The Business of Flowers

Sunday, May 23, 2010

A beautiful morning here on the mountain. Gail took Karl the Wonder Dog for a walk an hour ago and they must be enjoying the morning as they aren't back yet. I have tons of things to do at the nursery before we open at 9 but first some pictures from yesterday.

Operating a nursery but really just operating any business has a number of responsibilities that the public never equate with the price of a product. Yesterday was "cover the shade houses day" which meant pulling out 3600 square feet of shade cloth and getting it up on top of our three shade houses, properly aligned and thoroughly secured. The weather man predicts 85-90 degrees over the next few days and that will fry many hostas if they are not protected. With 3000 pots ready to go to someone else's gardens, we don't want to risk anything. I had been putting off the project for as long as possible so warm sunny days could give the hostas and other perennials a boost after the snows of two weeks ago. Yesterday was the day as we couldn't wait any longer.

Gail T our worker bee and Steve appeared shortly after 7, Gail with a nice coffee cake still warm from her Peacham oven and Steve with great work skills and persistence to work through the job thoroughly. "My" Gail was the last to arrive with bags of food and the cash box, orders and paperwork enough to scare people away. Gail and I are not enamored with the word "multitasker" but if I had a picture of her arrival yesterday, the meaning of the word would have been quite clear.

Here are some pictures of the project.Potted lilacs and hydrangeas in front, shade house #3, a 30 X 60 foot house next, shade house #1 up top to left of our office and sales building.

Shade house #1, closest to parking area, looking out to Route 2.

Overweight me on the ladder on shade house #1.

Steve securing the bungee tie downs on shade house #1. House on hill at top is not ours. It''s located across Route 2 and belongs to the previous owner of our land. Gerry and Carol are great neighbors and the kind of folks that will help with anything. Gerry is also a "finder" with great skills so if you need anything you can't find, he's the man....when he's not hunting or fishing or working on his land.

End of the top covering job. Less than 4 hours total. Steve on ladder, Gail telling me how nice it looks as she snaps pictures.

So that's it folks. I'm out of here for another day at the nursery. Visitors will be arriving as soon as I open up the gates and there are a few things I have to do before it gets too late. Some more mowing to finish and the trees I planted in the lower shade garden need more water. Honey locusts and katsuras plus some lilacs. I lined out 85 daylilies yesterday afternoon and they need a drink too.

Writing from the mountain above Peacham Pond where tardy fishermen try to get their boats on Peacham Pond and loons cry out complaints of breakfast-seeking-interference at the boat access. Loons and fishermen compete.

George Africa
The Vermont Gardener
Vermont Flower Farm Where your web orders are most welcomed!!
On Facebook at Vermont Flower Farm and Gardens, and as just me, George Africa
On Twitter as vtflowerfarm

Peonies Are Coming!

Thursday, May 20, 2010

40 degrees here on the mountain and about as wet as you can get from yesterday's rain. The sun is already high above Peacham Pond and the third truck and fishing boat has passed the house just while I have been sitting here. A pileated woodpecker is on an old sugar maple over the bank and I just noticed that the bears finally came through and knocked over the empty bird feeders last night. How much bear does it take to bend a 90 degree angle in a 1.25" pipe?

Gail and I have been very busy at the nursery and writing has taken a back burner. Today the new wood chipper arrives for the tractor and a shipment of annuals from our good friends at Claussen's Florist and Greenhouses in Colchester. Gail used to work there and we both agree that a lot of people grow annuals but Claussen's is a company that really has it right!

We are trying to keep up with posts on Facebook at Vermont Flower Farm and Gardens. We want to be able to post pictures every day of what is available to see or buy. During yesterday's rain I worked on the inside of the office more trying to get the insulation done and get the computers set up. Time is short but we are getting there. Right now we have three varieties of columbine in bloom, a number of trollius, 5 varieties of oriental poppies which have set into the pots well, some good looking rhubarb plants for rhubarb crumble and strawberry rhubarb pie and hundreds of other things looking good for late spring gardens. Gail has 7 varieties of peonies for sale and the smouthii is just beginning to bloom here at the house.

