Among the most popular spring-blooming shrubs are azaleas - and mine are just starting to flower beautifully.
Azaleas come in an array of rich and vibrant colors including pink, white, orange, yellow, and crimson. I have a large azalea border featuring hundreds of these gorgeous specimens. Many of the plants are from White's Nursery, LLC in Germantown, Maryland. White’s specializes in evergreen, deciduous, and native azaleas as well as rhododendrons. Owners Mike and Debra White grow all their plants and nurture them in their greenhouses. Yesterday, I picked up another large selection of azaleas in shades of orange and yellow for a new project at the farm.
Here are some photos, enjoy.
White’s Nursery is located about 50-miles outside of Baltimore. It is here, on 17-acres of lush, verdant fields where Mike and Debra created a specialized nursery where they breed and grow some of the most beautiful azaleas.
They house their plants in two rows of large greenhouses – all closely maintained by Mike and Debra.
Inside each one are hundreds of potted azaleas and rhododendrons just beginning to bloom. Debra said it was a cold and long winter, so they’re flowering a little later this year, but everything is doing well.
White’s Nursery has more than 350 varieties of evergreen azaleas such as Glenn Dale, Bowie Mill, Satsuki, Robin Hill and many others. In addition, they also carry a wide selection of deciduous and native azaleas such as Calendulaceum, Chop Tank, Great Balls of Fire, Lemon Drop, Red Pepper, and some fragrant varieties.
In this greenhouse are 70 orange and yellow azaleas ready for the drive to my farm. Among the varieties in this collection – ‘Admiral Semmes,’ ‘Appalachian Gold,’ ‘Don’s Variegated Austrinum,’ ‘Great Balls of Fire,’ ‘My Mary,’ ‘Red Pepper,’ ‘Sunyside Up,’ ‘Sunrise,’ ‘Sunstruck’ and a number of unknown deciduous varieties.
These azaleas are so bold in color and all of them in excellent condition. Azalea petal shapes vary greatly. They range from narrow to triangular to overlapping rounded petals. They can also be flat, wavy or ruffled.
All of my azaleas are tagged to make sure there is no confusion.
This greenhouse is where Mike breeds his own azaleas from cuttings. Mike is extremely knowledgable and is passionate about creating colorful and hardy varieties – it’s a true labor of love.
Once the plants are big enough, they’re moved to one of several cold frames to develop further.
Some of the plants blooming right now include this ‘Cotton Candy’ – a broadleaf evergreen shrub with green foliage. In spring, bright pink flowers emerge.
‘Phyliss Korn’ shows off big cream and white flowers.
This light colored pink variety is called ‘Rhodo works’ with its dainty blooms featuring light pink on one side and darker pink on the other. The best time to shop for azaleas is when they are in bloom so one can see their flower colors and forms.
Azaleas are native to several continents including Asia, Europe, and North America. These plants can live for many years, and they continue to grow their entire lives. This ‘Dream’ has three inch strong pink flowers with wavy-edges.
And ‘Marshy Point Stardust’ has dark pink flowers.
‘Marshy Point Irish Eyes’ features white blooms with yellowish light green centers.
This is ‘Hardings Pride’ – a beautiful peach pink and white azalea. Azalea flowers can be single, hose-in-hose, double or double hose-in-hose, depending on the number of petals. The tube-shaped base of the flower contains a stamen that protrudes from the center. The leaves are often evergreen with wooly undersides.
‘Quakeress’ is another bicolored beauty with a striking pink and white pattern.
And here are two beautiful azaleas in Mike and Debra’s personal garden. These are bold orange and yellow colored shrubs that are about five to six feet tall. Always consider mature size when selecting a planting location. Some azaleas, including native types, can reach towering heights of 20 feet or more. Dwarf azaleas grow two to three feet tall, and many garden azaleas stay four to six feet in height with as wide a spread.
They also have this mature ‘Phyliss Korn’ in their garden. Azaleas prefer morning sun and afternoon shade, or filtered light. Hot all-day sun can stress the plants and make them more susceptible to pests.
The broadleaf evergreen’s large flowers attract many pollinators.
