Enjoy this encore blog posting which originally ran on September 27th, 2022. It features my visit to a wonderful and historic garden.
I love visiting gardens around the country and around the world - especially when they are as enchanting and as beautiful as Wethersfield Estate & Garden in Amenia, New York.
Wethersfield was the country home of philanthropist, conservationist, and banking heir, Chauncey Devereux Stillman. In 1937, he bought two abandoned farms where he designed and developed his estate and eventually expanded the property to its current size of approximately 1,000 acres. Situated at the top of a hill with breathtaking mountain views, the home and land includes a three-acre formal garden, a seven-acre wilderness garden, a working farm, a carriage house and museum, and miles of woodland trails for hiking and horseback riding. Over the weekend, I toured the gardens and attended a lecture on Wethersfield hosted by the Institute of Classical Architecture Art - a nonprofit organization dedicated to promoting and preserving the practice, understanding, and appreciation of classical design. Wethersfield Estate & Garden is described as the finest classical garden in the United States built in the second half of the 20th century - I do hope you take the opportunity to visit it someday.
Here are some photos, enjoy.
This is the historic front gate at Wethersfield Estate & Garden. The leaded urns are topped with camels from the Stillman Family crest.
Visitors to Wethersfield Garden are able to view the property map, showing the formal garden near the main house.
Wethersfield’s Director of Horticulture Toshi Yano greets guests and thanks everyone for attending the ICAA’s Bunny Mellon Symposium.
Here, a tall limestone urn in the distance marks the boundary between the working and designed landscape. One can see the Taconic mountain range beyond.
This is the Tempietto at the Belvedere. From here, one can see distant views of the Berkshires and the Catskills. It was important to Chauncey that the design of his stately Georgian-style colonial home include sweeping views of the area.
Here, weeping beech trees are pruned into columns to mark the four corners of the East Garden. Look closely, and one can see Fuchsias overflowing from the leaded urns.
Fuchsias were among Chauncey’s favorite flowering plants. Fuchsia is a genus of tropical perennial plants that produce exotic-looking, two-toned flower blossoms.
Here is another view inside the East Garden with its handsomely manicured hedges.
This statue shows Cupid riding a dolphin in a lovely niche of shale and bluestone. The wall doubles as a rock garden filled with alpine plants.
This is a limestone finial atop a brick column at the Cutting Garden.
This is the “Schooling Field” where Chauncey would train his Hackney horses for four-in-hand carriage driving. A field that also has sweeping mountain views.
This statue is of a panned piper on one side of an arch cut into an arborvitae hedge.
This is a very well-executed ha-ha – a “blind fence,” or a recessed landscape design element that creates a vertical barrier. In the distance one can see the slight change in color toward the end of the lawn marking a four foot drop meant to keep the livestock out of the garden.
The swimming pool at Wethersfield has been converted into a reflecting pool.
The curvature of the oval reflecting pool is echoed in the steps where masses of scented geraniums fill the air with perfume.
I admired the cherub with a finger to his lips. Toshi says it suggests to visitors that “silence is golden.”
This is a living rug in bluestone and turf grass. It marks the entrance to an arborvitae allée. The Naiad fountain at the very end is by Swedish sculptor Carl Milles.
Wethersfield is filled with unusual limestone and lead ornaments – this one also caught my eye.
Urns designed by Stanford White are filled with Artemisia mauiensis, or Maui wormwood – a perennial plant native to the island of Maui with mounding, soft silvery foliage.
It also looks so beautiful in this parterre.
This is the goldfish pool at Wethersfield’s Pine Terrace. The shale retaining walls in the garden are made of stones from the farm’s historic field walls.
Sweet autumn clematis, Clematis terniflora, flows over a fence with its white fragrant blooms. The hills of the Taconic range can be seen in the distance.
This stone step mounting block shows visitors entering or exiting that the owner had horses, and in this case, a collection of riding carriages.
And this is the west side of the main house at Wethersfield, beautifully maintained inside and out. The entire property is now managed by the Wethersfield Foundation. Go to the website at Wethersfield.org to learn more about this fabulous estate and garden.
Remember this one? This fun blog post was originally published on June 06, 2025
I always enjoy entertaining at my farm, but it is even more memorable when my guests are the enthusiastic, creative and loyal devotees of the Martha Stewart brand.
Yesterday, I hosted a day celebrating 30 individuals who have not only followed this blog but have also read my magazines, watched my television and radio shows, cooked and baked my recipes, purchased my products, and shared their experiences and all they've learned with so many others - true ambassadors and influencers. The day began with a breakfast on my Winter House terrace parterre, then a walking tour through my gardens, followed by a delicious paella lunch prepared by my friend Chef Pierre Schaedelin of PS Tailored Events. In the afternoon, several longtime colleagues and friends presented their thoughts on the brand today, shared their stories, and offered more ideas and inspirations. The day's events concluded with an interesting session of "Ask Martha" and my parting advice to heed one of my own favorite sayings - "learn something new every day."
Here are the first of many photos, enjoy.
The day’s forecast called for a hot day in the high 80s, but that did not dissuade any of those who came to my farm for this “super fans” celebration. Guests came from across the country to spend a day at Cantitoe Corners.
The morning began bright and early at 9am sharp. Everyone was on time and ready for a full day of activities. Here are just some of those gathered during the start of my garden tour.
I led them behind my main greenhouse to the berry patches. This is my large strawberry patch. We’ve already picked boxes and boxes of delicious, sweet red strawberries.
