Two Sisters

Greenest College in the Nation

2011-07-08T08:27:00.000-07:00

Green Mountain College was named the greenest college in the nation by Sierra Magazine this year. The President of Green Mountain College, Paul, and his wife Marsha, are wonderful models and supporters of using and promoting sustainability in every aspect of their lives as well as the incorporating that into the college through education and leadership.

When I arrived on campus in April for an alumni event, Paul approached me and asked if I could design an educational and functional landscape for the entertaining area at the President's House on Main Street in Poultney. I drew up a design and with a little creative licence we came up with a formal, functional, and beautiful native landscape incorporating a lot of edibles as well. Our finished product is below.

We would like to encourage everyone looking into higher education to visit Green Mountain College as a national leader in sustainability. We were honored to design and install this design at the President's home, here in Poultney, and would love to incorporate more designs like this with clients that are looking for a more sustainable way to landscape.

Thank you to the Nurseries that supplied the plants for this project:

The Green Reaper in South Ryegate, Vermont
Fiddlehead Creek Nursery, Hartford, NY
E.C. Brown's Nursery, East Thetford, VT
Elmore Roots Fruit Nursery, Elmore, VT

We used all organic fertilizers and soil amendments in our native edible designs from:
North Country Organics in Bradford, VT

An excellent movie to watch for more information about edible landscaping and permaculture is Rebecca Hosking's Farm for the Future.

Thanks for visiting our blog!

2011-07-07T18:37:00.000-07:00

So here you can see our creativity in full bloom. Here is our process. We sort of tore things apart here before making them beautiful again. Things are coming along quite well and you can look forward to finished pictures tomorrow!

This ginger is so beautiful!

I found a newly hatched cicada and showed it to Hana who put it on the serviceberry with the mamaspider.

Than Hana gave it back to me!

Pictures of soaker hoses...

At the President's House

2011-07-06T18:55:00.001-07:00

We are here in Poultney, Vermont at the President's house at Green Mountain College installing a design we created several months ago. All of the plants in this design are edible and/or native except for one. It has brought a piece of Vermont and New Hampshire woodlands to their outdoor entertainment area and added an edible component as well! We have incorporated several layers of plants with a Serviceberry being the tallest 'canopy' layer and currant bushes as the shrub layer and then an herbaceous layer worked in with trillium, ginger, and anemones. I will post pictures of this installation for all to view. I enjoy working with the specific plants that we purchased for this plan because it shows we can create a formal landscape using natives and edibles while still having it be functional. Tune in soon for finished pictures.

Franconia, Sugar Hill, Landaff, and Lisbon this Spring & Summer

2011-07-02T06:43:00.000-07:00

We have been having a full spring and summer season! Fran, Hana, Hattie, Gabe, Cynthia, and Erika have all been working this spring (some part and some full time) to accomplish maintenance, design, and installations this spring and summer!

We have recently been working with Green Mountain College's wonderful President and his wife, Marsha, to design an edible natives garden for the President's House in Poultney, Vermont. We are planning to install this right after the 4th of July! We will have pictures posted upon completion! In the mean time, please enjoy the following pictures of some of our designs and maintenance this summer.

Landaff

Sugar Hill

Lisbon
Blueberry bushes:

Thanks for visiting our blog!

2011-06-25T09:20:00.000-07:00

Here are some projects that we have been working on for the past few weeks. These tulips are a beautiful project we started last fall. Then the patio below has been an ongoing project this spring.

Franconia this week

2011-04-29T13:53:00.001-07:00

More mulching with Fran on Saturday

Here are the beds that Cynthia and I maintained today. We were weeding and cutting back perennials and annuals from last year and then we mulched everything. The new mulch looks fantastic and will keep weeds down considerably!

Organic Vegetable Seedlings and Seeds Available

2011-04-12T07:01:00.000-07:00

Hello All -

We will have some organic vegetable seedlings available this spring. I will keep you posted on what's germinating and how many we have. I will also have lots of varieties of vegetables for direct seeding if you would like us to direct seed anything from Alpine Strawberries to lettuce mixes. Most of our seeds are organic, to ensure a plant that has the best resources to work organic practices in the garden and will get the human the most nutrients from their food!

March 25: So far the Arugula has germinated. We also have Arugula seeds for direct seeding at your home.
March 29: Brassicas (Cauliflower, Broccoli, Brussels Sprouts), watercress, basil, thyme, and Basil are up!
April 12: Tomatoes!!

We'll keep you posted!

See below for the seeds and seedlings we will have available this year. Where you see "DS" that means it should be directly seeded into your garden. Where you see "TP" we will most likely have transplants of that variety.

Common Name	Variety	Days Germ	TP/DS

Alpine Starwberries	Mignonette	21-28 days	TP
Arugula	Runaway	5-7 days	DS
Basil	Sweet	6-12 days	TP
Bean, Scarlet Runner	Magic Beanstalk	5-10 days	DS
Brussels Sprout	Long Island Improved	5-10 days	TP
Carrot	Scarlet Nantes	14-21 days	DS
Cauliflower	Chef's Choice Blend	8-10 days	TP
Chamomile	German	14-21 days	TP
Chard, Rainbow	Neon Glow	7-10 days	DS
Cucumber	Early Russian - Heirloom	4-12 days	DS
Cucumber	Chelsea Prize	5-10 days	DS
Husk Cherry	Golden Berry	21 days	TP
Leek	Falltime	7-14 days	TP
Lettuce, Summer Bouquet	Eurpoean Reds & Greens	5-14 days	DS
Mesclun Mix	High Mowing	5-10 days	DS
Morning Glory	Dawn Star - Heirloom	7-10 days	DS
Morning Glory	Scarlett O'Hara	7-21 days	DS
Morning Glory	Heavenly Blue	7-21 days	DS
Onion	Evergreen Hardy Bunching	14 days	TP
Oregano		7-14 days	TP
Sage, Common	Salvia Officionalis	7-14 days	DS
Sunflower	Teddy Bear	5-10 days	DS
Thyme	Summer	14-21 days	TP/DS
Tomatoe, Cherry	Sungold	7-14 days	TP
Tomatoe, Cherry	Sungold	7-14 days	TP
Viola	Helen Mount	7-14 days	DS
Watercress		5-15 days	DS

Prunging Blueberries in Sugar Hill

2011-04-11T17:33:00.000-07:00

I was pruning blueberries today. Its important to prune bushes while they are still dormant before they start budding out. I was pruning close to the end of the optimal time today. As you can see the bushes hadn't been trimmed in a few years.

