My peacocks and peahens are now back in their enclosure, safe from any wild predators.
Over the last few weeks, we've been working hard to improve the security surrounding the peafowl pen. We moved the coop 25-feet toward the center, installed steel posts around the perimeter, and then unrolled and fastened durable fencing fabric across the entire top of the yard. In the wild, all birds also need a safe place to roost - they like to be up high to see what is around them and to escape from predators if needed. Yesterday, we added two new perches inside their coop, where they could roost up high at night. These add to the various perches provided outside - all made from felled or damaged trees here at the farm.
Enjoy these photos and the short video of the peafowl - back home.
If you follow this blog regularly, you may have seen the post showing the installation of this new fencing fabric over the peafowl coop and the yard. It will now prevent dangerous predators from entering the enclosure.
Once the peacocks and peahens were back in their pen, they were eager to walk around and explore. They are very curious animals – and what’s old is new again.
They all walked as a group, or an ostentation, to see what had changed.
I think they all approve. My peafowl are all very healthy. Full grown, peafowl can weigh up to 13-pounds. All the peacocks and peahens get lots of fresh, organic treats from my gardens.
Inside their coop, we also made a couple of changes.
We already secured two trees inside, where they could roost, but we also added perches up above.
Here’s Fernando securing a new perch beam that runs from the front to the back of the house. We had two extra cedar posts from another fencing project with smaller diameters that were perfect for the peafowl.
The two were secured with simple wooden brackets made in our shop right here at the farm.
These two found the perches pretty quickly – I think they like them.
Peacocks and peahens love to roost up high, where they can view all the goings-on from above.
Back outside, this peahen perches on one of the steps of a handmade ladder, secured to the side of the coop. It’s also in the shade – perfect for warm, summer afternoons.
This peahen is looking for a spot on the same ladder. On its head, both male and female peafowl have the fancy crest called a corona.
We also have trees “planted” in this yard, so the peafowl can roost on the branches.
And on both sides of the coop, we have horizontal perches – also built from felled trees here on the farm.
This one appears to be a popular resting place. And do you know… the term “peacock” is commonly used to refer to birds of both sexes. However, technically only males are peacocks. Females are peahens, and together, they are called peafowl.
Peafowl are beautiful birds, but do not underestimate their power – they are extremely strong with very sharp spurs. And they will perch on anything above ground to get a better view.
Peafowl are happiest when living in small groups. They often walk around following each other and then stop to forage together. They are ground feeders. They do most of their foraging in the early morning and evening. As omnivores, they eat insects, plants, grains and sometimes small creatures. This peafowl pen is adjacent to the goose enclosure – they all like being near each other.
Peacocks are so photogenic with their iridescent blue necks. The males have already dropped their long tail feathers, but they will start to regrow again in the fall in preparation for mating season, which starts up again in February.
Peafowl are very smart, docile and adaptable birds. They are quite clever and will come close to all who visit. And peafowl have acute hearing, but can be poor at discerning from what direction certain sounds originate.
For now, they are safe, content, and comfortable. See you soon my dear peafowl.
With its stunning water views and gentle bay breezes, Shelter Island, nestled between the North and South Forks of Long Island, New York is a wonderful place to visit.
Last week, I was invited to a summer soirée at the historic Pridwin Hotel & Cottages in Shelter Island Heights overlooking the breathtaking Peconic Bay. My friends, Susan Magrino, Kevin Sharkey, and Terre Blair joined me for a lovely evening of great food and cocktails hosted by fashion designer Dennis Basso and his husband, Michael. The Pridwin, part of Cape Resorts, celebrates its 95th anniversary this year following a complete renovation of its 33 rooms and 16 private cottages - all designed in a timeless and casual palette of bright, playful colors.
Here are some photos from our visit to The Pridwin, enjoy.
It was a perfect evening for a late summer dinner. Here I am with our host, Dennis Basso, and Curtis Bashaw, managing partner of Cape Resorts, which oversaw The Pridwin’s extensive two-year renovation.
Here is Dennis standing by the beautiful table set for 30 out on the deck with gorgeous views of the Peconic Bay.
