Winter is a good time to cover the garden beds with a rich layer of organic compost.
Fortunately I am able to make compost right here at my farm. During the course of the year, my outdoor grounds crew amasses large amounts of organic debris - felled trees, branches, underbrush, etc., but none of the material goes to waste. The wood is either repurposed quickly as milled lumber, chipped and returned to the woodland as top dressing, or mixed with other biodegradable materials including chicken and horse manure to make compost - that nutrient rich “black gold” that's spread generously over all the gardens to protect plants and growing bulbs and keep them insulated until spring.
Enjoy these photos.
Before the huge weekend snow storm, my outdoor grounds crew was busy covering garden beds around my home with beautiful compost.
This area is just outside my archive studio just off the carriage road to my Winter House.
And further up the road, the viburnums across from my carport are top dressed so nicely with compost.
Here’s a closer look at the compost – so full of nutrients for the existing soil.
Compost also includes some of the organic debris from the woodland. During the course of the year, these felled tree limbs and branches are piled neatly by the side of the carriage road. When possible, it is either chipped and returned as dressing in the woods, or carted away and brought to the compost yard and saved for the tub grinder.
Here is the animal waste and hay collected in another area – this also gets processed.
And here are other piles – leaf mold, or composted leaves, and other organic brush and plant debris – all carbon-rich materials in various stages of decay.
After it is all run through the tub grinder multiple times, it is left to decay naturally under giant tarps and made into garden compost – filled with nutrients.
This compost is well decayed. The rich, dark, and crumbly compost can now support proper soil structure, improve water retention, and promote beneficial microbial life back in the gardens.
The task of composting the gardens is done efficiently by several members of the crew. Here, Chhiring fills the wheelbarrows full of compost.
Weeds are removed before any top dressing is applied. Covering the garden beds with compost will also help deter future weeds… I hope.
And as each wheelbarrow is filled, it is brought to the cleaned bed and unloaded in piles. Here is Phurba delivering more compost to the beds behind my Tenant House.
Phurba drops small manageable mounds of compost in the area.
And by hand, a three to four inch layer of compost is spread over all the beds. I prefer this done in winter when flowers are not in bloom and the crew can gingerly walk through without disturbing any growth.
All of it is done carefully and thoughtfully to make sure it is spread in a neat and even layer.
I also use evergreen boughs to provide more insulation over sensitive plants.
This is a garden bed outside my home – not only do the boughs protect plants from harsh weather conditions, but it also looks pretty. And I am reusing and repurposing what I already have.
This is the garden surrounding my Basket House below the towering bald cypress trees – all bare of their feathery fern-like foliage.
This area is part of my Stewartia garden, where I plant various perennials, spring blooming bulbs, and of course, Stewartia trees.
Covering the gardens with a good layer of compost is nature’s best soil conditioner and a wonderful way to beautify the gardens and give back to the earth.
If you are snowed in this morning like many others in the eastern portion of the United States, what are you doing? For those indoors, it could be a nice time to complete another spring cleaning task.
Like many of you, my kitchen is the main "hub" of my home. It's where I eat meals, meet with staff, and do a lot of my paperwork - all on my marble kitchen counters. And while they get cleaned frequently every day, after time they do get marks and rings typically caused by acidic substances that react with the calcium carbonate in the marble. Cleaning them with the right products was the next big chore on my list.
Enjoy these photos.
While marble counters are stunning, they do come with some disadvantages. To start, marble is very porous making it prone to staining and etching. Marble is also softer than other countertop materials which causes them to be more susceptible to scratches.
If you have marble kitchen counters, look closely – do you see marks like these?
Or look from a distance, can you see rings like these? Even after cleaning?
I asked my friends at Precision Stone, Marble & Granite what they recommended I use to clean my countertops. Owner Mark Galazzo suggested a quick process for cleaning the marble, removing any marks, and lightly sealing the surface using acetone, waterproof 400 grit sandpaper, Stonetech Revitalizer, Cleaner and Protector, and Stonetech BulletProof Sealer.
Enma clears the counters and starts by pouring a small amount of acetone onto a rag. Acetone is a colorless, flammable liquid used to dissolve various substances. It is commonly used in nail polish removers.
Enma wipes the counter thoroughly with the acetone.
Here is the rag after using the acetone. My counters are wiped down many times a day, but there is still dirt left on the marble.
Next, Enma pours water onto the counter. This is important for the next step of the process.
