In order to keep my Bedford, New York farm and all its many gardens, allées, and groves as beautiful as possible, I pay close attention to the maintenance and care of all my trees. I tour the grounds every day and keep track of what needs pruning, feeding, and mulching throughout the year.
Recently, I noticed something wasn't quite right with my American beech trees, Fagus grandifolia. With all the lush spring growth, these trees just didn't look as vibrant or as full, so I called in an expert to take a look.
Here are some photos, enjoy.
This is an autumn photo of my grove of American beech trees, Fagus grandifolia. These American beech trees show gorgeous golden-bronze fall foliage. The leaves persist into winter, after turning a pleasing tan color.
The American beech tree is considered both a shade tree and an ornamental tree. They can grow to a height of 50 to 70 feet and a spread of around 40 feet at maturity.
Earlier this spring, I noticed they didn’t look as lush. I also knew there was a relatively new beech leaf disease that is spreading rapidly through the Northeast killing both mature American beeches and saplings.
The disease, which was first spotted in northeastern Ohio, causes parts of leaves to turn leathery and branches to wither and then kill a tree within six to 10 years. Hopefully these trees are not affected, but I definitely needed to help my trees and make sure these beautiful specimens survived.
I asked the experts at True Nature to come take a look.
The owner, Sebastian “Rocky” Camarillo, assessed all my beech trees and noticed there was something definitely wrong. The leaves looked withered and many had not grown.
Held up to the sunlight, the leaves also showed dark bands – a sign of the beech leaf disease.
In order to help the trees, the first step was to check the soil. Rocky says, “never guess, always test.” And he took many samples of soil from around the trees. Rocky’s mantra is “if one takes the time to learn the language of the land, the soil will speak.” Good quality, healthy soil is essential for plant growth. Soil helps regulate the water, supports biodiversity, filters pollutants, provides support, and cycles nutrients.
Rocky takes soil samples as much as a foot deep or more.
And then places the samples in bags. These samples will be tested and analyzed. I am eager to get the reports. Soil tests are available at garden shops and online. It is a good idea to test one’s garden soil every three to five years.
Next, Rocky measures the trunk of the tree to see how much food is needed to feed it.
Rocky mixes a solution that contains various nutrients including nitrogen, iron, sulfur, magnesium, manganese, boron, and zinc. His truck is equipped with enough hose to go around the entire grove.
First he treats the roots. It is very important to feed the roots and the soil to feed the tress.
This injector shoots the fertilizer deep into the soil. rocky does this in many locations under the canopy of the tree.
And he goes all the way out just past the drip-line of every tree. The drip-line is the area directly located under the outer circumference of the tree branches. When the tree canopy gets wet, any excess is shed to the ground along this drip-line. This is also known as a tree’s critical root zone or root protection zone.
This process takes a couple hours to complete – Rocky is very thorough.
Then he sprays the top surface and all the leaves of the trees. An invasive nematode is believed to be responsible for the beech leaf disease. These microscopic worms are present in the leaves and buds of infected beech trees.
Next, he moves onto the trees surrounding my pool – also beech trees, purple columnar beech trees, Fagus sylvatica ‘Dawyck Purple’. Rocky also fertilizes these trees. Giving the trees extra nutrients will help them fight off disease and remain healthy. So far, these trees look great.
We planted about 170 of these trees around my pool in 2018. Columnar beech trees are fastigiate meaning their branches slope upward more or less parallel to the main stem. I knew they would be perfect around the pool, but like all garden specimens, they must be well-maintained.
Finally, Rocky will move onto the fastigiate beech trees outside my Winter House and the weeping copper beech trees, Fagus sylvatica ‘Pendula’ – I have several of these beautiful specimens around the farm. It is important to take good care of all trees and to feed. Trees are tough, but nutrient deficiencies can still affect them. This weekend, take note of the beautiful trees in your gardens and yards. I always say, “if you eat, so should your plants and trees.”
They're up! My herbaceous peony garden is blooming with brilliant pinks and whites!
Every spring, one of the most anticipated sights on the farm is my herbaceous peony garden in full bloom. It's such a delight for all who visit this time of year. When I first planted this garden, I focused on pink varieties, and planted 11-double rows of 22-peony types. I chose the varieties for their colors, their forms and their long blooming periods. I also chose a location across from my Winter House, where there's lots of room and full sun - a spot where I could see the beautiful floral show from my window.
Enjoy these photos.