Lots going on so if you are out and about, stop by and say hello. For those who cannot journey here, our website contains much of what we sell at the nursery. We ship on Monday-Tuesday Wednesday to be certain things arrive to you by the weekend at the latest. Our hosta offering is looking very, very good so if you have an interest but cannot find what you want on our site, email Gail at lilies@hughes.net and she'll let you know if we can help. Spring snows just a week and a half ago slowed things down but today appears to be a different day.

Best gardening wishes!

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

The Primrose Collector

Thursday, May 13, 2010

There are days and then there are days. Today is tornadic and I'm not talking weather. Gail has a to-do list that won't stop. It involves caring for her +90 year old uncle. Alex and Karl the Wonder Dog will have their own responsibilities as my order of trees and shrubs arrived last night and I'll start the day planting a hundred each of 10 varieties of lilacs and ten of hydrangeas. Someplace in the boxes are witch hazel and flowering quince if I remember my order from back in January. There are other things too in boxes I can barely move but by nightfall everything will be planted, some things in the shade garden among the hostas.

Sometimes people write and ask if I am ok because I haven't written in a while. Some people stop at the nursery and inquire and others leave voice messages at home. It makes me feel good that people care but a gardener's life in the spring becomes complicated when you take the step from being a collector to operating a nursery. That 's what Gail and I did several years ago and despite the responsibilities, we love every minute of it!

Last night we did what you have to do once in a while. We closed the gate on time and headed to East Montpelier to visit another "collectors" garden. This time it was a primrose collector high on a hill above the Winooski River. We took Winnie, our Chief of Hydrologicl Services and friend Diana from the Marshfield Inn. We are all flower lovers and trips like this are special.

Time is short this morning but I want you to get an idea of the garden layout and the primulas that grow in the gardens we visited. There was so much to see I traveled the paths three times and knew at the end that I had to go back again to see what I had missed. Tonight I'll put up additional pictures on our Vermont Flower Farm and Gardens Facebook Page. In the meantime, take a quick tour with me. Click on each image to enlarge.

Soloman Seal backdrop against rock.

This plant looks great in the garden but is difficult to sell in pots because it is forever escaping through the drainage holes and growing like an unruly teen. In the garden it is tall, straight, perfect, with fine flowers followed by hanging, berried fruit.

Looking toward upper gate

Example of nicely mixed, extensive collection. Individual examples follow.

I have to get clicking here but these examples should remind you how nice primroses are. I have several hundred Japanese primroses naturalizing at home in the lower shade garden. I have been too busy to see how they are doing but they are one of the last to bloom. We usually have some of these for sale too. More later! Tardiness is bad, even worse for the owner!

Writing from the mountain above Peacham Pond where the sun is bright, the temperature on my window reads 52 degrees and the sound of loons having breakfast at the pond resonates in the clear air. Enjoy your day!

George Africa
The Vermont Gardener
Vermont Flower Farm Now taking web orders for those who cannot make it here
On Facebook as George Africa and also as Vermont Flower Farm and Gardens
On Twitter most days but not today as vtflowerfarm. Come visit through social networking or in person!!

Small Working Dogs

Tuesday, May 4, 2010

53 degrees here on the mountain. The sky is cloudless as the sun pushes above Peacham Pond and brightens the fields. The morning offers promise but the view out my office window reminds me how many daylilies I have to move. This process has been going on now for a couple years but I guess I shouldn't be surprised that moving over twenty years worth of flowers doesn't happen quickly. I have a new garden prepared but we're in conflict now between planting new arrivals and digging and replanting older collections.

Every weekend morning, Rusty, the Jack Russell, appears at the nursery with his owner Mike. Rusty lives down the road from us but he seems to enjoy the opportunity to visit Vermont Flower Farm and run the five acres of fields and scour the gardens for signs of woodchucks and rodents.

Rusty is a born hunter and is fearless. He doesn't seem to understand his size at all and he is as confident hunting red voles, white footed deer mice or moles as he is digging old woodchucks sporting aged white-haired faces from subterranean burrows. The pictures show Rusty with his Sunday catch of a white footed mouse (click to enlarge). Some gardeners would not approve of having a hunter run the gardens but many of these rodents can take down a nice collection of hostas in a matter of weeks. I don't give second thought to Rusty's abilities and I welcome his arrival each week. He isn't always a successful hunter but he always enjoys a visit and an opportunity to show off his skills.

