As many of you know, my work schedule is very busy - lots of media appearances, special events, and book signings, but it’s always a treat when my travels take me to nearby East Hampton, New York.
Last weekend, Kevin Sharkey and I conducted a book signing at BookHampton, a quaint, popular and longtime book shop located on Main Street, right in the village of East Hampton. It was a joy to sign books for many of my neighbors and friends in the area. I also hosted a cocktail party at the ERES boutique to preview the store’s summer collection. And of course, I spent time at Lily Pond, my East Hampton home. The gardens are looking spectacular this time of year - so full of color and life.
Here are some photos - enjoy.
This picture was taken early in the morning – the best time to take garden photos. The circle and round turn at the end of the driveway are planted with pink saucer magnolias, and many ferns. The green is so bold next to the light colored gravel.
The rounded trees are parrotia persica, or Persian ironwood. Native of northern Iran, its leaves turn a rich purple to brilliant red. Its bark has a flaking, peeling nature, giving the tree a colorful and unusual appearance. I planted four of these Parrotia persica trees and they have grown magnificently over the years.
Looking at another section of the garden are the full perennial beds filled with ageratum, delphinium, salvia, lavender, and bordered with lady’s mantle.
In this garden, I planted Japanese maples, aruncus, solomon seals, boxwoods, ferns and hostas – they’re looking so beautiful and full.
The Japanese maples have done very well – I expect they will thrive for years to come.
Here is another view of the garden path and these shade loving plants.
The double row of hornbeams on either side of the old brick walkway appear so much taller every time I visit.
This garden surrounds a Ginkgo biloba tree. Luckily, all the Ginkgo trees I planted 25-years ago in East Hampton were male, so they do not drop all the billions of berries that the giant Bedford tree does. I planted this garden with red Japanese maples, hostas, ferns, and more boxwood.
The swimming pool in the backyard at Lily Pond is adorned with aqua glazed strawberry pots which are planted with many different succulents, colocasia and rhapsis, the broadleaf “Lady Palm”. The tall shrubs are European hornbeam. The smaller shrubs are boxwood.
And here – young, white clematis fill the trellis gate with cheerful white blooms.
These blooms are so big and showy. They have such bright white petals that curve gently at the tips with sunny yellow anthers.
Later that morning, we headed to town. It was nice to see so many guests already lined up in front of BookHampton when we arrived.
BookHampton is open year-round and often features fun, lively events with interesting authors.
Inside, there were stacks of “Martha’s Flowers” for guests to purchase.
Kevin and I signed dozens and dozens of books. As a longtime resident, I always enjoy doing events in East Hampton.
Here are some very happy “Martha’s Flowers” owners.
And as always, I try to take as many photos as possible with guests who attend our signings.
Here are Lindsey Groginski, from our own public relations team, and Eryn Voight, who does public relations for Clarkson Potter.
Here, Kevin and I are joined by local radio personality, “Big Fat Joey”, Joe Palmisano, and his family.
And here I am with our security officer – he also loves flowers, and I was so happy to personally sign a book for him.
Before leaving Kevin and I posed for this fun snapshot with the BookHampton staff. Store manager, Jess Bartel, and the entire team were so nice and helpful.
Later that day, I hosted a cocktail party at ERES to celebrate the boutique’s newest collections. Here I am with owner, Lorna Dreher, and some of our guests. Everyone, of course, loved seeing my dogs, 11-week old puppy, Emperor Han, Creme Brulee and Empress Qin. Bete Noire was also there getting lots of attention. It was a great day in East Hampton.
Last week, Kevin Sharkey and I traveled to St. Louis, Missouri to speak at the Saint Louis Art Museum “Art in Bloom” exhibit, the annual celebration of fine art and fresh flowers. The “sold out” event was originally scheduled in March, the same week a nor’easter ripped through the Northeast canceling many flights in and out of New York City. Thankfully, this time the weather was perfect - warm and sunny - and more than 470-guests attended our lecture. Following the program, Kevin and I conducted a book signing and then walked through the museum to view the “Sunken Cities: Egypt’s Lost Worlds” collection. The exhibit runs through September 9th - I truly encourage you to visit if you’re in the area.
Enjoy these photos.
Kevin and I were so pleased to see that our rescheduled keynote lecture was sold out.
Here, Kevin and I are joined by Meredith Holbrook, President of the Saint Louis Art Museum Friends board, Susan Block, co-chair of the 2018 Art in Bloom celebration, and Brent R. Benjamin, the Barbara B. Taylor Director of the Saint Louis Art Museum.