Its important for the bushes that they have air flow through the leaves and fruit to prevent pathogens from colonizing in the patch. They also should have dead branches cut out as well as branches that are rubbing on one another. You should also cut out oldest branches first, getting new branches to grow. These bushes will allocate all of their energy to fewer branches and therefore grow higher quantities of fruit and more nutrient-dense, high quality fruit.
Happy bushes all around!!

Potting

2011-03-28T07:57:00.000-07:00

We use The Green Reaper as our primary wholesaler for plants throughout the year. They grow organic perennials and shrubs. I was helping The Green Reapers pot mailed plants today. What fun! Some new varieties that Chris and Boots are offering this year: Blackberry Lily (Bellamcamda), Dragon's Eye Daylily (Hemerocallis), Burning Hearts Woodland Bleeding Heart (Dicentra). The Burning Hearts is stunning and has a longer bloom period than most woodland Dicentra. There are also some new Brunnera, Gailardia, and Clematis vine.

Let's start those garden plans!!

Spring Pruning

2011-03-24T10:09:00.000-07:00

Some trees and bushes are best pruned when they are dormant - so from February to April. Here are a few pictures of some backyard apple trees that have not been pruned in several years. Apple trees should really be pruned every or every other year to maintain good fruit production and to keep the tree healthy. If there are too many branches then the tree wastes nutrients being sent to branches it doesn't need. By keeping it pruned up nice every year, the tree wastes no nutrients and just gets them to blossoms and apples that we (the human) want from it.

In this picture you notice the upright suckers that grow each year. These suckers are about 4-6 years old (you can tell by counting the rings).

Here is the same grove with the suckers cut off. This tree had to be cut back dramatically because there were some dead branches, some branches that touched one another, and some with fungus growing on them. The tree should have evenly spaced branches that expand horizontally for good air flow over fruit to prevent fungal and bacterial infections, and ease of harvest.

There you have it, apple pruning in a nutshell. Its also the time of year to prune blueberries. If you need us to come out and prune for you, email us and we'll be in contact with you.

Thanks for reading our blog!

Happy New Year!

2011-01-03T10:03:00.000-08:00

Remember to visit us on Facebook! I have posted an album there of the progress landscaping at our new home this year. You can view it here. We hope you enjoy!

Last day of landscaping for the season?

2010-11-24T14:30:00.000-08:00

It may have been my last day of landscaping work for the year - and there was snow on the ground!! Today I was installing edging and rubber mulch strips under this wonderful fence for protection against back splash from precipitation along the garden. What do you think?
This edging was wonderful to work with because it came in sections that you pounded into the last piece instead of a big roll that curls and is difficult to keep where you want it.

The rubber mulch strips are 100% (they look like tires!) and match the black compost/mulch that we used almost perfectly! This area will only be seen for a few short weeks while the plants are not filling it in.

Good luck with all your home projects for the winter! Remember that starting in February I will be hiring out to do interior painting and home cleaning. I'm great to have around to move heavy objects and help organize attics, basements, etc.

I will be doing the interior framing on my own house with my father and boyfriend for December - I'm looking forward to finally working on our house! Look forward to invites to view display gardens with edibles and lots of blooms all season in a year or so! I will be doing lots of plantings in the 2011 season!! Have a wonderful holiday season!

Autumn is here and winter is coming!

2010-11-06T16:44:00.000-07:00

Here are a few new creations from this autumn with Two Sisters! Below are pictures of new plantings along a fence and a stone walkway. Fall plantings need a few weeks to establish their roots and will be full and blooming the entire following season.
We will use gardens incorporated into this walkway to soften the corners along the way. These will be raised perennial beds.

Here is a bed that I made for a client who wanted to save some plants I was replacing. He liked the roses, so I made this bed and transplanted them with some existing siberian iris before I replaced them with different perennials closer to the house.
Here, Hana and I dug some new foundation beds and are in the process of removing mulch, planting, and putting mulch back on. The owner of this house wanted color around the house and a new walkway/entrance way.
These foundation plantings will add color and interest around the living areas all year round.
Here is a garden visible from the kitchen window. We added some foliage color and some blooms for year-round interest.

Here are plantings without the walkway - it will be very full next year - get ready for pictures!
Here is the finished rose bed with mulch on it.

More foundation plantings with beautiful fall asters! The 'Alma Potchke' is hot pink!

It is dark - but here is the final walkway and garden after a long day of work!
Thanks for visiting our blog! I am now scheduling house cleaning and interior painting for the winter months. Please email or call me to set up an appointment or to ask for an estimate! You can find my phone number on our newsletters and brochures to correspond by phone.

More Driving at Haverhill Commons Event

2010-10-01T07:21:00.000-07:00

Driving! Bella & Hana's first ride

2010-08-25T10:58:00.000-07:00

We finally got the cart together for Bella to pull around the driveway to their summer home. Hana prepares her for the harness by giving her a full body-brushing.
Bella loves getting scratched - she sticks her tongue out and flips her head around and shakes it like a dog shakes his leg!

Bell feels very pretty, all brushed out!

Bella is not a normal llama - she's extremely friendly, even a little cuddly, and she'll eat almost anything! Here, Hana is giving her some pizza!
Okay, time for the harness!

