Inside The House

Sunday, March 11, 2012

A quiet morning here on the mountain, perhaps because of the time change when we spring ahead for an hour wishing at the same time that the early morning light we were growing to enjoy would spring with us. It doesn't happen that way. Almost 6 AM right now which was 5 AM just yesterday. The bright moonlight is fading and we'll have to be patient for a few days while sunrises catch up with the hour's change. By the end of March I am beginning my favorite time of year because the morning starts earlier and I can get so much done before lots of folks are kicking off the bed sheets.

18.0° here this morning and already two log trucks have gone by and the first trout fisherman has headed to Peacham Pond for brown trout. I suspect there may have been earlier fisherman than this truck but I made no notice in the dark. The wind is now at 3 mph and that will probably increase a little as the sun begins to rise and this next weather front comes in. There should be a good maple sap run today which is much needed after the spring we have had so far.

Gardeners have many pursuits besides gardening, especially in a state like Vermont where some killing frosts come in early September and winter snows do not always stop until spring is really under way. In the four previous years we have been at our "no longer new" nursery location, one year we had snow on Mother's Day/May 9th and a couple-three years back we had 18" of snow on April 28th. Those things happen.

So with the unpredictability of weather, gardeners spend their time doing different chores. On February 28th my friend Michelle closed on her first ever house, a 1915 Craftsman style house that needs some help but will be a beauty when finished. I said I would help with the rough part of the clean up and I have already gotten myself in trouble because I am liking what I am doing so much I haven't tended to my own chores here at the flower farm. Michelle knows I need some redirection and last night she told me to go home and stay there but I can't seem to get out of the history involved in the old house.

We stripped the carpets that had covered very nice hardwood floors for over 40 years, maybe longer, and then tackled the wallpaper in the dining room. The entire house was wallpapered as was common in older days. The trouble with wallpaper is it usually was not one layer but many and in this situation, the paper was apparently stripped back to the lath and horsehair plaster about 50 years ago as there are 5 layers to be removed.

Wall paper removal is like building good soil. It takes a lot of time but when you're finished there's a reward involved that brings on smiles. Yesterday I got the dining room down close to "mostly stripped" while Michelle was away at her day job and the electrician she had hired worked to bring the kitchen and bathrooms into compliance with some ground fault protected outlets. The wallpapers were interesting and the quality back then was really exceptional. I think the last layer probably went on 15 years ago as the owner was getting along and wall color was probably less of a concern.

Right now Michelle is researching the best way to patch the old plaster as some has worn around the archway into the living room and around a couple windows, and under another. You Tube makes research a bunch easier and what looks easy really is not all that hard except that there are supplies and tools to purchase for most homeowners and there's a need to build a little confidence which is not something that comes with a price tag.

There are many, many things which this house will require to return it to vintage form. It reminds me of a couple years back when I was asked to speak about daylilies at an area historical society. Our discussion set the membership upon a look-see into what flowers had been originally planted around the building and this stimulated thoughts of of a different type of restoration. This house will be a lot of fun and despite Michelle's scolding to go home, I know I'll sneak back and help some more. Kinda like planting time at the nursery when people show every spring to volunteer to help with spring planting because they have to get their hands into the soil and get the feel of plants. You probably know that feeling too!

Writing from the mountain above Peacham Pond where the first two loads of logs just went by heading for Jay, Maine. I should hear the trucks stop--right about now--for the drivers to remove the tire chains. 6:24 AM. Have a nice day!

George Africa
The Vermont Gardener
Vermont Flower Farm
On Facebook as Vermont Flower Farm and Gardens and also as George Africa
On Twitter as vtflowerfarm
Always available to help you grow your green thumb!

Thoughts of Spring

Monday, May 5, 2012

A surprise this morning after days of rain, wind and snow. The temperature was close to zero for some time and then as the sun rose and the winds came up, stopped, started again, stopped, the temps bounced up and down around zero degrees as last night's snow drifted powder-like from tree branches everywhere. March in Vermont is not like many other places in America and here it's still a long time before the weather warms and we see flowers. In contrast, the southern east coast is seeing apple and cherry blossoms and wildflowers, none of which are even thinking of breaking dormancy here.

Down around South Carolina and Georgia there are reports of trilliums coming into bloom. I love trilliums and always have. As a kid growing up in Woodstock the only one we regularly saw was Trillium erectum and it wasn't until many years later that I even knew that Stinking Benjamins had a real name. It was even later in life that one of Gail's friends told be she knew them as Nosebleeds. Regardless of the name, and there are many, many other common names, they are still a great wild flower.

Every August I pluck firm seed pods and crush them between my fingers and then with one finger, I make a hole and push the whole, broken pod full of seeds into the ground and cover. A couple years later the germination is obvious and four to six years after that there is the start of a nice colony complete with small flowers. The next picture shows some 3-4 year old seedlings I dug to line out and also pot up for future sales. You will notice a horizontal rhizome-like root at the bottom of each stem. As the plants mature past age 7-8 years, you can dig these in the spring and slice them in half to increase production. They root well and are quicker to produce nice flowers than by starting seed.

These pictures show the 3-4 year old seedlings, split out of a clump, in a clump and then leafing out in one of our gardens.









There are three native growing trilliums in Vermont although many of the 52 varieties found in North America will grow here. In New England there is a fourth native only found in Maine. In order below here are grandiflorum, erectum and undulatum. Each has it's own requirements but they will grow any place in New England. The yellow luteum at the start of this page is likewise a non native but it too will do well here.








So as winter snows turn to spring rains, give some thought to greater use of wild flowers in and around your property. Trilliums are fun to grow and still bring a lot of "What is that's?"


Writing from the mountain above Peacham Pond where the snow in the driveways tells me that I need to plow before Gail gets back home at 1. Use care on the roads and give thought to your gardens. Drop us a line with questions and we'll try to make your gardening in 2012 more successful. We are always glad to help you grow your green thumb!

