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Spring? Depends on the Day

Or it is a typical spring, cold and rainy for a few days, then sunny, hot and humid for a day or two with thunderstorms, then like today and the upcoming week, cool and damp. I’m still in long pants and wool socks.

Despite the weather, things are progressing here at the farm. To be honest it is hard to predict when things are going to be happening, like will I have peonies for a wedding on Saturday? Given the forecast, probably not, especially in the required color pallet, but then again, who knows. It is good for the cool crops that are coming along, but I am holding off putting the warm crops in the ground because it just isn’t warm enough. Well knock my socks off. I just measured the soil temp and it’s 60 degrees, so the soil is warm enough, but the air…not yet. That being said, I could get the dahlia tubers in this week…

The perennials are coming right along and many are being harvested. The peonies are close, oh so close.

I am harvesting a handful of anemones each day, the pansies are getting longer stems and are being a great filler, the high tunnel is growing well and I think I saw ranunculus buds this morning, that is hopeful.

The first bed has been planted out in the garden and is looking good after a week,

and all the rest of the plants have been moved into the greenhouse for more sun and hardening off before they go into the ground. The last of the tulips have been harvested and they are all in the cooler and I will have them for weeks now.

I am posting this early because Steve leaves today for ten days in Wales and I have to get it done while I have him, and I have to take notes on how to publish this because he does it for me. I will do my best, but, I might miss next week so don’t be alarmed if I’m not here. I will still get the newsletters out, but the blog? That remains to be seem.

I leave you with two arrangements this week. My #windowframethursday, and my porch one made from leftovers from the week’s sales.

So, fingers crossed I will be here next week.

Allie, I dream os flowers, do you?

Happy Sunny Day! and Mothers Day too!

We are all basking in the sun today. After having eleven days of rain, measuring up to 6.3 inches of rain, we are all celebrating. The fact that it is also Mother’s Day it is a true celebration.

Despite all the rain, I have been able to harvest the tulips and keep them safe in the cooler. Some flower farmers weren’t as lucky and lost their crops but I have been lucky. I have two more varieties that are still in tight bud so with tonight’s predicted frost warning I should be OK. By the end of the week all of the harvestable tulips will be in the cooler for many more weeks of floral enjoyment.

Believe it or not, the first of the anemone are showing color. I had almost written the crop off but the ones in the greenhouse are showing color and I see lots of buds on the ones in the tunnel, so as the spring progresses the amount of floral varieties also increases. Of course there is no telling when anything will truly happen with the vagaries of weather, but, things are happening.

The farm is looking beautiful in all the spring lushness. I just love this time of year, or really any time of year there are flowers growing in the garden that I can play with I just love. Speaking of loving flowers, here are the photos from this last week’s #windowframethursday.

The flower shed is filling up with lots of flowers now, and the robin is sitting on her nest. It really takes a lot for her to leave the nest now so soon time will tell. I should google how long it takes for robins eggs to hatch.

Here is a photo of the flower shed this weekend, looking mighty nice I would say.

Remember, we are now on summer hours so the flower will be open on Tuesdays from 2-5:00 and Fridays from 9-2:00.

I will pass this off to Steve while I check on his birthday dinner.

Hope to see you soon. Allie. I dream of flowers, do you?

In the Throes of Spring

Wow, spring is coming on fast and furious and and I would just like it to slow down just a bit. It is absolutely beautiful out, and flowers are going crazy but honestly, it is all going by far, far too fast.

You all know I walk the gardens, all of them at least three times a day. Many times to to just be in the springtime glory, because it certainly is glorious, but also to see what is coming up that will be offered for cutting in the next week. Let’s just say, there is a lot that is going to be on deck by the end of the week. Just in time for Mother’s Days flowers. Or, let’s be joyful, Anyone’s Day flowers. Since many of you readers aren’t local, let’s go on a really quick tour so you can see what you are missing.

All the spring flowers that will be ready for Friday’s flower shed will be tulips, narcissus, honesty, possibly camassia, leujococium and more. There will be armloads of flowers going into bunches and bouquets.

The interesting thing about spring is that the flowers really aren’t around for long. Yes, the tulips are because I store them, but many of the other flowers are so fleeting. Especially when the weather is hot. This is one of the reasons I stroll the flower gardens so often during the day. So I can harvest them at their peak and store them so they will be perfect for you. The peonies are also looking really good and before you know it….Bam, oh how quickly it goes.

