Category Archives: Home and Garden

Spinach Salad for Autumn – Thank You Cedar Rock Gardens!

Leave a reply

WE Love, Love the weekly selection of fresh veggies from Cedar Rock Gardens. Online produce ordering is available every week, closing on Wednesday at 7pm for Thursday afternoon pick-up. This week I made creamed spinach and a spinach salad, both big hits with my family every time I make them, and a great way to include dark greens in a child’s diet. For the spinach salad we added chopped celery, walnuts, perfectly ripened pears from Russell Orchards, and blue cheese from Common Crow, and all tossed with a simple shallot vinaigrette. Yummm!!

Order your Cedar Rock Gardens produce here!

Beautiful (and Super Delicious) Fresh Produce from Cedar Rock Gardens

Leave a reply

Order your farm fresh organic produce ONLINE today, through Wednesday at 7pm. Pick-up is Thursday from 2pm to 6pm.

I promise, you will be in veggie heaven!Frost-sweetened Carrots, Watermelon Radishes, and Spaghetti Squash

Photogenic Watermelon Radishes

Where Do Garter Snakes Go In Winter?

Leave a reply

As we watched the Garter Snake slide along the edge of our kitchen foundation I wondered, where is it going? He sure looked like he was searching for an opening.

I read yes, he very well could be looking for an opening in our foundation. When temperatures begin to drop, Garter Snakes seek an underground shelter called a hibernaculum, which could be a natural underground feature such as a rocky crevice, an abandoned animal burrow, or man-made structure like our basement. They enter a state of inactivity, called brumation when their metabolism slows significantly. From October through April the Garter Snake will live in its hibernaculum, only leaving if there is not snow cover enough and it needs to go deeper below the frost line. As spring temperatures warm, the male is the first to come out of brumation.

Garter Snakes are nearsighted. They use their highly developed sense of smell to detect predators and prey, flicking their tongues to draw in scent particles.  When they flick their tongues towards something specific, it can mean they sense danger. The snake was also lunging towards us however, you may have noticed, it has no teeth 🙂

The Fabulous Four Plants for Monarchs (and Bees)!

1 Reply

 

Plant goldenrods, asters, and milkweeds to provide Monarchs (and as you can see, many other pollinators) all the sustenance they will need during their breeding season and southward migration.

Wildflowers in order of appearance:

Seaside Goldenrod (Solidago sempervirens)

Smooth Aster (Symphyotrichum laeve)

New England Aster (Symphyotrichum novae-angliae)

Common Milkweed (Asclepias syriaca)

Fresh Produce!

Leave a reply

Cedar Rock Gardens is Open for Online Fresh Produce!

Ordering Produce

Our website is open for ordering farm fresh produce. Orders must be in by Wednesday at 7 PM.

Please pick up your produce on Thursday between 2PM and 6:30PM in the big red barn at Cedar Rock Gardens.

Order Here

Elise writes,

We will be adding more produce and variety as it becomes available each week.

This week offers lots of winter squash! Check out our website for a full list of whats available now!

We also have Tea blends, syrups and oxymels from Milkyway Apothecary.

We will be listing new produce on our website each week as it become available and we will try to open the store online every Sunday to place orders for a Thursday pick up. If you have any questions at all please reach out.

We will also be at the Gloucester Farmers Market at Burnhams Field for the next two Wednesdays from 2:30 to 5:30.

I will be getting a farm letter out pretty soon with all the news and updates from the season and some things to look forward to for next season!

All the very best,

Elise

The Piping Plovers of Moonlight Bay comes to Canada x 2

Leave a reply

Dear PiPl Friends,

I am delighted to share two good things. The Piping Plovers of Moonlight Bay has been accepted to the Brampton Canada International Film Festival, which is a relatively new festival based in Ontario, and we are having a film screening in December at the City Cinema, sponsored by the Island Nature Trust, which is located at Prince Edward Island. We love our neighbors to the north and I am deeply honored. Thank you BCIFF and Island Nature Trust. We are so very grateful for the opportunity to share our documentary with Canadians.

Recently I attended a great talk given by the entomologist and conservationist Doug Tallamy, which was sponsored by a fantastic local organization, 400 Trees Gloucester and hosted by the Annisquam Village Church.  Please read more about local efforts to grow native here.

Winged wonders continue to migrate across our shores, with Little Blue Herons the most recently departed. I posted photos of LBHerons and Snowy Egrets, along with a short video of a dragonfly run-in with a Little Blue here.Monarch Butterflies and native wildflower Seaside Goldenrod (Solidago sempervirens)

We had another wave of migrating Super Monarchs, the third this season however, the wind conditions have kept the butterflies moving and that is why we are not seeing many in our gardens during this year’s migration. Continue to keep on the lookout. Goldenrods are winding down their blooming period but asters, especially New England Asters and Smooth Asters, are still flowering.