My seat looked out onto the water. Our dinner included a tomatoes and burrata salad, roasted chicken panzanella with artichokes, baby tomatoes and a bacon vinaigrette, and for dessert – Pridwin’s classic ice cream cookie sandwich.
Here I am with Curtis and Will Riccio. I’m holding a charming Pridwin tote bag – every guest went home with one.
The next day, Kevin took photos of the resort and its breathtaking waterfront views. The Pridwin sits on more than seven-acres overlooking Shelter Island’s pristine Crescent Beach.
Here is the entrance with its bright and inviting yellow glass front door.
Just inside behind the reception desk is a wall of keys – one to each of the 49 rooms and cottages.
This welcoming fireplace is located in the general living room of The Pridwin with the original hotel shield hanging overhead.
Not far is the Pridwin’s Crescent Bar with its whimsical red, white and pink cabana stripe awning and bar stools upholstered in a warm pink fabric. The renovation project’s design was under the direction of Colleen Bashaw, Curtis’ sister and VP of design for Cape Resorts. She says “The Pridwin was based upon the hotel’s image of classic Adirondack summer camps and cottages” – a playful mix of old and new. (Photo courtesy of Cape Resorts)
Outside is The Pridwin’s expansive pool – also with views to the bay. (Photo courtesy of Cape Resorts)
This is The Pridwin Hotel Maintenance Shed which is kept in immaculate condition. Kevin loved all the organization, but who wouldn’t?
Every cord is coiled perfectly and hung on the wall.
Here, Curtis poses with Edgardo Munoz, one of two who run the shed – it’s very impressive.
In this photo, Curtis is joined by Paul Gorra, who is also responsible for this workshop.
Many of the key elements of the original structure remain, including the exterior crisp white paint with the signature hunter green window casements.
The Pridwin was named after Pridwen from the legends of King Arthur, the name of Arthur’s shield, which translates to ‘pride in winning’.
Looking out from this lawn is another view of the Peconic Bay – the parent name for two bays between the North Fork and South Fork of New York’s Long Island. It is separated from Gardiners Bay by Shelter Island and is divided by Robins Island into the Great Peconic Bay on the west and Little Peconic Bay on the east.
Here is one of the docks off Crescent Beach. Located on the North side of the island, Crescent Beach spans more than half a mile long.
Kevin also captured this stunning image of another dock – one never tires of these gorgeous views. See lots of Kevin’s photos on his Instagram page @seenbysharkey.
And here is a view heading back home aboard the North Ferry. What a lovely time spent on Shelter Island. If you’re ever in the area and want to treat yourself and your family to a special beachfront getaway, check out The Pridwin.
As a serious and passionate gardener, whenever I have the time I always enjoy visiting nurseries in search of new and rare plants to add to my collection.
Last week, my friends Kevin Sharkey and Terre Blair accompanied me on a brief trip to Long Island to visit one of my favorite garden sources, Landcraft Environments, Ltd., a pre-eminent wholesaler of tropical, tender perennials, shrubs, bulbs, and uncommon annuals located in Mattituck on the North Fork. Landcraft Environments is owned by garden designers, Dennis Schrader and Bill Smith who have been in business together since 1982, initially specializing in landscape design. Realizing a tremendous need for unusual plant material, Dennis and Bill purchased the property in 1992 when it was just an overgrown potato and corn farm. Now, it features their beautifully restored 1840s farmhouse, a lovely four-acre public garden, and thousands of local and exotic plants from around the world - all encircled by 10 acres of rehabilitated meadows with mowed paths for viewing native plants and wildlife.
I always enjoy visiting Dennis and Bill at Landcraft Environments. There is always something amazing to see. Here I am standing in front of a Colocasia Thailand Giant or Colocasia gigantea. It grows up to 10-feet tall with leaves up to five-feet long and four-feet wide.
In this patch of beautiful plantings is Coleus ‘Bryce Canyon’, Coleus ‘Brooklyn Horror’, Colocasia ‘Diamond Head’, some Australian tree ferns, and Medinilla magnifica.
