Gifts for Gardeners

Years ago, my mom saw my struggle shopping for my friends and family. "Why not get them plants and garden items? You know their skill level and can customize the right gift for everyone on your list." She was right. Little by little, plants and garden items became gift ideas for sisters, brothers, friends, nieces and nephews. 

Christmas Mouse Poinsettia in a lovely gift basket

Let the plant fit the person you are gifting. A snake plant might be perfect for the new 'plant parent'. Those with more experience might like to try a bonsai or an orchid. Pair the plants with a book, planter, plant light, watering can or whatever would help your indoor gardener succeed. The opportunities are endless. 

Indoor lights and seed starting systems

Vegetable gardeners would love an indoor plant lighting system to get their transplants off to a good start. Seeds, seed starting mix, or a heat mat, are other items that might be fun to try. 

Hori-hori knife, trowel, Felco pruners and kneeler/seat

Good tools are always treasured by gardeners. Felco pruners are the best and offer customizable options for small hands, left-handed people, and feature replaceable blades. A hori-hori knife is another go-to tool for gardeners; it serves as a weeder, bulb planter, scores roots to be transplanted, and digs through clay soils. Older gardeners might appreciate a gardening stool/kneeler in the garden. Getting up and down in the garden is made easier by this handy accessory. For the budget conscious, a good trowel and pair of fashionable/functional garden gloves may be just the thing your gardener needs. 

Watering the garden this year has been a struggle with two periods of drought after a wet spring. The pros use Dramm nozzles and wands for good reason-they work. A watering can from the same company features a long, thin spout perfect for watering containers of plants. 

Gifts to give the host and hostess can include plants as well. An amaryllis or a few paperwhite bulbs already planted are a great idea. A cyclamen that blooms all winter, or small gift baskets of plants are always welcome. 

Stocking stuffers may include garden gloves, indoor watering aids, seed packets and other small items; a gift card being my personal favorite. 

Consider the gift of membership to Longwood Gardens, Cylburn Arboretum, Rawlings Conservatory or Ladew Gardens. If not a membership, maybe a daytrip together to enjoy these lovely gardens. 

The great thing about gardening is that you can invest a little or a lot into a gift; there's something for every budget. 

Enjoy the season!

We Love to Decorate for Christmas and other Winter Holidays---Early

We wish for a White Christmas

Have you noticed that in recent years people are decorating for Christmas earlier than ever, with outdoor lights, trees and holiday decor going up before the Halloween decorations have been put away? The phenomenon has sparked curiosity and debate attributing some of the change to cultural and psychological factors. We may be a little guilty over the years; people expect our Christmas Shop to be up and running in October. 

Ornaments and lights

Psychologically, many people find joy and comfort in the holiday season. Those Hallmark movie people must know something. Christmas decorations evoke nostalgia, family, happiness and serve as a reprieve from everyday stress and challenging times. Covid's uncertainty may have had some decorating to embrace positivity and warmth. 

Red and White, a traditional favorite

Culturally, we used to wait until after Thanksgiving to get the tree up and light up the outdoors with color and inflatables. Social media may be part of the change. Instagram, facebook and Pinterest inspire us with ideas, showcasing early holiday set ups, offering classes to help us with decorating and allowing us to spend more time connecting with friends and family. We love to share our holiday homes and spaces. 

Friends gather for a wreath making party

As a large, regional Christmas Shop, we begin our set-up in early fall. By October, we're ready to showcase our trees, ornaments and Christmas themed decor. Many retailers are joining us earlier. There is a sense of urgency and anticipation that guide our behavior. 

What great fun for family and friends!

December seems too short a time to celebrate; why limit it? We allow more time to visit with friends and family throughout the extended season. If you need to get into the holiday spirit, social media helps out by covering events all season long. 

Not everyone embraces the change.  Some argue that it diminishes the significance of Thanksgiving and leads to holiday fatigue. Others feel that there is just too much commercialism stretched out over time. 

Enjoy the season!

There is a growing acceptance of early decorations. Some may say that the extra time allows more moments of joy.

Where do you fall in the decorating debate?

I have a gardening addiction: My Vacation In Maine

 Maine is a regular vacation destination for me, two close friends and some of my family members. Luckily, we travel well together. Here are some of my observations about gardening in Maine. 

Annual flowers are beautiful well into fall. Our trips are usually in early October and we found gardens galore. Here are some pics from one of my favorites, Thuya Gardens in Northeast Harbor, just outside Acadia National Park. 

Annuals and perennials are planted together in long beds against a backdrop of evergreens in Thuya Gardens, located in Northeast Harbor, Maine. Thuya delights the senses with tall, beautiful plantings. 

Asters, botanically known as Symphyotrichum, are stalwart bloomers in early fall along the coast of Maine. 

Asters paired with celosias offers a nice texture and color to the garden.  Celosias are being used more and more in late summer and fall gardens. 

Nicotiana, aka ornamental tobacco, adds bright color to the bed alongside Black-eyed Susans and Salvia.