Some gardeners have big problems with deer and want to resort to a dog for deer control. This needs some thought because wildlife laws in most states have sections that are very specific about how you can use dogs for critter control. Some local laws prohibit dogs running at all so deer control can get you into a double whammy even though you are simply trying to protect what is yours.

The final part about using a dog is the dog-owner combination. Dogs must be well trained and stop what they are doing on command. Rusty is the best trained Jack Russell I have ever seen. He is what you'd want if you wanted a companion and a Chief of Back Yard Rodent Control. But he didn't get there by himself and hours upon hours of training went into him from his early puppy days. The final tought about a dog like Rusty is your personal commitment to the hours it takes to maintain a high energy dog. Mike spends lots of time with Rusty and works off the energy. To leave a hunting dog cooped up in the house is a poor relationship too which is why I state it. Think before you buy as the commitment is no different than a marriage or a child, it lasts a long time.


The sun is encouraging me to grab another coffee and head to the nursery. Stop by if you pass through Marshfield today. I'll be out back planting.


Writing from the mountain above Peacham Pond where the loons are sharing secrets over a morning swim and breakfast and a pair of Cedar Waxwings are sitting in the maple thinking about nest building.

George Africa
The Vermont Gardener
Vermont Flower Farm where the Virtual Tours may help with your decision making
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Two Bears and a Deer

Monday, May 3, 2010

Overcast sky this morning but surprisingly warm at 61 degrees. I just heard Gail head out with Karl the Wonder Dog who refused to rise and shine for a walk with me this morning. They will be gone for half an hour or so as they make their way to Peacham Pond and back. It's a nice walk and sure to produce some wildlife encounters.

Yesterday morning seems like ages ago. I drove the tractor down to the nursery for the first time this year. It's a matter of necessity as I can't justify the expense of a trailer right now for a couple-three trips a year. It takes half an hour and I always go in the early morning to avoid trucks on Route 2 and impatient fishermen on our road.

As I rounded the final corner maybe a third of a mile from Route 2, I looked down to the bottom of a six acre field. Two black spots caught my attention, one much larger than the other, and as the tractor moved along, a sow bear and one yearling cub became obvious. The sow is big by Vermont sow bear standards and I believe this is the same one I saw last fall with two cubs. I could be wrong but she is a big mother and the other cub could have been inside the treeline or perhaps it was feeding in a different place and didn't catch up yet. I wish I had the time to look longer and I would have liked to make a quick walk down into the field to find what they were eating. Bears are always foraging around and they travel a bunch more than many people think. I suspect these bears will be around the house tonight --or maybe that's what Karl was barking at when he woke us at midnight last night. Bears are hungry now and there's not a great selection of food for them.

As I made it to the bottom of the hill, I glanced left and there was a large deer at about 300 yards. It was by itself and I would guess it was a buck. I was paying attention to traffic and making the turn onto Route 2 as the deer took a couple leaps and was gone. Turkey season started Saturday and that same area produces some fine birds so my guess is a hunter spooked the deer.

Yesterday was the third day at the nursery designated for potting new plants. We started Friday and planted over 700, Saturday with a smaller crew we did 600 and yesterday Gail, our worker bee from Peacham and I planted a little over 500 pots. Yesterday's number is deceiving as everything we planted was perennials from cell packs so the work goes faster save for the responsibility of the guy mixing the potting mix--me.

Among the flowers yesterday was bee balm, monarda, Oswego tea, an herb belonging to the mint family. This is the herb that Native Americans shared with Colonists when their protest saw bales of tea going into Boston Harbor. One time a historical horticulturist joked during a presentation that after the Colonists tried the Oswego Tea (named after natives and bee balm from Oswego region, New York) they quickly decided they wouldn't be dumping any more real tea.