All the spring flowers are in the ground, and I am waiting impatiently for the next round after this round. This includes the ranunculus and anemones, clarkia, oh it is just so exciting. Honestly, I am now getting ready to get the summer flowers ready to go in the ground. First the flowers that will take the cooler temps, then the summer annuals, then the dahlias. I did take the dahlias out of the cooler yesterday because I needed the space and I need them to warm up and start showing those eyes for dividing. All will be in the ground before the end of the month.

Before I forget, the flower shed will now be on summer hours. This means Tuesdays from 2-5, Fridays from 9-2. Just for Mothers Day, from 9-2. Welcome summer schedule.

Before I end, here is the arrangement I did for last week’s #windowframethursday. Even today, it is still looking good. And they say that hellebores can’t be conditioned to last more than a day.

Flowers used are fritillaries, hellebores, mertensia, muscari and spirea held together with a pin holder.

I would have written this on the porch this afternoon, but it got a bit cold, but this is my view from where I sit. Please enjoy my view.

Not too shabby. Until next week. I dream of flowers, do you? Allie

Remember, Flower shed hours are now summer hours. Tuesday 2-5 and Friday 9-2:00

Allie

Whoa! Last Sunday of April!

Well this quarter of 2025 zipped right by. How does this happen? Is it because the flower season starts in January with hauling in crates of tulips? Is it because by mid February tulip harvest has begun? Is because by March we are in the thick of tulips, seeding and getting ready for the next season? Is it because the end of April has seen the last of the forced tulips and yes, the first in-ground tulips will be harvested tomorrow? I don’t know, but time needs to move down just a titch please.

It has been another busy week on the farm, but no news there I guess. The willows that were planted out are showing new growth which is exciting and even more exciting is the new shrubs are looking really good so the plan for this week is to get the cardboard down in the rows and the wood chips on top. I fed everything on Thursday in anticipation of the weekend’s rain, which we did get a good amount of, so now mulching. After that gets done it will essentially be hands off for quite a while, which will be good because there are plenty of other things to attend to.

It appears as though the bird attempting to build a nest in the greenhouse thought better of its chosen location which is great, but now I have a bird building a nest in the flower shed. Not quite as bad because it can come an go at its pleasure and I am only really in there once or twice a day every few days.

In the dirty room (which we can now spin around in there is so much space) the seeding is going right along. I have a lot of transplanting to do this week and another big batch of sowing, this time the zinnias and cosmos and other things that I missed. The chrysanthemum cuttings are looking good so far which is very exciting, and the next batch of seedling transplants can go out into the greenhouse to harden off.

The greenhouse is looking mighty full with the bench filling up again. The narcissus will all have to go under the bench this week because I have buds on the anemone and soon I will have to be able to get to the crates to harvest some flowers! Whoo hoo. I don’t see much happening on the ranunculus yet, but hopefully those flower buds won’t be far behind. The tunnel is looking good, and it seems as though the ranunculus that I planted without soaking have decided to show signs of life after all, with the back up plants ready to get planted now. Nothing like a little bit of competition to spur growth on. After this week things will be getting really tight in there.

For the past few years I have been asked to do the flowers for the Music on Norway Pond benefit which I really enjoy doing, lets me stretch my creativity. So this is what I created yesterday.

After today it looks as though we are going to be in for a stretch of nice weather so I will be pulling tulips, I suspect so, by Friday. Fingers crossed there will be a selection of varieties, but other flowers are rocking in as well so things are looking good on the floral side.

I will leave you with last week’s #windowframe. It is essentially the prototype of what I created yesterday. Enjoy.

Have a great week, Allie. I dream of flowers, do you?

Welcome to another crazy week on the flower farm. Every day is something new and different, and exciting. The most exciting is that spring is actually happening. The witch hazels are done blooming, making way for the forsythia and the magnolias. The hellebores are are blooming their socks off and the narcissus buds are swelling with promise.