Zinnia, an annual that will succumb to frost any day now, is planted with Dusty Miller, Rudbeckia and Salvia. All around the garden, tall Zinnias and Dahlias play a huge part in brightening up the perennials around them. 

The tall Joe Pye Weed dominates a bed that also features Salvia, Marigolds, Dahlias and more. All of the gardens provide nectar for butterflies and hummingbirds migrations. 

Blue and purple Asters and Zinnias share the fall garden spaces at Thuja. Most of these are cultivars; native asters abound in the wild spaces here in Maine. 

Bright red Coleus and Zinnias alongside Cleome and Salvia are offer amazing contrast. 

Dahlia blossoms in the concrete planter gives a feeling of tranquility with the water.

Trails through the garden lead into the woods and eventually to a terrace that takes one to the harbor. 

A peek through the trees to Northeast Harbor.

Maybe it's because the season is shorter in Maine; gardens around homes, hotels and public spaces are beautiful. Thuya garden offers a look into the gardening legacy around the resort areas in coastal Maine. 

I hope you can use some of these ideas for your own gardens. Take photos of what worked (and what didn't)in your landscape and draw upon some ideas for next year. 

In the meantime, have a wonderful Thanksgiving and a nice holiday season. 

Squash and Gourds---What's the Difference?

 What is the difference between a Squash and a Gourd? 

Scores of squash varieties are available for cooking or decorating

What is the difference between a Squash and a Gourd? 

The easiest answer is that Squash are members of the Cucurbitaceae Family that we like to eat. Gourds are members of the Cucurbitaceae that we do not eat.  Both have a hard outer rind, but the Squash have softer edible flesh inside. Pumpkins, Butternut Squash, Acorn Squash, Hubbard, Crookneck and Zucchini are all types of Squash we enjoy cooking and eating.  The inner flesh of Gourds, on the other hand, tends to be bitter and quite hard.   

The colors of fall 

Squash have one of the longest records of being a cultivated vegetable in the world. They were first used 10,000-8,000 years ago in Mexico, about 4,000 years before the development of maize or corn as a domesticated crop. Many varieties were developed by Native Americans.   In the early 1600s, Europeans adopted Squash into their diets to survive the long hard New England Winters and Squash is believed to have been eaten at the First Thanksgiving.

Most of these are great for pumpkin pies

"Squash” first appears as an English word about 1640.  It came from the Narragansett word “askutasquash” which translates to “eaten uncooked.”  Many recipes for squash soup can be found among early New England documents.

Pumpkin pie anyone?

The Iroquois demonstrated the “Three Sisters” method of growing Squash to Europeans. Corn, Pole beans and Squash form the “Three Sisters” which are planted in a Hill or Mound together, rather than a straight row.  First, six kernels of corn are planted in a circle about 2 feet in diameter after all chance of frost has passed.  The beans are planted after the Corn is a foot tall.  Finally, about 4-6 weeks (about 1 and a half months) later the Squash seeds are planted. Corn provided the support for the beans; the Beans provide nitrogen to the soil to benefit all three vegetables. The large prickly leaves of the Squash provide shade to the soil, keeping it cool and moist, crowding out weeds and keeping the raccoons and other scavengers away. 

Three Sisters Photo Courtesy of MD Grows Blog 2017

In modern vegetable gardens, there are two categories of Squash: Summer and Winter. Summer Squash consists of Zucchini, Spaghetti Squash, Patty Pan Squash, Crookneck Squash, and the like.  They are grown and harvested in the Summer because they have a very thin shell.  

Squash and gourds take up less space when grown vertically

Despite the name, Winter Squash and Gourds are also grown in the Summertime.  The thicker outer shell makes them stronger, and they have a longer growing season than the Summer Squash.  Seeds must be planted in the late Spring, after all threat of frost has passed.  In Central Maryland, a planting date of just after Mother’s Day is ideal for Summer and Winter Squash and Gourds too.  Winter Squash have a lot of nutrients, such as beta carotene, Vitamin C, Magnesium, Potassium, and plenty of fiber.   

Beautifully diverse shapes and colors 

Many Gourds originated in Africa and were mostly grown for the useful hard shell that can be dried and hollowed out to make containers, utensils, tools, musical instruments, and bird houses. The versatile gourd was used for many thousands of years in African, Asian, and European. In fact, one subspecies of bottle gourd has been discovered in archaeological sites from as early as 13,000 BC. The word “Gourd” entered the English language about 1325 from the Old French “coorde”.  Today, we tend to use Gourds as purely decorative items for our Autumn and Thanksgiving Displays.  The more adventuresome folks will dry Gourds and use the hard outer shell to make items, just like our forebears. 

Valley View Farms sells Gourd and Squash seeds for planting in the Spring. We also offer locally grown Summer Squash starts such as Zucchini and Straight neck Squash in the Greenhouse in Late Spring. However, in the Fall we offer a wide selection of Squash, Pumpkins and Gourds out in the Pumpkin Patch for Fall cooking and decorating.