Reigns...

Traces....

These clip onto the cart to hold it back when Bella walks downhill.

Here are the traces, they clip onto Bella's cart and allow her to pull it along behind her.
And the reigns - steering!

And we introduce Bella to the cart

Bell picks up on training so quickly! She already knows how to pull Hana on skis and will move with words "gee" and "haw" and pressure on the reigns. Now, Hana walks her down the hill and...

She rides back up!! Bella responds wonderfully to Hana's requests!

Yahoo!

Well, that was fun :)

This week in Franconia

2010-08-24T14:54:00.000-07:00

Hana and I had a great time designing this garden with some clients in Franconia! The main goal was to divide and transplant Siberian Iris, which as many of you may know can be a difficult task. The soil here is extremely rocky so the clients prepared the bed for us and got Lancaster Floral Design & Garden Center Inc. to deliver several yards of their wonderful loam/compost mix to start us off on the right foot!

First off, we found this great stone centerpiece which fit the sundial perfectly on the first try! This centerpiece is both ornamental, and it brings to attention our natural surroundings, specifically in this case, the sun. What a wonderful toy to have in the center of the new garden! We used Hostas and Irises along rocks and trees around the driveway and this new circular garden.

The view from the driveway is wonderful as well - it makes a nice transition from the garden, to the crab apple, to the house. It softens the view of the front of the house and invites guests up to the house. The Hostas and Irises around the rock are also a preview of what they will see at the top of the driveway and will let guests know that above there are wonderful gardens to behold!

In Franconia, this week

2010-08-05T14:47:00.000-07:00

Hana & Erika will maintain and design any way that fits your home! From fun to formal - we can do it all. Here is an example of a beautiful home in Franconia that has a formal design.

Landscaping can make a huge difference in how you, your family, and company feel at your home and can accent buildings in ways that other means of design cannot. Seen below are a variety of perennials and bushes combined with stonework that accent this lovely house. The perennials were chosen for bloom times throughout the year. Right now the Hostas are blooming!

This creeping Sedum looks almost better when its done blooming with its interesting blood-red stems left over from the spring's flowers.

This bed was losing soil over the edge of the rocks every time it rained. This clever client decided to plant strawberries - which spread and hold onto the soil - and they also bear pretty white flowers and, of course berries! Hens and chicks are thrown into the edges by the rocks (where they like to grow) to hang onto the soil over there and it all works!
This garden is also close to the house so there are oregano and chives in this garden as well. The chives have been cut back and will grow in with new, tender shoots that will be excellent for cooking with.
This creeping juniper almost flows over the earth. It grows well in areas where it can droop and spread. It will hold onto the soil nicely while it pleases the eye!
These rosebushes were contained today - they were wild when we got here!
Of course, there is a lovely entrance way. Hydrangea bush on one side and an ornamental crab apple on the other. Some more creeping juniper, giant Hostas, and there are also Lonicera vines growing up the railings to the front door.
And lets not forget, our faithful garden companion, Beau! He happily entertained us throughout the day.
Thanks for visiting out blog!

Littleton this week

2010-07-30T15:39:00.000-07:00

Love the transitions!!

In Littleton - Arthropod Adventures Part II

2010-07-23T15:14:00.000-07:00

The pollinators were out today! The Echinacea was alive with the movement of butterflies, bees, and other pollinators (and see our special guest at the end!).

This is a lovely garden with stonework and multiple tiers around a garage. Hosta, Hermerocallis, Salvia, Liatrus, Phlox, Rudbekia, Digitalis, Dicentra, Echinacea - you name it - its in this garden! Its teeming with life!

I wanted clients to see this, especially. All the plants in this garden are annuals! Cleome, Cosmos, and others! You can do amazing things with annuals and here is a great example!

Here is our new visitor for the day! This beautiful lady was sunning herself next to her Hosta Home, when we disturbed her. She came out to see us and watch us for the morning and then excused herself for the afternoon to watch us from hiding.

Here she is, visiting with Hana. For a garter snake (Thamnophis sirtalis), she was very calm and interested to see who we were. She had a beautiful bold-colored underbelly and was a full 28 inches long!

What fun we sisters all have in the garden together!!

In Franconia last week (Arthropod Adventures Part I)

2010-07-20T14:33:00.000-07:00

Its wonderful to see which flowers attract different beneficial insects. The Liatrus (seen below) and the Echinacea (seen later) attract many different bees and butterflies as far as pollinators go. The neat thing about this Liatrus is that is attracted a type of crab spider that is looking to bag itself a fat fly that's landing on the Liatrus. We watched it throughout the day and this patient spider stayed on the same flower (how did he know what part of the plant to sit on?) all day and by the end of the day he had caught his fly. We visited him throughout the day and you can see him stalking a butterfly and then the final picture is him with the pollinating fly. Without further delay: the adventures of the crab spider.

Here he sits.
Here, he stalks his prey.
He rounds the corner - ever so slowly.
The prey doesn't see the spider and slides back toward him again...
...and then leaves.
By the end of the day he gets his fly : )
(Bumble bee comes to the Liatrus).
Here are the beautiful butterflies on the Echinacea! Observing wonders like these while you're gardening is so much fun!

How close can I get without scaring her away?
This home had a variety of lovely areas managed around the house and driveway. This area was what I would call a sort of "Woodland Garden" where the designer incorporated Ligularia, Astilbe, Rhododendron, and a Hemerocallis (on the edge) throughout a wooded area next to the drive. The effect was lovely with different arrangements of managed shrubs and perennials. It had a "natural" look without being to formal, but was pleasing to the senses.
Here we had various assortments of shrubs and (on the other side) perennials to give a nice transition from the ground to the deck and then to the house. There were small Spirea in this area as well as some Syringa, Euonymus, Rhododendron, and Mugo Pine. We edged and mulched this area with a lovely aged mulch, which makes it turn and stay black. It will also have more readily available nutrients that are partially broken down for the shrubs that need nutrients.

