Lilies on Valentine's Day

Dizzy

Saturday, February 14, 2009

A peaceful morning here on the mountain. Eleven blue jays are enjoying a cracked corn feast as half a moon fades into slumber on one side of the house and the sun climbs up through the tamaracks and above Peacham Pond on the other side. It should be a nice day.

Valentine's Day is sometimes a dizzying event. Romance can do that to you. The Oriental lily featured above is named Dizzy and it is always an attention getter and its name always encourages interesting comments. We don't grow lilies for sale any more because of the insidious lily leaf beetle but lilies are sure to arrive in Valentine's Day arrangements and packages of cut flowers. It's sad to us that the beetle has knocked us out of that business as at one time we had the largest retail sales of potted lilies in Vermont and probably the largest number of varieties in New England. I've written about the lily beetle before so just plug "lily leaf beetle" into the search area up above and you'll get to know the problem.

Lilies make a great florist flower and in fact the hundreds of varieties available at florists every year is the result of the demand placed on the floral industry to come up with new and interesting color combinations each year. Most all lilies in major floral production are now grown in greenhouses with dozens of bulbs planted side by side in black plastic crates. The lilies are forced into beauty, cut and processed and then the spent bulbs are discarded and the process starts again. We would probably have problems throwing away bulbs but that's just how it works.

Here are a few pictures to think of on Valentine's Day. They are easy to grow but think through the beetle before you commit to trying some.

Lollypop

Kiss Proof

Dutch Red

Arena


Partner

Smokey Mountain


Red Claret


Red Canadence


Sorbet


Sphinx

From the mountain above Peacham Pond where backyard bird counts are about ready to begin. Click on the link and involved!


Sweet garden wishes,

George Africa
The Vermont Gardener
Vermont Flower Farm

Bleeding Hearts and Valentine's Day

Thursday, February 12, 2009

Good morning from the mountain above Peacham Pond where the rain has picked up since I finished writing Valentine's Greetings a few minutes ago. Travel over to this page for the greeting: http://thevermontgardener.blogspot.com/2009/02/vanlentines-greetings.html


Bleeding hearts are a popular flower with a long history in Vermont and New England. In spring they seem to save their underground energy through a few rainstorms and then with the first warm weather they grow almost non stop, changing leaf color from this picture to a nice blue green that accentuates the rows of pendant hearts. The entire family is said to be poisonous which means that troublesome woodchucks, rabbits and deer enjoy the color but not the plant. In today's world of garden critters doing flower garden damage, this is a welcome plant to grow.

For all the times that I have written about my appreciation for bleeding hearts, I don't think I gave advice to think about where you place one. As summer works into August here and Vermont receives a few days of heat, the foliage of Dicentra spectabilis yellows and fades. In warmer climates south of here, the foliage may fall apart sooner. This translates to a need to think through a good site so that you aren't left with a bare spot close to where garden visitors walk to view your gardens, access your home, etc. Good gardeners don't like to hear too many "What happened heres?"

In addition to the old fashioned bleeding heart, we have some fringed bleeding hearts--smaller plants, smaller foliage, different flower. They are available at the nursery or via our website. The new varieties will be posted by mid-March. If you have a particular interest, send us an inquiry.


Writing from the mountain above Peacham Pond where Gail is leaving to work with Jerome the Florist in Barre for a couple days. She is a superb florist and they are mutually pleased to be able to work together at such a busy time.

Valentines wishes,

George Africa
The Vermont Gardener
Vermont Flower Farm

Time To Plan

Sunday, February 1, 2009

Just got the fire going again in the wood stove and the coffee has finished. 4 degrees above this morning which is considerably warmer than the below zero that was predicted. I checked the weather maps for the possible storm on Tuesday but not much is showing yet. After spending 4 hours yesterday on the tractor moving snow around in the driveways, I can accept a break.

February has arrived. We are halfway through winter but this is the time when big storms can come and temporary thaws are often followed by cold blasts and more snow. Two years ago around Valentines Day we received three feet of snow over much of Vermont and 42" here on the mountain. That's not the way you want to see snow arrive!

As soon as we finish with tax preparation, we begin to go over our plans for spring. Orders have to be checked and rechecked against inventories and the questions have to be tracked down. I keep telling Gail I want to put all the inventory on a hand held for her but she is still one of those pencil and paper people for lots of things. That's probably why we can't tell if we do or don't have that nice little 12" mound shaped Aruncus aethesifolius. It's not too handy looking for plants in the garden this time of year even if they are in neat rows. 4-5-6 feet of snow on the ground here depending on where you are.

Sometimes the plant wholesalers that you use for buying in new items don't help a lot either. Yesterday we received an order confirmation for a hosta named 'Faithful Heart'. Gail and I did one of those mutual "Did you order this?" moves but the answer was no. Gail mumbled away about another thing to add to her list which meant she had to call the company and remind them we have some other nursery's order coming here. We'll keep the order if the company can spare it because it's a nice mini hosta, a sport of Hosta 'Cheatin' Heart'. Miniature hostas are always popular and this one works well as a border plant or in rock gardens.