George Africa
The Vermont Gardener
Vermont Flower Farm
On Facebook as Vermont Flower Farm and Gardens and also as George Africa
On Twitter as vtflowerfarm

Irish Eyes, Potato Eyes

Friday, February 24, 2012

A quiet morning here on the mountain. The temperature started at 21° before daybreak and has moved up to 25.2° Not a whisper of wind this morning and the red skies I thought I would see remain the same gray from two hours ago. The Channel 3 weatherman, Gary, just said the storm is moving into southern Vermont now and this may turn into the first substantial storm we have seen here since before Thanksgiving. The barometer is at 29.32 and has started to drop.

An indicator of how bad the economy is seems to be seed and plant catalogs this year. Over recent years I have tried to let companies know that I use on-line catalogs and try to save trees. This year, however, I am receiving a number of catalogs I've never seen before and one of these is Irish Eye Garden Seeds from Ellensburg, Washington. This company sells organic seeds and also organic garlic and seed potatoes. I have mentioned an interest in potato varieties before and often you have to resort to the Internet to get some of varieties. I have also mentioned Peaslee's in Williamstown, VT, Johnny's Selected Seeds in Maine, and Jim Gerritson's Wood Prairie Farm, also in Maine. Locally I have had some luck at Guy's Farm and Yard, Agway, and also Depot Farm Supply in Essex.

The interest in fingerling type potatoes seems to be growing and I notice that the supermarkets are selling two pound bags of smaller potatoes for $4.95 which suggests the interest and willingness to pay remains steady.



With the availability of seed potatoes comes a good amount of info available in stores and on-line on how to grow potatoes. I think they are an easy crop to grow as long as you understand their nutritional needs, forget about the use of lime and have a contingency for critter involvement. Deer will eat the plants in summer and will dig the potatoes out in fall. Insects keep you busy in between but there are organic ways of dealing with them.

Here are images of Red Patriot, Russian Banana, All Blue and Yukon Gold to serve as example of what is available to try. There are dozens of other varieties too. While the snow deepens by nightfall today, give potatoes a thought for spring planting. If space is short at your house, try just a couple in a large container while you understand what plants look like and what typical production is by fall. It's a great project for kids but kids and adults alike find great fun pulling tops and finding out what grew all summer!

Red Patriot

Russian Banana

All Blue

Yukon Gold

Writing from the mountain above Peacham Pond where bluebirds yell at me for more food at the feeders even though they were fed at 6.

The picture of the little potato gardener up top is Alex when he was 10. He's 19 now and stands a head above me. Click on the pictures to enlarge them.

George Africa
The Vermont Gardener
Vermont Flower Farm
On Facebook at Vermont Flower Farm and Gardens and also George Africa
On Twitter at vtflowerfarm
Always ready to help you grow your green thumb!

Moving Daylilies

Wednesday, February 15, 2012

A nice morning here on the mountain. 22.6°, windless, quiet down the road at the log landing, noisy at the bird feeders. My friends are coming in for their newly placed breakfast buffet of sunflower, cracked corn and mixed seed treats. I'll get back later today with some peanuts for the blue jays but I want to get the cameras set up first to get some better pictures of the gluttons that jays are.

It's been four full years that we have been at our nursery on Route 2 in the village and one might think that by now all the plants from here at the house would be moved. It just doesn't work that way when you have a two person business. As we enter year five, we shake our heads in disbelief but that's nothing compared to the fact that Gail and I started gardening together in Shelburne in 1983. Our first joint task was planting a hundred eggplant in early June on a day that turned so cold it was spitting snow instead of welcoming summer. Looking back, I guess that should have been a harbinger to what was to come.

So here we are, thinking seriously about spring planting and scared about what is going to happen with sales. As I ever so slowly finish up income taxes it's a sad reminder to what we didn't sell last year. Those floods in May and then Hurricane Irene really kept customers away and sales were off by numbers that startle. No wonder we are still tired as there was a lot of rebuilding that is yet to be completed and deposits to the bank were few and far between at the beginning and at the end of the season. Sales were off by almost 30% for the year but factually customers can't get to a place without a road and Vermont suffered some of the greatest devastation in America.

But despite the sadness, farmers are built to rebound. They have to. I used to say that farmers had great confidence but now I describe them as resolute because I think it's a stronger statement of bucking up to adversity and moving along.

I haven't counted but I know that here at the house there are over 200 different daylilies left to move and 2012 is the year for this. This picture shows one of the gardens that needs to be dug and moved and when worker bee Michael gets out of college in May, this will be one of his early chores. We'll dig the clumps, divide them and then plant some in pots for resale and we'll line the rest out in the gardens to grow along for future sales. These are big old clumps so I'll probably help with the tractor getting them out of the ground.

Over near the peony display garden there are about 50 daylilies including 25 that Alex picked out back when he was nine and just interested in hybridizing. Almost every daylily he picked from catalogs to grow along has become a good seller and that shows the good eye he has for color and vitality. I also have +20 late bloomers I purchased from Olallies in Newfane Vt. These are very nice daylilies from an old and very nice nursery that faced the same flood challenges we did as their road was washed away too. Southern Vermont really took it heavy and there are still places that need attention down there.

So if you happen to stop by come May and don't have anything planned for the day, I'll be happy to exchange labor for daylilies as we move along, Maybe I will be surprised and things will be more positive but yesterday after I started to write this I went to Montpelier and in one day the gas prices went to $3.69.9 and I saw people on ladders changing prices ever higher. My research a month ago said $4.50 in Vermont by Memorial Day and more than $5 a gallon by July 4th. It isn't necessary but it's a reality.

Writing from the mountain above Peacham Pond where I can hear a beagle barking across the balsams chasing a rabbit. I don't know who is hunting here today. My sport will be installing a new dishwasher for Gail.