On Monday I got all of the perennial seedlings planted out into the garden, perfect weather for transplanting. Mostly overcast with no wind to speak of and the nights were above freezing. The peonies have been cleaned up and fed, and half of the irrigation has been laid out in the cutting garden. Even bigger news is that the last crate of forced tulips has been harvested so now we are dependent on the ground tulips.

So you all know that I have been a bit worried that there will be a lull in the tulip production but hurrah! White Emperor will be be first one on deck. It will still be a week before harvest, but no delay. Good news all around I would say.

I am having a bit of a problem in the greenhouse. As I was rounding the corner yesterday I noticed a little wren with bits in its bill sitting on the ledge going into the greenhouse. My fears are correct. She is building a nest on the ledge of the greenhouse. Argh. Not a great place because if it gets cold, I have to shut the doors, her entrance, and I can’t keep the doors shut to keep her out because it will become far too hot in there for the crops. Hopefully she will become discouraged with all of my activity and find somewhere else safer to build her nest.

I am not going to remove her nest because if this is where she wants to be she will just build another one. Sigh. If she continues I will chronicle it for all to see.

I did create a #windowframethursday on Friday last week but never got around to posting it. It was one of those days, so you all get to see it now, with the same arrangement four days later when the tulips have opened up a bit.

I hope everyone has a beautiful spring week coming, and I will be back to regale you with more next week.

Allie, I dream of flowers, do you?

We are Nearing the Middle of March

Oh sorry, we are nearing the middle of April but it sure feels like March. Ugh. Cold, raw days…some days with snow…then we have one and a half nice days then back to cold, raw and cloudy. The worst was yesterday, though.

That snow was forecasted to be one to three inches, and by the time we went out to do morning chores it was five inches. By the time it had more or less finished it was plus five. The majority of it is gone, but there is enough to remind me that it was here.

We did have a dusting of snow on Flower Shed Friday, that was also beautiful and it didn’t last long. It had to make way for the next day’s snow.

Early in the week I did that tetris thing between the willow garden and the twiggery, moving things hither and yon. Almost all of the flowering shrubs are now in the twiggery, getting well watered and all the willow sticks are now planted in the willowery. Steve was able to till the rows where they were going to be planted and in a couple of hours I had them all in. Yay? Did I feel my body parts that evening? I think a total of 40 willow sticks went in. Let’s just hope they take. They should.

I have one lonely crate of tulips remaining in the dirty room and I think if we see sunshine this week they will be going out with the others in the bulb room. What a season that has been. The first half harvested, the second half, the ones in the ground are just needing some sun and warmer temps to get them really going. They are looking good, they just seem to be slow. Hopefully with some sun and warmer temps they will catch up and there won’t be a lull between the two crops. Fingers crossed.

Speaking of tulips, since it was snowing outside I thought I would finally sit down at the computer and get next year’s tulips ordered. That is quite the job but both orders are out. I have ordered some really beautiful ones, I hope, and there will be twenty two varieties of forced ones and nineteen? of the in ground ones so there will be plenty of variety for all of us.

I also started the last ranunculus I have. I decided that the last batch I did isn’t doing anything. Lesson learned. No matter what, after soaking them put them in trays and sprout them before they go into the ground so they will have roots and a bit of green to get them going. Planting them in the ground right after soaking them just hasn’t worked, hence the third planting.

This coming week is another busy one, the next batch of seeding, ranunculus planting by Thursday, yup, they should be ready to go into the ground by then, they are already starting to show green bits. I have a bunch of perennial seedlings that have to get into the ground… you know, all that cool flower farming stuff.

Here are the photos from last week’s #windowframethursday. Even today it still looks beautiful, even more so because the tulips have opened up.

I will turn you over to Steve. Have a great week, hopefully a sunny and slightly warmer one than we have been having.

Allie. I dream of flowers, do you?

It is Defiantly April

You know that saying for March, out like a lion? Well April so far is just like March. Taunting us with nice days, followed by days of pure @#$%%. It is certainly a month to keep us on our toes.

We have had some really nice days. The twiggery is full. The last 36 shrub liners arrived Friday afternoon and they all got in the ground. They were tiny, tinier than I thought they would be, but planting was easy so I am not complaining. Then we had enough rain last night and this morning to get them really well watered in, so while they are getting established I am appreciating the cooler damp weather. Go roots! Once they leaf out water will have to be kept up to the at least twice a week, I will give them a feed for a boost then the mulch spread. It looks really amazing when you drive in the driveway. It will be even more amazing next year. I also moved everything in the willow garden into the twiggery because this week the willow sticks will be planted out.

