The roses are selected and brought to the garden. And then under Ryan’s direction, Phurba places the potted roses where they need to be.
I wanted the plants in perfectly straight rows.
Every row is checked multiple times from every angle before any plant is removed from its pot.
These roses are from Star Roses and Plants, a company of brands that focuses on breeding and introducing specimens offering longer-lasting, disease resistant blooms. They came to me as bare-roots and have developed nicely over the last year. Some of the varieties choses for this garden are ‘Raspberry Cupcake,’ ‘Bolero,’ ‘Apricot Candy,’ ‘Ball Gown Romantica,’ ‘Beverly,’ ‘Coco Loco,’
‘Top Cream,’ ‘Sunbelt Savannah,’ ‘Princesse Charlene de Monaco,’
‘Francis Meilland,’ and
‘Liv Tyler.’ Around the garden, I wanted my rose, the Martha Stewart Hybrid Tea Rose, which when in bloom shows off more than 100 lush pink to apricot petals and a citrus-honeysuckle scent.
Rose leaves are borne alternately on the stem. In most species, they are about two to five inches long, pinnate, with at least three leaflets and basal stipules. The leaflets also usually have a serrated margin. and remember, rose stems are often armed with sharp prickles, not thorns. A prickle can be easily broken off the plant because it is really a feature of the outer layers rather than part of the wood, like a thorn.
Nearly 100 roses will be planted here when complete. Matthew begins digging the holes under each pot.
All the holes are dug first and then rechecked for proper positioning. When planting, make sure the hole is slightly wider but equal in depth to the rose’s root ball. This will generally be about 15 to 18 inches deep by 18 to 24 inches wide.
Phurba carefully removes a rose from its pot. Do this slowly, especially if the root ball is moist and crumbling.
And then he teases the roots slightly to stimulate growth.
The roses are placed in their designated holes before backfilling – just in case more adjustments are needed.
Phurba is sure to bury each rose to the same depth it was in the pot. The bud union should be at or slightly below the soil surface.
Once the area is planted, the surrounding soil is raked evenly and neatly with a hard rake and then everything is given a good watering.
And by day’s end, the garden is planted. A layer of good, nutrient-rich compost will top dress these plants next. Plan a new garden properly using the best soil, food, and lighting needs to give young plants the best start possible. This garden will grow beautifully.
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