Here's a lovely little "rock garden." Its surrounded by rocks and has some great Stachys, Thymus, Hemerocallis, Phlox, Iris, and creeping Sedum giving it a great rock garden theme. The lilies were in bloom and it looked spectacular! This is also where the Liatrus, Echinacea, and crab spider lived.

Here is a lovely shrub screen with a larger variety of Spirea, some Syringa and a lovely double-blooming Hydrangea that bloomed in the spring and late summer. We edged and mulched this area again, spreading some moo-doo tree and shrub on the lilacs that looked a little malnourished. Everyone got a little fertilizer (since they were growing in fill - practically pure sand!) and they were quite content.

This black mulch makes a nice contrast!
These little peonies were in pretty rough shape when we got to them. Its difficult for a mower to go around a garden that has no edge and not hurt the plants within - so we gave it a needed definition between garden and lawn, gave them some lovely compost and fertilizer and again, that lovely black mulch! They perked right up and should be blooming next year!
Here was another garden where stones was incorporated. Its very well balanced and looks fantastic! Here we finally had some Hostas, little Aruncus (Goats Beard), Astilbe, and lots of Alchemilla (Lady's Mantle)! What a lovely delicate yellow flower they have!

Here is an ornamental fence featuring Weigela at each corner with Lonicera vine accompanying the two end bushes and peonies filling in the middle for some lovely foliage this time of year. After edging, mulch, and some more organic fertilizer, we were good to go!
I hope you enjoyed this entry and the Arthropod Adventures! Tune in for more soon!

Two Weeks in a glance!

2010-07-09T14:21:00.000-07:00

We've been getting a lot done over the past few weeks - but now we're almost out of work! Hana and I have been working weekends since mid June and I have been working 6 days a week since March - so we've got all our clientele caught up with yard maintenance. We need more clients! Please pass our name along if you know anyone who needs a couple of strong, able bodies and minds maintaining their property! Here are a few examples of what we've been doing - Enjoy!

Franconia -
Here we were maintaining (weeding, dead heading, cutting back) and transplanting for two days to prepare this property for the WREN Garden Tour for Sunday, the 18th.
Here is a lovely rock garden with a variety of interesting conifers and succulents - check out the flowers!

Aren't these Sempervivum flowers spectacular?
sTransplanted Lonicera vines...these will be stunning!
This home uses high bush and low bush blueberries for a lot of landscaping and they look fantastic and yield fruit as well! These bushes have nice foliage, white bell flowers, blue berries, and many have an autumn red foliage. More people should make good use of these bushes!
This client has landscaped a large scrabble board on their property and calls the garden behind it the "Scrabble Board Garden." It has a lovely view of Cannon Mountain in the background! There's some fun trails that go down into the marsh that I also maintained today as well.
Close up of the Scrabble Board Garden. The Mondarda is wonderful!
I always encourage clients to plant gardens around trees and shrubs on their property. It softens the transition from lawn to trunk/stem and it will give some fun color as well! This will burst with color in about two to three weeks with Liatrus and Coreopsis.
Here is a mini-hosta garden leading up to the house - very cute!
They're so tiny!
This is a project in Sugar Hill. This first garden was existing - the others were installed by Two Sisters Garden & Landscaping this spring! They are doing very well and will be wonderfully filled out in a year or two!

First garden - Campanula and Veronica are blooming with Thalictrum and Hemerocallis budding up.
This Sempervivum is really having fun!
Second garden - the Cimicifuga, racemosa is blooming and the Atilbes are right behind!

The Echinaceas are coming out - bright reds and pinks.
Here is another mini-hosta! Its called 'Mighty Mouse.'

The Cephalaria is inspiring....
Here is a lovely cottage garden in Bethlehem that we started maintaining a year ago. The colors really come out in a few weeks with Echinaceas and Acontium and a reblooming of Centauria.

A climbing rose on one side and a clematis on the other.

Peonies have lovely foliage when they are not blooming.

Cute ornamental apple!
Here is a home in Landaff where we cut out sod around shrubs and mulched to give a better transition from lawn to trunk/stem.
There is also a circular Narcissus bed in this picture.
Here are some of their gardens - the Alchemilla against the Veronica is stunning!

Here is a new garden we put in at a home in Lyman (on left). We wanted to edge a path down to the pond with different colored and varied bloom times with Hemerocallis. There is also a tall, orange Coreopsis in the middle next to a neat mill-stone.
Existing gardens we maintain -

'Fairy Princess' Peony - a short rock garden peony that's bright red!
Cool orange Coreopsis

Thanks for visiting our blog! Have a great summer and have us over to help beautify your landscapes! We design and install and will maintain what you have!

Bethlehem, this week

2010-06-21T03:41:00.001-07:00

This home has wonderful designs throughout the landscape. The theme for this home is slightly formal. It goes to show that one can accomplish almost anything with the correct landscape. I took some before and during pictures to show you how Hana and I work and then the finished pictures are at the end. Enjoy!

Halfway done...

Edged stairs
Pruned shrub
Beautiful!

Littleton, this week

2010-06-19T15:03:00.000-07:00

Here is another garden we revitalized this week. I will not include before pictures because you couldn't really tell there was a garden there - but it looks much better now!

Can you see the frog? We had a little frog hang out on the rocks around the pond with us and whenever we smacked a deer fly we fed it to him! He got a good three or four flies while we were working in the garden!

Mulch always makes a garden look finished! In this case we put down very thick mulch to keep those weeds at bay!

New Garden!

2010-06-18T14:07:00.001-07:00

We made a new friend this week! She is an animal lover, like Hana and I and has an in-house dog-sitting business and cares for other animals as well! If you need animal sitting services and live in the Littleton area we can further direct you!

