Valentine’s Day is less than two weeks away - how are you spreading the love?
Valentine's Day is celebrated every year on February 14th. It originated as a feast day honoring early Christian martyrs named Saint Valentine. Through the years, folk tradition has made it a significant cultural, religious, and commercial celebration of romance, love, and appreciation in many regions around the world. I love all holidays and on Valentine’s Day, I try to give a little something to close family and friends. This year, we have lots of great gift ideas for you on Martha.com, our new e-commerce site. There are also items from my collections at Macy’s, from Martha Stewart Wine Co., Martha Stewart Kitchen, Canopy, iGourmet, Goldbelly, Mixbook, Sam's Club, and Walmart - lots of great tokens of love and gratitude for those that mean so much.
Enjoy these photos.
This Valentine’s Day, why not give the gift of calm with my special limited edition heart-shaped gift box of my Martha Stewart CBD wellness gummies. Canopy Growth and I are offering this six-flavor sampler gift box packed with gourmet flavors inspired by some of my favorite ingredients.
Go to our new web site, Martha.com for gift ideas for every occasion. On Martha.com, you can shop all the wonderful products I’ve collected, curated, and designed over the years. These are my Patterson Cake Stands. They are glossy white with detailed ruffled edging – perfect for all your delectable Valentine’s Day treats.
My Martha Stewart Collection at Macy’s always includes great items for holidays. This is my Cast Iron Heart Pan. Delight your family and friends with heart-shaped eggs, pancakes, and more with this fun offering any time of year.
My Macy’s Collection includes lots of Valentine’s and heart-themed products this season, such as my Ranunculus Heart Wreath, my Pink Magnolia Wreath, my Valentine’s Day Truck, and other small gift and serving items.
And what about these fun heart-shaped dough presses from Macy’s? These are great for everything from homemade fruit hand pies to savory empanadas.
This year, I am happy to partner with Goldbelly, the curated online marketplace for regional and artisanal foods crafted by local food purveyors throughout the United States. Order some of my favorite pastries including rich butter croissants, apricot danishes, and addictively delicious cookies.
If your nearest and dearest like wine, give them a bottle of rosé from our own Martha Stewart Wine Co. My crisp and fruity rosés can be enjoyed all year round!
And have you seen Martha’s Chard – a terrific chardonnay that I just released nationally this week! You can find this delicious new wine by visiting 19Crimes.com for a store near you. Work hard, play hard and drink Martha’s Chard.
This decadent Champagne Toast Gift Box from iGourmet will make any Valentine happy. Curated by myself and my culinary team, it includes a special Heart’s Desire limited-edition triple cream by Cowgirl Creamery, Cocktail Kumquats by Laura Ann Jams, Toast for Cheese by the Fine Cheese Co., The Billy Goat Chip Company Original Potato Chips, Dom Petroff Sturgeon Caviar, and Creme Fraiche by Vermont Creamery.
iGourmet also offers my Martha Stewart Valentine’s Day Sweets Gift Box. Filled with chocolates and jellies, your Valentine will be feeling the sugar rush for days – it includes a True Love Chocolate Bar by Woodblock Chocolates, Farmstead Goat Milk Caramels in Heart Box by Big Picture Farm, Sour Peachy Pink Hearts by Marich, a Dolfin Belgium Chocolate Bar, Marzipanerie by Niederegger, and a Berry Berry Dark Chocolate Bar by Wildwood Chocolates.
Here’s my warm and cozy Faux Fur Coat from my Outerwear Collection on Martha.com. Whether you’re layering it over a formal look for a nighttime event, or throwing it on over jeans for a fabulous finish to your weekend wardrobe, the faux fur will provide instant insulation. Best of all, despite the lush look, it is fully machine-washable. Pair this with the matching Faux Fur Pull-Through Scarf – it’s a great Valentine’s gift and a great winter gift, for a loved one or yourself.
Or, when it’s not too cold, get one of my Short Sleeve Quilted Down Puffer Vests from Martha.com – this one has a soft Faux Fur Collar. This vest is complete with down filling, channel quilting, and a weatherproof, machine-washable finish.
For the foodies you love, give them a tin of ROE Caviar also from Martha.com. This gift set contains a key to open the tin and a beautiful Mother of Pearl caviar spoon.
Also on Martha.com, you’ll find the Perry Street Dinnerware Set – perfect for creating a beautiful and intimate Valentine’s Dinner table setting. The set includes four 11-inch dinner plates, four 8-inch dessert plates, and four 9-inch dinner bowls, each crafted from durable stoneware and finished with a reactive glaze and attractive taupe rim.