Please continue to share what creatures you are seeing in your neighborhoods. Thank you 🙂 This morning I saw a tiny little member of the weasel family, a Short-tailed Weasel, also called an Ermine or a Stout. She was only about six inches in length, with chocolate brown fur and a bright white belly. She was so fast and darted between rocks before I could take a photo, but we did have a few seconds of startled eye to eye contact. Just adorable!

Thinking about Jane Goodall – her beautiful, thoughtful spirit and the extraordinary gift she left, inspiring all to protect our planet.

xxKim

Gombe, Tanzania – Jane Goodall and infant chimpanzee reach out to touch each other’s hands. (National Geographic Creative/ Hugo Van Lawick)

Seahorses, Bunnies, Sunflowers, and Charlotte

Leave a reply

Lucky us that Charlotte and I were able to spend the day together on primary election day, Tuesday. When asked what she wanted to do she instantly said the  Seacoast Science Center, and to visit the bunnies and pick flowers for her Mom’s birthday at my friend Paul Wegzyn’s sunflower farm, Felix’s Family Farm.

As always the Seacoast Science Center was super interesting and educational with its touch tanks, displays about local marine habitats, and highly knowledgeable staff of young biologists. The highlights were seahorse feeding time and when Raspberry, the endangered Box Turtle, was brought out of his pen to sun himself outdoors. The five seahorses currently at the aquarium are Lined Seahorses (Hippocampus erectus) and they can be found all along the Atlantic coast, from Nova Scotia to Uruguay. They are considered a slow moving fish and that is one of the reasons why seahorses are endangered. Because they are relatively easy to catch, Lined Seahorses are also easily exploited for ornamental display, the aquarium trade, and Chinese medicine.

Paul Wegzyn, Sr. and son Paul Wegzyn Felix’s Family Farm

In these last lingering days of summer and first days of autumn, don’t miss taking your family to Paul’s flower fields. The sunflowers currently blooming are a gorgeous fresh new batch and his exquisite dahlia fields are at peak. As you can see in the photos, for Charlotte, the highlight of the day is bunnies. You can never get too much bunny love and all of Paul’s rabbits are sweet, friendly, and wonderfully pet-able. The favorite of the favorites is Ryan the Rabbit, a breed called a Mini Rex, and he is the softest, sweetest creature you can imagine. He was wholly engaged with Charlotte and she was wondering if it is because of her flowered dress.

Felix’s Family Farm is located at 20 Lowes Lane, Ipswich, and is open everyday for the next two weeks, until  September 28th however, as we get closer to October, be sure to call for hours (978-229-1071).

WOW! So Much Great Stuff Happening at Cedar Rock Gardens!

Leave a reply

Elise at Cedar Rock Gardens says, It’s Not Too Late to Plant — and HAVE WE GOT A SALE FOR YOU!

Rainy weekends and a chilly spring couldn’t stop us—and now it’s officially go-time in the garden.

It is not too late to plant – We have a sale for you and Lettuce!

Come Visit Us for a sale this week!— Bring a Box or Tray to shop.
To help you get growing and keep growing, we’re offering 30% off all seedlings in the nursery starting on Wednesday, June 18th until Sunday, June 22nd. Yes, all of them. As a little bonus, every purchase comes with a free lettuce plant, because you deserve something green, crunchy, and satisfying after this soggy spring.

Our business hours:
Monday – Closed
Tuesday – Closed
Wednesday – 8 am to 4 pm
Thursday – 8 am to 5 pm
Friday – 8 am to 4 pm
Saturday – 8 am to 4 pm
Sunday – 9 am to 3 pm
Hello friends,

We know—this spring’s been a journey. Between the endless rainy weekends and a chill that just wouldn’t quit, it felt like summer might never show up. I was totally ahead of myself predicting a warm spring – so much for that! Now that the weather is finally good enough for tender edible crops to grow lets keep a close eye on pests and critters. The soil is finally warm, the skies are (mostly) clearing, and the gardens are ready to GROW.

If you’ve been waiting to plant, now is your moment.
It is not too late to get your veggie garden going! In fact, it’s a great time to plant seedlings—especially for all those warm-weather crops that will flourish this time of year.

And for all you clever succession planters, leafy greens like lettuce, kale, chard, and herbs are ready for another round. Keep those salads coming well into summer. Direct Seed bush and pole beans now along with radish, hakurei, baby bok choy, greens and arugula.

We’d love to see your faces back at the nursery. The nursery is bursting with life, lots of bastil, squash, cutting flowers, tomatoes and peppers!

Catch Us at the Gloucester Farmers Market!
Every Wednesday from 2:30–6:30pm, you’ll find us at The Backyard Growcery at Burnhams field. Starting this week!!
We’ll have fresh-picked produce from our fields and plenty of hardy seedlings to fill your garden gaps.

Come say hi, grab a bunch of something delicious, and let us hook you up with a lettuce pun or two (we can’t help ourselves).

🌈 Happy Pride Month 🌈
At Cedar Rock Gardens, we believe that love is good, communities, just like gardens, are better with a wild mix of colors and personalities, and every person deserves to grow and thrive exactly as they want to be. We stand proudly with our queer community—not just this month, but always.