She also had me come over to look at her...garden? And wanted to know what should be done.

Well, we decided to start with a fresh pallet. When Hana and I arrived Wednesday morning the stones were moved back and the bushes moved out (along with lots of tree roots, etc.!) and we had something fresh to work with! They had rented a backhoe!
The following pictures are a combination of plants from the wholesaler I work with (The Green Reaper) in South Ryegate, and some that Mary picked up while we were working in the garden. The theme with plans was clumping (so they don't get weeds growing all throughout them and are easier to maintain), blooms throughout the season, and we combined foliage, habit, and blooms to give a wonderful texture to the garden. The only creeping plans we got were several types of Sedum that will go along the rock wall by the driveway - we found green and bronze leaved specimens that will bloom yellow, orange, and pink - very exciting! The first one below is a purple-leaved Sedum called 'Purple Emperor.'
Here is a lovely blue Sedum (email me for variety).
A creeping Sedum
Here is the basic layout of the garden

And now we add the mulch for the finishing touch!
And water those transplants!

Thanks for visiting out blog!

Summer is here, the clematis is in bloom!

2010-06-11T12:52:00.000-07:00

Imagine my awe when I walked around the corner of a building to see cascades of white and purple clematis the size of my hand! I just had to share these with you all. It makes you wonder if there is a good place to put clematis in your own landscapes! I hope you enjoy these. Have a wonderful weekend!

Here, the clematis climbed up into the weigela to make great color contrasts~

Gardening this spring

2010-06-01T16:46:00.000-07:00

Here are some pictures of what I've been up to this spring. Hana will join me in about two weeks after she finishes up her junior year of high school.

Below I've set up a rock garden in a bed that was full of rocks! We didn't have to purchase any rocks for this garden! You'll also see gardens being set up, mulch going on, edging going in, baby asparagus coming up, annuals transplanted and gardening maintenance. Enjoy!

What a busy start!

2010-05-29T12:49:00.000-07:00

I apologize for not including amazing up to date pictures from Two Sisters Garden and Landscaping. It has been a busy start and there's been little time to focus on pictures and blogs. I've been working by myself - Hana will be starting after June 14th! - and getting a lot done. I've been doing spring clean up, garden maintenance, landscaping (such as cutting out sod around trees and mulching) and putting in new gardens and creating designs! We just put in our first garden of the season in Sugar Hill last week and it is beautiful! I will put finished pictures up next week! Look forward to more pictures soon and keep in touch if you need any gardening or landscaping done at your home!

Thanks for visiting our blog!

Winter Services - Home Improvement

2010-03-23T18:27:00.000-07:00

This January I was hired to clean out an attic and take out the old fiber-glass insulation to be replaced with foam. I filled a 30-foot dumpster in less than 35 hours! What a mess! Below is a picture of me with not even half of the insulation.

Here is the refurbished attic complete with foam and new floor. My Uncle put in the floor.
My father, Wayne, made some built-ins for the same clients that needed me to clear out that attic. Pop likes to work with wood in construction and carpentry (so building anything from additions to custom kitchens and bathrooms) and doesn't like to paint. Luckily, I was ready to work and eager to learn - so he showed me how to do it (apparently he was a painter before he was a contractor!). I did the finish sanding, priming, and painting for a few built-ins, cabinets, and a the television room in this home.

This client also needed some new storage shelves protected with a polycrylic finish. It went quite fast with a small roller and now the shelves are protected from water and heavy use in the garage.
I am currently doing interior painting for a new client. I am painting walls and woodwork of the master bedroom, spare bedroom, bathroom, and radiators in her dining room.
I get to see Sandy over at Littleton Aubuchon Hardware a few times a week to pick up paint and supplies - what a wealth of knowledge on paint, tools, and techniques! I recommend anyone interested in home improvement concerning paint to head over there and see the paint-master!

What's Up?

2010-03-22T18:47:00.000-07:00

I visited some gardens this past week to see what was up! I pruned a observed. What will be divided this year, what needs to be cleared out and cut down? I will be available in April to tend to your gardening needs. Thanks for visiting our blog!

Spring is close at hand!

2010-03-06T15:11:00.000-08:00

Welcome to a new spring season and a new year - 2010! Erika was enlisted in some interesting work this year from painting to finish work to attic restoration. We will be adding pictures soon. If you have any projects that involve spring cleaning in the house or yard or restoration of the home, like painting, before landscaping season begins - just send an email or give a call.

Now is the optimal time for pruning and gardens will need some attention in late April and early May. Keep an eye out for Two Sisters Garden and Landscaping newsletter. If you haven't received one in the past then email us with your name and address and we can get you on the list ASAP! You can reach us at whitemountainllamas@hotmail.com.

Thanks everyone and have a wonderful spring!

Winter Newsletter

2009-11-24T04:42:00.000-08:00

Its November now and I'm still working! I just cleaned up an overgrown yard yesterday and will be doing forest management into the snowy weather. I've also started working in a woodshop part time and will soon be working at Loon Mountain part time in Lift Operations.

As you all know, I'm a great handy person to have around in all seasons - so I invite you to hire me for odd jobs around the house. If you give me a call or email I can let you know when I'm available.

I look forward to working with you!

Gardening in Sugar Hill

2009-10-14T05:00:00.001-07:00

In September a client asked me to make her a garden. There had a been a garden there once before and she wanted it revitalized. I told her that I'd never done anything like this before (hand excavation to the max!) and had no idea how long it would take. The next couple of pictures is what I had to start with:

Overgrown was an understatement. So, I got out my spade, and began. Eradicating the golden rod and the fern from the selected garden area was the most challenging part. After everything got turned, it began to look like a real garden! Below you can see my progress in stages:

This is "Garden #1"There were existing plants in both gardens for me to work with and around.

