It's always so great to start off the new year growing healthy, delicious, organic greens.
Now that it's winter, attention is turned toward planting my vegetable greenhouse, so I am never without fresh produce. Yesterday, my head gardener Ryan McCallister planted new crops of spinach, carrots, arugula, radicchio, parsley, mâche, chicory, and others. Some of the seeds are from my favorite sources, including Johnny's Selected Seeds, Vilmorin, and Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds - others I picked up during my recent trip to Italy.
Enjoy these photos.
Inside the head house, Ryan is preparing the markers for the vegetables to be planted. Ryan keeps track of what seeds do well at the farm – indoors and out.
I select what will be planted in each bed and provide Ryan with a specific diagram.
I already planted some crops. Ryan and I make sure to plant in succession, so there is always something growing. One cannot miss the gorgeous Swiss chard. They are so vibrant with stems of rose, gold, orange, and white. Chard has very nutritious leaves making it a popular addition to healthful diets.
The most common method for picking is to cut off the outer leaves about two inches above the ground while they are young, tender, and about eight to 12 inches long.
The beets are ready to pick. Beets are sweet and tender – and one of the healthiest foods. Beets contain a unique source of phytonutrients called betalains, which provide antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and detoxification support.
Lettuce always grows so well in this greenhouse. It’s a real treat to have lettuce like this all year long. I always grow lots of varieties of lettuce, so I can share them with my daughter and her children.
And this is young mâche – a type of leafy, non-lettuce salad green that some recognize as lamb’s lettuce, doucette, or corn salad with a nutty and somewhat sweet flavor.
There’s also a bed of kale ready to harvest. Kale is related to cruciferous vegetables like cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, collard greens, and Brussels sprouts. There are many different types of kale – the leaves can be green or purple in color, and have either smooth or curly shapes.
This greenhouse has 16 of these wooden garden boxes to fit the entire length and width of the space. One larger bed is at one end. Raised bed gardening allows good drainage, prevents soil compaction, and provides protection for those plants that may otherwise get trampled. Ryan starts by smoothing out the soil and wedding where necessary.
The first to plant is spinach. I grow a lot of spinach. Spinach is an excellent source of vitamin K, vitamin A, vitamin C, folate, and a good source of manganese, magnesium, iron and vitamin B2. I use a lot of spinach at the farm for my daily green juice.
Spinach seeds are slightly flat and oval-shaped.
Ryan plants them by broadcasting. In agriculture, gardening, and forestry, broadcast seeding is a method of seeding by scattering over the area. Ryan has planted them in rows, but it’s good to try different methods to see what works best.
Once all the seeds are dropped, Ryan uses the back of the soft rake to cover all the seeds.
For planting in rows, Ryan uses a bed preparation rake from Johnny’s Selected Seeds to create furrows in the soil. Hard plastic red tubes slide onto selected teeth of the rake to mark the rows. In general, seeds should be planted at a depth of two times the width, or diameter, of the seed. A seed that’s about 1/16-of-an-inch thick should be planted an eighth-of-an-inch deep.
Depending on each vegetable’s seed spacing needs, Ryan makes five or six rows in each bed.
This bed is designated for carrots of various colors. Each container of seeds to be used is placed next to its corresponding marker. I like to make sure we keep track of what varieties grow well, so I know what to use again next season.
These seeds are pelleted, or coated, carrot seeds. Pellets make seed handling easier for small-seeded crops.
Ryan drops two or three seeds every few inches. Once the seeds germinate, the weaker, less robust seedlings will be removed in a process called thinning. Thinning allows the best and strongest plants to grow, and gives them more resources like sunlight, nutrients, and water.
These are Arugula seeds. Arugula is a cruciferous vegetable that provides many of the same benefits as other vegetables of the same family.
Ryan drops radicchio seeds in another bed. These raised beds were designed for easy reach from all sides, so that work can be done quickly and efficiently.
Also in this bed, Ryan plants two rows of chicory, an herb native to Europe and Asia.