Saturday the chrysanthemum cuttings came and I got those potted up and under the grow lights to get them started. Once they are rooted in I will take cutting and increase my stock.

Yesterday I did the flowers for a dear friend’s celebration of life. I am sorry I didn’t get a good photo of the large arrangement but the tablescapes turned out well. They are in the Orangeina bottles were requested because it was her favorite drink and because that was her password. Very appropriate I would say.

The in-ground tulips are are looking good. I haven’t had to water them yet, which is nice but I am sure those days will be coming. And no, I haven’t placed the tulip order for next year. I am a bit worried about the cost. The tulips have already gone up 25%, then we have the new tariffs, then I am sure the potting medium will go up because of the tariffs, but then I say I will only be forcing tulips for another two or three years anyway…What do you think?

I didn’t do a #windowframethursday last week. I am waiting for flowers or flowering branches that aren’t tulips to play with. I know. I am spoiled for sure, but I do have a stairway of tulips that were for last week.

I leave you with this photo. Hopefully it will make you smile.

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

The Last Sunday of March

Here is is the last Sunday of March, tomorrow is the last day of March and Mother Nature is having the last laugh. Everything is coated in a quarter inch of ice. Everything will be fine but really? Back in the olden days when I used to work at a nursery in CT when the roses were in full bloom and the forecast was for freezing we would turn the sprinklers on to coat the flowers in ice to protect them from the cold. The would create heat…when the sun came out we would turn the water off and let them melt naturally, the flowers looked like they were made of glass, and by nine in the morning they were as beautiful as ever. So this photo of the ice encased Witch Hazel will be as beautiful as ever tomorrow when all this crap melts.

It has been a very busy week at the farm. I got all of the sixty shrub liners planted by Wednesday, then I moved another twelve big shrubs into the same space to make room for the willow sticks. I wanted to get the shrubs in so they could enjoy the rain, or should I say freezing rain. I am taking a planting pause but not for long because I just got notice that the last 36 shrubs are en route so they will or should be here by the end of the week. I am certainly giving my shoulders and arms a workout this spring.

So I have exciting news! (for us tulip lovers anyway.) I was out in the garden looking for spring and I hear a “Hello? Hello Allison?” And I had this really handsome dutch bulb grower introduce himself. He had been down the road at Wolf Pine Hollow checking on their tulips and because I am a member of the ASCFG he though he would stop by with his catalog and introduce himself. Well, the long and the short of it is I can order tulips in quantities of 100 and not 500. Yes, they will be a bit more expensive but we will be able to get variety!!! Eleven varieties of tulips for the entire spring crop isn’t doing it for me. At. All.

So I am very excited about this. Really excited. So I will get my order together in April and get it out. it will be like the previous years when the tulip varieties changed every two weeks.

All the plantlings that are planted out in the tunnel and greenhouse are looking good. It hardly looks like they are growing but it isn’t like we have been having warm weather lately. Comfortable enough to work in if one is rugged up enough but not big for plant growth. The next batch of cool annuals goes out to harden off tomorrow, but things are looking good.

Oh I forgot to tell you, the tulips in the outside beds are poking up through the mulch! Very exciting. Joining them are the narcissus, I think camassia and bluebells that are just emerging. I can hardly wait to have a wider selection of flowers for all of us to enjoy.

Tomorrow the sweet peas that I’m not growing will be started…then I think I have a week off from seed sowing for a week or two, then the next big batch gets started.

Well I think I have caught all of you up to date with the happenings here at the farm. I leave you with last week’s instagrams #windowframethursday.

I will leave you in Steve’s capable hands. Until next week. Allie. I dream of flowers, do you?

Welcome Spring

i say welcome spring but honestly today feels like ole man winter has returned and rumor has it we are to get snow tonight. Welcome spring. I just keep reminding myself that it is still March, and New Hampshire to boot.