Here, I move onto "Garden #2"

What progress! All of this took be approximately four days to complete and I will still need to go back for a little touch up. This is where the fun part begins. I've recently got the soil test results back and will not need to amend the soil dramatically per the recommendation. Now I will be making a design for the following spring. So far it looks like I will be installing black plastic edging around all the perimeters and the design is still evolving. I've been in contact with several local nurseries and have been doing research in landscape design genres, native species to New Hampshire, and hardy varieties of perennials that will thrive in Northern New Hampshire. I'll have finished pictures up come spring!

Thanks for visiting the blog!

Autumn Beds

2009-10-13T13:20:00.001-07:00

I am currently taking appointments to cut beds back, plant bulbs, transplant, and do all those other things that our beautiful gardens need before the cold weather sets in.

I'm currently designing a landscape to be planted next spring. If you would like to have a landscape designed or help with new garden ideas, don't hesitate to contact me!

Happy Gardening!

2009-09-27T17:21:00.000-07:00

Hana and I will have our White Mountain Llamas booth at Vermont Sheep and Wool Festival at Tunbridge, VT fairgrounds this coming weekend. We will be selling Angora rabbits, llamas, and doing the llama obstacle course demonstration Saturday and Sunday! We will have the llamas at Fryeburg Fair, Maine State Fair that Monday and Tuesday. I will have a booth at the Bradford, VT LEAF (Local Energy Alternatives Festival) on October 10th and give a workshop on Alternatives to Conventional Lawns from 2 -3. I hope to see you all over the next few weeks!

Today we were at the Sugar Hill Festival doing a spinning demo and selling Dan's Artwork (see next entry), our fiber art (mostly yarn), salves, and greeting cards.

With Hana in school, I (Erika) have been working as much as I can. I have been digging out a lot of sod, putting in a new garden and am doing some design work. Time to put the gardens to bed! Call or email me :)

Thanks for visiting the blog.

This Week

2009-08-13T13:56:00.000-07:00

I was in Haverhill this week tending some gardens that had gotten out of hand. I pruned a lot (where I could reach) and pulled back sod and weeds that were taking over. Now the desirable flowers will be able to settle in nicely for the winter.There was lovely landscaping with rock walls and shrubbery:

A client in Littleton had his driveway wash away in the recent rain downpours. I helped unload 4 yards of material from a pickup truck and made burms to channel water to the sides of the driveway. After I shaped the burms, the customer packed it by driving his truck or tractor over it and then a final shape and walah! It came out great.

Moving driveway material can get tiring. When I am worn out at the end of the day, I garden for an hour or so.

We keep the blueberry patch spotless!Thanks for visiting the blog!

August Newsletter 2009

2009-08-12T05:54:00.000-07:00

Landscape and Garden

This season has so far been a big success for Hana and Erika. They have been busy and working hard, never losing stride despite the rainy weather. They have remodeled and designed, maintained and resurrected customer’s gardens. To see some of the works these sisters have produced over the summer, visit their blog at proposintea.blogspot.com!

Autumn Services
Hana and Erika would like to remind you that gardening is a seasonal occupation. They’ve stuck by you through the spring and summer – they won’t leave you hanging for the autumn months! Here are several things that fall is prime time for:

Raking
Pruning
Landscaping
Transplanting
Planting Bulbs
New Beds (for 2010!)
Mulching & Cutting Back
New Design! (Consulting)
Applying Nutrients (compost!)
Cutting Trees and Moving Rocks
Email Erika and make an appointment!

whitemountainllamas@hotmail.com

Garden and Landscape Rates 2009
Erika first hour: $30
Erika after 1st hour: $20/hour
Erika & Hana 1st hour: $40
Erika & Hana after 1st: $30/hour

Back to School?

Hana is going back to school at the end of August to begin her Junior year. This means that Erika will be working solo for much of the autumn months. Hana is excited about school starting again, she is happy about her science classes and starting her 3rd year of Latin! In her spare time, Hana will continue her clothing and jewelry projects. Hana is a artist – from fiber to fabric and paper to bead, she paints and sews her way through life. Hana works hard no matter what the subject – school or gardening. Full gratitude goes out to her for always doing her best this summer!

A Gardener’s Dilemma

The single dilemma of a gardeness in New Hampshire is: What will she do during the winter months (other than hibernate)? Erika is currently thinking of creative ways to work while the plants are dormant. She will definitely be spinning and creating fiber arts from her llama and Angora wool. Erika also has had the opportunity to be an Art Agent, selling hand carved wooden bowls and sculpture (see more on the next page). Will that be enough? If you have any grand ideas about how Erika should keep busy during the winter months, please let her know!

Erika and Hana would appreciate it if you could spread the word and let your friends, family, and neighbors know about the two sisters. Erika will be available through the autumn of 2009 for your home and business projects!

Livestock at White Mountain Llamas
Hana and Erika own 4 llamas, Arethusa, May, Bella, and Winny. Our newest addition, Winny, is for sale. She is a yearling female, ready for a new home now! Erika and Hana will attend the Maine State’s Fair at Fryeburg on September 28 – 29. They will be entered in the annual llama show and perform in demonstrations for public awareness of llamas. Winny went last year and behaved very well! She is pictured in the lower right hand corner.

A Little More Bunny in Your Life
White Mountain Llamas currently has 7 Angora rabbits (French hybrids) for sale! It is a litter ready for new homes in August (black torts and black steels). There are also two 3-year old does, a white and gray for sale. Angora rabbits are an inexpensive way to get luxury fiber for spinning and felting. We have Angoras in a variety of extraordinary colors! If you’re interested give us a call! We will also have a booth at the Vermont Sheep and Wool Festival (www.vermontsheep.org/festival.html) in Tunbridge on October 3 & 4. Please visit us there for a great weekend of fiber arts!