Strawberries are among the easiest berries to grow. They’re cold-hardy, adaptable, and can be planted in both garden beds and containers. Do you know why it is called a “strawberry”? One theory is that woodland pickers strung them on pieces of straw to carry them to market. Others believe the surface of the fruit looks embedded with bits of straw. Still others think the name comes from the Old English word meaning “to strew,” because the plant’s runners stray in all directions as if strewn on the ground.
I showed them one of my rose gardens. This is a more formal garden I planted two years ago. It is looking so stunning this year.
I also walked the group through my perennial flower garden, which is also blooming wonderfully right now. I hope you saw my blog earlier this week.
The group proceeded up the carriage road past my long and winding pergola and this stand of stately bald cypress trees. I told the group most of the trees they see during the tour are ones I planted since moving to the farm.
I like to serve some kind of refreshments during my garden tours. On this day, I had croissants and cinnamon buns from LMNOP Bakery in Katonah, New York.
I prepare everything in my kitchen first, making sure we have all the essentials before taking them out to the terrace.
Trays of my nutritious green juice are also prepared fresh that morning. Everyone must have a glass of green juice to start the day.
The food is brought out just as guests walked up to the terrace. I also hardboiled lots of farm fresh eggs earlier in the morning.
All the beautiful eggs are from my chickens, of course. Everyone loved them.
Kevin Sharkey took this photo from the second floor of my home. Everyone was having such a good time despite the very warm weather.
The group presented me with a collection of gifts – each one personally selected or handmade. I was very touched and excited to see everything up close. I placed them all out on the kitchen counter to take photos.
The tour continued after breakfast with a walk down to my half-acre vegetable garden. Everything is growing so nicely.
Look at the kale – lush and green.
And the fava beans – already knee hight.
Along the tour, Ryan and I shared stories about how each garden was developed and what they contained. Everyone was also given a map of the farm that shares its history.
Next I had the group walk through my living maze without any assistance on how to find the way to its center. They all did very well meandering up and down the rows, looking for the right paths – there is only one correct one.
And the end is my great eagle in the middle of an open space about two thirds of the way through the maze. In my next blog, I’ll share photos from our delicious al fresco lunch, and the rest of the tour. Stay tuned.
Here's another encore blog post. This one originally ran on April 29th of this year.
Among the many benefits of growing one's own flowers - they can be enjoyed both inside and out.
It's always so nice to walk through the gardens and see a multitude of beautiful and colorful blooms. I also love cutting fresh flowers to display in my home. Recently, my housekeeper Elvira Rojas brought in some beautiful spring tulips - so loved for their tall, straight stems, graceful leaves, and bright, cheery blooms.
Enjoy these photos and tips.
Hard not to love fresh, colorful spring tulips. They come in a large variety of shapes, sizes, colors, and forms. Some are traditional and cup-shaped, some have fringed petals, others have pointed ones, and some are full of fanciful ruffles. Some varieties even carry a soft, subtle scent.
Tulips typically begin emerging from the ground in late winter or early spring. I have tulips growing in many areas around my farm including several beds of my vegetable garden, in my flower cutting garden, and in this bed behind my main greenhouse.
In 2015, this garden was dedicated entirely to tulips. I eventually turned this space into a rose garden, but some tulips continue to pop up every spring.
Although closely associated with Holland, tulips were first cultivated in Turkey. The name tulip is believed to be derived from the Turkish word for turbans, “tulbend,” because of their resemblance.
Garden tulips thrive in sunny areas with well-drained soil. They also need cold winters, where they can get 12 to 16 weeks with temperatures between 35 and 45 degrees Fahrenheit to trigger proper root development and flower formation.
Here’s Elvira cutting some of the tulips to bring indoors. If possible, cut tulips when the buds show full color but are not yet completely open – this will allow for the longest vase life.
And cut flowers in the early morning or late evening when stems are fully hydrated and sugars are at their peak. And always use clean, sharp shears.
Cut the tulips at the base of the stem at a 45-degree angle to provide the largest surface area for water uptake while in the vase.
Elvira also picks some white tulips.
As soon as the flowers are brought in, vases are filled and arranging begins. I use cool, fresh water and only fill about two thirds to avoid over-submerging. More water can be added later if needed.
Putting tulips and other flowers in water soon after cutting prevents stems from sealing, which can slow water uptake and reduce freshness.
I like to keep similar colors and varieties together, but tulips can be mixed depending on preference.
Any leaves that would sit below the waterline should be removed to keep the flowers fresh and prevent bacteria from growing.
To remove the leaves, gently pull them back and peel them away from the stem.
These yellow tulips with bright red streaks are striking for cut arrangements.
My antique glass finger vases work well for tulips because they support the tall stems.
Elvira mixes white with these yellow tulips. Tulips have been hybridized in just about every color except blue. Most tulips have one flower per stem, but there are some multi-flowered varieties.
And do you know… tulips follow the sun even when they’re in a vase? Watch them. Tulips also continue to grow even after they’ve been cut.
Elvira looks at the arrangement from all sides and fills in any holes. This arrangement looks full and beautiful.
This arrangement is placed on this counter in my servery, where I can see them every day on my way to the kitchen.
Mother Luna Mona and daughter Half Moon nap nearby – flowers don’t interest them too much.
These tulips are displayed in my sitting room on a brass tray table. Keep cut flowers in a cool area as heat reduces the bloom time. I hope you can bring some flowers inside from the garden and enjoy the beautiful spring blooms.
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