She uses a 400-grit sandpaper to remove the acid etching marks. Doing it on a wet surface prevents any scratching. The sandpaper is waterproof, so it is very effective on this counter. It is available online.
Enma spends at least 10 minutes going over the table with the sandpaper. It doesn’t need too much pressure, but it does necessitate repetition to be sure the marks are removed.
The sandpaper is an ultra-fine abrasive that removes the scratches easily and effectively. The paper can be used several times before disposing.
Next, Enma wipes the counter again to remove the water.
Here she sprays the Stonetech Revitalizer, Cleaner & Protector, also available online. This product cleans the surface and protects against future stains and bacterial growth.
Using another clean rag, Enma spreads the cleaner on the surface and wipes the entire area.
She does this several times over to make sure the counter is completely covered and then she wipes it until clean and dry.
Look at the dirt removed. this step may need repeating until the rag ends up clean.
After a thorough wiping, Enma pours a bit of the Stonetech BulletProof Sealer onto the marble.
And she wipes it again – carefully and thoroughly. This adds a very light layer to seal and protect the surface.
And look at the end result. No marks or rings at all.
Here is the area near my sink – so clean.
And here is the end of my marble counter – it looks just as it did when it was first installed more than 20 years ago. It’s great to get these jobs done.
What winter chores are on your to-do list this weekend?
Although we're expecting bitter cold temperatures today and a winter storm tomorrow that could drop more than a foot of snow, it's "business as usual" at my farm. My gardeners, grooms, and outdoor grounds crew are all busy caring for my animals, tending the garden beds, cleaning, organizing, and yes - making sure all the necessary snow removal equipment is in good working order before the inclement weather arrives.
Enjoy these photos.
To keep my farm running efficiently, there is always a long list of chores to complete. I create very detailed notes of all that needs to be done from week to week. Among them is the pruning and grooming of all the trees and shrubs in my maze. Pasang is busy trimming and shaping all the plantings, using landscape string to ensure hedges are perfectly straight and hand shears and pruners to cut.
Last week my gardeners covered the raised saffron bed in my vegetable garden with wire fencing to prevent any animals from snacking on the bulbs.
The fence is secured with garden sod staples – enough to keep the fence down and any creatures away.
In my stable, Helen works on cleaning the galvanized steel on the horse stalls. This metal is often selected for stalls because of its durability and resistance to corrosion, but it can still get dirty from every day use. Helen uses Simple Green on a metal finishing pad and a little “elbow grease” to get the bars and trim clean. Simple Green is an environmentally friendly, non-toxic, and biodegradable cleaning solution.
After using, any dirt and all traces of the cleaner are removed leaving the metal areas clean and safe.
Here is an area filled with grime.
And here it is a few minutes later.
Nearby, Rebeck folds the horses warm turnout rugs from Horseware Ireland, so they’re always ready to use.
Fernando and Pete are busy cleaning and organizing the basement storage area in my production studio guest house. It’s never too early to start on spring cleaning.
Here, Adan works diligently to spread compost over the garden beds. This will help insulate the plantings – we’re expecting a lot of snow and frigid cold temperatures this week.
My Chow Chows, with their dense double coats also need attention. Carlos gives Emperor Han a thorough brushing…
… and face cleaning. Carlos wipes around the eyes and carefully cleans around the outside of the ear canal – never inside.
Chow Chows have a lot of coat around the head, giving it a lion-like appearance, so this area needs a lot of grooming. Emperor Han loves the hydraulic grooming table and will jump up on the table himself. Doesn’t he look handsome?
And yes my dear Qin, you’re next.
Enma uses the mangle iron on my linens. This iron is a mechanical device that was designed to apply even pressure to fabrics in order to smooth out wrinkles.
Here’s Ryan harvesting from my vegetable greenhouse. It’s so nice to have fresh greens growing during the dead of winter.
Later, Ryan replenishes all the soil inside the head house, so he is always ready to do some indoor potting. I use these commercial sized bakers rolling flour bins to store my soil mixes – they work great and fit perfectly under the potting bench for easy access.
In my Equipment Shed, Chhiring is checking the snow blowers to make sure they’re in good working condition. Forecasters are predicting more than a foot of snow from this next storm.
The big plow is also prepared and hitched up onto my pick up truck.
We still have some snow on the ground from last weekend’s storm, but more is on the way. I’ll be sure to share photos – stay tuned and stay safe.
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