Products
Hana and Erika care for Angora rabbits and llamas that produce fiber all year round. The sisters process the fiber into beautiful hand-spun yarn, scarves, hats, and other specialty garments. Currently some of our yarn is being sold at the Yarn Garden in Littleton, New Hampshire. We do not dye our yarn so one of our major purchase goals for animals is color! You can purchase any of our naturally colored fiber products at anytime. Just call or email Erika for more information! Erika and Hana also provide fiber lessons. If you want to learn how to spin or felt with animal fiber we will provide materials and can do individual and group lessons!

Art Agent? What Next?!

Erika’s Uncle, Dan Cadreact is a woodsman. In work and leisure, he always has en eye out for for the best pieces of wood to carve with. He is an inspirational artist and intriguing to work with. He’s given Erika the honor of selling his art. Dan specializes in bowls made from everything from bird’s eye maple to birch burls. He has an eye for color and pattern and spends hours hand carving his bowls to meet the perfect form. Of all shapes and sizes, Dan has many. Erika will be putting pictures of different bowls on the blog at proposintea.blogspot.com for your viewing pleasure and bringing samples around in her car for further inspection. Please ask about Dan Cadreact's hand-carved bowls and sculpture! If you have friends and family that collect or are interested in hand-carved, local art from New Hampshire’s forests, let them know about this art. It is certainly an opportunity you do not want to miss!

Need to do holiday gift shopping?
Want yarn for your next knitting project?
Interested in purchasing a rabbit?
Excited about supporting local business?

Email Erika!
whitemountainllamas@hotmail.com

Thank you!
We want to thank you for supporting our business! We appreciate working for you and hope to continue providing you with quality service into the future!

Driveway Maintenance

2009-08-01T15:53:00.000-07:00

From frost to plow trucks, the winter season will heave and throw cobblestones. Hana and I took kinks out of stones while also weeding this customer's driveway. A little driveway maintenance goes a long way when it comes to an aesthetic drive leading to your home.

This week: trail maintenance

2009-07-31T10:24:00.000-07:00

We trekked down into the woods with our tools in my backpack. I had brought the tamarack boards down (2x6x10') two weeks before with the four wheeler. Today Hana and I just nailed them in place.

Here, we made a wooden bridge for the brush hog. Its set perfectly to fit the wheels.

Oh, what good models we make!The same people who need work on their trails raise show dogs. This is the puppy area and I needed to put more stone in the bottom and put barriers up around the base so they couldn't get under the ramp.

Hana and I moved more than 3,000 pounds of stone! Phew!

This work tood us three man-days.

Franconia this week

2009-07-23T06:01:00.001-07:00

One of my customers went on the WREN Garden Tour and saw something she liked: hastas planted around the trunks of trees. She asked me to create what she saw and this is what emerged:

I dug out a garden in the sod 3 feet in radius to the trunk and transplanted three types of hastas opposing each other in six places around the trunk. I then put mulch down that the customer had purchased.

The lovely thing about this garden is that it has a circular garden behind it in the lawn and a possible other circular garden around a tree just to the right of it. The landscaping ends up being just beautiful with all these matching circles. The second thing that I accomplished was an herb garden that outlined one side of the driveway. Its a beautiful spot, incorporating rocks into the plantings. Its a wonderful way to invite guests to your house, by having a beautiful garden that sends you to the house.

The customer purchased plants for me to put in. Various kinds of herbs like lavender, rosemary, chives and flowers such as creeping phlox. Again, I mulched it when through, the perfect touch.

This work took me 6 hours.

A Day on the Trails

2009-07-15T16:09:00.000-07:00

I love gardening. Sometimes it's nice to do something on a little larger scale. So instead of planning for one garden, several hundred square feet, to plan acres of "garden" or a woodlot. When I work at this particular place I get to learn about forest/land management, in this case for wildlife. I also get to build boardwalks on trails! This gets me off my hands and knees for a few days and allows me to spend some solitary time in the woods (when Hana has a day off). When Hana and I make boardwalks together we life the bigger planks out across the streams and come up with fun tunes to sing while we do it. Today was a beautiful sunny day, one we haven't seen for a while. It was a particularly enjoyable time.

Here's the quad runner loaded up with the trailer and ten foot planks.

Here is the trail as it leads down to a section of 8 foot boardwalks. This is my favorite place in the trail system. There is something sort of mysterious about this particular place.Here, begin the boardwalks. I had begun to put them in last year and could not finish when I had to go back to school. I finished them today, making the boardwalks have different colors!

What a fun day! Thanks for visiting the blog!

This week in Bethleham

2009-07-14T11:46:00.000-07:00

We had the pleasure of working in these beautiful gardens yesterday and today. We spent a lot of time dividing plants that had become overgrown, weeding, and uncovering the beautiful brick edge. I suggested that compost or mulch be added to the beds because competition for soil nutrients may have depleted the soils. This yard had another example of "forest gardens" that I worked with in Franconia several weeks ago. What a lovely design!Peonies, iris, and hasta:

Beautiful brick edge:

Hana poses, after a long day of work: Forest garden, with lily of the valley, hasta, and lungwort.

Here, birch logs were used as an edge to the forest garden. Wonderful!

Here, we uncovered a thriving blueberry patch amongst the ferns.

This work took Hana and I 12.5 hours.

Last Week

2009-07-14T03:20:00.000-07:00

Here are some gardens that we tended to last week. The owner hired Hana and I to work with her. We all worked together for two days and uncovered beautiful gardens! When we started you never would have guessed these beautiful gardens lay beneath.

Lisbon

2009-06-26T10:17:00.000-07:00

Hana, admiring our work.

Pruning time!

Bethlehem and Franconia this week

2009-06-24T15:51:00.001-07:00

Here are some beautiful gardens that I got to maintain this week. The first one is in Bethlehem. I edged the shrubs and perennials in the walkway. I also pruned the shrubs. I will probably plant some annuals along the walkway, depending on what the owners want done.
Simply lovely. I would love to meet the designer of this space.

