Farm Update: May 2024
Wow! Where did May go?! Where did Spring go for that matter?! I can’t believe this month is coming to a close next week. Kids start their summer break and the whirlwind of flower bounty begins soon! It has been a while since I did a post focused on the farm and it has definitely been bustling with activity and a mile long to do list. Enjoy the photos and I look forward to getting some flowers into your hands soon!
Sunflowers Sprouting!
This season, I’m putting in 4 twenty foot raised beds dedicated to sunflower production! They're just beginning to sprout, and we're looking forward to a bountiful bloom. They will be popping up around town mid-July and through the Fall.
From perfect to struggling…
The majority of my peonies look perfect and looking better and better each day, however, there is definitely some disease in the field. With all the rainy weather we’ve had, fungal diseases are having a field day (pun intended)! 🤣 I have had the opportunity to work with the horticulturalist at the Goochland Extension Office and the Plant Pathology Lab at Virginia Tech to put these babies under the microscope. We saw spores of what we think is botrytis and an unknown spore. I also have some yellowing on two plants which may be an indicator of Tabacco Rattle Virus. This virus is not curable and will require removal and destruction of the plant. I’ll update you all when the results come back from Virginia Tech.
Weed Prevention is the a key to success!
In the last week, the weeds are going crazy! That hint of warm weather has the seed bank waking up and ready to rock. I made the conscious decision to not use landscape fabric in the peony field due to the over use of plastics already in the industry as well as the fabric’s impact on soil fertility, but with that decision comes some consequences. WEEDS, WEEDS, AND MORE WEEDS! The job is fairly easy if you catch them in their seedling stage. I’ll hoe the field twice a week in the summer. This work will be reduce in time as native ground covers fill in the field and the peony plants grow larger to shade out the weeds. In another section of the farm, I’ve been slowly installing and 80 foot pollinator living fence. The grass and weeds have been butting up to the creeping phlox making it difficult to weed-eat the area. I discovered an amazing product called 2XEDGE that allows me to transform any 2x pressure treated lumber into edging. I am thrilled with the results and will be sharing installation videos next week. Best part! The inventor is a woman! Who runs the world? Girls! 🎶💪
Remember those Fall planted seeds?!
Back in the fall, I sowed a bunch of filler flower seeds. Most of them washed a way a night or two later during bad thunderstorms, but several plants survived. Pictured here are some lovely filler flowers that I will be growing again next season. Rabbits or deer have nibbled at the bachelor’s buttons, but the other two are looking unscathed. Hopefully next year, I can get them established a bit sooner so they will potentially bloom with the peonies. 🤞
Monarch ALERT!
I was SO excited this week when I spotted my first Monarch butterfly of the season! They are here and I’m ready for them. We have two different types of milkweed on the property and we are ready to welcome any butterfly who comes our way! Also pictured here is my “gutter garden” featuring Joe Pye weed (the big tall plant) and two different types of chelone at the base. Our hummingbird feeder is close by for supplemental nectar until these favorites bloom. I also spied a few blooms on the Rudbeckia. And the yarrow is stunning in my red garden along with Coreopsis coming along nicely in its bud forming stage.
Thank you for following along with our farm journey. We appreciate your support and look forward to sharing more updates soon. Happy gardening!
Keep Blooming,
Nicole Dillon
Breemar Flower Farm | Ashland, VA