Bee balm comes in many heights and colors and we have always had some growing here at the house. The picture up top shows some Cambridge Scarlet and some Raspberry Wine (on right of pic) that formed wide swathes of color, almost choking out a variety of lilies we used to have. The nine foot tall Empress Orienpet lilies sticking high above the bee balm came from Judith Freeman from The Lily Garden Vancouver, Washington. Four years ago when I visited there, Judith explained she didn't think that lily was so good but it sure likes growing conditions in Vermont! Some place in this mass of monarda is a shorter, light pink too. I cannot remember the exact name right now but for some reason Croftway Pink keeps coming to mind. Aging minds like bumps in Vermont dirt roads, create challenges at times and my "remembery" is no different!


Bee balms are a favorite of night flying moths, butterflies, bees (well, yes!!) and hummingbirds. I love watching all these visitors and stand in amazement as hummingbirds find something good to eat from a flower which is so hard to work at. The hummers are not back to this part of Vermont yet but they always make it about Mothers Day. Use the hummingbird tracking site if you haven't seen any birds at your gardens yet.

As fall approaches and first frosts hit, the flowers look a little like this. We always leave them for the birds and cut bunches for use in dried fall arrangements. Here in Vermont there is a company in Craftsbury named Vermont Bee Balm that combines the oils of the mint with bees wax. There are many virtues to bees wax and one is helping with the arthritis gardeners often encounter.

So anyway we planted some bee balm yesterday and in a week or two it will take hold and fill the pots so that by July gardeners will have a good look at what we have available. We planted Fireball, Gardenview Scarlet, the taller Jacob Cline, the shorter Petite Wonder, Coral Reef and some more Raspberry Wine. I'll dig up enough Cambridge Scarlet from the gardens for 30 pots and that should suffice for this season. Although mints have a spreading habit and bee balms are not different, they are an inexpensive hummingbird lure and if you have never encountered night flyinig moths, a summer night after 9:30 is a place to visit. Try some!


Writing from the mountain above Peacham Pond where Karl the Wonder Dog just returned and Gail brought me a coffee refill. Nice doggy, very nice wife!


George Africa
The Vermont Gardener
Vermont Flower Farm Our website that's still lacking a page for the fine selection of garden phloxes we are growing now
On Facebook as Vermont Flower Farm and Gardens or just plain old George Africa
Twitter comments as time permits. vtflowerfarm

Snow Removal

Thursday, April 29, 2010

A beautiful morning here on the mountain if you aren't a gardener. The sun has pushed the temperature from 26 degrees on up to 31 and the day has promise. Gardeners need "promise", especially after a day like yesterday that brought 18" of heavy wet snow and a bucket full of concerns for what damage all that weight did to pots of perennials that were growing so well in early spring sun.

Karl the Wonder Dog has me off track today as he shows no interest of a morning walk in the snow. I thought that the noise of me cleaning off the truck would get him in gear but he is still snoring away like my old hound dog, Bear. About the time I head out the door for the nursery he'll wake up and want to walk but by then he'll be left to accept a shortened version of our morning walk with Alex.

Difficult to believe that two days ago I was taking pictures along the Winooski River at the nursery. The Bloodroot were going by sooner than I wished as the temperatures were in the sixties for several days and the wind almost never stopped drying things out. Today the Bloodroot are long gone for this year but picture memories are nice.

Gail and I like trilliums and we do what we can to pick off the seed pods and plant them before the ants get to them each summer. I have moved a number down to the nursery but planted them randomly and haven't had a chance to see how they are doing. They are hardy plants, easy to move in August during dormancy. Even digging the rhizomes in August, cutting them in pieces and replanting will compound your collection with about 90% success. These are Trillium erectum pictured below. I'd estimate the plants are about 7 years old. This is not a plant to grow for $$$ as they are slow to mature.


I just confirmed a delivery with Fed Ex--it's finally making its way from St Paul, Minnesota-- so I have to head out to the nursery. I'm hoping for a warm day to melt the snow so we can get set up by this afternoon to start potting. It may not happen. 18" of snow is a lot to melt.


Writing from the mountain above Peacham Pond where the mourning doves are sitting atop a shrunken 10" of snow on the platform feeder looking for cracked corn. With sympathy for a difficult-to-find morning breakfast, I'll scatter some corn before I head out.