I has been a VERY busy week here on the farm. Steve and I have finished dismantling the donkey shed and the tidy up involved so we are ready for the next phase of Flowers at Lottarock. The donkey pasture is becoming the woody garden. The first box of liners arrived on Saturday and the fun began. Originally I thought I would get a little tractor in to create the rows for the plant material. Then I thought we have a BCS heavy duty tiller why not till the rows, less impact on the soil, or what ever it is I grow on. Well you know how this is going to go…The tiller wouldn’t start, it had flat tires…so Steve dug in to hopefully get it going, and I dug holes. I mean, how hard could it be? Actually it wasn’t that bad. I got the rows all marked out, and by the time my body crashed I had planted the first twenty shrub liners.

By mid afternoon the tiller was running! To be honest by that time we had both run out of steam, so hopefully Tuesday morning it will have dried out enough to till the rows to get the next twenty planted, because tomorrow another twenty two are due to arrive. Lucky for me they can live in the cooler until we can get them in the ground. That cooler was worth every penny I invested in it.

Speaking of cooler, tomorrow is the day that the last four crates will be leaving the cooler. I can honestly say “Yay.” These last four weeks are some really interesting tulips. Not ones that I ordered I am sure, but subs…some I might try to order for next year. And no, I haven’t even looked at the order form yet for 2026.

Tomorrow another round of seeding happens and the last batch of ranunculus will get soaked. The seedlings that have been planted in the tunnel are looking good, which is good. My numbers seem to be lower this year than in the past…I am going to blame it on the weather…having a real winter has thrown off my schedule, least my mind says so… the schedule hasn’t changed any.

This is the photo I took to show what had been harvested for flower shed Friday. I try to offer up interesting mixed bunches, we also had hyacinths, the last of the pink pussy willows for 2025 and some tiny, very tiny mixed tete e tete narcissus with grape hyacinths.

So I will leave you now with last week’s #windowframethursday. The striped tulip on the left is Purple Passion, I think…

Until next week and all its excitement, Allie. I dream of flowers, do you?

My Countdown to Spring

My earnest countdown to spring is underway. Only three days left! So exciting! Spring ushers in on Wednesday. Last week it looked as though we were still in the depths of winter, today, not so much…if fact I can truly believe that spring will be here on Wednesday.

Hard to believe. It is even harder to believe that I haven’t stepped foot into the garden yet. I have surveyed the garden from outside the fence, but it is too wet to go in, and I know that as soon as I get in I will start pecking at it and sighing deeply so I will stay out until Wednesday, so I say.

After tomorrow’s tulip crate haul, there will be only one week left in the cooler. Don’t worry, the forced crates will go on and the field grown ones will meet them so I think my timing is good and there won’t be a flower lull. Speaking of tulips, I got the 2026 availability list the other day. To be honest I am afraid of looking at it. Tulip prices have gone up 25% and who knows what the shipping will be, or if there will be any more tariffs added on. I try to keep my prices low but I often ask myself what will the market bear? Jon had more news but it mostly about placing the orders. When you come to get flowers the next few weeks let me know what you think. I will probably have to get the order in by May 1.

Other exciting news, I got notice that the shrub order was shipped last night so it should be rocking in in a day or two. At least the snow has melted but the soil is still far too wet to begin tilling. A friend is dropping off pots that I can plant some into but I am hoping that I will be able to store them in the cooler for at least a week while I wait for things to dry out. Only 60 are being shipped right now…I guess it is good that the cooler is emptying out of tulip crates.

The greenhouse is filling up with crates of ranunculus that are starting to sprout and the cool annuals. The tunnel is cleaned and compost down so after another deep soaking it can be planted out this week.

Last Friday I got about half of the hydrangeas and roses pruned so that is off the list. I probably have another half day and they will be done. Now that the snow has melted I can get in there and get it done with out my tall boots on. Then fertilizing and mulching all the woodies that are outside the fenced area. My days of leisure are dwindling.

I made a special birthday bouquet on Wednesday. Beautiful tulips, dainty reddish willow stems and the stunning Mt Aso willow. You really get to see the color now than in the photos I posted last week.

I have one more cutting of the pink pussy willows and that will be it for the year but I noticed this afternoon that the other pussy willow is starting to break its scales off so there will be more to be had, just not the beauties you see above.

I leave you with last week’s Instagram post. I am having so much fun doing these weekly posts, it gives me a chance to get creative with the small number of flowers that are available to me.

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