Strawberries are among the easiest berries to grow. They're cold-hardy, adaptable, and can be planted in both garden beds and containers. Here at the farm, we're extending our strawberry patch, so we have more delicious, sweet fruits to pick next summer.
Earlier this year, my gardeners planted a large bed of strawberries behind my main greenhouse. The area is filled with nutrient-rich, well-draining soil, and the bed gets lots of full sunlight - the best conditions for these well-loved fruits. The strawberries did so well, I decided to lengthen the rows of strawberry plants to give them more room to grow and thrive.
Enjoy these photos.
Summer strawberries are among the most popular fruits here in the United States. I love eating strawberries fresh from the garden or as jams and jellies I make myself. 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.
Strawberry is a member of the Rosaceae family and goes by the scientific name of Fragaria x ananassa. Strawberries are native to temperature regions all around the world; however, it was the union of two species native to the Americas that developed into the garden strawberry. This is the strawberry patch behind my main greenhouse. Strawberries prefer to be in full sun, and well-drained, well-established, nutrient-rich soil. These plants grew so well this year, I decided to extend the rows.
Here is Brian removing some of the plants from the bed to be moved to the other end of this garden patch.
The plants were so prolific this year – look how green and lush the plants are, but they do need room to thrive. Even if they have started to root, they can be moved or redirected so that they are not crowded or growing into areas where they are not wanted.
Brian and Jimmy gathered all the plants to be moved and put them in crates set in the shade.
Brian sets up the twine, to make sure everything is lined up straight and perfect.
Before making the trench for planting, a line of twine is pulled down the length of the row. These trenches are 18-inches apart.
We followed the same lines we used for the original rows and just extended them. Here, Jimmy is measuring the space between the rows to make sure this last row is equally spaced with the others.
Using a heart shaped hoe, Brian starts by digging a shallow trench. Heart shaped hand hoes are great to use for getting under the soil to make these furrows or to weed.
Here is the trench made under the twine. The trenches should be large enough to accommodate the roots without bending them. Strawberries also need slightly acidic soil with a pH between 5.5 and 6.8.
Brian carefully places each plant where it will be planted. These are spaced a foot apart.
Many varieties of strawberries send out numerous runners throughout the season and fill in the space between plants, so it’s important to give them ample room.
These are the plant’s runners. Strawberry runners, also called stolons, are horizontal stems that grow along the ground. Each runner produces several new “daughter” plants that are still attached to the original “mother” plant. A daughter plant will grow roots where it touches the soil.
Strawberry is a herbaceous perennial. The plant has a short stem and trifoliate leaves which form a crown close to the ground.
Here is Jimmy planting. Planting strawberries at the right depth is important – if the crown is buried, the plant could easily rot.
Once the plant is at its proper depth, Jimmy backfills and tamps down lightly to ensure good contact with the soil.
Brian inspects one of the plants. We planted these in May as bare-root cuttings. They’ve all done so well since then – look how big this plant has grown. The varieties we planted include ‘Jewel,’ ‘Galletta,’ ‘AC Valley Sunset,’ ‘Earliglow,’ ‘Sparkle,’ and ‘Honeoye.’
This row is done and all these are planted properly – the crown of every plant is even with the soil line.
Jimmy continues down another row, spacing each one correctly and carefully.
Brian checks each plant just to make sure – we don’t want to overcrowd them.
Here are the extended rows. I am so pleased with how well they turned out. Next year, we’ll have an even larger bounty of wonderful, sweet, vitamin-C rich strawberries – I can’t wait.
If you love fashion, do try to visit Paris during Fashion Week.
I've always been drawn to the world of fashion - and of course, the French luxury label Hermès, one of the most successful design companies in the world. While in Paris last week, I attended the Hermès Spring Show 2024, which was held at La Garde Republicaine, the training center for the horses of the French Republican Guard. For this runway show, Hermès womenswear creative director, Nadège Vanhée, was inspired by springtime, wildflowers, and grassy meadows. The Collection highlighted a luxurious palette of reds, browns, and blacks on natural fabrics of leather, cashmere, silk, and cotton to showcase easy early summertime staples such as skirts, coats, trousers, and dresses. It was a presentation of elegant simplicity - just leave it to Hermès. During this trip, I also ate at a handful of delicious restaurants including L'Avenue, Mieux, and Cloche. It was a full itinerary, but also full of fun and good company.
Enjoy these photos.
Hard to pass by all the beautiful and historic buildings in Paris without taking photos. This is The Palais de l’Institut de France, formerly the College of the Four Nations. This majestic building is on the left bank of the Seine directly across from the south wing of the Louvre’s Cour Carée. Cardinal Mazarin, Louis XIV’s Prime minister, is buried under the Institute’s grand dome.
And here is the Notre-Dame de Paris, referred to simply as Notre-Dame, the medieval Catholic cathedral on the Île de la Cité, in the 4th arrondissement of Paris. If you recall, it caught fire five years ago. Sad to see it under all the scaffolding, but the giant restoration project is scheduled to be completed in the spring of 2024.
Joining me on my short trip to Paris are my longtime publicist, Susan Magrino, and my makeup artist, Daisy Schwartzberg Toye.
We ate lunch at the outdoor bistro L’Avenue on the corner of Avenue Montaigne – well known for its classic French dishes and people watching from its terrace.
Among the dishes we enjoyed – minced beef fillet tartare.
And a flavorful steamed salmon fillet with fresh green beans.
Here I am in front of our hotel ready to attend the Hermès Womenswear Spring-Summer Runway Show. Did you catch this on my Instagram page @MarthaStewart48? My bag is a vintage Hermès Birkin, 2001.
Both sides of the runway at the Garde Républicaine were decorated with a “meadow” of wildflowers, reeds, and tall grasses. There was also straw dust on the floor of the venue.