George Africa
The Vermont Gardener
Vermont Flower Farm
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The Snows of Spring

Tuesday, April 27, 2010

Already afternoon here on the mountain. Gail and I gave up on working outside today and she just left for Montpelier with a list of errands and a load of recycling. Hard to believe that yesterday I was working at the nursery in a T-shirt and shorts and during the past hour the temperature here dropped 5 degrees with a promise of snowfall by 3 this afternoon. Reports have already arrived of snow falling in a band from south of Williston through Bolton Flats and on up past Morrisville. Accumulation could amount to 6"-12" depending on how much water gets pulled out of the Atlantic. Last night's weather report said that if that happens, high elevations may receive more snow and Jay Peak on the Vermont-Canadian border may reopen for weekend skiing. Saturday is now estimated at 65-70 degrees...another weather roller coaster!

The seed industry is a marvel now days although I always need to issue the cautionary note about how understanding genetics has led to genetic engineering and modified seed which almost talks to the gardener. On one hand it's scary and on the other it's interesting and rewarding.

Tomatoes are a crop known the world 'round and loved by many. Last year I wrote about a trial I ran with Tomaccio's, the Sweet Raisin Tomato, hybridized in Israel using a wild cherry type with a mature height of over 7 feet there. I wrote on my former blog, Vermont Gardens how amazed I was with the packaging used to mail me a starter pack of plants. Last year was the worst year in history to try to grow tomatoes in Vermont but these cherry tomatoes grew well and produced nicely. They never made it to 9 feet tall but clumps (also called brix) of tomatoes kept me in business as I worked late at the nursery and needed a quick snack. My comments on this tomato are still available at the old VG site. Take a look.

This year there's a new tomato on the block (packet pictured above). It's Sweet Treats and it's the work of the Japanese seed company Sakata. Sweet Treats is a pink cherry tomato favored in the Far East because of its sweet flavor and balanced acidity. Sakata's marketing info says "good aroma, good texture and great taste."

The company brochure shows the stages of ripening and explains when to pick the fruit for long distance shipment, local shipments or farmers markets, or home gardeners use fresh from the garden. Here's their chart.

So whether you use Tomaccios, Sweet Treats, or one of the many tested cherry varieties on the market, I'm sure that you will find a fruit for your needs. I'll be growing some Sweet Treats at the nursery this year along side some more Tomaccios. It should be an interesting competition!


Writing from the mountain above Peacham Pond where the only noise is from Alex slamming the back door as he heads out for his dog sitting duties. Bark, bow-wow, bark! Snowfall just began here.

George Africa
The Vermont Gardener
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Woodland Worries

Saturday, April 24, 2010

26 degrees and frosty white this morning on the greening grass and truck windshield. Highs going to +60 today before another front moves in so I have to get moving here. Just finished a walk with Karl the Wonder Dog and he is about snorted out after expressing dissatisfaction for the number of moose that intruded upon "his" domain. Didn't see any this morning but the track of one actually hid my palm inside its borders. Moose move around a lot this time of year and night travelers must use caution as hitting a moose with your car is a very unpopular sport. Moose don't bother flower or vegetable gardens but they have a habit of rearranging your fencing and leaving deep holes as they plod through fresh soil.

A couple days ago I was standing beside the wood splitter working up some more wood for winter 2011-12. I always try to stay a year and a half ahead of the wood chores to insure that the wood is appropriately dried. It makes for better fires in the Hearthstone and safer burning, less chance of a chimney fire. As I split away, I noticed the prevalence of long white larva in the wood. Some type of borer I guess but they were obvious in several pieces of birch and also in a sugar maple. Now I'm not an entomologist so the real identity remains a mystery but I am on track to figure some of this out.

Back in January we received a letter in the mail from The Vermont Department of Forest and Parks. The letter was being sent to anyone who had recently acquired any forest land in Vermont and it afforded an opportunity for a visit by a volunteer forester to walk the land and offer suggestions for forest management. I put the letter aside as snow in January is deep enough here that I wasn't that interested in traversing mountains on snow shoes. A couple days ago I filled out the invitation and slid it in the mail. I'll keep you posted on what I learn including the name of the borer in our birches. I'm sure that if you own some land in Vermont, the Forest and Parks website is the place to start. The Vermont Woodlands Association and Vermont Coverts: Woodlands for Wildlife, Inc. are two other valuable resources.