“Art in Bloom” is when florists are invited to create beautiful displays interpreting artwork in the Museum’s collection. This display includes Mock Orange, Coral Charm peonies, and ranunculus. It was designed by Sara Ward at Wildflowers.
The trip was even more fun because I got to see my nephew, Kirk Christiansen, who lives in the area. Kirk, Kevin and I posed for this nice photo.
Various small bites were passed around during a smaller book signing before our lecture. These are mini Indian curry chicken tacos.
Here I am with Lizzy Reisinger, Lily Reisinger, and their mother, Jeana Reisinger.
And here we are with Tracy Kloss, mother of supermodel, Karlie Kloss.
These are Boston creme pie tartlets – a big hit with the guests.
Here I am with Karen Krekeler and Carrie Polk.
And here’s a fun photo with the Saint Louis Art Museum culinary team – Gabe Kveton, Catering Operations Manager, Ivy Magruder, Executive Chef, General Manager Panorama at the Saint Louis Art Museum, Sarah Glass, Director of Catering and Tony Cole, Sous Chef.
Our moderated discussion was held in the museum’s auditorium.
Every seat was filled – it was so nice to see such an enthusiastic and interested crowd.
Brent Benjamin moderated the discussion. We talked about the book, my own gardens and how they inspired the development of the book.
The line for the book signing serpentined through the large hall outside the auditorium. Kevin and I signed more than 325-books.
After the event, a group of us toured the museum’s “Sunken Cities: Egypt’s Lost Worlds” exhibit. The show displays more than 200 ancient religious, ceremonial, and commercial artifacts that were submerged under the Mediterranean Sea for more than a thousand-years.
This is a colossal statue of a Ptolemaic king, Thonis-Heracleion, from the Ptolemaic period 332-30 BC. It is made from pink granite.
This is the Colossal statue of the god, Hapy, Thonis-Heracleion, Aboukir Bay, Egypt, 4th century BC. It is made of red granite and measures 17 feet 8 5/8 by 35 7/16 inches. It weighs six tons.
This stunning painting by Claude Monet, 1840-1926, is called Water Lilies, c.1916-26. It is done with oil on canvas.
Here is a stele of Thonis-Heracleion, in the Late Period, 30th Dynasty, during the reign of Nectanebo I, 380-362 BC. This is made out of black granodiorite and is 74 13/16 inches tall.
Here is the ram-headed god, Amun, engraved on both sides of a limestone plaque, Thonis-Heracleion, 6th century BC. This limestone piece is 45 ¼ inches wide.
This is called Sphinx, made in 380–343 BC. It is Egyptian, and made from black granite.
This is the head of the Apis bull, Serapeum, of Alexandria in Egypt, 2nd century AD. It is possibly from the reign of emperor Hadrian.
Here is the goddess, Taweret, from the 26th Dynasty 664–525 BC. It is made from greywacke and is from the Egyptian Museum in Cairo. Greywacke is a variety of sandstone generally characterized by its hardness, dark color, and grains of quartz, feldspar, and small rock fragments.
This is Osiris on his funeral and revival bed, 1773 to 1650 BC. It represents Osiris when Isis revives him with the breath of her wings. It is 70-inches long.
And this is a statue of Arsinoe II discovered at Canopus. Cut from stone, this is a wonderful example of Graeco-Egyptian art.
Here I am in front of a Gerhard Richter portrait of a German woman born in 1932 named Betty.
And here I am in front of a piece by artist, Ellsworth Kelly, called Spectrum II, 1923-2015. I am standing behind a Donald Judd piece, 1928-1994, which is untitled.
Kevin is in front of a
Franz Kline painting – one of his favorite artists. Kevin has two paintings done in the style of Franz Kline in his New York apartment.
And outside the museum we saw this apotheosis of St. Louis in Forest Park. It represents Louis IX of France, 1214–70, the namesake of the city. Please try to visit the museum the next time you’re in the St. Louis area – you will love it. http://www.forestparkstatues.org/apotheosis-of-st-louis/ http://www.slam.org/exhibitions/
Tomatoes, Solanum lycopersicum, have long been one of America’s favorite garden vegetables. Those bold red, sun-ripened tomatoes deliver the taste of summer with every bite. And, they’re filled with excellent antioxidants and vitamins.
Just a handful of healthy plants can produce a bounty of delicious fruits within six to eight weeks. The best time to plant tomatoes is when daytime temperatures are consistently above 65-degrees Fahrenheit. Over the last few days, my gardeners, Ryan and Carlos, planted this season’s tomato crop - more than 120-plants are now growing in our outdoor beds.