Ryan backfills the furrows to cover the seeds in each filled row. He also leaves some rows empty, so he can plant more in a few weeks. Lastly, every bed will get a good drink of water.
I am so pleased with this greenhouse. The structure uses minimal artificial heat, where many cold hardy crops, such as root vegetables and brassicas, can be grown and harvested through the winter months. Above, I installed grow lights specially designed to substitute natural sunlight, stimulating photosynthesis, and provide the right color spectrum for thriving plants. I am looking forward to a winter filled with bountiful harvests.
Hard not to love a picturesque snow-covered landscape even if it is light.
Yesterday, we got another dusting of beautiful, white snow that was just enough to stick to the tree branches and shrubs, stone posts, walls, and steps, and the tops of many of the burlap-encased boxwood and ornamental urns. I always love to tour the property when it snows. If it's heavy, I plow the four miles of carriage road. If it is light, I'm out there taking pictures. This storm brought several hours of flurries, and by afternoon peeks of a blue sky.
Enjoy these photos.
By late morning, many tree branches were already covered with a dusting of snow. The forecast called for “possible morning showers” but here at the farm, flurries fell most of the day.
I am always so proud of the trees I’ve planted over the years. This area is where I planted more than 900 evergreen trees. I call it the Christmas Tree garden. They were all just inches tall when planted in 2009 – and look at them now.
This is my allée of lilacs, which during early spring smells so sweet and fragrant covered with gorgeous lilacs in shades of white, pink, and purple.
Here in the Northeast, we had very little rain last year. It’s nice to see the streams flowing again.
The snow was just enough to outline the hole in this tree. I wonder if there are any creatures keeping warm inside.
Do you recognize these trees? In late summer and fall, these trees are filled with apples. These are some of the fruit trees that are original to the farm. I kept them and they’ve continued to be quite prolific, producing excellent apples for cider.
During the winter months, my crew does what I call “cleaning the woods” – picking up branches and other detritus from the woodland. Here’s resident tree expert, Pasang Sherpa, delivering some debris to a pile, which will be chipped later.
The large linden trees are part of an allée I planted several years ago. The linden tree, Tilia, is also referred to as basswood or lime, though it is not related at all to the lime fruit. They are straight stemmed trees with smooth bark. Many of you comment on the fencing. It is 100-year old white spruce fencing from Canada. I love how the snow collects on the fence rails.
Do you know what this is? It’s a hedge of European boxwood safely covered in a layer of burlap. On the left is a cold frame. I am glad we got all the burlap done before the snow. Many ask why I cover everything during winter. The truth is, heavy wet snow could actually splay the branches and injure the shrubs. I cover them to protect them from the elements and to help insulate them.
These are also covered boxwood in the center of my formal rose garden. Larger shrubs and a hedge line the footpath in the center of the bed.
Nearby is this section of my berry patch where in summer I grow thousands of delicious and sweet red raspberries.
This is my winterized dahlia bed. In late fall, I have them all cut down, mulched and then covered with a layer of hay and tarps. The lines in the center are the heavy chains that keep the tarps in place.
Here is a view looking through my fruit orchard not far from my pool. The snow was just enough to fill in the square tree pits.
The pool is now covered for winter, but look closely at the staddle stones at the far end – so perfect in that location.
Staddle stones were originally used as supporting bases for granaries, hayricks, game larders, etc. The staddle stones lifted the granaries above the ground to protect the stored grain from vermin and water seepage.
Here’s the old corn crib, which is original to the property. Its unique “keystone” shape, flaring from bottom to top and more pronounced from the front and back sides, was designed to shed water.
Fortunately it was not damaging snow – everything is intact. Today’s weather is expected to be a mix of clouds and sun, but bitterly cold – highs only in the 20s. This is an old apple tree.
My geese don’t mind this weather, but I do provide shelters to keep them out of the wind and bales of hay to help keep them warm. Most days, they walk around or rest in the middle of their enclosure. Here they are strolling around the peafowl coop – together.
Here is one six of my rare weeping hornbeams. I prune these regularly to keep the beautiful shape.
Here is a view of my perennial flower garden – a different look from summer when it is filled with colorful flowers.