Here’s to vibrant veggies, inclusive spaces, and the joy of growing something beautiful together. 💚💜💛

From the Field: June Journal

Why are we closed on Mondays and Tuesday?? First, it is to have a full day to spend with our small children and keep the work/life balance in tact during this especially busy time of year. We are a small business and we are a couple running a farm, a family, a crew and a life outside of work. We are on 7 days a week all day keeping thousands of plants and a couple small humans alive and in order to navigate this livelihood we chose to be closed to the public 2 days a week. Second because, as stated above, we are farming greenhouse and field crops all year and we need all hands on deck a few days a week to plant, weed, prune, harvest wash and pack – for those of you who have asked.
We’ve officially changed our greenhouses over from seedling production and packed all 12,000 square feet of our greenhouses with summer crop stars: tomatoes, sweet and hot peppers, eggplant, basil, cucumbers, ginger, sweet potatoes and so many other warm-loving goodies.

Out in the fields, lettuce and greens are growing along beautifully. Bush beans are just about to get seeded, and both summer and winter squash are just about to go in the ground—and we are just about ready to tuck in our potatoes on July 2nd, right on schedule.

Why July 2nd? Because we’ve got beef with the Colorado potato beetle. These striped little tank-like pests emerge early in the season and love nothing more than feasting on tender potato foliage. By delaying planting until July, we dodge their peak egg-laying window—and still get a strong fall harvest without the beetle drama. Take that, nature’s tiny bulldozers.

Here are a few things I find myself repeating a lot at the nursery so I though I may share them here and hopefully give someone a tidbit that may help!
Pest Patrol + Growing Tips
Squash + Cucumber Success:

Use lightweight row cover early on to protect seedlings from bugs and cool nights. Remove the cover when the plants flower so they can be pollinated!
Mulch around the base with straw to deter squash bugs – or try the tip below from a neighbor!
Keep leaves dry by morning watering so they dry out over the day to discourage powdery mildew.
Harvest often and remove damaged or wilted fruit to keep plants productive.
And here’s a gem from our neighbor Newt: He cuts drinking straws into 3-inch segments, snips them open, and wraps them around the stems of his young cucurbits. It’s a surprisingly brilliant way to stop cutworms from snipping plants at the soil line—and may just discourage squash vine borers too. We raise a hoe to you, Newt.
Tomato TLC:

Prune lower leaves to improve airflow and reduce disease risk.
Mulch to retain moisture and prevent soil splash-up.
Tomatoes love heat—give them full sun and space to breathe.
Feed every couple weeks with a balanced organic fertilizer once they start fruiting.
Water consistently to prevent blossom end rot.
Pepper Wisdom:

Peppers want warmth—plant them in a sunny, wind-sheltered spot.
They’re slow to start but reward patience. Mulch them in, water evenly, and don’t overdo nitrogen (it’ll grow leaves, not fruit).
We won’t sugarcoat it: the political scene right now? A real mess. Between the corporate greenwashing, book bans, and folks who think “climate change” is just a suggestion—it’s enough to make you want to throw your phone into the compost pile.

But here’s the thing: planting seeds, supporting small farms, feeding your neighbors, and standing up for inclusion and sustainability? That’s hopeful. That’s powerful.

So let’s plant more. Grow more. Share more. Support with our dollars, our forks, and our hearts.

With muddy hands and a hope for sunshine,
— Elise and the Cedar Rock Gardens crew

Tunnel of Love

Leave a reply

With temperatures expected to hit 90 later in the week I thought I had better take a few snapshots of the roses blooming around our front porch; they’ll fade rapidly once the heat kicks in.

The white rose with the single flowers that climbs up to the second floor bedroom window is Darlow’s Enigma. I love this rose for its highly scented blossoms and for its vigor but the stalks became so huge it collapsed in last months nor’easter. It’s made for a wonderful tunnel. A bit out of control, I’ll have to trim Darlow’s way back after it blooms but it sure has been fun having a rose embowered tunnel, albeit briefly.

We planted only the most highly fragrant roses I could locate and currently the sweet scent of roses is permeating our entire home. Happy June!

Azure Blue Butterfly in the Garden!

Leave a reply

Good morning sweet Spring Azure! Look for these tiny one-inch wide wingspan butterflies drinking nectar from the flowers of crabapple, Common Milkweed, blackberry, dandelion, violet and many more spring bloomers.

The female deposits her eggs on a variety of woody shrubs and trees including dogwood (native Cornus florida, not the non-native Korean Kousa), viburnum, blueberry, sumac, and cherry. In our garden, the females mostly oviposit eggs around the pale pink buds of our native Meadowsweet (Spirea alba var. latifolia).

Thoughts About Leaf Blowers and How We Can Possibly Find a Solution Working Together :)

Leave a reply

Whether or not to ban gas-powered leaf blowers sure is creating a maelstrom of divisiveness in our communities. Everyone who has an opinion feels strongly, very strongly, that their viewpoint is the correct pov. Let’s think of the pros and cons and perhaps there is a solution. If I missed a pro or con, please feel free to write so we can include your point of view.