Writing from the mountain above Peacham Pond where the sun has the thermometer up to 42 but the real temperature hidden in frost.

George Africa
The Vermont Gardener
Vermont Flower Farm
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Bright Smiling Faces

Monday, April 19, 2010

The sun is trying hard to get through the clouds this morning as a 3 mph wind chases water drops from all the flowers. Not much of a weekend for being outside but a good one for catching up on paperwork. I'm heading out in a minute to drop off my truck alternator for a rebuild at the Wild Auto Electric Shop in Barre. The shop has been there for a long time and if you need an alternator or generator rebuilt, this is the only place to go. My truck has 118,000 miles on it and I guess it's time to be better prepared for things to fall apart.

Saturday night, friends Harold and Leila Cross from Morrisville arrived for dinner. We are all crazy about flowers and both operate nurseries. Prior to their arrival, Gail was heading out to pick some daffodils for the table but I suggested she forget the decorative gesture and wait for Harold to bring her some. I decided I knew Harold better than Gail did as she headed out anyway to fill a vase for the table.

Along came Harold and Leila, right on time, and as I expected, Harold had a large bouquet of mixed daffodils. He has been collecting different varieties for a couple-three years now and he has a very nice collection started. Gail laughed when she accepted the gift and of course shared the story of my earlier recommendation. More laughs!

Forever people ask about the difference between daffodils and narcissus and a simple read for Narcissus on Wikipedia tells us that "daffodils" is the common name that we most often follow. I don't have a clue how many varieties are now available but as Harold's collection attests, there is plenty of color available to gardeners in their spring gardens.


Every plant has a plant society and daffodils are well represented by the American Daffodil Society. If you are interested in this bulb plant, take a look. Planting and growing instructions, bulb sources and a listserv are just some of the benefits of a membership.

I haven't mentally recorded the names of any of these daffodils although Harold remembers them very well. I don't even know how many varieties are recorded but I have seen hundreds available in different catalogs. If you're interested in a nice spring display like Harold and Leila have, do your research now and be sure to have your orders placed by late August for fall planting. Neither Harold and Leila nor Vermont Flower Farm sell the bulbs but we all have an interest in seeing bright smiling flower faces each April. Bet you will too! Here are a few more pictures. Enjoy!

Writing from the mountain above Peacham Pond where the weatherman says 40 degrees and windy is about the best we'll do today.


George Africa
The Vermont Gardener
Vermont Flower Farm: Taking web and phone orders for late May shipping
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Earth Day Thoughts 2010

The significance of Earth Day is something that everyone should be reminded of. A month or so back, Jan from the garden blog Thanks for Today sent out a request for Earth Day commentary from garden bloggers. She was offering a nice prize as incentive to participants. I mentioned the competition on this blog and fully intended to compete myself but getting our nursery ready is a challenge of sorts and until today I just couldn't get organized. The offer is closed now to afford time to review the submissions and render a decision but I can't forget the significance of Earth Day.

Late is sometime better than not at all so this morning I refreshed myself about Earth Day's origins. Here is a site with some background information dating from the days of President Kennedy. It's an interesting journey worth reading.

And here are some thoughts from yours truly, thinking and writing from the mountain above Peacham Pond. The pond's shoreline has concentrations of mercury as all Vermont ponds and lakes do. In contrast, peregrine falcons, once almost extinct due to DDT contamination, have returned to fly the skies here. A recent bald eagle restoration program is showing success and Vermont will no longer be the only continental US state without a resident eagle population. These are great gains for which we are proud. Here are my thoughts.

Earth Day 2010

I was standing in a line at a store the other day and two college students were horsing around. One called the other “Retard” and I cringed at the sound. These were above average young men attending a very good state university and yet some place along the line their parents, grandparents, neighbors, friends, religious leaders, teachers, and professors had never taught them respect. Having spent my entire career of over forty years in human services work and being a parent who wakes up every day to be greeted by a son on the autism spectrum, I am very sensitive to inappropriate language. We need to understand who we share our planet with and how very important we are to each other.