Despite the usual business interruptions, this is a good time to finish your planning. If for some reason you're one of those people who think you should kick up your hobby garden to a small business, take a few snowless minutes and read Tony Avent's book So You Want To Start A Nursery. Then follow up with one I bought Gail for Christmas. It's not new but it is very good.
The Flower Farmer by Lynn Byczynski, Chelsea Green Publishing, 1997, 2008, is a great resource, full of pictures, grower bios and some nice business profiles from around the country. Between the two books, you can get a good sense of the business side of taking your hobby one step further and in either case the lessons that are offered apply to most businesses.

If your planning at this point is only for your personal gardens, catalogs and the Internet should get you where you want to be. In the daylily world in the 70's, a number of small daylilies were released with the prefix "little". Many of these plants were in the 16"-18" range and most had high bud counts. Here are four I have always liked that you might find space for.

Little Missy

Little Skipper

Little Bumblebee

Little Pumpkin Face

Regardless of where you live, this is the time for a little planning. If you are a vegetable or a wanna be vegetable gardener for 2009, plan early and get your seed purchases made early. Last year most seed suppliers set records selling out earlier than ever before. There's no doubt that with today's economy, we will see more gardeners than ever. Great gardens benefit from good planning. Give it a try!


Writing from the mountain above Peacham Pond where we are already up to 9 degrees and the birds are looking for breakfast. Have to get going here!


Good garden thoughts from The Vermont Gardener!

George Africa
Vermont Flower Farm
Vermont Gardens

Presidential Concerns

Saturday, January 24, 2009

Ten degrees above zero here on the mountain and a growing wind blows small birds sideways as they land on the feeders. Flocks of evening grosbeaks and blue jays swap back and forth on the platform feeder, trying to maintain dominance which is short lived. Birds have a self defense mechanism that triggers when there's movement close by--all birds that is but mourning doves which seem to have steadfast courage not to fly until the last end. Last week I almost put the truck in the ditch waiting until the last minute for a small flock of sand eating doves to move out of the road. They flew and none got nailed but it was a last minute affair. I tried out a few expletives as I continued on.

Been very busy lately and can't get everything done that needs doing. My hand is coming along nicely thank you. I tried it out snow shoveling the roof yesterday. I brought that event to an incomplete conclusion when I got four feet around the edge shoveled off. My hand was hurting and I have been well advised to go slowly. I left the rest of the snow on Gail's mother's place for another day. At least now the icicles won't grow.

I don't know how many of you do your own websites but I'm sure you're tired of me mentioning ours. You'll probably enjoy it when it's done but boy does it take time. To complicate things Gail has the house laid out with IRS materials and I am about ready to start the taxes. Taxes are not my favorite sport and it's amazing to me that I have to spend so much time getting things ready to give to an accountant who charges too much to finish the deal. Where did that presidential candidate go who said he would get rid of the IRS?

Yesterday as I listened to the news, I chuckled as a new stop-the-war president approved a drone in Pakistan and got hammered for not having enough women in his cabinet. Of the two subjects, the one that made me stop for a minute involved the female critics. Not enough women in the cabinet I guess. To insure that none of you criticize the management at Vermont Flower Farm I want you all to know that this is a 50-50 management "group" and it involves Gail and me. That's one woman and one man. There may be slightly more women than men in the world but our management ratio is staying the way it is. Now the staff ratio is a different thing. In the spring there are an average of 7 women and 4 men getting us through planting time. That means 64% women and 36% men. That should satisfy folks I think. When we get into the business end when customers prevail, a typical day has Gail and some combination of Michelle, Austin and maybe one other woman. Again, this should satisfy any critics out there that we try at VFF to be gender considerate. I'm open to comments but we do try!

As snow deepens here on the mountain, give some thought to your gardens, now blanketed under tons of white stuff. Daylilies are a very good flower for the Vermont climate. Gail and I enjoy the older varieties and refuse to pay $150-$250 for some new to the market variety. Up top is one of Gail's favorites, Indian Paintbrush, named after the wildflower that predominates out west but grows here in Vermont too. Immediately below here is Island Sand Dollar and Hush Little Baby. None of these are expensive, they all preform very well and in three years from planting you'll receive compliments that will make your day. With +61,000 registered daylilies on the market now, you have plenty to choose from. Give them some thought and stop by this summer to walk the fields and see what we have.



Writing from the mountain above Peacham Pond where ice fisherman sit in shanties drinking different beverages and peering out windows waiting for small flags to pop up on their tip ups, perhaps signaling a trophy brown trout, perhaps a hungry nuisance perch.

Be well!