George Africa
The Vermont Gardener
Vermont Flower Farm

On Facebook as Vermont Flower Farm and Gardens (Like?) and also as George Africa
On Twitter as vtflowerfarm
Helping everyone grow their green thumb!

Valentines Day Flowers

Valentines Day
Tuesday, February 14, 2012

Already past six here on the mountain and Karl the Wonder Dog has already been outside for a walk and is back in front of the wood stove snoring dog dreams and offering up an occasional involuntary leg movement as if thoughts of chasing a rabbit have taken over his mind. It's still dark out and the lights along the snow fence since Christmas provide a guide through the morning darkness. I'm actually glad we walked earlier as there has been a line of tractor trailers going by since we got in. They are all headed to the logging project down the hill and this morning their responsibility is transporting wood chips to the electric plant in East Ryegate. The first trucks will be loaded and on their way in less than two hours and the sound of the chipper will continue until about 4 tonight when it's time to shut it down and perform daily maintenance for tomorrow morning's repeat performance. When the project is completed, an old sugar bush will have been cleaned up and a crew will appear with plastic tubing by the mile and get things ready for maple sugaring season. This is big business in Vermont and last year a record setting million gallon production brought smiles.

Gail has worked for her good friend Jerome of Jerome the Florist in Barre for three days now. If you're down that way today and need an arrangement or cut flowers for a loved one or one you wish would love you, stop by. Gail is always squirreled away in a corner but she loves to help and although she returns home each day with an obvious tiredness, there is a leftover story and a big smile that makes me know they all worked hard and had fun. Each year some people just kind of show up to help on a process of flower prep, flower arrangement, sales and deliveries that you actually have to see to understand its complexity. Bazillions of flowers go out the door in a short amount of time. Yes, love is in the air but it takes a lot of busy hands to move through the holiday. Thankfully the weather has been good this year and although flower deliveries had to be covered this past weekend due to the cold, yesterday and today are better.

Each year around this time I write about a favorite perennial flower, Bleeding Heart or Dicentra. I have written about it on The Vermont Gardener many times before so for this year, in kind of a tax time laziness, I just want to reference previous writings if you are interested. If you are not, I'll understand. Just the same, warm Valentine's Day wishes. Be sure that before the day ends you have not forgotten anyone. Love is a funny thing but just caring about people is the real thing!

Fringed Bleeding Hearts
Two Friends
Valentines Greetings


Writing from the mountain above Peacham Pond where yet another truck just headed to the chip site. They downshift before making the turn in front of our house and I can count trucks without even looking. Busy day!

George Africa
The Vermont Gardener
Vermont Flower Farm
On Facebook at Vermont Flower Farm and Gardens and also George Africa
On Twitter as vtflowerfarm
Always here to help you grow your green thumb!

Biologicals and Blue Jays

Thursday, February 9, 2012

7 AM and I just returned from a morning walk with Karl the Wonder Dog. It's 9° right now but 5° if you factor in the 2 mph breeze. The sky is clear and the sun is rising above Peacham Pond suggesting it will be warmer by noon. February is a busy time for the animals and birds of the adjacent fields and woodlands. Coyotes, which I have been studying lately, mate this time of year and lately they have been frequenting a compost pile I have out back. Red squirrels mate now too and as Karl and I exited the back door this morning, three ran right between us chasing each other in a frenzy that forgot safety. Sometimes love is like that. Barred owls call each other frequently now and for consecutive nights I have been outside listening for them but oddly they have been silent this year.

As I walked by the compost pile last night I thought for a minute about all the questions gardeners bring to us every summer--plant questions about discolored leaves with strange looking spots or colors or curls, or dried edges or falling leaves. Many of these problems are related to the assortment of fungal issues that I feel can be dealt with if you grow your soil before you grow your plants. Building good soil is a long affair and Gail and I are not proud of what we have at the nursery but we are happy with our progress. Our soil there is comprised of four different types with thick clay predominant. Amendments are called for and we work in as much as we can gather up.

Many gardeners are impatient and many garden centers are pleased to sell expensive chemical products guaranteed to erase problems without telling what else they might erase. The world of biological controls is growing and there are some interesting things to research and consider to meet your needs. Yesterday I was reading the Bioworks site and learning what new things they offer. Back in the days when we grew lilium by the thousands we were interested in controlling fungi on our lily bulbs and found a Bioworks product named RootShield. The product is OMRI certified (Organic Materials Review Institute) so it can be used safely for food we eat and still do the trick dealing with problem fungi. I'm not suggesting that we eat lily bulbs although some do, but I am recommending the use of biologicals instead of "kill everything and anything" chemicals. During the remaining winter months, research some of the available biologicals and consider them this year. Your first reaction might be that they are expensive but wouldn't the bees and butterflies you enjoy be a sacrifice too if the only place their names could be found was on a list labeled "EXTINCT"?

Writing from the mountain above Peacham Pond where a single young blue jay is sitting on the platform outside my office window yelling at me to bring out some seeds. He has the makings of a fine blue jay politician, yelling for change but not looking in the right direction.

Have a nice day!

George Africa
The Vermont Gardener
Vermont Flower Farm
On Facebook at Vermont Flower Farm and Gardens and also as George Africa
On Twitter as vtflowerfarm
And always helping you grow your green thumb!

Finding New Things

Monday, February 6, 2012

A morning here on the mountain with many weather changes. An hour ago it was ten degrees warmer than right now. The sun may be shining and saying "Good Morning, America" in Eastport, Maine but it's a dreary day here. The wind has come up and it's forcing the temperature down so we're at 13.9° right now with the wind chill. Karl the Wonder Dog has been out twice but the bite of the wind was more than he cared for. I agree.