As I look back to grammar school days, autism is something that I just cannot remember. I know it existed but I cannot think of a single classmate who displayed any of the characteristics that are so clear to me now. Over my lifetime, the birth ratios of babies born with a diagnosis of autism have risen from 1 in 10,000 children to 1 in 100 or less. As more research is completed, the ratios become more frightening.

Autism has no known cause or cure but some of the current thinking involves environmental influence to women as they carry their unborn. This has not been confirmed but there are myriad examples of possible interactions that deserve consideration. Many of the food and beverages we use every day come packaged in plastics that are now known to impact on human endocrine systems. Water which we drink is purified by our state of art water processing plants but still contains chemicals that affect us. As example, purified waste water from many Vermont communities flows into rivers and eventually into Lake Champlain. The water is then retrieved, reprocessed and sent on to surrounding communities as drinking water. Measureable, significant quantities of antibiotics, mercury, poly-chlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), and even caffeine are common in the reprocessed water and as yet cannot be removed.

Some of our homes are constructed with lumber, sheet rock and insulating materials that were manufactured with contaminated products including arsenic. Landfills have become repositories for all forms of waste including forbidden chemicals. Some landfills lack suitable protective liners and older landfills, long since buried, leach waste back into our environment.

Earth Day has to be “every day”. We need to retrain ourselves to take the extra step to properly handle all waste, conserve better, and always think of the implication of “out of sight, out of mind.” In my lifetime I’d like to see autism prevented. It’s possible. But we have to work at it every day. Start today by making Earth Day every day!

Berry Nice Thoughts

Saturday, April 17, 2010

Vermont holds springtime challenges and this morning is one of those days. It's 31 degrees and slight additional snow fell last night. The light wind makes it feel raw and quite the contrast to shorts and t-shirts of a week back. Even Karl the Wonder Dog, recovered from spring diet misfortunes, showed little interest in the walk I had in mind. Gail is out cleaning off the car and freeing the frozen wipers for a trip north to Jericho with Alex. I have plenty to do today but the fire in the Hearthstone sure feels good.

As the world begins to use the word "sustainability" more, gardeners begin to see the merit of interplanting their gardens and landscapes with fruits and vegetables. Naturally, berries are on the list. I got into this concept perhaps twenty years ago when it was first introduced and I try to spread the word each year. People often respond with weird looks when I mention picking blueberries from a bush inside a flower bed but some are accepting and many are coming around. We love all varieties of berries here on the mountain but feel the need for cautionary comments for the new breed of impatient gardeners.

Berries are a great food crop to integrate with existing gardens. Those that grow from larger canes or branches are the better way to begin because the plants are obvious by their size and gardeners get a quicker response to their efforts. This is where the cautionary part comes in.

Blueberries and gooseberries are usually available as potted plants although wholesalers often offer special deals in quantities of 25 or more. Cane types like raspberries and blackberries come potted or bare root and as bare root the purchase quantity is often either 10 or 25. Bare root means just that, the roots have no soil attached, are not potted and must be planted soon after their purchase. Once in a while wholesalers will offer mature blueberries as freshly dug balled and burlaped instead of planted. They do this when the plant is large as it makes handling and planting easier. But here's the catch. Berries take 2-7 years to become established enough to reward you with sufficient berries to do something with. And over that time, management of the plant is required.

Up top is an image of some canes of a purple raspberry at my friend Mike's house. This is a great raspberry with strong canes and heavy fruit production. The plants came from Elmore Roots Nursery, in Elmore, Vt three years ago. If you look carefully at the first image you'll notice some of the canes are different colors. The lighter canes are the older ones that are shedding some bark. Some pruning may be required but care is important and you must know the variety of berry before you start to prune. Some berries produce fruit on new growth and some on old growth so pruning old growth on the wrong variety will mean lots of new growth but no fruit. Be sure to ask your nurseryman to identify what varieties he is recommending so you get it right.

Blueberries do best in full sun and planted in an acid soil. Potted blueberries are often in the 15"-22" range which means they will require another couple years to begin producing and really about 5 years to provide a generous amount of fruit. Here in Vermont where winter snows can pile high in late November through December and then melt down during January thaws, I think it's best to stake new plants while they get established. By year five some pruning is needed.