George Africa
The Vermont Gardener
Vermont Flower Farm: Our old but functional website that will be replaced in February

Seeds of Change

Monday, January 19, 2008

20 degrees warm here on the mountain and that's a fine change for what has been a colder than normal week. Three mornings were close to or colder than minus 20 so there's been quite a temperature spread. I just came home from White River and Hanover about an hour ago and there was snow all the way. There was also a little black ice here and there on the interstate that made things inter-state-esting. Right now large fluffy flakes drift by the millions bringing reality to the fact that Snowflake Bentley photographed over 5000 snowflakes that he said were all different. Next time you're out with the kids take a good hand magnifier and start counting!


Gardeners are writing regularly on their blogs now about the number of gardening and seed catalogs they are receiving. Something like 95% of all published catalogs, even in good times, get dumped unread. Part of the moral here is that if you like forests as we do, look on-line more and order that way too. Admittedly there is something nice about a stack of new catalogs to thumb through but we all have to be more cognizant of what we are doing with our resources.

Because of my membership with the Garden Writers Association I received some promotional pictures from Park Seed Company. The first pictures came on a CD of specially selected seeds for 2009 as judged by a seed overview group. That's what caught my eye and prompted me to write to Park Seed and ask for some pictures to use in my blogs. Parks has been around a long time, they understand customer service, and they responded immediately. Here goes!

That's a Cauliflower named Graffiti up top with a brilliant purple look, followed down below by three different tomatoes including Tomatoberry, Kellog's Beefsteak, and Chocolate Cherry. There's also an acorn-like small squash named Honey Bear at the end. I can envision the tomatoes sliced thin in a nice vinegar-mint dressing and the Honey Bears cut in half and filled with maple syrup, butter and a dash of cinnamon and nutmeg. Baked squash can't be beat!







Last year I grew just a few vegetables but a few seeds made for lots of vegetables which found their way to the local food shelf and the senior citizens weekly meals program. I never personally met a single person who got any of the fresh produce but I did get reports that it was gone lickety split on pick up days. This is why I'm thinking about more vegetables this year so we can have a little more variety and we can send more food to those who need some help. These Park Seed varieties are new to the market and look interesting.

As you plan your gardens and make seed purchases, think through how many seeds you need for the size of your garden. If you have extra seed and a little spare space, think about growing a little extra produce to leave off at your food shelf. If that doesn't work for you, I guarantee you don't have to look too far down your street to find someone who would appreciate what you don't need. Fresh vegetables can't be beat. Seeds can create change and can help us rebuild relationships the way I remember them in the early fifties. Friends cared about neighbors and looked out for old folks. "Thank yous" were commonly heard. Wouldn't be too hard to get back to that point would it?

Today's miles have caught up with me for sure. I'm tired but I keep wondering what those Chocolate Cherry tomatoes taste like. Give this seed thing some thought and maybe you can help make a little change in someone's summer menu!

Winter garden greetings from the mountain above Peacham Pond. Karl the Wonder Dog is snoring on the rug by the stove. I'm thinking about some maple nut ice cream topped with two ounces of light amber maple syrup from Gadapes Sugar House in Danville. Then I'll be snoring too!

George Africa

The Vermont Gardener

Very Cold Thoughts

Thursday, December 15, 2009

Good morning from the mountain above Peacham Pond where the wind is calm and the thermometer registers 19.8 below zero, and slowly drops lower as the sun contemplates rising. Karl the Wonder Dog just made a Superman-like, "faster than the speed of light" trip outside and back and neither of us debated the decision.

I've been busy at work, had a carpal tunnel repair job on my left wrist, and here at the house I have been working on our new website. I'm down to resizing hundred of pictures and that takes time just to get organized. I have always said I am not a "New Years Resolution" person but one thing that has to change this year is when I take pictures, they have to get sorted, labeled and stored in proper files and folders. I am spending too much time trying to find what I know I have and it's all my fault.

I belong to the Garden Writers Association and with that membership comes product information from many plant and supply companies. The DVDs are interesting and most work so after you get excited you really can see what is available. I planned to show you the latest poinsettias before the holidays and the DVD I received was messed up. I called for another and half of it was missing so I gave up on that one. By next year there will be more varieties of this fine holiday flower as a great deal of hybridizing work is being done on color and style. I'll try again!

Before I head out the door this morning, here are a few selections to think about. Nothing super but everything has a place. Gaillardia Arizona Sun is up top.Change is good in the garden too!

Vinca Pacifica Burgundy

Osteospermum Asti White

And finally, a new pepper named 'Carmen' . Hot thoughts on a very cold day!

Be well, keep warm and remember your pets and animals. It's cold out there!

George Africa
The Vermont Gardener

Winter Work

Friday, December 26, 2008

Morning marches on here as the early red sky that reminded of bad weather has cleared to brighter sunlight making shadows form through the balsam woods. It's an unusual morning here and the birds and squirrels know of an impending storm. The blue jays number 11 on the platform feeder and they only leave their breakfast meal when myriads of evening grosbeaks gang up on them and cover the feeder and the ground. Blue jays are fascinating birds as they pack 23-24-25-26 sunflower seeds in their crop before flying away. That gives the other birds time to clean up all the seeds they have scattered about wastefully.