All my plants are loaded up in my large trailer. I also picked up more than 90 white azaleas for my good friend, Stephen Sills. We’ll both be busy in the gardens this weekend! I’ll share more photos as mine are planted. You’re going to love where they’re going – just wait and see.
The plants around my farm are growing so beautifully - there are gorgeous spring blooms in every garden.
Every day I see something new. Trees are leafing out and flowers are bursting with color and energy - Fritillaria, Leucojum, Muscari, the trout lilies, the tulips, the Mertensia with their charming blue flowers that open from pink-tinged buds, the large blooms of the Magnolias, and of course, lots and lots of daffodils.
Here are some photos, enjoy.
Some of the early season blooms are the big flowers of the magnolia trees. Magnolia is a large genus of about 210 flowering plant species in the subfamily Magnolioideae. It is named after French botanist Pierre Magnol. Growing as large shrubs or trees, they produce showy, fragrant flowers that are white, pink, red, purple or yellow, which may be bowl-shaped or star-shaped.
I have these magnolias in one corner of my farm not far from my tree peony garden.
Last year, I planted several darker pink magnolias with these large flowers. The variety is called ‘Black Tulip.’
Mertensia virginica, or Virginia bluebell, is a perennial that is native to North America. Its buds are actually pink, but the flowers are blue. They can grow in any garden and bloom in early to mid spring and continue blooming through early to mid summer.
These plants grow best in deep to partial shade and moist, well-drained rich humus. They self-seed and colonize, so there are more in the garden every spring.
This lovely woodland plant is the wood anemone from the Buttercup family. They are cheerful and hardy ground covering plants.
Each flower features white petal-like structures called sepals and yellow centers.
Muscari is a genus of perennial bulbous plants native to Eurasia that produce spikes of dense, most commonly blue, urn-shaped flowers that look like bunches of grapes in spring. Muscari is also known by its common name for the genus – grape hyacinth.
In my vegetable garden, I also have a few beds of blooming tulips. There are currently more than 3000 registered tulip varieties, which are divided into at least 15-groups, mostly based on the flower type, size, and blooming period.
All tulips are planted as bulbs in the fall and bloom in the spring. They also have the ability to come back year after year, but beware – the deer love them too.
Tulip ‘Sanne’ has impressive, elegantly tapered flowers that open deep rose-pink and creamy-pink edges. As it matures, it turns lilac-pink with pink-ivory edges.
‘Foxy Foxtrot’ is a double tulip with shades of apricot, yellow, and hints of rose orange.
These are the flowers of a weeping cherry tree with its cascading branches. This is one of several outside my stable. They only bloom for a short while. These trees are eye-catchers when guests are lucky enough to see them filled with white flowers.
When in bloom, weeping cherry flowers attract many butterflies and hummingbirds.
A handful of azaleas along one side of my farm are also blooming. Of all the shrubs that flower in spring, azaleas provide some of the most brilliant displays. I have hundreds planted outside my Summer House and down the carriage road to the stable.
These are Snowflakes – not to be confused with Snowdrops. The Snowflake is a much taller growing bulb which normally has more than one flower per stem. Snowflake petals are even, each with a green spots on the end, whereas Snowdrops have helicopter-like propellers that are green only on the inner petals.
Snowflakes, Leucojum, are native to Eurasia and are members of the amaryllis family. These perennials increase over time and are not attractive to deer or rodents.
Commonly known as Guinea Hen Flower, Checkered Lily or Snake’s Head Fritillary, Fritillaria meleagris is an heirloom species dating back to 1575. It has pendant, bell-shaped, checkered and veined flowers that are either maroon or ivory-white with grass-like foliage on slender stems.
The delicate blooms of the trout lily, Erythronium, resemble turks cap lilies and stand out in the dappled light. These are planted in a bed outside my chicken coops, but many others also grow in the woodland.
Nearby, this a blooming primrose – a vibrant perennial known for its early blooms that come in yellow, pink, purple, and red. Primrose thrives in cool temperatures and does well in garden beds, borders, and containers.
And here is a spring favorite, Dicentra spectabilis, or bleeding heart – a herbaceous plant with oddly shaped flowers that look very similar to hearts. These flowers are native to eastern Asia and North America. They are shade loving woodland plants that bloom in the cool of spring and stay in bloom for several weeks.
