As summer wears on, late-season flowers continue to bring vivid color and beauty to my gardens.
Down by my chicken coops, in what was once my vegetable garden, I dedicated a space entirely to annuals. Here, different varieties are thoughtfully arranged in beds according to size, color, and bloom time. Every flower is started from seed in my greenhouse. Right now, the Aztec marigolds, zinnias, cosmos, amaranth, and celosia are putting on a beautiful show - they are great flowers to admire outdoors in the garden and just as lovely when cut and brought indoors for arrangements.
Here are some photos.
When I redesigned this garden, I wanted a space for raised beds where I could plant flowers by type specifically for cutting. This garden has such excellent, nutritious soil, I knew whatever was planted here would thrive.
I planted flowers that do well in full sunlight, meaning they get at least six to eight hours of sun per day. Enma cuts some of these giant Aztec marigolds for indoor arrangements.
Also known as American marigold or African marigold, Aztec marigold, Tagetes erecta, is a showy, easy-to-grow annual that blooms from summer to the first frost. The huge, fragrant blooms, appear on top of one to four-foot stems and are available in various shades of orange, yellow, bronze, and creamy white.
Celosia is a small genus of edible and ornamental plants in the amaranth family, Amaranthaceae. Its species are commonly known as woolflowers, or, if the flower heads are crested, cockscombs. The plants are well known in East Africa’s highlands and are used under their Swahili name, mfungu.
This crested type, Celosia Cristata, has twisted, dense, velvety flower heads that can grow to six inches wide.
While many are one color, some of them come in a combination of colors, such as this one in shades of orange and red.
This is the most widely grown type – the feathery, flame-like Celosia flowers made of hundreds of slender, bracts from a central axis.
These celosia flowers also come in a vibrant array of colors including bright yellow, orange, pink, fiery shades of red, and deep purple.
Here’s a plume celosia in a bold gold. The flowers are vibrant in the garden, but also hold up very well when cut, adding dramatic texture to arrangements.
Another big shower right now – my zinnias. Zinnia is a member of the aster family and native to Mexico and Central America.
Zinnias are the simplest of flowers and was a favorite of my dad. They come in extraordinary colors and sizes and shapes and are easily grown in one short season.
The Aztecs originally called them “plants that are hard on the eyes” because of their colorful flowers. Zinnia is named after Johann Gottfried Zinn, a German botany professor who discovered the plants and brought them to Europe in the 1700s.
Cosmos are annuals with colorful daisy-like flowers that sit atop long slender stems. They attract birds, bees, and butterflies and come in a variety of colors including white and various shades of pink, crimson, rose, lavender, and purple, all with yellow centers.
The lacy foliage and silky flowers bloom from midsummer to the first frost.
This is Amaranth. The velvety flowers are dense – some with drooping tassels. Blooms come in richly saturated harvest hues, and they hold their colors and shapes even when dry.
There are two main types of Amaranth grown for cutting – one with an upright growing habit where the plants produce spikes or plumes that add height and drama to arrangements.
The other is a trailing type of Amaranth with a draping growth habit.
And have you ever seen these? Commonly called hairy balls milkweed, Gomphocarpus physocarpus, this plant stands out in any garden. The round, balloon-like seed pods are covered with soft, hair-like spines.
These pods can reach the size of a small lime.
The hairy balls milkweed also produces clusters of small, star-shaped white or pale green flowers. These blooms are delicate and fragrant, and are loved by pollinators.
I hope your flower gardens are also doing wonderfully this year.
A well-maintained stable program includes good dental care to keep horses healthy and able to eat properly.
My horses receive regular visits from my longtime equine dentist, Brian Stuart. Unlike human teeth, a horse’s teeth continue to grow and naturally wear, so its bite is constantly changing. Regular dental examinations are important to identify sharp edges or misaligned molars that could make eating uncomfortable. The process of correcting these problems is called floating - filing or rasping an equine’s teeth so that chewing surfaces are smooth and properly contoured. While power floating has become increasingly popular, I prefer the more traditional, all-natural approach of hand filing. Yesterday, Brian came to my stable to examine four-year-old Ulysses and 11-year-old Stewart, the bonded pair of Friesians I adopted last year.
Here are some photos, enjoy.
This is Ulysses, one of two Frisians I last added to my herd. He and Stewart came from The Dorset Equine Rescue in Vermont. It’s wonderful to see them accustomed to their new surroundings and enjoying the company of my other horses.
Ulysses and Stewart are two of the five Friesians in my stable. They join my donkeys and my Fell pony. This is what I call the “run-in” pasture. It is the largest of my fenced in paddocks and has a sizable shelter where the horses can gather for shade or food, etc.
Back in the stable, Brian checks out Stewart’s teeth. Brian says his molars are in good condition, but will have to watch the front to make sure they remain well aligned.