The Collection included many womenswear basics, such as this skirt and top, easy-flowing for springtime.
This ensemble is in a bright white-gray color – very fresh, sporty, and casual.
More suit-like fashions were roomy and loose to catch the spring season’s gentle breezes.
Top coats were also easy-going in natural colors with a professional style. Models also wore comfortable flat sandals.
The color palette included shades of dark burgundy – this to showcase a leather skirt and cotton bralette.
Here is another dark burgundy set – a leather coat and dress combination.
Here is a bright red cashmere coat to warm one on chilly spring evenings.
All the styles in this Collection are professional, yet simple and very clean.
This black top resembles a suit vest, matched with a long, tailored skirt.
Guests sat on tiered benches among the wild grasses. It was a very full audience. And not to worry, all the plantings used were replanted outdoors after the show.
While at the show, I bumped into Stefano Tonchi, Italian journalist, curator, and consultant. Always nice to see him and catch up.
After the show, a group of us gathered at Cloche, the revamped historic brasserie on the corner of Rue Coq Heron. We were there to join Hermès creative director, Nadège Vanhée, for dinner.
Some of the dishes on the menu included beautifully presented fish…
… and the most tender filet mignon.
Here I am with Daisy and Susan – all dressed for the afterparty. No, this was NOT planned.
Do you know who this is? It’s Ghali Amdouni, also known by the mononym Ghali – the Italian rapper and record producer – offering his signature “peace” sign in this snapshot.
And here I am with Axel Dumas, a sixth-generation member of the family that founded Hermès.
Here is the famous Eiffel Tower – the wrought-iron lattice tower on the Champ de Mars. This photo was taken at midnight with the full moon in the background. It was a quick but very enjoyable three days in Paris, the beautiful ville lumière, city of light.
I hope you've seen my Instagram posts @MarthaStewart48. I just returned from a trip to Paris to attend the Hermès Spring Show 2024. During my brief visit to the French capital, I stopped in at the world famous bakery and café, Cédric Grolet: Opéra - not once, but twice!
Cédric Grolet is a leading French pastry chef and the executive pastry chef at Le Meurice, in Paris, part of the Dorchester Collection. He operates two of his own patisseries in the city including one inside Le Meurice, and Opéra, on the avenue de l'Opéra, which he opened in 2019. Cédric opened a third shop in London in 2022, and recently a fourth in Singapore. His pastries focus on fruits, and his unique interpretation of traditional French desserts. I tasted some of his popular creations including a Fleur Vanille, a Fleur Paris Brest Pécan, his signature nut cookies, and of course, his delectable croissants.
Here are some photos, enjoy.
This is the front of Opéra at 35 avenue de l’Opéra, where long lines of pastry-loving customers wait for hours to taste the sweet creations.
The famed Avenue de l’Opéra was created from 1864 to 1879 as part of Haussmann’s renovation of Paris. It is located in the center of the city, running northwest from the Louvre to the Palais Garnier, the primary opera house of Paris, until the opening of the Opéra Bastille in 1989. Here is a look down the avenue with a view toward the Opéra.
Here I am with the master patissier, Cédric Grolet, who first found his passion for cooking and baking when he was 11 working in the kitchen of his grandparents’ hotel in Andrézieux-Bouthéon, in the Loire Valley. Cédric entered pastry school at 14. At 21, he went to work at the renowned Fauchon and now, less than two decades later, he owns four of his own establishments.
Opéra is an elegant café and bakery. It is simply furnished and impeccably clean.
Upstairs, a number of grey bistro tables and chairs offer guests a place to dine.
Mirrors on the ceiling allow one to see behind the counter, where many of Cédric’s creations are prepared.
Here is a tray of Cédric’s signature nut cookies – peanut butter cookies topped with a variety of nuts such as hazelnuts, also known as filberts, almonds, and pistachios. These cookies are about six-inches across – big enough to share, if one so desires.
This is a Fleur Vanille, a sweet pastry with vanilla crisp, vanilla milk jam, vanilla dacquoise, and Madagascar vanilla ganache.
And this is called Fleur Paris Brest Pécan, a crispy sweet pastry with crunchy pecan, pecan praline, pecan gianduja, Paris Brest pecan cream, and soft choux pastry. This is Cédric’s rendition of the well-known dessert. Traditionally, the Paris Brest is made in a circular shape with a hole in the middle, as in a bicycle wheel. The name Paris Brest came from a bicycle race in Paris to the city of Brest and back.
These breads resemble small boules, or “balls” of bread.
Some of them were covered with seasonings similar to those on an “everything bagel” here in the US – poppy seeds, toasted sesame seeds, dried garlic, dried onion, and salt.
And the tart shells are just the way I like them – dark and fully baked.
Each one of these is perfectly browned.
And here are two of his larger tart shells – also dark in color. Cèdric uses a blind baking, or pre-baking, method for his shells to ensure the shells are finished to perfection.
Inside the kitchen, Cédric’s team works efficiently to make all the pastries and other confections. He says by the time the doors open, the pastries are already made.
Here, a giant commercial immersion blender is used to mix a batter.
Even the waffles are shaped like flowers. The edges are cut using scissors.
These waffles were delicious – crunchy exteriors with a warm dough filling and served with crème Chantilly – a cream sweetened with sugar and flavored with vanilla.
This was a refreshing coffee essence drink with coconut water and one large ice cube.
And here is Cédric’s famous flaky croissant – baked to golden perfection.
All finished with a cup of delicious café crème. If you’re ever in Paris, I hope you have some time to go to Cedric Grolet: Opéra. It is definitely worth the trip. In my next blog, I will share more photos of my Paris excursion and the Hermès Spring Show 24.
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