Black oil sunflower is the seed we have always used here. Grey stripe was my preferred seed for years but it became more and more expensive and then less available. Black oil now costs slightly more than $20 for 50 pounds. I use coarse cracked corn too which is rising to almost $9 for 50 pounds. The ground feeders like that and it seems to make the sunflower go further.

I have a pile of boards left over from summer construction of our new building. These will give plenty of opportunity for new bird houses. I prefer to recycle old boards like I did with the triple decker house above. The decorative boards on top of each entry hole were actually shingles from an old camp on the Lanesboro Road. The shingles were cut the way you see and I simply cut off the bottom and nailed them on.

As stormy days approach, making bird houses is a great project for kids or adults. A study of the birds in your area and their housing requirements is a good place to start. Be sure to read up on where your favorite birds live as a nice new house in the wrong place won't do too much for you.

Have to get going here. Need more wood for the fire and I have to shovel to the back shed. I'm still trying to find one 20 foot piece of tow chain to have ready if the rain storm that is coming turns icy again.

Best holiday wishes!

George Africa
The Vermont Gardener
Vermont Flower Farm

Short Thoughts, Short?Bread

Thursday, December 4, 2008

A long day today that started at about 4 AM and is drawing to a forced close. My shoulder blades feel like there's something large on them, partly I think because as I was coming up the steps tonight, the recent corn snow had slicked things up. I instantly found that I am not good at splits with armfuls of groceries. No dozen eggs tonight, so other than my aches.... nothing broken.... all is well.

See if you can visualize this non-garden encounter I had when I returned home. I made it up the steps with pieces of brown paper bag in one hand and an unscathed bag of groceries in the other. All the way home I was listening to a news program which was detailing how bad the drug scene is in Vermont, Oxy this and Percocet that. So I opened the door and there in front of me, passing a bottle of vanilla back and forth between them, are Gail and Alex. I asked the obvious "What is this all about?" to which I received a non answer and heard another "That is so nice." Great, now I have to add vanilla sniffers to my list of life burdens.

As I pushed the groceries onto the counter, Gail said that she and Alex were preparing to make shortbread and they just got to the vanilla part. Remember now that we are home schoolers at our house and Alex has some quirky Aspergers traits but cooking is a favorite pursuit he enjoys and we do too. I had forgotten that I had asked Gail about shortbread after reading a couple weeks back that Ann Zuccardy of the Vermont Shortbread Company (has a blog too) was thinking about selling twelve years of work. Don't get me wrong, I didn't want to buy a shortbread company (and Ann's is a great one!!) but I did want to see how the recipe from the cookbook King Arthur Flour Cookie Companion turned out. This is a great cookbook by theKing Arthur Flour folks from Norwich, Vermont, a place that should be on everyones "Go Visit" List.

So-o-o-o-o as I recovered from the case of the fallen groceries, Alex and Gail proceeded with the recipe and in time the shortbread was in the oven and Karl the Wonder Dog and I were thinking about sharing some. As we waited, I looked over the recipe again. Although I have eaten shortbread in various shapes, it is traditionally round and that's how the cookbook directs you.

In time the baking was done and Alex flipped the bread out on the board. The fork print design for some reason wasn't deep enough to show through nicely but for a first attempt at an untried recipe, it was great. The recipe makes two pans and one was gone before I could get a picture of the other. I recommend the cookbook, the store in Norwich and Vermont Shortbread Company.
Try them all!


Writing from the mountain above Peacham Pond where the temperature is 29, snow is falling and the wind is howling as the front moves along. If you like history, try Wikipedia for King Arthur Flour and trace K.A.F. from 1790 in Boston to where it is today. Nice story, good company.

George Africa
The Vermont Gardener
Vermont Flower Farm

Business Insurance

Sunday, November 23, 2008

A cold morning here on the mountain, so cold in fact that I think it's January, not November. The seven degrees above zero is not the bad part, it's the wind which cuts through untempered skin that just a week ago experienced +60 degrees for two days. It will come to pass but for the next few days through Thanksgiving, we will experience more light snow, wind and cold. I already am missing the long morning walks with Karl the Wonder Dog but even he says the wood stove is too comfortable to trade for anything.

Back when I started this blog I said I would try to offer some insight into building and growing a business. Some of what I offer needs personal interpretation, like how I build a new shade garden, but some guidance like putting up shade houses or where to buy them in New England is more clear. Like it or not, one aspect of business that always needs attention is insurance.

There are a few things in life that I don't care for all that much. Some are controversial and not good on a blog and insurance is close to the perimeter of such a discussion. It's one of those things that you just plain have to maintain in today's world. It comes up any time you apply for bank loans and you get reminded each year at tax time if you have a good accountant. But before the insurance discussion, a reminder about what you call your business in the world of taxes and insurance.

