Month: March 2024

Everyone always says that winter is the hardest, and it is true that winter can be hard, but mentally, March and sometimes April can be the hardest for a gardener’s soul. We get teased with beautiful weather, then bam, winter rears its ugly head. Like this week coming. Really? More snow and ice possibilities. Well at least I am busy harvesting tulips and getting things ready for spring and summer.

Yes, the one armed flower farmer has been busy. More seedlings have been planted out into the high tunnel including the ranunculus and the pitiful few anemones. I tend to rot more corms than plant corms, but I have some planted out. I might try another batch tomorrow, Just soak and plant. No sprouting and just take my chances. What is the worst that can happen? They don’t sprout. Oh well.

The next big seed sowing happens this week. The last of the cool flowers will be sown, then later the summer flowers in a few more weeks. I did my first official flower garden stroll this afternoon. My, the rodents have been busy. Still a bit early to see on some plants, but for the most part it isn’t as bad as some year’s rodent activity. Maybe because it was such an open winter and there wasn’t as much cover for them? It is still early and the verdict is still out…

My biggest goal is to get the twenty peony roots that have been sitting in the cooler for a week or two planted tomorrow before the next wave of craptastic weather rolls in. I figure if I can get 10 planted before my orthopedic appointment, and the next ten planted afterwards I should be good. This one armed thing is getting old. I can hear you all now yelling at me. I will be careful, promise.

The last five crates of forced tulips get pulled out of the cooler tomorrow, can’t believe it. There are still plenty of tulips, do not fret. The tulips in the raised beds are all up so there should be an even segue from forced to outdoor grown, which should see us to the peony season and the cool flowers. Even with these last five crates, it is still two to three weeks before bloom time.

Speaking of tulips, I have placed next year’s order. I have ordered 5500 bulbs, eleven varieties. I will see how this goes. I might get bored with the selection, as beautiful as it will be, but 11 varieties may not fill my tulip desire. I can always change it for 2026.

So that is this week’s round up. Keep your fingers crossed that all goes well tomorrow at Ortho and I can move on with my PT. I don’t mind wearing my beautiful sling for a few more weeks, but not going forward with physical therapy would depress me beyond beyond. The sling actually keeps me sorta under control so it is good.

I leave you with last week’s instagram #windowframethursday, the first was taken on Thursday, and the second was taken today growing and dancing from the heat of the house.

Until next week. Allie. I dream of flowers, do you?

After having beautiful weeks with lovely above normal temperatures we have been hit with an arctic blast that sent me into a panic. You see, it had been so warm the in-ground tulips were really shooting up, and the forecast was for the low teens. Not the best scenario. Lucky for me two beautiful Christmas trees from Depot Square were dropped off that morning for the goats’ enjoyment, but tulips came first, so we lopped off all the branches, criss crossed them over the tulips hoping that the loft would give them some protection from the arctic blast,

Now everything is covered in snow and ice, so they are doubly protected for the next few nights. We also had to haul all the tulip crates that were hanging out in the greenhouse back into the much warmer dirty room. Tulips Tetris. Gotta love it.

Each evening now when the temps get below 27f I cover the cold hard annuals in the greenhouse and the ranunculus and anemones. The greenhouse has no heat and even though they are cold hardy, they aren’t that cold hardy so on goes the frost cloth, and in the morning after the sun warms up the space the frost cloth gets taken off. Never a dull moment.

I haven’t put the tulip order in yet. I know, I know, bad me. I do thank everyone who responded to my question. I guess I will go for full crates, you won’t get the amazing variety, but the selection will still be good. I won’t have the surcharge and the freight should be less. so back to the ordering procedure tomorrow.

I know many of my local flower lovers are not getting the newsletter that I send out before open flower shed day. I have changed email servers and am still working on kinks. Argh on my part. I hope to have it resolved by next Friday, but know that the flower shed will be open on Friday March 29 from 10-2:00. This is the Friday before Easter so don’t forget fresh flowers for your table or for gifting. They are going to be stunners next week for sure.

The 20 peony roots that I ordered last week have been delivered and are hanging out in the cooler with the tulips until this white mess outside melts and the ground dries out a bit. These varieties are stunning and I can hardly wait until I can harvest them in 3 years, maybe 2 years, we will see.

Just so you know, I am being good in the arm department. It’s killing me not being able to do anything, but I have got to let this stupid collarbone heal. Everything takes longer and I am learning to ask for help, but jeesh, this is a pain.

So I will leave you now with the photo of last week’s tulip offering. The were Mango charm, Dee Jay parrot, Prof. Rontgren, and others. Next week will be totally different.

And not least, my #windowframethursday. And todays frozen in time.

Until next week. Allie. I dream of flowers, do you?

FLOWER SHED WILL BE OPEN MARCH 29 from 10-2:00

Today is St Patrick’s day and I am seeing green. Green sprouts are showing up in the goat paddock, green sprouts in the in-ground tulip beds which have me worried and the narcissus are pushing through and emerging. Lots of green happening. I even have my first narcissus blooming up against the house!

This past week we had some lovely May like weather, today we are back to March like weather. Despite the little bit of sun we have had today, I still have the dirty room door is ajar and the fan is running to keep the space cool. On the sunny days we are opening the door completely with the fan going and the shades down to keep the space cool. It is always a bit alarming when my phone goes off and I am away from the house that the dirty room is too warm. I try to plan in advance but not always easy.