A local logger is cleaning up a very nice old sugar bush just down the road from us and that means wood chips for a nearby power plant, firewood which he works up mechanically, and also logs. The logs go to sawmills in Maine because there just aren't many left here in Vermont and those that are left have specialties. When you go to a mill, hardware store, box store, etc. and buy a piece of lumber you might complain about the price but you have to stop for a minute and think through the process. Kinda like buying a gallon of milk if you're a complain-about-price person. It's a lot of work to get the board from a tree in the woods to the board you want to buy. Logging is one of the most dangerous professions going and it's not easy work to boot. Anyway two log trucks just headed out after stopping in front of our house here and taking off their snow chains. They have easy sailing now except for school bushes that they will start meeting in half an hour as they cross into New Hampshire.

Just before the logger in charge of this cutting started, he stopped by to introduce himself. The 80 acre piece will take all winter to finish but with no snow this year, everything can go quicker. The land belongs to a family named Chase from Barre and they are all good people. There is a deer camp on the property and I remember my father in law used to go there at the start of deer season every year for an afternoon shot of whiskey. He has passed on now, and Henry, the owner and family leader, is hunting in a different world now having left last year at age 91. For Ralph, the visit was an annual affair, one of those things he had to do and he'd be gone some time as there were stories to share, some repeated annually. Sometimes in summer he'd go down to see if Henry was cutting wood and he'd ride the old John Deere 320 down as if it was a car or truck. Ralph is gone and now I have that tractor but the stories didn't come with it. Good stories.

So anyway, what's the point of a logging operation in winter and a blog entitled "Finding New Things"? When loggers, or even homeowners like you, begin to reopen forests that have been closed for some time, it's like someone unlocked a new world. The first summer you can walk where trees once stood and look at the ground and make mental comment on how good a job the logger did (or didn't do) caring for the balance of the environment. The thing that's guaranteed to prevail is your notice of the sunlight no longer blocked from entering the land and it's that opportunity that makes the difference.

After year one, many seeds will have germinated that had been dormant for many, many years. Wildflowers will be included and you will be surprised during years two and three with the beauty that you never knew existed. This piece of property is adjacent to Marshfield Reservoir and there is no doubt that the wild orchids that I find once in a while will begin to surface. Trilliums, both erectum and undulatum will probably be everywhere in 3-4 years and bunches of bunchberries will be covered in white next spring and red berries by the next fall.These are guesses but I have seen this happen repeatedly and know it will happen here too.

When spring awakens land that you know, take a hike on a piece of newly logged forest and keep an eye on what grows. State forests most always have a new piece you can walk. I'll bet you'll be surprised. Right now three blue jays and two doves are surprised that it's 7:30 and the feeders are empty. Have to get going here. From the mountain above Peacham Pond, good wishes for a nice day. Think about "finding some new things".

George Africa
The Vermont Gardener
Vermont Flower Farm
On Facebook as Vermont Flower Farm and Gardens (please "Like") and also George Africa
On Twitter as vtflowerfarm
Always helping you grow your green thumb!

Business Thoughts in Horticulture

Thursday, February 2, 2012

22.5° here on the mountain this morning with a 4 mph breeze and a slow-to-start sunrise above Peacham Pond. There's a while left before the sun really gets going and the weatherman says expect to see lots of gray clouds by 7:30. It's Groundhog Day too and that's a different story as the very few woodchucks we have around here are fast asleep and not thinking at all about any media hype with guys wearing protective, bite-proof gloves and stovepipe hats and yanking their round, buggy eyed brethren out of sleep for the cameras. I'm sure you've seen this courageous behavior before.

The news has been all politics but my horticulture trade magazines spend January trying to project what the summer will bring. Gail and I read the forecasts in various journals and then spend a little time researching weather forecasts from continents far away. We usually do quite well with the forecasts and less well with the outcomes. Last summer was the worst.

I just read a brief and also general economic view in Nursery Management Magazine. There are clearly some positives from a government perspective but I'm not seeing it in Vermont. I stopped last night for gas and it was at $3.59.9 for Unleaded. A year ago yesterday the national average was $3.10, a month ago it was $3.26, yesterday it was $3.42 nationally but just the same I pumped in $85 to get to "F". A warm winter so far has kept heating oil costs under $4.00 a gallon here, and all the costs associated with running the winter sports industry in the east that consumes a lot of energy has flattened due to lack of snow. Internationally there are big and little challenges. China is gobbling a bunch of oil, Israel is short on natural gas as it's in between fields with one almost out and another half a year away from coming on line. The list goes on but it all impacts on US prices. What that means to horticultural endeavors is that sales will repeat 2011 at best and food sales will continue to rise with diesel prices.

We can preach "Buy Local" and we should as that effort is beginning to show more merit to buyers. The problem is getting people to change behaviors and think more about what they are doing. Yesterday in a grocery store I noticed large packages of flowers and pussy willows for sale for 3 packages for $15. It costs us $3. 95 a package equivalent just to grow those so by the time you account for harvest, packaging, delivery or waste/non-sale you almost have the store's sale price in costs. Not a good thing. As you shop, continue to learn about local resources and buy locally whenever you can. Be kind and don't ask for a discount before you start shopping.

Thoughts?


Writing from the mountain above Peacham Pond where blue jays scold me repeatedly for empty feeders as mourning doves compete with red squirrels for the leftovers on the ground. Gotta scoot, hungry birds beckon.

George Africa
The Vermont Gardener
Vermont Flower Farm
On Facebook as Vermont Flower Farm and Gardens and also as George Africa
On Twitter as vtflowerfarm
Here to help you grow your green thumb!