PROS of Gas Powered Leaf Blowers

Landscapers and homeowners appreciate the lower cost associated with gas-powered leaf blowers.

GPs are more powerful than electric, saving time and money.

Many landscapers and homeowners already own gas powered blowers.

CONS of Gas Powered Leaf Blowers

Gas powered leaf blowers are very loud particularly when multiple blowers are in use simultaneously.  The noise pollution is disruptive and unpleasant to neighbors.

GP blowers emit a strong odor of gas fumes, harmful to the environment and to the person operating the leaf blower.

Some observations – our home is located in a middle class neighborhood where leaf blowing does not occur regularly, if at all, whether gas or electric. I do however have clients in more affluent neighborhoods where the use of leaf blowers is much more prevalent. People are correct, the noise level is extremely loud. A crew of men, typically Latino, will disembark from company pick-up trucks, with gas powered blowers strapped to their backs and ear phones snugly wrapped over their ears. The crew of half dozen or so will spend a good part of an hour blowing the leaves off a driveway that won’t even be driven on again until the summer resident homeowner returns the following year. Not only does it seem like an utter waste of time, it concerns me that the employees are breathing the fumes. This is also the same crew that I see spraying pesticides around the base of the homeowner’s foundations, also not wearing protective covering. I am wondering if protective masks and clothing can be provided to the employees that are required to use gas-powered leaf blowers and pesticides.

Do homeowners need half a dozen men blowing leaves off driveways and the street in front of their homes? Perhaps with less demand for an immaculate leaf-be-gone landscape, one gentleman wearing a mask, as opposed to six maskless men, could do the work. If a homeowner is having considerable work done and a leaf blower is needed to assist in clean-up, that seems to me like a reasonable use. Or if a pathway is covered with wet leaves creating an unsafe situation for an elderly person, that too seems like a reasonable use.

In my own landscape design firm, I encourage clients and friends not to remove leaves and the expired stalks of flowering plants. To my way of thinking, leaves on lawns and in flower beds is a beautiful thing! Not only are the decaying leaves providing a protective layer and adding nutrients to the soil, leaves also provide habitat for all manner of insects. I think at this point in our shared awareness about the environment, we all understand that insect populations the world over have plummeted.  We homeowners and landscapers can help insect populations by leaving leaf litter in our gardens. The most delightful benefit of a garden that supports insects, is that the insects attract a host of beautiful songbirds that in turn conveniently eat the insects <3

For the benefit of insects, especially native bees, we also do not cut down the expired stalks of flowers until the end of April. In the late summer and early fall, native bees and other insects burrow into the stalks. When we do eventually cut down the stalks, we leave them in a pile for several weeks before discarding, hoping our little pollinator friends have wiggled out of their winter home.

Perhaps if we can change people’s mindsets about what constitutes a healthy landscape, the fashion of blowing leaves will become mush less problematic.

The song of a Carolina Wren chortling from a treetop has to be one of the sweetest songs you can imagine hearing in you garden. They love to rumple about in the leaf litter, foraging for insects. Insects are an important part of a songbird’s diet, especially during the breeding season when the females are producing eggs.

Carolina Wren nest with eggs tucked under our porch eaves – 

Later in the season, a Carolina Wren fledgling is perched on the back fence. She was made fat and healthy from a diet rich in your average garden variety insects – 

 

Hoppy Easter Shopping at Alexandra’s Bread!

Leave a reply

Looking for sweet touches to add to a child’s Easter basket or lovely and unique spring-themed home goods? Hop on over to Alexandra’s Bread! The bakery is stocked with all their usual yummy breads and cookies along with a rainbow assortment of linens, bags, vintage kitchen items, books, prints, a  Red Sox lunchbox, and so much more!

Alexandra’s Bread is located at 265 Main Street, Gloucester.

Happy Easter!

 

The beautiful daffodil triptych, photographed through the window at Alexandra’s, was created by Alexandra’s sister and Cape Ann artist Mary Rhinelander. The image is much more vibrant when seen not through glass. See more of Mary’s exquisite works at Alexandra’s.

Return of the Yellow-bellied Sapsucker(s)!

1 Reply

For well over a year, our garden has been graced with the fascinating Yellow-bellied Sapsucker. The visits began with a male eating Pokeberries in December of 2023 and have continued intermittently through today.

A female was here for a day last week however, we have had so many Cedar Waxwings in the Dragon Lady Holly, they may have frightened her off. For the past three days, a male YBSS has been industriously revitalizing the sap wells created by the female last year. He is also meowing!! That’s right, the appropriately named bird for a cartoon (or a proper insult), makes a crinkly mewing sound!

Listen for the mews-

 

Photos to Help ID Male, Female, or Juvenile Yellow-bellied Sapsucker

Male YBSS – Red cap and red throat

Female YBSS – note that she does not have a red throat

Juvenile YBSS -softly mottled brown

Male Sapsucker in the rain yesterday

 

Yellow-bellied Sapsucker Timeline

Summer 2023 – Newly seeded Pokeberry bush grows six feet first summer (most likely the seed was deposited by a bird).