Years back we ran Vermont Flower Farm as a hobby at home and then it actually became a real business. Originally we were a sole proprietorship but as time passed, our assets and our customer base grew to the point that we kept looking at the value of our personal assets and our business assets. We had never had any problem with customers or staff but you always heard that "fall down and break a leg" discussion. Our business had grown to a longer season and our gardens placed customers in different places on our property.

Some visitors had to walk down the dirt road to access the lower hosta garden, some walked through a bumpy woods path to the peonies and daylily nurseries out back and others just plain pulled little red coaster wagons through the paths and picked up black plastic pots of various perennials. Probably the scariest day in our history to that point was the day a psychiatrist sent his patient to our place (unannounced by all of course!) to view nice flowers (a positive I was told) and come in close proximity with insects (a negative I was told) which she was paranoid about. The blood curdling screams of that exercise in absolute stupidity will never leave my recall, not even this morning at seven degrees, white and blustery. The woman was not hurt physically but her paranoia was challenged big time and as she ran through the gardens, arms flailing, I had no idea how/if she had been injured.

Sometimes it takes little things like this to make you bump yourself to the next level and we immediately moved to a commercial business policy and also moved from a sole proprietorship to a limited liability company. The latter separates personal and business assets and in today's world that's where we should have been in the first place. An LLC doesn't insure that if you are sued you'll be safe, it offers a little more assurance that your bed will still be there at night and the fridge will still run, even if empty of food.

As businesses grow, staff additions sometimes occur and as we moved away from bartering with people and part time laborers, it was clear that workers compensation insurance had to be added to our list of insurances. In Vermont when you first start with workers comp, your business may have some history but not on record with an insurance company so you begin with the assigned risk group. Your agent searches for companies interested in insuring your business and you make a decision on the "takers". Depending on the business, there may be few interested companies and the premiums may shake you up. A roofer, carpenter, electrician, heavy equipment operator all pay startling premiums and those are reflected in the wages they receive.

Part of Vermont's regulation is that as soon as you enter the assigned risk pool which is state mandated, your name is made available to other registered agents. This insures that employees who might have been placed in an incorrect risk group can be properly assessed. So as the close of your first year in the assigned risk pool nears, you begin to hear from companies who are interested in bidding on your coverage.

I have always been driven to keep paperwork at a minimum and have had the same insurance company since 1983. House, business, two cars, at one time a lake property--all under one umbrella. Workers comp was the first insurance to disrupt this convenience and I learned a lot about the change. When I rebid the entire package, one company said they would save me almost $200 per year but there was a caveat. They proposed coverage through 4 different companies which they said they would maintain annually. I just couldn't buy it because in my mind I was and am comforted in the knowledge that I know who I am calling if a have a question and my rates of combined insurances are about as good at they will get.

So the only message I can offer on a cold morning and after two cups of coffee is to research your insurance needs well, make a list of questions and get the answers from of variety of interested companies. Consider deductibles and replacement values and loss of use of buildings or machinery, think through vandalism and theft, natural disaster and your customer experience to date. If you are an organic operation, consider outside influences that might rob you of that classification. I once knew a family who had an organic operation and a plane flew close by spraying an adjacent orchard. The over spray hit their farm and you can imagine the rest.

None of this is difficult, all is a bit of a chore but it all has to happen. Since businesses are for the future, they factually do have a life, and since good business people should have a plan for what they will do with their business when they don't want it any longer, insurance is a big part of this. If you have insurance questions, I cannot be helpful other than to say do not postpone the responsibility, some of which you are legally obligated to maintain.


Writing from the mountain above Peacham Pond where the sun is shaking off a cold start and the blue jays are using their beaks to knock the snow off the feeder to find breakfast.

George Africa
The Vermont Gardener
Vermont Flower Farm

Heartwood Time

Saturday, Novemeber 15, 2008

A busy morning here on the mountain, not "us" being busy but being surrounded by the commotion generated by the opening day of rifle deer season in Vermont. Headlights break the darkness, traveling in all directions as hunters head for deer camps, favorite "stands" or agreed upon meeting places. Karl the Wonder Dog began his security watch around 4 AM and within half an hour I was up and around, wanting just a little more sleep but knowing it was a hopeless wish with so much uninvited company.

Karl and I had hardly stepped off the walkway to the lawn and he came to attention with a mean growl that sounded like a "STOP, Who Goes There?" to me. Close by, in the damp, thick air of the 52 degree morning, I felt the presence of a big bodied animal not far from us. First I thought it was a moose but as it moved away, there was no sound of hooves in the damp soil. I quickly passed over 'paranormal' and concluded that Mrs Bear and the cubs were passing through again. As long as she is moving away from me I am fine with that but having a protection unit at the end of the leash can be troublesome depending on how the bear interprets relationships. This morning all went well and we got back to the house safely.

Yesterday morning as I stopped at Tim's Mobil for my daily morning paper and extra large Green Mountain Coffee , someone I had never seen before asked "Blog don't work?" as he never stopped walking towards the sleepy cashier. "What's that?", I queried as other coffee pourers stopped filling cups to catch the answer. "You're not writin" much now. Sick?" It still didn't register who this man was but I could tell by his dress that he was a logger and the conversation proved that even some loggers are gardeners....or read gardening blogs.