Farming

Wednesday, February 1, 2012

A dark morning here on the mountain very much unlike usual February introductions. It's now up to 31.5° and freezing rain has been falling for a couple hours but ever so lightly here. The weather folks say it will change to all rain soon but since before daybreak the schools and businesses along the Connecticut River over near Wells River, Vermont and Woodsville, NH on up through Bath and to Littleton, NH have had delays due to ice. It has been a strange winter for sure. I was in Monroe, NH two days ago visiting a friend's farm and a brand new snowmobile groomer sat in a field surrounded by grass, not snow. It was a sad view and I am sure the club members feel the same way. Snowmobiling contributes a lot of income to the northern New England economy but not so this year.

The free standing, open concept barn pictured here is a big investment but clearly to me, a non-dairy farmer, the way to go. As I walked through the barn the heifers seemed extremely content and they all looked healthy and happy. The happiest animal of all was the Jersey bull pictured just below here as these are his ladies and he makes that clear.

I did not know until my visit but first calf Holstein heifers (the black and white cows if you aren't familiar) are usually bred with a smaller bull like a Jersey so the first calf does not present a difficult birth for the young mother. Every time I go to a farm or a farm show, I learn something new. The thing I learned long ago was to respect farmers for all that they do for us and never, never question the price of a gallon of milk. Whatever the price, it's probably still too low for what it costs to produce



The wind was blowing and it was cold on the day of my visit but the top of this barn is tight as can be. A garage door company is coming soon to install doors but the company has been very busy and "doors by Thanksgiving" is still a few weeks out. Once installed, this will be quite a package.

The owner/farmer told me that with this arrangement he can feed 75 head in half an hour. There is space for three times that many heifers so you begin to see the sense in this type building which affords the opportunity to use larger equipment to do more in less time. With the difficulty getting good (or any at all) farm help, this mechanization is even more important.

The perplexing thing about agriculture right now relates to fuel costs. I have read several horticultural trade magazines recently and here's the deal. By Memorial Day gasoline is expected to be in the $4.50 a gallon range and by July 4th it should be no surprise that west coast fuel prices will exceed $5 per gallon IF we don't end up in a shooting match with Iran. This is not a favorable thought. It has caused many farmers, even flower farmers like me, to rethink what they are buying and what they are selling and how. All farming has challenges so do what you can to continue to buy local and support farmers and businesses in your area.

Writing from the mountain above Peacham Pond where the temperature is now rising to 33° and the rain looks "all rain, no sleet". Best wishes for a good day. Drive with care!

George Africa
The Vermont Gardener
Vermont Flower Farm
On Facebook as Vermont Flower Farm and Gardens and also as George Africa
OnTwitter as vtflowerfarm
Always helping you grow your green thumb!

Composted Thoughts

Sunday, January 29, 2012

23° here on the mountain this morning. There's a 4-6 mph wind that comes and goes, and as it moves a little, temperature corrected to wind speed drops to 16°. The sun is rising over Peacham Pond and the sky has rows of black clouds that look as if someone took a paint brush and dabbed gray-black paint across a light blue backdrop. The recent weather has offered up a variety of sky colors lately and this one will change too before night approaches.

The high point of the morning is that it's birdiferous out there and I do not know why. Karl the Wonder Dog and I just headed out for a second walk and just off the back steps where the overgrown Miss Kim lilac shivers, we were surrounded by a Hitchcockian flock of chickadees like I have never seen before. These are family oriented birds I hear but this was one big family, chasing each other in circles and surrounding us to the point that Karl was smacking his teeth as they went by. They are usually such docile birds and they tame quickly to hand feeding with little patience. But today they were little whirlwinds, covertly signaling a bird convention of sorts here at the house and feeders.

The eruption of evening grosbeaks from two days ago is still here feeding heavily on the Thundercloud crabs but my real amazement came when I heard the windy wings from a flock of 38 cedar waxwings landing in the sugar maple as they waited for blue jays to leave the Dolgo crab apples. I was so happy to see these birds as they landed and flew, landed and flew away but in between time crushed open frozen apples and consumed the seeds they cherish. I remember the waxwings as my mother's favorite winter bird.

The early rising juncos are everywhere on the ground under the feeders in company with about 20 mourning doves so we have quite a collection this morning. Perhaps these are not the kind of birds that birders marvel over but to me they are my day's entertainment and like old friends who show up unannounced, the waxwings produced a morning smile on my face as Karl gave a shiver and headed for the steps.

But it was the crows fighting in the compost pile that produced a thought for today and that thought really is about compost. I don't want to brag about Vermont but factually there is deep concern for what goes into landfills and what doesn't need to. The composting industry is very well established and it has reached the level from single composters to community composters to "let's make a bunch of bucks" composters. A while back I saw a lady enter the local store and leave off two spanky clean 5 gallon buckets in exchange for the two that had been filled at the back deli. Entrepreneurship at its best! Last year at Town Meeting there was a vote to change solid waste districts and part of the concern was who would pick up the food waste at the local school. Within 20 miles of here there are three or four commercial operations that take major food and waste scraps and turn them into black gold that is sold by the truckload or bagged. IN the case of the school, the worry was worked out with a new provider.

So yes, it is cold outside today but that doesn't mean it's the wrong time to think about compost. Time flies and before you know it you'll be walking your gardens and thinking about amending soil and getting better looking crops than last year. Just remembering last year's floods in May and the hurricane in August will remind you how much nutrient rich soil is in Lake Champlain now and how much you need to replace. So-o-o-o as you think gardening, think compost and begin to research what's available, how much you need and what the price will be. The Composting Association of Vermont might be the place to start although I'm not sure all the composters who have product to sell are members. For example Grow Compost Of Vermont in Moretown is one of the newer commercial endeavors. They are located on Route 100 between Middlesex and Waterbury and they have a very good product too.

Up top is an image of fall leaves. When spring arrives and you have to rake what you forgot last fall, get the leaves into the compost pile you always thought about building but didn't. It takes a while before leaves turn to gold but when they do, you might remember my hint.

And from the mountain above Peacham Pond where late waking ice fishermen are heading down to set up tip ups for fat brown trout, happy composting thoughts and if all else fails, fill the bird feeders.