December 2023 – First ever male YBSS. Stays for several days eating Pokeberries.

March – May 2024 –  Female YBSS created striking grid pattern of sap wells on both the Dragon Lady Holly and Magnolia soulangeana trees, concentrating her efforts much more on the Holly. She spends many weeks drinking the sap, digging more wells, and eating insects attracted to the sap flows. Ruby-throated Hummingbirds discover the sap wells.

Summer 2024 – Ruby-throated Hummingbirds daily drink nectar from the small pinkish whiteish flowers of the Pokeweed.

October -November 2024 – Female Yellow-bellied Sapsucker returns. She is drinking nectar and eating insects attracted to the sap wells every day, through November 17th.

November 12, 2024 – Both a juvenile and female at the DLHolly saplicks.

March 26, 2025 – female YBSS at the Holly tree. Flock of Cedar Waxwings may have frightened her off.

April 3rd, 4th, and 5th – Male Yellow-bellied Sapsucker drumming and drilling at the Dragon Lady Holly, crabapple, and Magnolia soulangeana. Mewing frequently.

Beautiful Mix of Amaryllis

1 Reply

Such tremendous collective grief in  our nation as we watch the tragedy in Los Angeles unfold that I wanted to share this cheery batch of blooms in our kitchen. A friend gave me the Van Englelen Holiday Mix of Amaryllis bulbs. I potted them up about a month before Christmas. The apple blossom was the first to bloom, followed by the white. The red is just about to pop and so is what looks to be a fabulous salmon/carmine/pink. The fifth bulb is still a mystery as it is not far enough along to tell what color is the bloom. This was such a thoughtful gift, providing weeks and weeks of cheerful beauty.

Holiday Shopping at Alexandra’s Bread!

Leave a reply

Are you looking for wonderfully whimsical (and also useful) last minute hostess gifts, stocking stuffers, handmade presents, and all around lovely and unique home goods?  You need go no further than Alexandra’s Bread. Located at  265 Main Street, Alexandra’s has extended Christmas hours as follows:

Sunday Noon to 3:00

Monday Noon to 4:00

Christmas Eve Day, Tuesday 8:30 to 2pm. Alexandra and John will be baking as well on Tuesday.

We Love shopping for baked goods and home goods at Alexandra’s. They are just the nicest family and there is always a steady stream of friendly customers, with lots of lively conversation. Jon and Alexandra have been huge supporters of our Cape Ann PLovers since they first arrived to Gloucester nine years ago. Support our local businesses and #shoplocal <3

Jon, Owen, and Alexandra

Our family has a cozy tradition of serving fondue on Christmas Eve and we always purchase the bread at Alexandra’s a few days ahead of time. Their homemade baguettes are the absolute perfect dipping bread. Awhile back we bought a second, vintage fondue pot (from Alexandra’s) and now we have two pots going, one with only cheeses and a second pot with cheese, artichokes hearts, and crabmeat (you could switch the crabmeat for lobster). In addition to the bread, we dip steamed asparagus tips along with broccoli and cauliflower florets. 

Holiday Farmers Market this Saturday

Leave a reply

Pop-up Market
Iron Ox Farm
Saturday, December 21
10am – 1pm

Cedar Rock Garden writes, Come find us at this wonderful indoor holiday market among many other friends, producers, growers and makers! We have harvested spinach, mixed greens, scallions, chard and kale out of the greenhouses along with cilantro, parsley, and dill. We also have delicious sweet orange carrots, pinto potatoes, elba potatoes, and watermelon radish. The greenhouses have not had a whole lot of sun the past month so growth has been slow but all the greens are kissed with the sweetness of cold nights and are small and delicious!

The following is a list of other vendors at the market: Iron Ox Farm, Pigeon Cove Ferments, Marshview Farm, Fat Moon Mushrooms, Mandarava, Lillooet Farm, Courser Meadows Farm, AL Rusticware, Sarah Wonson Jewelry, Em’s Wreaths, Perennial Ink, Nala Designs ,Nettlenook Farm, Circe’s Secret, Milkyway Apothecary, Crowsfell, Vine Street Cider Donuts, Hailey Small Prints, Robber’s Daughter, and With Flour in Her Hair

This event will be held in the cozy and warm greenhouse at Iron Ox Farm. Park in the lot and follow the road behind the farm stand to find us.

See you Saturday!

Winter Robins in the Neighborhood!

Leave a reply

We so look forward to the return each winter of flocks of American Robins and Cedar Waxwings. Currently on our shores we have a mixed flock traveling also with three beautiful Bluebirds and several juvenile Cedar Waxwings!

Juvenile Cedar Waxwing

The Robin photographed here reached on tiptoes to get at the crabapple tree fruit, brandished his wings while almost losing his balance, and then success 🙂 If you have planted your garden with any of the following, including hollies, winterberries, crabapples, Chokecherry, cedars or junipers, you will most definitely be graced with the beautiful winter Robins.