It might have been difficult to figure through his oiled chain saw chaps and ragged sweatshirt, but the smile through a pile of third day growth whiskers made it clear he missed the blog. I topped off my coffee and walked up to him as he almost swallowed whole the first of 6 Eddie's jelly donuts. "I've been cleaning up for the season and the new nursery is taking more time than I thought." "I figured that." he replied "See you out there every night and don't know when you sleep. Get some writing done cuz we miss it." I told him that I appreciated his comments and I'd get back on target soon.

If you follow garden blogs, there's always a time when there's a noticeable absence. Everyone has some chores which take a bit longer than usual and priorities are a must. For me, it's been splitting wood for the next season or two as I like to be at least a year ahead. That insures that we have dry would to burn and even if something happens to me that interrupts my schedule, the house will be warm and worries about creosote in the chimney won't exist.

In a few minutes I have to get going on the wood pile that if half and half, ash and beech. I dislike cutting either of these trees as they are on my list of favorites. Unfortunately both have major problems and they are dying out around here. The ash is bothered by the emerald ash borer, a beetle that has been here for 6 years now. That number is in conflict with what all the state and federal tree people say but I identified the problem here while they were denying it existed.

With the beech, there has been a serious decline that started in Vermont in the early 60's. The problem involves Nectria fungus and the beech scale insect which in conjunction are known as Beech Bark Disease. The smooth beech barks become pock marked and the heartwood begins to get pulpy as the tree quickly dies. In short order the tree is worthless for lumber or even firewood and the result is great economic significance to an important resource. I cut this very high BTU wood when I see signs of bad health. I don't like to but it's better to use the resource than it have it fall into useless piles.

Before it rains today I want to wash off the brush hog and the tiller and get them covered for the winter. There's a still a ton of empty pots stacked here and there and residual debris from a short but successful summer on Route 2. Better get going as rain shows strong on the radar and the temperature will fall as will snow by morning.

Writing from the mountain above Peacham Pond where two shots just broke the morning silence. Deer hunting is a big economic event in Vermont.

George Africa
The Vermont Gardener
Vermont Flower Farm

Japanese Beetles

Friday, October 31, 2008

It was apparently a quiet night here on the mountain. Apparently. A beautiful starlit night, motionless air and 16 crisp degrees suggesting the distinct possibility that the prediction for a +50 degree, snow-melting day would occur. That apparition dissolved about 4 am when Karl the Wonder Dog, premise protector extraordinaire, life buddy, home security chief, flew out of slumber like one of those vertical take off jets, ending a dream I'll never get back to. As I left the dream, I thought I heard someone at the back door so I stumbled in that direction, ungratefully cursing while simultaneously begging Karl to calm before three zombies were fully awake and bouncing off the walls for the balance of the night.

When I got to my office and flipped on the outside perimeter light, the tracks in the snow below the window made the problem obvious. I got dressed and leashed up Karl and we headed outside. The sow bear and two cubs had been standing on the back steps getting ready for one of those Goldilocks maneuvers as they went from place to place in the yard, turning over stacked plant crates and five gallon buckets looking for breakfast.

Karl is a strange security officer for sure. He stops abruptly and snorts hard like a musk ox or a pawing bull but one always wonders what he'd do if large, physical danger approached. I knew that the bears had heard his noise long before I pulled on my boots so the only fear I had was how I'd make it through the rest of the day without enough sleep.

We circled the yard and tracks were everywhere. Two days ago I had spread a little cracked corn on a platform bird feeder and then the rain came and the birds left. That provided sufficient smell that the bears bent over the steel pole and licked off the little corn that remained. Once again my eagerness to enjoy birds out my office window disrupted my sleep. I know better than to do this but I messed up again. In a forgiving way, I was thankful that Karl's auditory perception was so clear. When he finished pulling me around the yard, we returned to the house and he was fast asleep almost before I got my boots off.


Something that is really more troublesome to me than bears is Japanese beetles. A month ago I wanted to mention beetle control as I have that one figured out. I've written about this before and I guess that's a sign of how important I think it is to get control of this beetle. There's plenty of information on the Internet about how the beetle got to America but less obvious info about milky spore. I swear by this bacteria and suggest that you do some quick research and consider it. If your soil temperature is already below 50 degrees, it's too late to apply this year but just the same you can get prepared for next spring. Several companies manufacture it but here's an example of what I purchase from the garden section in Vermont box stores. It's about $25 to cover 2500 square feet. Give it some thought, it really works!


Writing from the mountain above Peacham Pond where the stars switch has been turned off for the night and I have to get to work!

George Africa
The Vermont Gardener
Vermont Flower Farm

Shade Garden Construction Continues

Saturday, October 25, 2008

A quiet morning here on the mountain. 37 degrees which is the warmest in a few days. A front is approaching with rain by noon and heavy rain by tonight. Predictions are from 1 to 3 inches by midnight tonight so there's lots to do this morning to stretch the day as far as possible.