George Africa
The Vermont Gardener
Vermont Flower Farm
On Facebook as Vermont Flower Farm and Gardens and also as George Africa
On Twitter as vtflowerfarm
We're always here to help you grow your green thumb!

Vermont Farm Show

Wednesday, January 25, 2012

Yesterday was the first day of the 2012 Vermont Farm Show as well as the first day at its new location at the Robert Miller Exposition Center at the fairgrounds in Essex. Big changes always require a shakedown cruise of sorts but I have to say this is a wonderful show that will knock your socks off even if you aren't a farmer. It's also admission free.

At the entrance some equipment is on display that stopped the farmer in me with a "what's that???" question. This gigantic Kuhn Merge Maxx 900 is a hay conditioner for the kind of Vermont farms that mostly only exist along the western side of the state. They are commonly used out west where turning big equipment around is not a problem. This piece is 28 feet wide. Here's a YouTube video of it in operation so you get a hint of the size.

Here's a quick series of other big equipment. If you have younger kids who have an interest in machines, this is a place they can see some things they won't forget. Hold them tightly and listen for excited voices.






More farm show thoughts and images to follow.

George Africa
The Vermont Gardener
Vermont Flower Farm
On Facebook as Vermont Flower Farm and Gardens and also as George Africa
On Twitter as vtflowerfarm
Helping you grow your green thumb!

Our Nursery

Monday, January 13, 2012

View Larger Map

Already almost 7 AM here on the mountain. The sunrise over Peacham Pond is very nice but the morning light deceives one about the temperature and occasional wind. It's -15.9° right now but the puffs of wind push it to -18°, -19°, -21°. This is supposed to begin to change today and we'll experience slightly warmer conditions by tomorrow.

I haven't looked at Google Earth in a bit and wanted to offer an image of our nursery for those who have not seen it yet. US Route 2 is delineated in the middle of the image and the nursery is on the bottom half of the page directly opposite the "2". The dark, meandering line is the Winooski River.

Our "almost 5 acres" begins at the hook in the river on the right and extends to the diagonal fence line on the left at the end of the rows of flowers. The triangle of land to the left of ours that extends to the next "2" road marker is not ours. That land was planted in fir balsams perhaps 25 -30 years ago as a Christmas tree project so that's now a big planting of over grown trees in that dark green clump.

Directly across Route 2 lives the former owner of our land, our friend Gerry, who still owns about 70 acres there. At the top of the mountain above his house is a large field that is not at all noticeable from Route 2. I have never been up there to see it so looking at Goggle Earth gives me an idea of what is there.

If you look at the hook in the Winooski River on the right you'll know where the river began a new course this summer during the floods in May and the August flood that came with Hurricane Irene. That dark clump of trees along the river is where the hosta and shade gardens are planted and its from that area that the river swept countless plants downstream. When I feature hostas and other shade plants, this is where they are planted. Perhaps 50 years ago this same area was a staging place for the state to stockpile sand and gravel for winter application to Route 2. This was prior to the days when salt was used by the ton or modern day liquid brine is applied to everyone's dissatisfaction.

I keep thinking of buying a good GPS and doing a better job of mapping the nursery and our land on Peacham Pond Road. For some reason there is always something else that gains more importance. Right now the wood stove says "Feed me" and Karl the Wonder Dog asks for a trip outside--a quick trip!

Have an enjoyable day today but bundle in layers and be concerned about your animals, children, and older folks. It's cold out there and it doesn't take much to do serious damage.


Writing from the mountain above Peacham Pond where the birds are absent but will soon be looking for their breakfast buffet. I have to get going. If you have any winter gardening thoughts, drop us a line.

George Africa
The Vermont Gardener
Vermont Flower Farm
On Facebook as Vermont Flower Farm and Gardens and also as George Africa
On Twitter as vtflowerfarm
We're always here to help you grow your green thumb!

Vermont's Maple Products

Monday, January 9, 2012

6° here on the mountain this morning and the light breeze was just enough to make me grab my coat collar and pull it tighter as I walked quickly outside with Karl the Wonder Dog. His feet ran fast this morning and although he stopped for seconds to catch a sniff and check out a coyote track, he wanted the warmth of the wood stove more than he wanted the outdoors. In an hour or so his courage will build again and there will be a scratch-scratch-scratch by the door but for now there's comfort in the rug by the stove.

I spent part of the weekend returning some of the front room to normalcy after friend Michelle put two coats of fresh new paint on. Putting the cover plates back on the electric outlets is no great feat except I decided it's not the job to do at the end of the day when older eyes have trouble finding the notch in the plate screw and getting back up from the floor is a long, groaning affair. The room looks great and in a couple days, Michelle will be in the middle of the living room doing the same prep work, taping, painting. She's excellent!

Seed catalogs continue to arrive even though I haven't requested any new ones. I am trying to get paperless on as many things as possible but it seems that each day when Gail returns from the mailbox, there is another new catalog. The latest is a seed and potato company from the state of Washington. It carries all the fingerling potatoes we love so much but frankly the shipping coast to coast is a bit much.

We recently reported about the open house Friday at the Vermont Food Venture Center in Hardwick. One of the companies displaying their specialty foods was The Mapled Nut from Morrisville. Back in the late 90's I had an opportunity to sit in the home of the originators of this food product line and learn about what they had going on. Looking back at the evolution of a food product is a rewarding experience and I knew back then that the nuts were a winner. As Gail and I looked at the new offerings at the opening I was so happy to see where a couple of very hard workers took a start up before they sold it many years later. These nuts are more

than special and things like the new Nuts About Coffee line which takes Almonds or Pecans and coats them with 100% maple syrup and coffee or coffee and spices are ever so-o-o good.