And by afternoon, the clouds parted just enough to reveal this blue sky. Even if you don’t love winter, I am sure you agree, the scenery is breathtaking.
There's always something beautiful to see in my greenhouses.
Inside one of my hoop houses where I store my tender tropical plants for the winter is a section of healthy lush camellias - those dense shrubs with brilliant evergreen foliage and compact habits. Some of them have started to flower, but there are dozens of buds just waiting to open in bright shades of white, cream, pink, and red. Not long ago, I was gifted several more camellias - varieties including "Buttons 'n Bows,' 'Nuccio's Jewel,' 'Moonlight Bay,' 'Little Pearl,' and 'Virginia Robinson.' They will make lovely additions to my collection.
Enjoy these photos.
I have grown potted camellias for many years. The large lush flowers appear and bloom prodigiously for several weeks. Among those already in my collection – Camellia japonica ‘Ave Maria.’
‘Silver Lace’ features showy white round flowers with yellow eyes at the ends of the branches from late winter to early spring. Different varieties of camellias come in various shapes: anemone, single, semi-double, formal double, rose-form double and peony form. Their flowers can be about four-inches in diameter.
‘Can Can’ has soft rose colored flowers with pale pink striations at the base, occasionally, small bright rose splashes and irregular, very pale pink to white borders.
‘Nuccio’s Gem’ fully open is a pure white, perfectly formed camellia flower with three to four inch blossoms. It is one of the most popular camellia varieties.
Recently, a friend gifted me with several more camellias. All in excellent condition from Nuccio’s Nurseries, Inc. in Altadena, California.
Here’s our NYBG gardening intern, Matthew Orego, preparing the potting mix. I always instruct my crew to have everything they need before starting a project to avoid interruptions during the process.
The root balls are wrapped carefully in plastic and newspaper to keep in moisture during transit.
A healthy camellia root ball should have strong, fibrous roots that are firm and white – not brown or weak. They should also be clear of any foul odor or sign of rot.
My head gardener Ryan McCallister selects the proper pots and lines up the exact amount for the new plants. Any pots used should have ample drainage holes in the bottom.
When repotting always select the next size up from the original container. Or, select a pot that is two to three inches larger in diameter than the width of the plant’s root ball.
For these camellias, Ryan uses Miracle-Gro Cactus, Palm & Citrus Potting Mix which is fine for camellias because it is fast-draining and contains sand and perlite to help create the optimal growing environment. For camellias, just avoid using fine peat moss in the mix, which tends to quickly become too dry or too wet.
The soil mix is also rich in nutrients and fortified with iron and plant food.
Ryan fills about one-third of the pots with the new potting mix. Always use fresh potting soil when transplanting as old potting material tends to be soggy and depleted of nutrients.
The root ball should sit about an inch or two above grade, similar to what it was in its original container. When keeping potted camellias, they will require repotting every two or three years as they outgrow their vessels. Once it is at the right level, Ryan backfills the pot with more soil mix.
Then he tamps down lightly to ensure good contact between the roots and the potting mix.
Ryan and Matthew do this for all the camellias. It doesn’t take long before they are all potted up.
The leaves of a camellia are alternately arranged, simple, thick, serrated, and glossy.
A couple of my new camellias already have gorgeous blooms. Their flowers are usually large, colorful, and conspicuous.
Buds start to form in mid-summer and then open from fall through early spring. The beautiful camellia flowers come in mainly white and shades of pink or red, and various combinations.
Just look at all the buds – we’ll have dozens of camellia flowers very soon.
These camellias will be kept in my tropical greenhouse for the cold season, where they can be closely monitored. When selecting a spot for a potted camellia, be sure it gets partial shade and protection from hot afternoon sunlight, as container-grown camellias dry out much faster than shrubs planted in the ground. Also water the plant deeply whenever the top two to four inches of potting mix feels dry to the touch and let it drain completely. Camellias have a reputation for being somewhat difficult to grow, but if one is willing to meet their needs, they’ll provide a long bloom season just when one needs it most.
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