I took off most of yesterday from my regular job to work on the new shade garden. This is a big project which Gail had her doubts about me completing, actually even starting, this fall. Good gardeners have goals and one of mine was to get the designated area cleaned up and rototilled for next spring. This had to match the declining night time temperatures and my need to get the tractor home and get next year's wood supply out of the woods before the snow comes. As of this morning, the project has a bunch left but is on target to be completed. It was "close" a couple days this week because night temperatures in the low twenties froze things solid and thaw didn't occur until late afternoon. This is a characteristic of this portion of our new land. It lays in a hollow, bordered in the back by the Winooski River for some warmth but low enough otherwise to frost up first when other areas are warmer.

As I mentioned in an earlier post, our hosta collection is not big by collectors standards but hidden away here on the hill are over 400 varieties. We actually have more but unlike some gardeners we don't maintain an Excel spreadsheet with everything in the collection. If we grow for sale, we know what we have for stock but probably half what we grow has not been put into sales yet. The only excuses for that is developing salable numbers or finding the time.

This new garden intends to recreate the shade garden in the old barn foundation here on the hill. For many people, no matter how nice it is, it won't be the same. I agree, but also guarantee that in a couple years, the garden will be a destination for those interested in shade plants including hostas.

The soil at this site is alluvial clay washed there annually for years as the spring river flow went over the bank and covered the area several feet deep. There's not a rock, not a pebble to be found. Just before we came to Marshfield in 1989 the river was reconstructed a bit and the spring flows began going where they should. This summer's rain was a good test to how much water that river can hold and save for debris damming it up, we have no worries.

Riverbanks are notorious for their collection of weeds and shrubs. They contain wide samplings of about every plant that lies upstream from the point you are working on. In this part of Vermont you can be assured that you'll find wild hops growing up the alders, Joe Pye Weed, Jewelweed, Forget-Me-Nots, Ground Ivy, Vetch, Burdock,Canada Thistle, and Japanese Knotweed in abundance. There are tons of matted Goldenrod woven into a terrible mess with a variety of 5-6 foot tall grasses. On any perimeter where there is a little sun, poison ivy is guaranteed and smattered here are there are wildflowers, in this case trilliums, Lilium canadense, Purple Fringed Orchids, Red and also White Baneberries. The mix creates a challenge for the gardener as members of this offering belong to the "Wish I Never Saw You" Collection.

As of last night I am down to two truckloads of top growth to load up and bring back here. I'm filling in a couple areas in a back field here so I can get the material off the nursery land and put it to use. I have now rototilled all the new areas over a dozen times and with each till I am getting a little deeper into any remaining root systems I missed earlier. The three yellow "x's" mark large groups of Spotted Joe Pye Weed which I have left for their height and shade. The large yellow spot is a wet area which will be dug out a bit next year. I have lots of left over clay piled up and the plan is to dig out the wet area and drop in some loose clay so hold the water in that area better when it rains. Earlier this week there was one night of rain and I can't work that end again this year because it is saturated. My plan is to surround that area with various Ligularias, Rodgersias, Astilboides tabularis and similar plants that are large leaved and like their feet wet. Then I'll add giant swaths of various astilbes. Each tree will be surrounded by swaths of the same hosta and somewhere, yet to be determined, will be a network of stone paths.

If you look at the picture with a little imagination you can see a slight definition above the truck and tractor that represents an old road. It comes down behind the tree line and is more noticeable on the right side of the picture above the pond location. I have already cleared this and tilled it. It is directly in front of the fence and now represents an elevated walkway. My plan is to have a stone path come down the perimeter from the right of the picture and then extend across through the trees so visitors can view the gardens from above. I'll probably need a bridge of sorts to keep people out of the seasonal muck that predominates above the pond location but for next year that may be a couple elevated 2 X 12's.

Next spring after the summer planting is done, I'll go through this whole piece, free it of weed plants I have missed, rototill it again and then begin planting. The soil is so good that I really think the plants will catch on quickly. It is a work in progress no different than the foundation garden we have left behind. If you travel Route 2, glance down the bank and you'll see a garden that will be worth stopping to visit!


Writing from the mountain above Peacham Pond where the only noise this morning is my stomach suggesting breakfast is in order, two cups of coffee doesn't cut it!

George Africa
The Vermont Gardener
Vermont Flower Farm

October Skies

Monday, October 20, 2008

I woke up early this morning with pins and needles carpal tunnel hand and a hope that the day would be kind to me. Karl the Wonder Dog sat up and whimpered which is his cue for going outside. He knows that on Mondays I start a week of different behavior but he didn't care this morning as he wanted to go out. I think he slept through the part of the Red Sox game just before I gave up last night and neither of us made the last call of the night.