Gail and I try to promote other Vermont businesses as we ask people to consider our own Vermont Flower Farm. Vermont is a perfect state for small business and The Mapled Nut deserves your look-see.


Writing from the mountain above Peacham Pond where buying a small bag of so called wild bird mix was a good idea. I put out some of the mix late yesterday and evening grosbeaks are telegraphing the new food story. Twenty something on the ground or on the feeder right now!!

George Africa
The Vermont Gardener
Vermont Flower Farm
On Facebook as Vermont Flower Farm and Gardens and also as George Africa
On Twitter as vtflowerfarm
Helping you grow your green thumb!

Kale Is Good

Sunday, January 8, 2012

Just 6 PM and the temperature is dropping here on the mountain. Gail just returned from her walk with Karl the Wonder Dog and they both pushed hard to get in the door at the same time. My digital weather station reports 15.8° right now with a 3 mph wind but not even half an hour ago it was 19° so it is going down. We're supposed to have three days in a row of +30 degree weather and no snow so I guess tonight is the lull before the warmer days.

Friday we went to the grand opening of the Vermont Venture Food Center in Hardwick. I expected to see some representation of kale as there has been so much publicity in Vermont what with the challenge of out of state Chick-fils-a to Vermont's Eat More Kale. What we found was another kale company growing its way out of Johnson, Vermont. The product and company is named Vermont Kale Chips and it is led by Janice Blair.

The wooden bowl of vegetables, maple syrup, honey and herbs caught our attention and Janice invited us to try some of her chips. This is Vermont grown kale--I forget the names of the varieties she grows--that are cleaned and then drenched in dressings and dehydrated. The resulting chips are so tasty that eating one bite just doesn't make it and I am glad Janice was handing out small bags. Here's a picture--not too clear but you get the idea--of the product. As I sit here writing away and watching the Broncos football game, the bag is history but the flavor and memory are strong. If you see Janice's Vermont Kale Chips in stores soon, give them a try.

Writing from the mountain above Peacham Pond where neighbors are returning home to kindle fires and warm houses for the evening. Hope you're snug too!

George Africa
The Vermont Gardener
Vermont Flower Farm
On Facebook as Vermont Flower Farm and Gardens and also as George Africa
On Twitter as vtflowerfarm
Helping You Grow Your Green Thumb!

Stone Thoughts

Sunday, January 8, 2012

26.2° this morning and a very light wind. One inch of granular, washcloth-wiped-clean snow on the ground from sometime after midnight. As Karl the Wonder Dog pulled me along on his morning walk, I pulled back on the lead once in a while to bring him to a stop so I could listen for owl greetings but there weren't any today.

Stone is an important part of garden design to me. I am criticized for my backwards approach to gardening but the stone I use for garden accent, I often place after I do the plantings and things have set in for a while. That was not the case in 2000 when I started the garden pictured above with these seven stones.

I need to do a better job pulling together the resources I have found in person and on the Internet for other gardeners to use. This morning I came upon an interesting blog named Stone Art Blog. Give it a look-see. I am also enjoying Vermont dry wall stacker Dan Snow's blog, In The Company of Stone. Try the Dry Wall Stacking Across Canada site too. Here's their gallery which offers some nice ideas. Stone is hard but the softness it lends to gardens is a contrast to contemplate. Today is a fine day for thinking!! If you don't like thinking, then ruminate!


Writing from the mountain above Peacham Pond where breakfast crepes beckon and bird seed needs to be readied for morning chores.

George Africa
The Vermont Gardener
Vermont Flower Farm
On Facebook as Vermont Flower Farm and Gardens and also as George Africa
On Twitter at vtflowerfarm
Yes, we will help you grow your green thumb!

Vermont Specialty Food Production

Saturday, January 7, 2012

A slow-to-get-started morning here on the mountain. 23°, on and off 2-3 mph winds, and gray clouds mixed with very little brightness as if a storm is lurking somewhere this morning. I have missed the weather report for two days now so am just winging it when I predict snow showers and slightly warmer weather today. If Karl the Wonder Dog were the weatherman, the morning would read something like fair to mostly sleepy. I took him out at 5:30 and he didn't not want to come back to the house but now he is asleep on the rug in front of the wood stove, sleeping and dog dreaming with occasional dog dream outbursts that are meaningless to me.

Yesterday was the grand opening at the Vermont Food Venture Center in Hardwick. Gail and I had the event on our schedule for some time and despite pre-planning we were too late getting there to get inside the warehouse to hear any of the festivities. The crowd was enormous and the enthusiasm spilled into the production area of the building. Senator Patrick Leahy was in hand for the ribbon cutting and his experience and pride in Vermont shined as bright as his forever smile.

The specialty food industry is critical to Vermont. It fits so well in the puzzle of Vermont's current economic needs because the dairy industry has declined since its peak just after World War II. Specialty foods can still borrow from our agricultural foundation while providing jobs and income for employers, employees and government program needs.

Gail and I really wanted to experience the guided tour but as the clock headed for 3 PM the tours were not quite organized and we decided we'd return on a different day when there were fewer people. We did have an opportunity to chat with some producers and sample some of the products that were on display. I'll try to put pictures up on my George Africa and also Vermont Flower Farms and Gardens Facebook pages in the next few days.

The cheese display up top here was provided by The Cellars at Jasper Hill, a Greensboro Vermont business. The cheese on the right is an example of the Cabot Cloth Bound Cheese that is aged at the Cellars. Some of the other cheeses are from other producers who use the aging caves and the expertise this fine business lends to our state's cheese industry. If you enjoy cheese, you would have enjoyed the samples from this beautiful display.

As much as I get around and keep an eye out for Vermont products, I only found an empty bag of the Castleton Crackers shown just below here. The Rutland Rye flavor was obviously as popular as the cheeses. When I got home I looked up the site and made a note of stores

that carry the crackers. We are cracker lovers in our family and this company sounds too good to miss.