I wrote the following post 10 years ago and it is still very relevant to attracting Robins to your garden –

Birds of New England: The American Robin and Bird Food!

During the winter months Cape Ann often becomes home to large flocks of robins, and we have had the joy of hosting numerous numbers in our garden. I can’t help but notice their arrival. Their shadows descend, crisscrossing the window light, followed by a wild rumpus in the ‘Dragon Lady’ hollies. This pair of hollies is planted on opposing sides of the garden path, alongside my home office. I have learned to stealthily sneak up to a window, as any sudden activity inside startles birds that are investigating our garden, and they quickly disperse. Dining not only on berries of the ‘Dragon Ladies’, but also the ‘Blue Princess’ Meserve holly and winterberry bushes, I find dozens of noisy, hungry robins.

These winter nomads flock to trees and shrubs that hold their fruit through December, January, and February, feasting on red cedar, American holly, Meserve hollies, chokecherries, crabapples, and juniper. Robins traveling along the shores of Cape Ann also comb the shoreline for mollusks, and go belly-deep for fish fry. Depleting their food supply, they move onto the next location. Gardens rife with fruiting shrubs and trees make an ideal destination for our migrating friends.

Winterberry (Ilex verticillata)

Habitat Gardening Tip:

The garden designed to attract nesting pairs of summer resident robins, as well as flocks of winter travelers, would be comprised of trees and shrubs for nest building, plants that bear fruit and berries that are edible during the summer and fall, and plants that bear fruits that persist through the winter months. Suburban gardens and agricultural areas provide the ideal habitat, with open fields and lawns for foraging insects as well as trees and hedgerows in which to build their nests.

The following plants, suggested with robins in mind, will also attract legions of songbirds and Lepidoptera. The list is comprised primarily of indigenous species with a few non-native, but not invasive, plants included.

Trees for nesting ~ American Holly (Ilex opaca), Eastern Red Cedar (Juniperus virginiana), Red Maple (Acer rubrum), Sugar Maple (Acer saccharum), Flowering Dogwood (Cornus florida).

Summer and autumn fruit bearing trees, shrubs and vines for robins ~ Black Cherry (Prunus serotina), Blackberry (Rubus spp.), Flowering Dogwood (Cornus florida), Gray Dogwood (C. racemosa), Red-osier Dogwood (C. sericea), Silky Dogwood (C. amomum), Elderberry (Sambucus canadensis), Apple (Malus pumila), Virginia Rose (Rosa virginiana), Highbush Blueberry (Vaccinium corymbosum), Lowbush Blueberry (Vaccinium angustifolium), Wild Grape (Vitis spp.).

Trees and shrubs with fruits persisting through winter ~ Winterberry (Ilex verticillata), Mountain Ash (Sorbus americana), Crabapple (Malus spp.), Sargent’s Crabapple (Malus sargentii), American Holly (Ilex opaca), Meserve Hollies (Ilex x meserveae), Eastern Red Cedar (Juniperus virginiana), Common Juniper (Juniperus communis), Chokecherry (Prunus virginiana), Smooth Sumac (Rhus glabra), Staghorn Sumac (Rhus typhina).

Thanksgiving Produce Ordering at Cedar Rock Gardens by Sunday at 7pm

1 Reply

Produce Ordering!

Our website is open for ordering farm fresh produce. Orders must be in by Sunday @ 7 PM.

We’ll be assembling everyone’s order during the day Monday, then opening pick-ups on Tuesday 11/26, between 10 aM and 6 PM

Order Here

Now is the time to take advantage of bulk produce pricing to stock up for the holiday or for some general enjoyment.

We will be adding more produce and variety as it becomes available each week.

This week we have bulk item available in our online store at discounted prices such as squash, potatoes and carrots. Take advantage now for a fulfilling fall of delicious cooking.

We also have some scrumptious offerings from our friends Stacey and Alex at Iron Ox Farm, Sophie and Noah at Alprilla Farm, Luke and Catarina at Brookford Farm, Emma at Milkyway Apothecary and Matt at Underground Mushroom Company. – find them on our website and pick everything up at Cedar Rock on Tuesday.

Below is a flyer for a pop up market that Iron Ox Farm is hosting this Saturday. We will be attending among many other terrific vendors. 10 AM to 1 PM This Saturday. It will be a whole lot of fun!

After this pick up we will be taking a few weeks off online ordering to let the produce grow back. The greenhouses are filled with produce growing away so look forward to more deep winter greens, carrots and other goodies in December through March. Wishing you all a very happy fall and holiday season!

All the best from your farmers,
Elise, Tucker and the Cedar Rock crew.

The Produce page is open. We are accepting orders until 7PM on Sunday. Orders must be picked up on Tuesday 11/20 between 10AM and 6PM.