I got dressed quickly and headed for the back door. Karl was obviously more awake than me as he already wanted to play a "try to catch me" game which didn't really tickle me all that early in the morning. I latched onto him and snapped on the leash with a couple non- dog expletives and away we went into the cold.

This time of year caution is the word on the first step. That's when you find out how thick the frost is and whether you will dance to the ground or not. Karl was away after some scent before I could get organized and before I knew it I was looking at a star-filled sky and a large meteor plummeting down. I must love that dog for what I go through.

Forty minutes later I was out the door and heading to Waterbury to work. Tired, lame and too cranky to pick up the pot of Aster 'October Skies' that I had knocked off the steps. Asters are a great fall plant, a good grower and an easy plant for color no matter how cold it gets. I almost like its color in contrast to the reds and yellows of the maple leaves and the bright yellows of tamarack needles. But for today, it was off to work, enjoying what was to become a gray clouded day with little warmth until after 4 PM.

Hope your fall days are going well and that you have had a chance to plant some spring bulbs. If the Farmers Almanac is correct again, spring bulbs and color will be in order when Vermont welcomes in May 2009.

Good gardening wishes from a tired gardener,

George Africa
The Vermont Gardener
Vermont Flower Farm

Constructing A Shade Garden

Thursday, October 16, 2008

A quiet night here on the mountain. Gail is reading, Alex is grouching away at a home school project and Karl the Wonder Dog is in front of the wood stove, almost motionless with only an occasional rise and fall of his ribs. Dogs apparently mellow out better than humans when they are relaxing....I should be so lucky!

It's quiet outside too with everything well dampened from a full day's worth of heavy rain. The foliage season had never been so good until this morning. It has been going strong since about the 22d of September, with bright reds and strong yellows, greens and browns. Many of you have asked for more pictures but I have had so much work at the nursery to finish up that camera clicking has been off the list. Here are a few shots in haste on my part. Just click to enlarge if you're so inclined.

As for today's topic, return to the introductory photo at the top of the page. If you have followed this blog, or The Vermont Gardener, or have checked out our old but good website, Vermont Flower Farm, or if you have just plain visited us at Peacham Pond Road before our move, you will have an understanding of our love for shade plants. We maintained (past tense) a beautiful garden within an old barn foundation and by it's virtues it had become a destination for many gardeners.

This summer we moved to our new location and placed a few thousand hostas and shade plants in and around a couple shade houses. One house was 20 by 30 feet and the other was 20 feet by 60 feet. The plant quality was as superb as ever but the displays, no matter how often they were changed, just weren't the same as the real thing.

Moving and developing new gardens in the same summer is an impossibility without a bundle of money. As such we progressed as best we could and we're proud of what we accomplished. A 10 foot by 200 ft garden breaks the entrance to the nursery from the plants themselves. It's weedy but plantings held up well and will be completed next spring. The "stone bones" of what will become a certified daylily display garden are set. Other gardens have been started and the 5000 daylily plants in various garden plots is a good start by itself. Just the same, the shade plants hadn't received any real attention.

Gail had herself convinced that I would not get to a hosta and shade garden this year and perhaps not until later next year. Let me just say that she does not know me as well as some that work with us. Three days ago I began what should amount to about 40 hours of tractor work excavating a site a little over 300 feet long and 10 to 100 feet wide. If you enlarge the picture at the top, you will receive a sense of the proposed garden.

To the left of the picture you'll note a piece of the Winooski River which winds behind the garden. The couple house roofs suggest where the village of Marshfield commences. The new garden is only scratched out in the land as I used the tractor bucket to skim off all the weeds and then began the process of rototilling back and forth, back and forth. The soil is free of as much as a peeble and being close to the river it leaches water at a depth of about 10 inches on down. The end on the right is lower and a line of heavy clay forms an underground dam and holds water at that end as it seeps through the bank and into the river.

A little more than a week ago, George the geologist came by and sampled the area. The proposed area was covered with weeds at the time but now its nakedness confirms the samples. It is at least three feet deep in alluvial soil deposited over the years during various floods. Although this soil type is devoid of organic material and although the top dries to dust in 2-3 days, it's all fixable, it's easier to improve than clay and it's perfect for shade tolerant plants like hostas.

Riding around on the tractor is great fun for some but it wears on my back and legs after a bit. Just the same, one look at what I have done so far is sufficient encouragement to keep at it. My goal is to have it ready to plant before the snowflakes get too deep. That will give me the days of winter to design what will go where, bring in the rest of the hard scape and order up trees and shrubs. I know the single picture lends little direction to where I am heading but bear with me. This new garden won't be able to replace the old barn foundation, but it will be a shade garden you'll want to walk through....time and again, in peace and tranquility. Be patient. Plan a visit.....


Writing from the mountain above Peacham Pond where large flocks of Canada Geese flew high
during Tuesday and Wednesday nights moonlit skies. Cars now come with built in GPS's but geese always had them.

With cool garden thoughts of fall chores,
Gardening wishes,

George Africa
The Vermont Gardener
Vermont Flower Farm