I had a meeting on Thursday with my bulb Rep Jon who was touring his New England bulb customers. I think he was impressed with my little mini operation! That made me quite happy as you can imagine. I told him I was madly working on my order for next year and he will have it by the end of the week. So here is a question for you my flower lovers. Do you enjoy having different tulip varieties every week? Would you be OK with having the same varieties for a couple of weeks? I need to decide soon, I have to pay more now for lots of 125 which is what I have been getting to really offer an assortment, but if I get crates of 500, I would only have 10 varieties, 12 at the very most to offer. Please let me know by sending me an email or dropping me a comment.

For everyone who has been dropping off meals I say thank you so much. I am trying to return clean containers as soon as possible with a little thank you posy. Your food is keeping us healthy and and healing.

On deck this week, besides the regular Tetris tulip shuffle is to start the next batch of cool seeds that will go out into the field when they are ready under low tunnels. This give us lots of early blooms that bridge the gap between the peonies and the summer annuals and I lost a week last week so that is gotta happen tomorrow. Steve hooked up the drip irrigation in the high tunnel for me last Thursday when the weather has so beautiful so that will make things much easier later in the season. I still have to hand water because they are still small, but that is OK. I am being careful. The hellebore plugs arrived and have been potted up and are in the green house and Tuesday I am taking scented geranium cuttings. All being done with one hand. Really true.

This is really cool. This is the same arrangement that I made last Thursday, here it is today after being in the warm house. Just look at those stunning dancing tulips!

That is about it for now. Time to start shutting doors in the dirty room and greenhouse. I leave you with one last photo.

I figured if I have to wear the sling for another 4 weeks it might as well be beautiful. Thank you to Courtney Cox who pulled off this magic overnight for me.

Until next week, I dream of flowers. Allie

Welcome daylight savings time! I love having the extra hour at the end of the day. So much more can be accomplished at the end of the day now. Yes, those 5 am mornings will be here soon enough when I am out in the garden, but right now I am enjoying the light hours at the end of the day.

I am three days post surgery, and despite all the soreness I am feeling better. Soon I will not be feeling any soreness and I will be feeling my limitations while I am healing. At least with the soreness by body tells me oops, shouldn’t be doing that. Soon, I will just have to pay attention to what my body is doing, and that, I am learning, is very hard to do.

No lifting over a pound for 6-8 weeks, YIKES, and no weight bearing. JEESH. I am getting lots of offers for help from you my flower lovers and believe me, I will be asking for help when needed. I MUST let this heal!

The rush was on last week to get as much done in the flower world as I could before my big day, and I think I got everything done on the list. The seedlings were planted in the High tunnel.

I got the last batch of ranunculus and anemones soaked and planted for sprouting, I pricked out more seedlings and got them into the greenhouse as well as all the other day to day flower jobs. A dear flower friend is coming tomorrow to play tulip crate Tetris, and that will be good for that week. She doesn’t know it yet, but will now when she reads this, that irrigation set up is also on deck. Harvesting tulips I can do, as long as I only put four tulips in my hand at a time. Prepping tulips for sale I can do, and we will see how I will be at bunching. I lose the sling on Tuesday so my range of motion will be freer. Lucky for me, that surgery is now and not even two weeks later when I would be planting out the fields at the end of May!

This is a shot of the varieties of tulips that were available last week,

I don’t have much else to say this week, except a huge thank you to everyone who has sent along best wishes for speedy recovery, texts not to overdo it, offers to help and gifts of food. You guys are all so amazing and I just can’t thank you all enough.

i promise I will take it easy the best I can, so I have good healing, and I will be back next week full of projects and flowers.

Thank you, Allie. I dream of flowers, do you?

I don’t knpw what is going on with this weather pattern but it sure is squirelly. March 3 and it is 54 degrees as I write this at 4:30 in the afternoon. I have a snowdrop blooming! I am not looking forward to when the winter shoe is going to drop, because it will I am sure, but meanwhile, to be honest, I am enjoying these winter days.

A lot is happening here at the farm. I have gotten the first batch of ranunculus planted in their crates and they are in the greenhouse, along with all of the perennial seedlings and the anemones that are going to get crated tomorrow morning. I have moved a bunch of tulip crates in there just because I could and it will make tomorrow morning’s tulip Tetris be easier. Two less crates to move!

On deck for tomorrow, besides tulip Tetris, is soaking and planting the next batch of ranunculus and anemone and cleaning up and organizing the high tunnel for the first planting of the cool annuals. Get it done while the weather is nice I figure.

I heard from my tulip salesman and he thinks the order list for tulips 2025 will be available this coming week. I know, I know, I still have 25 crates in the bulb room and to think about next spring just seems so weird but that is a flower grower’s life. Plan six months or a year ahead for the next crop. This will be interesting I am sure.

I guess the next most important topic is that I will be having shoulder surgery on Thursday. Don’t worry, there will still be flowers on Fridays. Steve and friends all pitching in to get them bunched and ready for Fridays. I think I will be able to harvest when necessary, water and sow seeds by the 15th which is the next big sow date. They say I will be rehabbing for 6-8 weeks, and I will be doing PT into May…but I figure each week I will be getting stronger and able to do more and more as long I don’t get stupid and stubborn. Who, Me?

On to a brighter note. I have been playing with some flowers and these are last week’s instagram images.

Can anyone have too many flowers? Certainly not me! I am pretty sure that next spring along with tulips I will be growing on miniature narcissus and muscari to tiny posies. What do you think? Let me know please.

So I will leave you until next week with my arm in a sling. Remember, Fridays are Tulip Fridays here at the farm from 10-2:00. Come by and say hello!

This last photo I hope makes you smile. It is Whisky enjoying some spent tulip flowers I had tossed over the fence for the goats’ enjoyment. I figured if deer enjoy tulip flowers, goats will too.

Until next week. Allie.