Don’t you want this mouthwatering dessert? Serve my Martha Stewart Kitchen Double Chocolate Brownies to your loved ones on Valentine’s day. You can make it your own with a scoop of vanilla ice cream and a dollop of rich chocolate ganache or a drizzle of warm caramel.
At Sam’s Club, find my Three-Piece Baker’s Set. It includes two bakers and one loaf pan. Homemade makes everything more special on Valentine’s Day or any day.
Vintage Wedding by Martha Stewart is part of my Wedding Photo Books Collection at Mixbook. At Mixbook, you can take all your favorite photos of your wedding day and transform them into an album you’ll cherish for years to come. A beautiful gift for him or her.
This Martha Stewart Beaded Melamine 12-Piece Dinnerware Set in pink from Walmart is perfect for Valentine’s Day. They may look delicate, but these pretty and practical pieces are virtually shatterproof. Made from durable, BPA-free melamine, these stylish plates and bowls feature an embossed rim design and faux crackle glaze finish that adds a touch of understated elegance to any occasion.
Everyone appreciates a good hand cream. This fast-acting recovery cream from my Collection at Canopy Growth has Magnesium and Ginger and is perfect for on-the-go application to help soothe tired hands and bodies. Formulated with US-grown, hemp-derived CBD, the cream also includes 5% Broad-Spectrum CBD in every tube.
And, be sure to pick up a copy of my January/February 2022 issue of “Living” for my special Valentine’s treats! Issues are on newsstands now! I hope this helps you choose the best gift, or gifts, for your special Valentine.
Skylands, my well-loved home in Maine, is a winter wonderland.
The recent nor'easter which covered my Bedford, New York farm with almost a foot of snow also hit the Seal Harbor area - residents there got 18 to 20 inches of powder. I don't get to visit my home in Maine as much as I would like during the winter months, but fortunately, Cheryl DuLong, who helps me care for Skylands, is an avid photographer, and always keeps me updated by sending images of the property whenever she can. She sent me these images yesterday. And, just in time - temperatures in Maine are expected to be in the 40s over the next couple of days with lots of rain.
Enjoy these photos.
Skylands is beautiful in every season, but under winter’s glistening snow, it is even more magical. Here are some of the trees just off the main driveway with the morning sun casting shadows of the trees on the clean, white snow.
Many of the tree branches are laden with snow, but fortunately, this snow was light and did not weigh them down too much.
The Council Circle is a favorite summertime spot. My family enjoys gathering around the fire pit, roasting marshmallows, and recounting the day’s activities and adventures.
This photo was taken just to the right of the Council Circle. Beyond are those “Rockefeller teeth” – big granite stones set on the edge to prevent falls from the 30-foot wall.
This is the back door of the main house, where I love to hang Boston ferns during summer. Cheryl stopped to take this photo as she wondered how she would get the shovel through all the snow – look closely and you’ll see it.
Despite all the beauty, it’s a lot of snow to shovel around the house. Various snow drifts topped three feet. These steps run from the back to the front of the house – yes, there really are steps here.
This is a view of the main terrace from the dining room window – the “cracked ice” is completely covered. It is hard to tell the true snow accumulation from the drifts – there is just so much. The Living Hall entrance is under the clock.
Here is a view through the leaded window of my living room looking left of my circular front driveway. Can you see the reflections ahead? They are actually from the window behind Cheryl.
This is a view from the West Terrace looking out through the tall spruce trees to Seal Harbor. On this day, the skies over Skylands are a beautiful bright blue.
These kiwi vines growing on top of the pergola and on the posts are original to the house. All the kiwi vines have endured many snowfalls.
These icicles formed on the kiwi vines just outside the living room window. Icicles are so pretty. Some are a foot long. Icicles elongate by the growth of ice and the right mixture of air temperature, wind speed and the water feeding it. Cheryl, of course, broke off the icicles soon after this photo was taken, so the kiwi vines were not damaged.
This window is nearly all walled in with white.
Here’s another view of the terrace. The “Bedford Gray” colored boxes protect some of my outdoor urns.
Ice crystals formed on this window. These delicate crystals form when water vapor from the humid indoor air condenses on the very cold window glass.
Here is a look at the quiet woodland from the back porch. Notice how the snow fell and drifted just around the tree pits.
Footprints in the snow – I think a deer walked through here.
This is my greenhouse at Skylands. During the cold season, I am able to store a collection of tropical plants inside, but most of the beautiful specimens I keep on the terrace in summer go back to Bedford and winter there.
This shed holds all the pine needles we collect, spin, bag, and then drop along the footpaths in summertime.
This is the expansive garden lawn at Ox Ledge, a home I purchased near Skylands some years ago – the snow is still untouched.
