I always enjoy entertaining at my farm, but it is even more memorable when my guests are the enthusiastic, creative and loyal devotees of the Martha Stewart brand.
Yesterday, I hosted a day celebrating 30 individuals who have not only followed this blog but have also read my magazines, watched my television and radio shows, cooked and baked my recipes, purchased my products, and shared their experiences and all they've learned with so many others - true ambassadors and influencers. The day began with a breakfast on my Winter House terrace parterre, then a walking tour through my gardens, followed by a delicious paella lunch prepared by my friend Chef Pierre Schaedelin of PS Tailored Events. In the afternoon, several longtime colleagues and friends presented their thoughts on the brand today, shared their stories, and offered more ideas and inspirations. The day's events concluded with an interesting session of "Ask Martha" and my parting advice to heed one of my own favorite sayings - "learn something new every day."
Here are the first of many photos, enjoy.
The day’s forecast called for a hot day in the high 80s, but that did not dissuade any of those who came to my farm for this “super fans” celebration. Guests came from across the country to spend a day at Cantitoe Corners.
The morning began bright and early at 9am sharp. Everyone was on time and ready for a full day of activities. Here are just some of those gathered during the start of my garden tour.
I led them behind my main greenhouse to the berry patches. This is my large strawberry patch. We’ve already picked boxes and boxes of delicious, sweet red strawberries.
Strawberries are among the easiest berries to grow. They’re cold-hardy, adaptable, and can be planted in both garden beds and containers. 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.
I showed them one of my rose gardens. This is a more formal garden I planted two years ago. It is looking so stunning this year.
I also walked the group through my perennial flower garden, which is also blooming wonderfully right now. I hope you saw my blog earlier this week.
The group proceeded up the carriage road past my long and winding pergola and this stand of stately bald cypress trees. I told the group most of the trees they see during the tour are ones I planted since moving to the farm.
I like to serve some kind of refreshments during my garden tours. On this day, I had croissants and cinnamon buns from LMNOP Bakery in Katonah, New York.
I prepare everything in my kitchen first, making sure we have all the essentials before taking them out to the terrace.
Trays of my nutritious green juice are also prepared fresh that morning. Everyone must have a glass of green juice to start the day.
The food is brought out just as guests walked up to the terrace. I also hardboiled lots of farm fresh eggs earlier in the morning.
All the beautiful eggs are from my chickens, of course. Everyone loved them.
Kevin Sharkey took this photo from the second floor of my home. Everyone was having such a good time despite the very warm weather.
The group presented me with a collection of gifts – each one personally selected or handmade. I was very touched and excited to see everything up close. I placed them all out on the kitchen counter to take photos.
The tour continued after breakfast with a walk down to my half-acre vegetable garden. Everything is growing so nicely.
Look at the kale – lush and green.
And the fava beans – already knee hight.
Along the tour, Ryan and I shared stories about how each garden was developed and what they contained. Everyone was also given a map of the farm that shares its history.
Next I had the group walk through my living maze without any assistance on how to find the way to its center. They all did very well meandering up and down the rows, looking for the right paths – there is only one correct one.
And the end is my great eagle in the middle of an open space about two thirds of the way through the maze. In my next blog, I’ll share photos from our delicious al fresco lunch, and the rest of the tour. Stay tuned.
Be sure to tune in to my newest podcast on the iHeart media app, or wherever you get your podcasts. Today I'm releasing another interesting, fun, and humorous episode - this one in partnership with the social media, microblogging service Threads operated by Meta.
Not long ago, Threads hosted a garden party to celebrate my 101st book, MARTHA STEWART'S GARDENING HANDBOOK: THE ESSENTIAL GUIDE TO DESIGNING, PLANTING, AND GROWING. The afternoon event was held at Meta's New York City midtown headquarters and featured an interactive podcast where I answered questions from attending guests, Threads followers, and celebrities. Our own Kevin Sharkey moderated our session in front of a LIVE audience of more than 300 invited media influencers, friends, and colleagues. It was followed by refreshments, small bites, and of course, lots of social media pictures and posts.
Enjoy these images.
I hope you follow me on Threads, the fun micro-blogging app from Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp parent, Meta. On it, users post lots of up-to-the-minute text-based messages along with photos and videos, in real-time conversations.
Earlier in the day, Threads posted an announcement that I would be conducting the event and asked followers to submit their gardening questions.
MARTHA STEWART’S GARDENING HANDBOOK is a comprehensive guide to designing and cultivating a flourishing garden. If you don’t already have a copy, I encourage you to buy one. It’s filled with ideas, inspirations and all sorts of tips for understanding your plant zone, choosing, planting and maintaining all kinds of plants, watering and feeding, and so much more.
Meta’s auditorium filled quickly with invited guests – everyone wanted to attend.
Employees without tickets waited patiently outside for any extra seats – it was a very well-attended event.
Elizabeth Dalton Smith, Vice President, META, introduces me to the stage.
Here I am with our own Chief Creative Officer of Home, Kevin Sharkey, in front of the LIVE audience. Kevin would read a submitted Threads question or invite a guest from the audience to ask theirs. (Photo from Meta)
I shared personal gardening experiences, stories and talked about how I designed my own gardens over the years. (Photo from Meta)
One follower asked what kind of gardening tool I would be. I talked about my Hori Hori knife, which is a heavy-duty serrated multi-purpose steel blade for digging, cutting, weeding, etc.