This double border is planted with Canna Pretoria, Ricinus “Castor Bean”, Rudbeckia, Lantana, and Cuphea, a low-maintenance annual that blooms from late spring until frost.
Aside from their stunning gardens, Dennis and Bill also live on the property. Here is a view of the house from the back lawn. Each year, Dennis and Bill change out many of the pots and displays.
This year, they arranged a lovely summer display of succulents on the back deck.
On this long table for 12 on the west dining terrace, Dennis and Bill also arranged a variety of assorted rare succulents and cacti.
Among them, this handsome Rhipsalis pilocarpa, the hairy-fruited wickerware cactus – a species of flowering plant in the cactus family that is endemic to Brazil. I have several Rhipsalis specimens at my Bedford, New York farm.
More potted succulents are displayed on this coffee table. I love succulents and continue to grow my greenhouse collection.
Dennis designed the Moongate Bench under this pergola. It’s part of his signature furniture line that he sells at Landcraft Environments. (Photo courtesy of Landcraft Environments Ltd.)
Dennis also designs stone furniture – this one is made of native Long Island boulders embedded with ammonite.
This is the entrance to the “Ruin” – one can see Lilium formosa and Clematis planted here.
This is a view looking from the sedum covered green roof to one of the fire alters in the “Ruin.” On the left is a very hardy kiwi vine grown from a cutting I gave to Dennis and Bill from Skylands, my home in Maine.
This art sculpture is by artist Sam Moyer called Bluestone Dependent 4, 2021. It is made from Belgian bluestone and concrete with stone aggregate.
On the property, Dennis and Bill also created a Labyrinth planted with little bluestem. Schizachyrium scoparium, commonly known as little bluestem or beard grass, is a species of North American prairie grass native to most of the contiguous United States as well as a small area north of the Canada–US border and northern Mexico. It grows from one to three feet tall and has a beautiful color that contrasts well with the surrounding field foliage.
Here is a view of one of the paths in the Labyrinth. Unlike a maze, which has many turns and dead ends meant to confuse, a labyrinth has only one path leading to the center. I am building a maze at my farm.
And here we are in the center of the labyrinth – me, Terre Blair, Bill, and Dennis.
In the cutting garden – beautiful, brightly colored sunflowers, Helianthus annuus – a large annual of the genus Helianthus, popularly grown as a crop for its edible oil and seeds.
Many of you may recognize this plant – a staghorn fern. This specimen is more than 25 years old!
This big leaf is part of a Begonia ‘Lotus Land’ – a large thick stem rhizomatous begonia that grows up to three to four feet tall and has thick horizontal stems with large shield shaped, lobed dark green leaves.
In the greenhouse, trays of Eucomis “Pineapple Lily” cuttings.
This is Euphorbia Aeruginosa – a succulent member of the spurge family native to South Africa. It grows as a small shrub with multiple spiny blue-green photosynthetic stems. Its name, which means ‘verdigris’, refers to the coppery-green branches which have contrasting reddish-brown spines.
Growing beautifully at Landcraft Environments are the Vanda orchids. Vanda orchids produce some of the more stunning blooms in the genera. Vanda orchids are heat-loving and native to tropical Asia.
This is called Lophophora – a genus of spineless, button-like cacti. The species are extremely slow growing, sometimes taking up to 30-years to reach flowering age, which is the size of about a golf ball, excluding the root.
This is a flower arrangement at the entrance pavilion of the Landcraft Garden Foundation dedicated to inspiring, educating and promoting gardening, horticulture and the preservation of the natural environment. The Foundation Garden is open Fridays and Saturdays now through October, so please visit if you’re in the area.
While there, we all enjoyed a delicious lunch prepared by Chef Devin of Landcraft Environments, Ltd. – a summer salad with pan seared scallops, seasonal fruits, and greens.
On our table – a charming arrangement of cut sunflower blooms.
And here’s another nice photo Kevin took of me, Bill, and Dennis just before we left. What a fun and very informative trip to Landcraft Environments. Please follow Dennis and Bill on Instagram and learn more about their great Foundation.
Martha Pins
Martha Tweets