If you look at the image just below here you see the difference between new and old growth. You'll get the best berries from old growth but you need a pruning sequence so all the branches don't age out at the same time. Just like an apple tree, I recommend a three year plan to get started meaning that each year you prune out the largest, oldest branches. The Internet has plenty of good reading on this and homesteading books abound with advice.

Once you get an established group of plants, you'll find your self picking berries and freezing them for year round use. Here's a picture of Mike's patch of mature blueberries. They produce well and are just approaching the point of needing some minor pruning.



Here in Vermont the University's Plant and Soil Science Division sponsors a Vegetable and Berry Grower page. It has plenty of links to about everything you need to know to take the first step towards berry production. Think berries and give them a try!


Writing from the mountain above Peacham Pond where thoughts of spring have turned to reminders of winter as snow pours from the sky and all berry bushes just sit still.

George Africa
The Vermont Gardener
Vermont Flower Farm
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Wild Leeks: Spring Favorite

Thursday, April 15, 2010

A bright morning here on the mountain. Last night's temperature only dropped to 30 and already this morning we are at 52 degrees. Rain is predicted for the next three days so I have to get clicking. There is plenty to do, especially when the sun shines and a warm morning such as this one melts away arthritis pain.

Karl the Wonder Dog was sick all night, apparently the result of winter leftovers during private spring walks. Dogs have bad habits in spring and what smells good to them is not always good for their constitution. We always worry about Karl when he gets like this as there have been a couple bouts that came closer than we wanted to end-of-life than start-of-spring. I hope I have found the last place to clean up from last night but do think he's looking better. His trip outside was momentary this morning and back to bed he went. My walk was solo.

This week I have seen two bears, one out back of the house and one down the road a mile or so. Neither was a bruiser but both may have had companions I didn't see. Food is scarce for bears in spring and I have been told that they look for green vegetables such as wild leeks and false hellebores to purge their digestive system and gain some sustenance. I grow both of these plants in my lower hosta garden, more for critters than for us.

Wild leeks are some different than the farm bought, cultivated version pictured up top here. To me, there's nothing like a pot of potato-leek soup made with fresh chicken stock and farm fresh cream and for most, that is the way to go. Some collectors, perhaps those who still carry a copy of Euell Gibbons twenty year old Stalking the Wild Asparagus in their back pocket, prefer wild leeks.

Here in Marshfield, Vermont wild leeks are prevalent along the Winooski River, actually named Onion River by aboriginal Vermonters. Almost any walk along the banks of the river kicks off ones olfactory system as unnoticed crushed leaves quickly offer an intense onion smell and cause the "what did I step on?" alarm to go off. The riverbanks contain more than just wild leeks and a really good read about the river is In The Land Of the Wild Onion, by Dummerston, Vermont native, Charles Fish.

Wild leeks are easy to spot this time of year as they occupy matted colonies that are obvious standouts on the forest floor. Gail and friend Diana passed through Northfield Gulf last week and the colonies were obvious. I was at Shelburne Pond a week ago and not only around the pond but all along Pond and also Falls Roads I found giant patches.

Wild leeks are strong in aroma and flavor and even when they are sliced and dehydrated for later use, they retain such strength. They don't get a lot bigger than what you see pictured here but they colonize so well that digging them is easy.

The roots are quite shallow and the plants do best where the rich woods soil retains moisture. By August the tops are gone and the seed scapes are all that remain above ground. Tiny black seeds drop to the ground over winter and expand the colony.

If you're out and about, use care this time of year as the forests are fragile and even a few footsteps can muddy waters and kill special plants. Often people do damage without knowing it which is why trails are closed this time of year. That's not to forbid spring walks but instead a reminder to show respect.

I better show respect for the clock and get going here. We have a delivery arriving at nine and it's getting close.


Writing from the mountain above Peacham Pond where pulmonarias are showing nice color, bleeding hearts are 6" tall and two partridge are drumming. Their brief thunder is a mysterious joy to the ears of spring. Come listen!


George Africa
The Vermont Gardener

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