In April, my herbaceous peony bed is filled with almost knee-high stems. Before the flowers appear, we put up stakes, so the peonies are well-supported as they grow. We use natural twine and metal uprights I designed myself for this purpose.
By mid-May, the garden is filled with bold colored foliage. I also have beautiful boxwood surrounding the garden on all sides.
Look at all the buds atop the stems.
A week later, the first flower begins to unfurl.
It’s stunning to see every year! One of the reasons these peonies thrive here at my farm is because of the soil. It has a pH of 6.5 to 7.0, which is ideal. It is also amended with superphosphate and Azomite, a natural product mined from an ancient mineral deposit in Utah. These natural additives improve root systems and overall plant vigor, resulting in this fantastic profusion of blooms.
This was one of the first white peonies to open. The peony is any plant in the genus Paeonia, the only genus in the family Paeoniaceae. They are native to Asia, Europe, and Western North America.
Last week, we mulched the aisles. I am so proud of all the mulch and compost we make right here at the farm.
And here is the garden this week – filled with beautiful blooms in shades of pink and white. Among the varieties in my collection – ‘Elsa Sass’, ‘Victorian Blush’, ‘Fringed Ivory’, ‘Martha’, ‘Madylone’, ‘Lullaby Coos’, ‘Vivid Glow’, ‘Angel Cheeks’, ‘Miss America’ and ‘Flying Pink Saucers’.
Peonies are one of the best-known and most dearly loved perennials – not surprising considering their beauty, trouble-free nature, and longevity.
Herbaceous peonies grow two to four feet tall with sturdy stems and blooms that can reach up to 10-inches wide. We spaced the plants about three to four feet apart to avoid any competing roots.
Peony blooms range from simple blossoms to complex clusters with a variety of petal forms.
The peony is a perennial flower. The majority of peonies are hybrids and classified as herbaceous, or as deciduous tree peonies. The peony is showy, frilly with tuberous root systems.
The peony’s fragrance can vary, but most have sweet, clean scents. And, do you know… pink peonies tend to have stronger fragrances than red peonies? Double form white peonies are also very aromatic.
This flower form is a bomb with a large number of petals rising in the center to form a distinct mound.
Flower colors come in pink, white, yellow, red and coral and the various shades and tints of each.
This is ‘Star Power’. It has pure white, large blossoms with bold round guard petals and red tipped stigmas. When using peonies for cut flowers, gather them early in the morning, and cut those whose buds are beginning to show color and feel similar to firm marshmallows. Always cut the stems at an angle and change the water daily.
These blooms just pop in the garden. ‘Beautiful Señorita’, a Japanese variety, has a double row of deep, pink guard petals and a creamy center.
The leaves of herbaceous peonies are pointed with a shiny, deep green color.
Peonies usually bloom quite easily. Always be sure the plants get at least six hours of full sun per day.
Peonies are considered northern flowers – they tolerate and even prefer cold winter temperatures. They are hardy in zones 3 through 8 and need more than 400-hours of temperatures below 40-degrees Fahrenheit annually to break dormancy and bloom properly.
For the most part, peonies are disease resistant. They do, however, take some time to get established, so be patient. And if you happen to see ants crawling on your peonies, don’t worry. The insects are attracted to the sugary syrup produced by the buds. Once the flower opens fully, and the sucrose has been finished, the ants disappear.
Plant peonies away from trees or shrubs, and provide them with shelter from strong winds.
The only disadvantage of peonies is that each field yields one crop of cut flowers for a couple of weeks only once a year, and then that’s it – until the next season when they bloom with splendor once again.
But look, there are still more buds just waiting to open – this year’s show at Cantitoe Corners is not over just yet.
Early June is such an exciting time at the farm because so much is growing and blooming, especially in my flower garden.
The perennial flower cutting garden is located just outside my main greenhouse at the foot of my long clematis pergola. My gardeners and I spend a lot of time caring for this garden - carefully placing and planting each specimen. Right now it is bursting with vibrant colors - the poppies, roses, lupines, columbines, and dianthus are all blooming profusely. The garden looks beautiful.
Here are some photos, enjoy.
My large flower cutting garden, which measures 150-feet by 90-feet, is growing more and more lush each year. I wanted the plants to be mixed, so every bed is planted with a variety of specimens. Every row of flowers is interesting and colorful.
This garden bed is just outside my fenced flower cutting garden – both are among the first ones seen when visiting my farm.