We are open for produce orders to be placed online and picked up curbside (Farm side). https://cedarrockgardens.com/fresh-produce

Come to the farm, drive past the first parking lot on the left up over the little hill and take a quick right toward the barns. Pull right up to the red barn to pick up your produce. The road winds left around the big brown barn so you can access the produce pick up “Drive thru” Style!

We will be opening our website for produce orders throughout the season and will alert you to such in these emails. We look forward to seeing you soon!

Visit Cedar Rock Gardens

Our Beautifully Industrious Yellow-bellied Sapsucker Has Returned!

Leave a reply

Last spring I wrote about a female Yellow-bellied Sapsucker that stayed in our garden for over a month. We were fascinated watching her daily activities; so much so  that I was inspired to write a poem and Charlotte nicknamed her Miss Featherton. We are excited beyond measure to see the return of our beautiful YBSS. Just as she did in the spring, Miss Featherton perches in the Dragon Lady Holly throughout the day.  She cautiously guards, and continues to maintain, the sap wells that she so pertinaciously dug. The sap is not flowing as vigorously as during the spring months but there is enough for her to take in a bunch of licks and the wells continue to attract insects. This morning I filmed her snatching a Yellowjacket that had stopped by to investigate the sweet sap.

We read that YBSS drill holes in unhealthy trees and were concerned our tree may beginning to decline. No need to worry though as you can see in the film clip, the holly is absolutely loaded with plump cadmium red berries.

My Yellow-bellied Sapsucker poem –

Sap-licker

Startled songbird silently flings
from approaching steps.

Behavior not usually seen by the insouciant
feathered friends that call our garden home.

Why so timorous?

Neatly arranged squares and holes
riddle the bark of the Dragon Lady Holly.

The masterfully drilled, cambium pierced checkered grid is glistening
in the sun – with deep wells and narrow streamlets of sweetness.

A sap-lick!

I wait to see her, half hidden and as
quiet as the owl after a long night

Weary and bedraggled, the Sapsucker returns
An arduous migration, no doubt.

She pauses guardedly
No one must know of her creation
with its treasured life fluid seeping down branches.

Her soft yellow belly and stippled feather patterning
Mirrors the spotty bark.

Her camouflage is not blown. She dives in with tender gusto
Delicately excavating the holes with brush tongue.

Wind rustles through leaves and she flings off
Only to return again and again and again
To her life-giving channels of gold flowing through tree veins.

YBSS are the only woodpeckers that are completely migratory. They breed further north and west of eastern Massachusetts and spend the winter months in warmer climates; some females traveling as far south as Panama. I wonder if we will see the return of the male this fall as well. It was just a year ago in December that we had our first ever Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, a male, and he was eating the fruits of the Pokeberry bush. It was also the first year with a Pokeberry. The plant is rather ungainly and I had some trepidation about allowing it to take hold but if a bit of awkwardness is the price to pay for a garden inviting Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers and Ruby-throated Hummingbirds, I’ll take it!

Male Yellow-bellied Sapsucker and Pokeberry – note the male has a red chin as well as a red cap.

Timeline of Yellow-bellied Sapsucker and Pokeberry –

Summer 2023 – Newly seeded Pokeberry bush grows six feet first summer (most likely the seed was deposited by a bird).

December 2023 – First ever male YBSS. Stays for several days eating Pokeberries.

March – May 2024 –  Female YBSS created striking grid pattern of sap wells on both the Holly and Magnolia trees, concentrating her efforts much more on the Holly. She spends many weeks drinking the sap, digging more wells, and eating insects attracted to the sap flows. Ruby-throated Hummingbirds discover the sap wells.

Summer 2024 – Ruby-throated Hummingbirds daily drink nectar from the small pinkish whiteish flowers of the Pokeweed.

October 2024 – Female Yellow-bellied Sapsucker returns, with daily visits into November. How long will she stay?

Grow native and they will come!

Beautiful Autumn

Leave a reply

Autumn scenes from around Cape Ann

 

 

Cedar Rock Gardens Produce Opening for Wednesday Pick Up!

Leave a reply

Produce Ordering!

Our website is open for ordering farm fresh produce. Orders must be in by Tuesday at noon.

Please pick up your produce on Wednesday between 2PM and 6:30PM in the big red barn at Cedar Rock Gardens. Order Here

We will be adding more produce and variety as it becomes available each week. This week offers lots of greens and roots including some pretty spectacular looking spinach from the greenhouse. Check out our website for a full list of whats available now!

For all those ALPRILLA FARM enthusiasts, we have some pretty special offerings from Noah and Sophie in the store this week. As most of you know Noah and Sophie moved their farm business up to New Hampshire and after a bit of time learning about the new land, planning operations and creating soil health they have grown some gorgeous crops!

We will be offering a bulk price discount on all produce for the week of Thanksgiving – that pick up will be on a Monday – stay tuned for that email.

Welcome to the Garden of Dissipating Beauty

Leave a reply

The seeds of both Zinnias and Sunflowers are Goldfinch favorites. No dead-heading in this garden!