These views are gorgeous. This is Seal Harbor and to the right, just on the other side of the road is a village green – the former site of the well-known Seaside Inn. The Seaside House was originally a private residence built in the 1800s. Over the years, the home went through a few transitions – in 1870, it was a 10-room boarding house. In 1882 a large annex was added. Then in 1891, Amos and James Clement hired Bar Harbor-based architect John E. Clark to redesign the house into a large hotel called the Seaside Inn, which remained until it was completely torn down in 1963. I am already looking forward to my next visit to Maine.
If you grow almond trees, the best time to prune them is now - in winter - when the trees are dormant. Pruning not only helps to develop proper shape and form, but also encourages new growth, promotes high fruit yield, and maintains good tree health. At my Bedford, New York farm, we spend a lot of time maintaining the many, many trees - pruning their branches, limbing them up, and improving their shape at least once a year. Last week, my outdoor grounds crew tackled the two almond trees located just outside my main greenhouse.
Enjoy these photos.
Here are my two almond trees. This photo was taken in July when they were full of leaves. These trees thrive in mild, wet winters, and hot, dry summers. The almond belongs to the rose family Rosaceae, making it a relative of several well-known fruit trees. There are different types, ranging from small ornamental shrubs, Prunus glandulosa, grown only for their pretty flowers to medium-sized trees, Prunus dulcis, that produce edible nuts, such as these.
Almond trees produce drupes. These drupes grow from fertilized flowers and mature in autumn. In previous years, we’ve harvested hundreds and hundreds of almonds. The hairy, green fruits are oblong in shape and the leaves of the almond tree are long – about three to five inches.
Many of the drupes fall to the ground in October. The almond fruit measures about two inches long and is not edible.
Some of the drupes will open on their own, exposing the shells, but most will have to be opened manually. At maturity, the flesh of the fruit becomes leathery and splits to reveal the hull.
Once dried, they are shelled. Shelling almonds refers to removing the hull to reveal the seed, which is what is eaten. I always have multiple crates full of these almonds ready to shell and enjoy.
In this late fall photo, one can see that the trees need trimming to maintain good shape and to improve air circulation through the centers.
And now that the trees are bare and dormant, the crew can easily maintain these handsome specimens. Here is Pasang, our resident tree expert. As with any tree, when pruning it is important to remove any damaged, dead or diseased limbs as well as those that are disruptive – branches that crisscross and impede air or light circulation.
He uses his handy STIHL Pruning Saw. We use a lot of STIHL tools here at my farm – they are durable, dependable, and easy to use.
Here’s my outdoor grounds crew foreman, Chhiring, stopping for a quick photo. He was here when I first planted these almond trees, when they were just a few feet tall.
There are two basic types of pruning cuts, thinning cuts and heading cuts. Thinning cuts reduce the number of branches to allow more air and sunlight through the specimen. Heading cuts remove just a portion of an existing branch encouraging new side growth.
It is also crucial to always use sharp tools whenever pruning so that the cuts are clean. Dull tools are difficult to use and could even damage the tree. A straight, clean-cut promotes quick healing of the wound and reduces stress on the specimen.
Pasang uses his Okatsune bypass shears to cut thin suckers – those fast growing, vertical stems that originate from the root system. Pasang trims them cleanly as close to the tree as possible, leaving the collar, where the tree sucker meets the tree, to help speed the wound recovery.
Here, one can see the left side is pruned and the right side still needs work.
These trees did not take long to do – look how much was pruned before lunch.
Chhiring uses a telescoping pole pruner for harder-to-reach branches. This tool is great for trimming branches that are at least an inch thick. As I always say – the right tool for the right job.
During the pruning process, Pasang stops periodically to assess the shape of the tree and to see where he needs to prune next. They are looking so much better already. Well maintained almond trees can live for at least 40 to 50 years. And careful, regular pruning will encourage good shape and ensure a long productive life.
As a rule of thumb, 20-percent of the canopy should be pruned back each year in order to allow new wood to grow.
Almond trees have brown or gray bark. These trees trees also have lichens growing. Lichens are often found on tree trunks, branches and twigs as the bark provides a stable place to grow and get needed sunlight, rainwater and air. Lichens are simple slow-growing plants that form low crusty, leaflike, or branching growths on rocks, walls, and trees.
All the pruned branches are collected and added to our large pile for chipping.
When deciding to grow almond trees, keep in mind, they do not fruit the first couple of years. Almond trees do not produce a good yield until the 6th or 7th year. These mature trees produce lots and lots of almonds.
After a good pruning, these trees look so much better – round and full in shape. I am looking forward to seeing these bloom with white to pale pink flowers in spring and then lots of natural delicious and nutritious nuts next fall.
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