Lady’s mantle, Alchemilla vulgaris, grows along both sides of the path of my cutting garden. It is a clumping perennial which typically forms a mound of long-stalked, circular, scallop-edge light green leaves, with tiny, star-shaped, chartreuse flowers – they’re so pretty.
Here’s a closer look at the small blossoms. Lady’s mantle grows extremely well in full sun to partial shade and will tolerate near-complete shade. In very hot climates, it prefers some afternoon shade to avoid sun-scald on the leaves.
Lupinus, commonly known as lupin or lupine, is a genus of flowering plants in the legume family, Fabaceae. The genus includes more than 200 species. It’s always great to see the tall spikes of lupines blooming in the garden.
Here is one in dark purple. Lupines come in lovely shades of purple, pink, white, yellow, and even red. Lupines also make great companion plants, increasing the soil nitrogen for vegetables and other plants nearby. (Photo by Chhiring Sherpa)
Here’s another gorgeous lupine plant – in yellow and soft pink. Their telltale look is a tall, showy spire of flowers with impressive grayish-green textured foliage.
Iris flowers can begin blooming in late winter to early spring. A range of varieties provide extended color in the flower bed. Iris care is minimal once the growing iris is established. I have many iris cultivars growing in the garden. Iris flowers bloom in shades of purple, blue, white, and yellow and include many hybridized versions that are multi-colored.
Dianthus flowers belong to a family of plants that includes carnations and are characterized by their spicy fragrance. Dianthus plants may be found as a hardy annual, biennial, or perennial and most often used in borders or potted displays. There are numerous types of dianthus – most have pink, red, or white flowers with notched petals.
The columbine plant, Aquilegia, is an easy-to-grow perennial that blooms in a variety of colors during spring. With soft-mounding scalloped leaves and delicate blossoms nodding on flower stems, columbine is ideal for borders, cottage gardens or naturalizing wooded areas.
There are more than 65 species of columbine, most ranging in height from one to three feet tall. This is Aquilegia Vulgaris ‘Nora Barlow Pink’.
Here is another columbine in rich, dark purple. The bonnet-like flowers come in single hues and bi-colored in shades of white, pink, crimson, yellow, purple and blue.
Baptisia produces loads of sturdy spikes filled with rich pea-like blossoms that emerge in mid to late spring. The showy terminal flower spikes are followed by inflated seed pods. The pea-like flowers are attractive to butterflies and other insect pollinators.
Comfrey, Symphytum officinale, is a tall, easy to care for perennial plant that is often grown for its beauty. Comfrey plants shoot up quickly, early in the season, and can easily reach heights of around five feet.
There are poppies popping up everywhere! Oriental poppy blossoms, Papaver orientale, last only a week or two, but during that time, they provide one of the high points of the gardening season with its bold colors. The flowers appear to be fashioned of crepe paper and can be more than six-inches across on stems up to three-feet in height.(Photo by Chhiring Sherpa)
Aruncus dioicus, commonly called goat’s beard, is a Missouri native plant which occurs in moist woodlands and along bluffs in the central and southeast part of the State. A tall, erect, bushy, clump-forming plant typically growing four to six feet high features pinnately compound, dark green foliage and showy, plume-like spikes of tiny, cream colored flowers which rise well above the foliage in early to mid summer.
I have many roses in my flower garden. Many of them were transferred here from my home in East Hampton a few years ago. I also planted many new rose bushes and climbers this year from rose hybridizer, David Austin.
Here is a beautiful rose in light pink with the late afternoon light shining upon it. Soon, we will have an abundance of gorgeous roes.
These are the large leaves of Rodgersia – a genus of flowering plants in the Saxifragaceae family. Rodgersia are herbaceous perennials originating from east Asia. The common name is Roger’s Flower.
And, among my favorite flowers is the peony. The peony is any plant in the genus Paeonia. Peonies are considered rich in tradition – they are the floral symbol of China, the state flower of Indiana, and the 12th wedding anniversary bloom.
I have peonies in this garden, but I also have a garden filled with only herbaceous peonies in shades of pink and white. Peonies love cooler climates where they get pronounced winter chill. Some will do well in warmer areas. All are also worth a try in dappled shade.
I grow so many alliums here at the farm and they continue to bloom so beautifully interspersed with other blooms. We continue to plant more and more flowering plants in this garden. I will be sure to share photos as new blossoms appear. What flowers are blooming in your garden?
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