Katy-did-did-did

Leave a reply

Love moments in the garden with Charlotte and her eagle eyes! The fabulously camouflaged  Fork-tailed Bush Katydid seen here was poised on a Common Milkweed leaf. Katydids mostly eat foliage, but they also eat dead bugs and insect eggs (was he planing on eating the freshly deposited Monarch eggs?).One quick, easy way to distinguish katydids from grasshoppers when out in a field is by looking at their antennae. A katydid’s antenna is super long and seemingly very delicate, sometimes as long, and possibly longer, than its body. Grasshoppers antennae are shorter and thicker.

Differentail Grasshopper

Fork-tailed Bush Katydid

WOWZA! Doing a Victory Dance for Mama Pipevine!

Leave a reply

The stunning Pipevine Swallowtail that you see in the video is depositing a clutch of several dozen eggs. Her gift represents a success for me of sorts. Years ago, we had a Pipevine Swallowtail in our garden, a male, and he was investigating the heart shaped leaves of our Moonvine. I made a promise to the Pipevine Butterflies that the next time they made it this far north, I would have a Pipevine growing in the garden on which a traveling female could deposit her eggs. I can’t resist but to add – not a “pipe dream after all!”

You see, Dutchman’s Pipevine is one of the few caterpillar food plants of the Pipevine Swallowtail that grows well in northern climates. Like the Moonvine, the leaves of the Dutchman’s Pipevine are large and heart-shaped.

A hundred years or so ago, Pipevine Swallowtails regularly occurred in New England because people planted Dutchman’s Pipevine to embower their porches. In one season, the vine can grow two stories high and equally as wide, providing lush green cooling shade on a hot summer afternoon. When you look at old photographs of porches in New England, most often it’s Pipevine climbing up the porch pillars and along the roof. With the advent of air conditioning, folks no longer needed to plant Dutchman’s Pipevine to cool their homes The vine, and the butterflies, were forgotten.

Julia Lane, later Julia Wheeler, posed for Alice M. Curtis on August 12th, 1915, in Gloucester. Photo courtesy Fred Bodin.

Our visiting Mama Pipevine cautiously investigated the entire plant from top to bottom, fluttering in and out of the large leaves before deciding on this tiny tender leaf to deposit her treasure trove. We had a female come to our garden about ten years after the vine was planted. She deposited a clutch of eggs however, a tiny spider ate them all, every single one. I am not taking any chances this time and placed  the stem with the eggs in a terrarium, covering the terrarium with several layers of cheesecloth, and a wire screen, in hopes of keeping the spiders out.

If you would like to attract the exquisite Pipevine Swallowtail to your garden, plant Dutchman’s Pipevine. It’s an enthusiastic grower, but no need to worry, you can cut it all down to the bare ground after the first frost and it will come back just as beautifully and plush the following spring.

From an older post – Plant! and They Will Come

Nearly five years ago, in late September 2007, I photographed a male Pipevine Swallowtail Butterfly (Battus philenor) nectaring in my garden. I found mesmerizing its dark beauty, with black wings punctuated by brilliant orange spots and shimmering iridescence. The wings flashed electric blue in the fading late day sunlight and I became completely captivated!

Although the Pipevine Swallowtail is not rare in its southern range, this exotic looking butterfly is an unusual occurrence in the northeast, and even more rarely found on the eastern outer reaches of Cape Ann. Mine was a stray, carried in on a southerly breeze. I imagined that if a male can drift into our garden, so can a female. And if a visiting female found in my garden her caterpillar food plant, she would deposit her eggs. The following spring we planted the Dutchman’s Pipevine (Aristolochia macrophylla) Read more here

A ZABULOUS ZABULON ENGAGEMENT!

Leave a reply

These tiny pretty skippers in our garden were in an amorous way. After much wing shimmering and nudging, the pair flew off together where they were not seen again until later in the day.

I believe they are Zabulon Skippers. I just love saying that name, Zabulon. Doesn’t it sound enchanting? When the wings of the Zabulon Skipper are fully spread, they only measure a mere one to one and a half inches!

Skippers are butterflies in the family Hesperidae and are named for their super quick darting flight habit; when these two were spotted seeming in repose, I turned my zooming camera’s eye to see what would happen next. While vibrating their wings in turns, the male moved in closer and then repeatedly placed his head between her hind wings.

 

Skippers differ in a number of ways from other families of butterflies. Several ways to tell the difference when out in the field are that skippers have antennae with clubs at the tip that hook backwards, similar to a crochet hook. All other butterflies have knob-like tips to their antennae. Skippers also have stockier, more robust bodies

According to the Massachusetts Butterfly website, Zabulon Skipper caterpillar food plants “include Tridens flava (purpletop) and Eragrostis spp. (lovegrass). They deposit their eggs on a wide variety of grasses in the wild, and its full range of host plants has not been fully investigated, especially in Massachusetts.” The adults nectar from a number of flowering plants; the day they were courting in our garden, the male was drinking nectar from the bell-shaped blue blossoms of our Clematis ‘Betty Corning’ and they were zipping around the Zinnia patch.

Zabulon Skipper – male