I've gotten such a nice response to the Easter photos on my Instagram page @MarthaStewart48 - thanks for all the click throughs and comments.
Holidays are so much fun. I love celebrating them with my daughter, Alexis, her beautiful children, Jude and Truman, and our close friends and family. This year, more than 40-guests joined me for Easter lunch at my Bedford, New York farm. I hosted my traditional egg hunt outdoors and then we all gathered for a delicious feast prepared by me, my friend Chef Pierre Schaedelin of PS Tailored Events, my granddaughter Jude, and her friend, Jade. It included salmon, ham, lamb chops, stuffed artichokes, asparagus, scalloped potatoes, fresh fruit salads, homemade biscuits, mini bunny cakes, lemon bundt cakes made by my daughter Alexis, chocolates from Jacques Torres, and so much more. I also decorated every room of my Winter House with charming bunnies, chicks, and more eggs than one could count. It was a delightful springtime affair.
Here are more photos from my Easter celebration, enjoy.
Easter at my home always includes lots of festive decorations. Every year I take out all the beautifully decorated eggs from years past – hundreds and hundreds, and display them wherever I can.
Antique bunnies greet all my visitors from the steps of my Winter House kitchen. I found these cast iron rabbit doorstops years ago in East Hampton at an antiques show.
I love pulling out all my decorations finding new ways to use them. Decorations don’t have to be elaborate – use platters you already have and place eggs in them – decorated in faux bois or leave them as is, like these natural quail eggs.
In my Green Parlor, these look like old fashioned chocolate bunnies wrapped in foil, but they are really ceramic bunnies covered in foil. They may not be edible, but they will certainly last much longer.
Here’s another foil bunny on the other side of the table.
This is an antique velvet bunny I love to take out every year. One can never have too many whimsical animals sitting around a room on Easter.
This is Magnolia’s first Easter at Cantitoe Corners. She’s my four year old silver shaded Persian.
And this is my one year old calico Persian named Dahlia. She is so outgoing, friendly, and curious about everything.
In my enclosed porch, an “egg in a nest” – a bird’s nest fern that is. These plants make excellent low light houseplants. They are also epiphytic ferns, which means in the wild they typically grow on other plants or objects.
My dear friend, Kevin Sharkey, gifts me with a beautiful Easter basket every year. And I save every single one. This is a real rabbit taxidermy, which Kevin gave me several years ago. He appears very content displayed in this Japanese basket surrounded by eggs.
A delicate bird nest filled with eggs is displayed on a table in my sitting room.
And here is Dahlia, admiring the décor on this coffee table. She loves to inspect everything. (Photo by Anduin Havens)
There are bunnies and eggs on nearly every table and surface. This pair is hiding under a maidenhair fern.
This year, I set tables inside and out to accommodate the many friends and family members who came for lunch. This large table in my Brown Room seats 16.
The linen napkins are rolled simply and placed at each setting – like long bunny ears.
And doesn’t this make your mouth water? It’s a chocolate lover’s delight – a big bowl of chocolate eggs from French pastry chef and chocolatier, Jacques Torres.
From small to giant! Here’s another chocolate egg. I had eggs of all sizes along the center of the table.
And outside, brighter shades of green and white are used to decorate this table on my terrace. The “children’s table” was set with these larger than life-sized 36-inch faux chocolate bunny figurines holding pretty daffodils from the garden.
Go to my Instagram page @marthastewart48 to see the dishes I served for lunch. I also made dozens of decorated sugar cookies – all made using my method of the four “Ds” – dipping, dripping, decorating, and drying.
Easter lunch was served buffet style in my Winter House kitchen and servery. Here are some of the desserts.
My daughter Alexis is an excellent cook and baker and always makes something different for our holiday gatherings. She made the two delicious lemon bundt cakes.
And I made these mini bunny cakes. All they needed was a dusting of powdered sugar.
And my 14-year-old granddaughter, Jude, made this cake – three generations of avid bakers. I hope you all enjoyed a festive and memorable holiday with friends and family. Happy spring!
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