More Chores Around the Farm
Rain or shine, chores have to be done each and every day.
Here at my farm, my gardeners, housekeepers, stable team and outdoor grounds crew are constantly working off a running list of important tasks. During the summer season, these include pruning and grooming the trees and shrubs, watering all the garden beds, maintaining equipment, tending the vegetable garden and harvesting what is ready, and of course caring for all the animals.
Here are some photos.
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- The boxwood shrubs around my farm are pruned and groomed regularly every year. This boxwood surrounds my herbaceous peony bed. Boxwood is slow growing compared to other shrubs. Typically, the growth rate for most varieties is three to six inches annually. It’s important to prune them regularly to maintain shape and encourage new growth.
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- Phurba Sherpa is my resident boxwood pruner – he does a great job trimming all the shrubs carefully by hand.
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- Here he sharpens his Japanese Okatsune shears. The shears are user friendly, and come in a range of sizes.
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- Ryan and I keep a very close eye on plant feeding schedules. Here he is feeding the roses and boxwood outside my main greenhouse. I just redesigned this garden bed which now includes my newly released Martha Stewart hybrid tea rose and a selection of young boxwood shrubs I nurtured from bare root cuttings.
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- Chhiring is also working in this garden – mulching the area with material made right here at my farm.
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- One side is completely done – it looks so beautiful and manicured.
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- In the vegetable garden, Cesar continues to maintain the growing tomatoes. He checks them every day to make sure the fruits and vines on which they grow are off the ground.
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- Here’s Elvira helping with the latest harvest. I’ve had such a productive artichoke season.
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- Outside the stable, Carlos “Dos” washes and grooms the dogs. My handsome Chow Chow Emperor Han seems to enjoy all the attention.
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- The donkeys are very happy in their new shaded enclosure under the pines. The fly masks keep the pesky summer bugs from biting.
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- Not far, Helen gets Geert ready for an afternoon in his pasture. Geert is one of my four striking Friesians. I think he’s pretty excited about the milder weather. This day was in the mid-80s.
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- Bond waits patiently in his stall for his turnout in the paddock.
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- Don’t forget to water, water, water. Here’s Phurba adjusting a Gilmour telescoping sprinkler to water the beds outside my flower cutting garden. All the watering around my farm is done by hand, so sprinklers are moved every hour.
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- I also use soaker hoses where applicable. Here’s Fernando positioning a soaker hose under the boxwood around my peonies.
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- Pete carefully positions soakers underneath the pergola boxwood. These Gilmour soaker hoses deliver low-pressure water directly to plant roots through tiny pores, reducing evaporation, runoff, and water waste.
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- During this time of year, one can often find Ryan in the vegetable garden checking on what is ready for picking.
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- Here’s just a portion of one day’s harvest – so many carrots and beets.
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- Cesar works in the flower room to wipe the newly harvested potatoes.
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- And who is this looking for love? It’s Mayo, also known affectionately as “May-May.” She is very friendly and curious.
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- And here’s Mayo’s sister, Cinco – also in line for a good scratch or rub. This week is expected to be another hot one here in the Northeast with temperatures soaring once again into the 90s. My farm crew works hard rain or shine to ensure everything functions at its best.
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