The open house was a great success. I'll continue to share observations and describe other producers in coming days. The Vermont Kale Company has a excellent snack product and sampling switzel brought me back to days in my youth when I drank switzel in the hayfields on super hot days. Switzel is made from sugar, water, vinegar and ground ginger and it quenches ones thirst on a hot day like you wouldn't believe. More later.


Writing from the mountain above Peacham Pond where birds flock to the feeders this morning suggesting that the day's weather really is changing.

George Africa
The Vermont Gardener
Vermont Flower Farm
On Facebook as Vermont Flower Farm and Gardens and also as George Africa
On Twitter as vtflowerfarm
Always here to help you grow your green thumb!

Town Tours

Friday, January 6, 2012

A 3 mph wind this morning, 16° with total grey cloud cover. I have been out twice with Karl the Wonder Dog who is now driving me mad with his Christmas gift of a little squeaky toy the size of a weasel, supposed to be a fox I guess but only comes with two legs and a long tail. Somehow Karl folds this now wet rag-like affair in half and tosses it into the air which is quite fine until it lands on something his poor eyesight cannot locate. I enjoy the dog's happiness but don't like to keep getting up to retrieve his missing amusement.

Gardeners and their gardening have only been left alone for a month now so they don't miss their spring and summer get-your-hands-dirty pursuit yet as much as they will by the end of February. There are plenty of left over, non-gardening chores to complete, a few social obligations, and in any house there is some other member's "help me with this" list.

Yesterday Gail joined a couple friends in going to St Johnsbury where one of them had some incredible hand made silk scarves displayed at a craft store. It seemed like a good time for friends to ride along and visit a Northeast Kingdom town with many secrets hidden away. These three women are all avid gardeners but they also understand small businesses very well and they support Vermont business at every turn.

St Johnsbury is not unlike many rural Vermont towns. The stores run along a main street and up and down the side streets and parking is along the street and at some places off to the sides.
The storekeepers pride themselves in clean, organized stores with good selections, friendly smiles and good information.

Over the next few hours the trio visited The Artful Eye, The Northeast Kingdom Artisans Guild, Wool Away, Frameway Custom Frame Shop and Moose River Lake and Lodge. I think there were a couple other stores but you get the picture. Three good friends going to places that sell products that take hands to make and that the craftsman and the customer really enjoy. I told Gail that we should go again soon and take the camera and see if the owners will allow pictures. I'll bet they will.

As winter continues and those indoor plants don't quite do it for you, get out and see a town in Vermont you haven't been to. I'll bet you'll find a treasure that will make you sparkle too!


Writing from the mountain above Peacham Pond where the town truck just went by. The clanking of the tire chains scared away the birds on the feeders but they'll be back soon. Their breakfast buffet was recently refilled and morning bird talk without politics will begin again soon.

George Africa
The Vermont Gardener
Vermont Flower Farm
On Facebook as Vermont Flower Farm and Gardens and also as George Africa
On Twitter as vtflowerfarm
Always helping you grow your green thumb!!

Out With The Old

January 1, 2012

31.8° here on the mountain, windless and the only noise comes from deer, walking through the lower field and crunch, crunch, crunching through the wet snow. The sound of cars three miles below on Route 2 is absent today as people rest in preparation for the first day of 2012. There is a lazy fog hanging above the snow and no sense of urgency to jump into anything this morning.

Alex just turned off his lights and went to bed. He is 19 now but still and forever will be a member of the autism spectrum of life. He has had this thing for many New Years where he stays up well into the new day checking New Years events around the world and continuing his study of world and military history on his computer. I checked him at 1:30 and he smiled as only Alex can smile and he reminded how well 2012 was going. He also studies the actual history of alcohol as well as mixology and last night he ended 2011 with an Irish Whiskey Sour made with Bushmills, an Irish whiskey dating from 1608. I asked if he has chosen a drink to celebrate today with and he only replied "Contemplating".

I cannot recall the origin of "Out with the old" but it is an appropriate saying for the first day of a new year. As I finish writing this morning I will return the last of my garden books to the shelves of my newly painted, reorganized, freed-of-bushels-of-paper office. I never throw away a book but do recycle some here and there to where I know they will be appreciated. I also never throw away a plant even if I don't like it and that's what Gail and I have spent three years now doing with some of our daylilies at the nursery.

Daylilies are a fine perennial and appropriate for modern day gardeners who want color with almost no care needs. Gail has been taking rows of daylilies that no longer sell well and selling them each fall as bare root divisions to free up more garden space and get more people growing daylilies. I don't know the current count of registrations held with the American Hemerocallis Society but it is somewhere around 64-65,000 different registrations. Daylilies are the second most popular perennial, following hostas which have always held first place despite a contrasting registration count of under 7000 last I knew.

The very first daylily was registered in 1893. It was a cross between the species Flava and Middendorfii. It was named Apricot and here are some pictures. There are obvious characteristics that make this easier to identify but admittedly it took me years to get ours, an unnamed gift from friends, properly identified. That is understandable with so many to choose from.


So New Years has long been known as "Out with the old, in with the gold" but in the case of daylilies at Vermont Flower Farm, the "out" part only means that we reduce the number of each less popular daylily to a spot in a display garden where the name with remain as "gold" as the day it was first registered.


Writing from the mountain above Peacham Pond where my second walk of the morning with Karl the Wonder Dog spotted three sets of coyote tracks that weren't in the field two hours ago. Karl looks funny pushing his nose into the snow to get a good smell. When he identifies "coyote" his head raises quickly and he freezes momentarily before he scoots for home. Some dog!

Happy New Year!

George Africa
The Vermont Gardener
Vermont Flower Farm
Writing on Facebook at Vermont Flower Farm and Gardens and also at George Africa
On Twitter at vtflowerfarm
Helping you grow your green thumb into 2012!