Unlike human teeth, which are covered in a hard, smooth enamel layer, horse teeth are coated in cementum, a softer and more porous material making them more prone to staining from food, soil, and minerals. This is why horse teeth can look dull or discolored even without visible decay.
Next, Brian visits Ulysses, the younger horse. Brian has been practicing for more than 35-years. He always works in the horse stalls where they are most relaxed.
The key to working with horses is to gain their trust, which in turn helps them calm down. Brian spends a few minutes just talking to Ulysses before he begins working.
He starts by checking the front teeth.
Much of Brian’s work is done through feel. He feels for any abnormalities in the mouth. Horses have 42 teeth in all. Of those, 24 are molars and premolars that are constantly growing and being worn away.
These are Brian’s tools of the trade. They are called floats. Floats are about 21-inches long. The long handles allow Brian to get to the back molars.
Brian soaks them in a Chlorhexidine solution, an antimicrobial disinfectant.
Each float is fitted with a sharp tungsten carbide blade made of chips that are bonded to the base. This is what files each tooth during the floating process. Brian has 10-floats in his bucket. The floats also come in varying angles for use on different teeth.
This is an “s” file, a two-sided file used for finishing areas and for polishing the front of the molars section where the horse’s bit sits.
Brian uses a float to file any uneven or high edges of the front molars. The process of teeth floating and occlusion adjustment are not painful, but the sound of the rasp may need some getting used to, especially for a horse that is new to dental care.
For a young horse like Ulysses, he’s doing quite well.
Next, Brian places what is called a McPherson full mouth speculum on Ulysses.
The speculum keeps the horse’s mouth open during the floating process.
Now he is able to float the back molars easily.
Brian stops every so often to feel and reassess the tooth being floated. Afterward, Brian does some finishing touches with the “s” file. Brian also continues to speak softly to keep the horse relaxed.
In most cases, the horse feels the changes right away – he should be much more comfortable now.
After their dental appointments, Helen walks them to their pasture, where they are turned out to run and enjoy the mild summer weather. It’s always comforting to know the horses, my pony, and the donkeys are well-cared for, happy and healthy here at my farm.
Effective orchard maintenance requires year-round care, from seasonal pruning and fertilization to irrigation and regular grooming.
At my farm, the orchard surrounds my pool and is home to more than 200 fruit trees, including a variety of apples, plums, cherries, peaches, pears, medlars, and quinces. Each season, these trees reward me with an abundance of delicious, sweet fruit. Keeping such a large orchard healthy and looking its best is no small task. Right now, my outdoor grounds crew is carefully manicuring the pits beneath each tree — the prepared areas that provide support for the trees and their roots. It is meticulous and time-consuming work, but as I’m sure you will agree, the results make all the efforts worthwhile.
Enjoy these photos.
I planted this orchard in 2017. Many of these trees were started as bare-root cuttings. They’ve grown excellently over the years. Fruit trees need a good amount of room to mature. When planting, be sure to space them at least 15-feet apart.
The peach trees still have many fruits. They are so delicious this year.
And the apples are also growing nicely – we should have a bountiful apple season come fall.
Before any tree pit is groomed, the crew feeds the trees with Miracle-Gro Fruit & Citrus Plant Food Spikes, which will promote more fruit and lush foliage.
Each spike is inserted into the soil where it will release food slowly. I usually put a couple under each tree.
I also use natural tree “crutches” to support limbs weighed down by fruit. Notice the natural notch that supports the branch. These crutches are repurposed from felled limbs around the farm.
Arnold sets up the twine. I encourage my crew to use twine to line the spaces whenever they do this kind of work. Arnold secures the twine at one end of each row. This takes time to do, but this is a very important step in the process – it will guide all the work that is done.
We use gardener’s twine to line up the squares so it is perfectly straight down each row of trees. The bright color makes it easier to see in the grass.
I wanted each tree pit to be about four feet square. My outdoor grounds crew foreman built simple wooden square frames that could be placed down and removed easily.
The frame is secured with latches and hooks to ensure it is perfectly square.
Any grass within the frame is trimmed and covered.
Wheelbarrows are brought in full of mulch made right here at my farm.
It takes about a wheelbarrow and a half to cover the tree pit sufficiently.
Using a hard rake, the mulch is spread out evenly. Using the frame also allows the crew to bypass edging, which could harm the roots.
And the mulch layer should never be more than about two to four inches deep. This depth provides moisture retention, temperature regulation, and weed suppression without suffocating the tree.
The mulch is then tamped down carefully to create a well-shaped tree pit.
Once the pit is formed, the wooden frame is removed slowly and carefully.
The most important tip is keep the trunk of the tree “bare to the flare,” meaning nothing should ever be above the tree’s flare – the point where the tree stops widening at meets the roots.
The trees look so great already – I love the geometric appearance of all the square pits.
The crew has completed a good number of pits already. Maintaining a garden space correctly and thoughtfully will go far beyond just growing plants and trees, it will encourage vibrant growth and higher yields, which are very good things.
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