In fact, I brought a Hori Hori in to show the audience. It is one of my essential gardening tools – I always have one in my gardening bag. Listen to podcast to hear why. (Photo from Meta)
Do you notice this gardening enthusiast? Tennis great Serena Williams was one of the first questions I received. She wants to know how to grow better carrots. I advised her to double-dig her soil or loosen it thoroughly to aerate deeper layers and allow plants to grow bigger and more vigorously.
And this tip is really for all gardeners – know one’s limits and don’t be overambitious. Just take one step at a time and enjoy gardening.
I also modeled Meta’s next generation of Ray-Ban AI Glasses. These glasses are equipped with a built-in camera, open-ear audio, and seamless social sharing features. (Photo from Meta)
After the event, guests were invited to a reception outside the auditorium.
Refreshing Whispering Angel Rosé, Via Carota bottled Spritz and margarita cocktails were offered.
My longtime friend chef Pierre Schaedelin of PS Tailored Events prepared lots of delicious bites including crudités, cheese, tea sandwiches, and mini quiches. (Photo from Meta)
There was more than enough for everyone.
These are cheese straws made with puff pastry. (Photo from Meta)
Guests were given herbs from Bonnie Plants to take home along with a copy of MARTHA STEWART’S GARDENING HANDBOOK.
And, there’ always time for some photos. Here I am with Meta’s Liz Dalton Smith. (Photo from Meta)
Here I am with Kevin and Garrett Gottesman, a member of Meta’s Public Figure Partnerships team. (Photo from Meta)
And here I am joined by our Marquee Brands Executive Team – CCO Christian Martin, CLO Heather Greenberg, CEO Heath Golden, Kevin, CMO Natasha Fishman, and CCGO Rachel Terrace. What a fun and informative event. Don’t forget to tune in to this podcast on the iHeart media app or wherever you get your podcasts. You’ll love it. (Photo from Meta)
With many upcoming events here at my farm, there is always so much work to do to get everything ready.
My outdoor grounds crew is busy moving large potted tropical plants to their designated warm weather locations. Seven months out of the year, these specimens are kept inside temperature and humidity controlled greenhouses where they can be properly maintained, but it's so nice to see them outside in beautiful ornamental urns. Yesterday, the team potted up and arranged a collection of sago palms, or cycads, in the large courtyard outside my stable.
Enjoy these photos.
I have many, many cycads. The sago palm, Cycas revoluta, is a popular houseplant known for its feathery foliage and ease of care. Native to the southern islands of Japan, the sago palm goes by several common names, including Japanese palm, funeral palm, king sago or just plain sago palm.
Although sago palms are slow growing, mine have grown quite a bit in the last five to six years. These two will be repotted into larger, more accommodating vessels.
Sago palm fronds resemble those of palm trees. The glossy, pinnate leaves are typically about four to five feet long at maturity, and up to nine-inches wide.
Notice the sago palm’s trunk. It is a rough, symmetrical trunk which becomes leafless as it ages and gives way to its evergreen crown of upward pointing fronds. When pruning, only cut off the old and dying leaves, especially towards the base of the tree where they are oldest. And cut them off as close to the trunk as possible.
Mature sago palms, both the male and female varieties, produce pups around their trunks. The pups can be used to grow new sago palm plants. These pups were carefully chiseled off the mother tree and will be repotted.
Here’s Fernando holding one of the 40 sago palm pups. Fernando has worked with me for more than 35 years. He’s learned quite a lot over that time, right Fernando?
Sago palms outgrew these two pots – one is a heavy lead vessel and the other is a much more manageable and lightweight resin container. Do you know which is which?
To start, Pete and Fernando cover the drainage hole of the new pot with shards. This will help with drainage and prevent soil from coming out of the pot’s drainage hole.
Then Pete fills about a third of the pot with composted soil. This nutrient-rich compost is made right here at the farm.
Fernando mixes a generous amount of Miracle Gro fertilizer into the bottom soil. More will be sprinkled on top after the sago palm is potted up.
The sago palm trunk is wrapped carefully and securely with moving blankets and rope and carefully lifted out of the old pot and above the new. Fernando controls the forklift of the Hi-Lo while Pete maneuvers the sago over the pot.
Pete then gives the sago a fresh cut at the bottom, so it can be planted properly in its new container.
Next, Pete uses the edge of a shovel to make intentional cuts in the root ball. This is called scarifying. This stimulates root growth and allows for good circulation.
The sago is then lowered into its new pot at place at the proper height.
Pete and Fernando fill the rest of the pot with soil until it is secure – just under the top rim of the container, so when watered, soil does not flow out. Pete also tamps down on the soil to ensure good contact with the plant.
Pete looks from all sides to make sure the sago palm is straight, making adjustments if needed. Once everything is in place, the moving blankets are removed carefully. Everything is intact.
The frond tips are quite pointy and sharp, so it’s best to plant it away from heavy foot traffic.
Two other large sago palms are placed in the center flanking a large sugar pot. Sugar kettles were used on 19th century Louisiana plantations for the production of sugar. Sugar cane was placed in the large, spherical vessels and cooked down to make syrup. Because they could withstand such high heat, they were also used for cooking. I have started to collect them whenever I see one. They make instant and effective fire pits, and can be moved to different locations on the farm.
Although they’re tropicals that can take full sun, sago palms need part shade to prevent their leaves from burning. This courtyard is shady in the afternoon.
When watering, water so the top inch of soil is moist (check it with your fingertip if you need to) and let it dry out between waterings about once a week.
Here’s Fernando and Pete after a day of repotting. These sago palms will be very happy here outside my stable.
Displaying potted plants around the home during summer is a great way for one to enjoy these interesting specimens during the season.
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