Here are some photos - enjoy.
The outdoor grounds crew already covered the beds with thick, black weed cloth to make the beds neat, tidy, and free from weeds. The foot paths were also covered to deter the weeds from growing. Tomatoes should be planted in an area with full sun and well-drained soil.
Here is Ryan bringing out one of the many trays of tomato plants – these plants were all started from seed in my greenhouse.
Here are the tomatoes just getting planted from seed last April.
They were then germinated in our indoor Urban Cultivator machine. We don’t use any pesticides or chemicals of any kind in these machines, so we know we’re nurturing the highest quality plants.
And now these plants are at least a foot tall. We always grow an abundance of tomatoes – I love to share them with family and friends and use them to make all the delicious tomato sauce we enjoy through the year.
Ryan separates the determinate from the indeterminate tomato plants. Determinate tomatoes, or “bush” tomatoes, are varieties that grow to a compact height of about three to four feet. Determinates stop growing when fruit sets on the top bud. Indeterminate tomatoes will grow and produce fruit until killed by frost. They can reach heights of up to 12-feet tall.
Then Ryan sets all the plants in the rows where they will be planted, making sure all the plants are equally spaced along the bed.
This year, our crop of tomatoes is on the opposite side of the large vegetable bed. Always rotate crops. Doing this gives various nutrients to the soil, and improves soil structure and fertility by alternating deep-rooted and shallow-rooted plants.
Using his utility knife, Ryan cuts an “x” through the weed cloth that’s just big enough for the plant.
Transplanted tomatoes that are kept free of weeds for the first four to eight weeks can usually outcompete emerging weeds later. Using a small shovel, Carlos creates a hole for each of the tomato plants. Most tomato plant varieties need about 100-days to mature, but there are some that only need 50-60 days. You can also stagger your plantings, so you have early, mid and late season tomato harvests.
Most tomato plants stem below ground. Plant them deep – everything to just under the bottom set of leaves from the top.
These holes are at least a foot deep.
The holes are also about three-feet apart from each other. Carlos continues to dig the holes for each plant until all the rows are done. This can take a bit of time. The holes are just big enough to plant in and small enough to prevent a good amount of weeds from emerging.
Each plant is positioned right next to its hole. We try to fit at least 10 to 12-plants in each row to maximize the use of garden bed space.
Ryan follows up with a healthy scoop of fertilizer. The best fertilizer for tomato plants contains a relatively low concentration of nitrogen. High nitrogen content promotes the growth of stem and leaves, but not the fruit and flowers. Instead, tomato plants use phosphorous and potassium to produce fruit. Apply the fertilizer before the tomato plant is placed in the hole. A fertilizer with a 5-10-5 ratio of nitrogen, phosphorous and potassium is good for the young plants.
As the tomato plants grow, they need to be staked for support. Staking helps to keep the fruit off the ground, while helping to keep the plant somewhat upright. Don’t use any chemically treated wood or other material for staking climbers, as the chemicals would likely run off and go into the soil. We use, and reuse, bamboo stakes that are light, easy to store and support our plants just right.
Ryan begins planting. Two-thirds of the plant should be underground, meaning all but the two top most leaf sets should be buried.
Planting deeply helps the plant to develop more roots, and more roots mean more ability to take up water and nutrients.
If the seedling is already too tall and wobbly, dig a trench instead of a hole and lay the plant on its side. The stronger root system also helps the plant better survive the hot weather. This applies to tomatoes planted in the ground, in a raised bed or in a container.
Ryan backfills each hole and unfolds the weed cloth flaps – hopefully this method of using weed cloth and “x”‘s will really cut down on the amount of weeding this season.
At this stage, they are staked with two to three foot tall bamboo canes. They can be tied gently with jute twine – the loop around the plant stem should be just tight enough to keep the vine secure, but not break it. These plants look so much better when kept upright and neat. Most tomato plant varieties need between 50 and 90 days to mature. Planting can also be staggered to produce early, mid and late season tomato harvests.
The first rows of plants are now in the ground. It’s a good idea to grow a range of varieties, including at least one or two disease-resistant types, since, of all veggies, tomatoes tend to be the most susceptible to disease. 93-percent of American gardeners grow tomatoes in their yards, and according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, most Americans eat between 22 and 24 pounds of tomatoes per person, per year – this includes tomatoes in sauces.
Several rows done and just a couple more rows to go – soon we will have delicious, juicy tomatoes here at the farm.
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