Here are some forest gardens that I maintained in Franconia. These have to be experienced to be truly appreciated. This garden is set into a conifer forest and wraps around the edge of the yard in gentle curves.

It incorporates these granite posted fences. The fences can be fit in and out easily for maneuverability around the gardens. It's a great design.There are some lovely blue spruce incorporated into this section of the garden.Here, some flowers are beginning to bloom. Thank you for your business and visiting the blog! See the entry before this for prices and updates.

Season of 2009: News and Rates

2009-05-28T14:49:00.000-07:00

Garden anyone?

Landscape and Garden
Erika will be available on May 18th to start working for you! Hana will join to make the dynamic duo after she finishes her sophomore year of high school in June. Since Erika will be graduating she will be available into the autumn this year to help settle the gardens in for the winter. Please call or email Erika to make an appointment.

Services
Erika and Hana will bring their own tools. They can maintain current ornamental or vegetable gardens and design or make new gardens and landscapes. They are available for light forest management and trail building as well. Due to Erika and Hana’s health and values they will not administer or work around chemical applications. The customer is responsible for the purchase of materials (plants, mulch, etc.) that Erika and Hana will be working with. The customer is also responsible with providing at least 4 hours of work per appointment.

Need spring weeds picked?
Want help with spring cleaning?
Does your landscape need a new look?
Do you want to grow your own food?
Email Erika and make an appointment!
whitemountainllamas@hotmail.com

Graduation anyone? Erika is graduating from Green Mountain College in mid-May. She will have a degree in Environmental Studies with a concentration in Sustainable Agriculture and Food Production. What does that mean? It means that she studied topics like biology, ecology, geology, forestry, National Organic regulations, biodiversity on farms, animal husbandry, organic vegetable production, business, and marketing. She will continue to learn as she develops her own farm over the next few years.

What happens next? Erika would like to begin applying her knowledge on a small scale by growing organic vegetables and raising animals for organic meat at her home. This would be an excellent compliment to the Two Sisters Landscape and Gardening business because we will be able to share our veggies with our customers this summer and begin to understand what sort of market we might have for our future nutritious food. While beginning this adventure Erika would like to be working for her customers full time and if she’s successful will do it again next year.

We would appreciate it if you could spread the word and let your friends, family, and neighbors know that Erika (and sometimes Hana) will be available to help beautify their landscapes and consult on food and forestry full-time!

Garden and Landscape Rates 2009
Erika first hour: $30
Erika after 1st hour: $20/hour
Erika & Hana 1st hour: $40
Erika & Hana after 1st: $30/hour

Need local yarn or herbal salves?
White Mountain Llamas now owns 5 Angora rabbits and 4 llamas that produce fiber all year-round. Hana and Erika are processing the fiber into beautiful hand-spun yarn. Some yarn is made into scarves and hats, while some is sold in skeins. Currently some of our yarn is being sold at the Yarn Garden in Littleton, New Hampshire. We do not dye our yarn so one of our major purchase goals for animals is color! You can purchase any of our naturally colored fiber products at anytime. Just call or email Erika for more information!
Erika and Hana also provide fiber lessons. If you want to learn how to spin or felt with animal fiber we will provide materials and can do individual and group lessons!
Erika and Hana are apprenticing with Melanie Osborn at Thyme To Heal Herbal Shoppe in Lisbon, New Hampshire where they make plant-based, hand-milled soaps. They also make salve from local beeswax and herbal infused oils. These products are also, always for sale. Bars of soap (3 oz.) are $3.75 and salve is $5 (2 oz.).

Are you interested in our products?
Need to do holiday gift shopping?
Want yarn for your next knitting project?
Interested in purchasing a rabbit?
Excited about supporting local business?

Email Erika!

Livestock at White Mountain Llamas
Our llamas have just moved to their summer pasture in “retired” dairy fields. Essentially the fiber that we harvest from them is made from local pasture. We are proud of the fact that we can raise animals with as little processed grain input as possible and we are always designing new systems in which to raise earth-friendly fiber. Last year we also raised three lambs on pasture for meat. We will probably do this again and may possibly sell pasture-raised meat or eggs in the future. If you would be interested in purchasing food from us in the future – let us know!

Babies!
Erika and Hana are planning to have more crias (baby llamas) and Angora bunnies to sell in the coming seasons. Our Angora rabbits are $75 - $85 and mixed breeds $10-$15. Our last cria, Winny, (below) has been successfully raised with her mother and is now looking for a good home. We are asking for $1,700 for her. She would make a great pack or guard llama, companion or show animal. She loves people!

Thank you!
We want to thank you for supporting our business! We appreciate working for you and hope to continue providing you with quality service into the future!

Visit our Other Blog!

2008-11-11T10:02:00.000-08:00

Remember to visit our other blog to keep updated with our farm!

End of August

2008-08-27T06:59:00.000-07:00

For the past few weeks Hana and I have been building boardwalks and managing a privately owned woodlot. I have been using a small chainsaw and Hana has been using manual clippers to remove the smaller saplings. We are cutting birch, aspen (poplar), conifer, and other weedy trees and keeping transplanted Viburnum (high bush cranberry), Hawthorne, oaks, and other desirable plants that will attract wildlife. By clearing the area below the owner's house it will allow an improved view of wildlife - especially birds! Hana and I have a lot of fun working in the woods together!

As the summer winds down to school Hana was also asked to spiff up a garden before we stopped working. Here is their beautiful garden!

Thanks for visiting our gardening website! Please see our other blog to view exciting rabbit and llama news!!

More Pictures

2008-08-13T18:45:00.000-07:00

After days and days of rain, we finally got back to our gardens! Below we made a lovely fern garden along a garage.
Weeding and added peat moss.... and thinning and beautifying!
Thanks for tuning in! Finally a day without rain! Lets keep it up!

More soap!

2008-08-06T16:34:00.000-07:00

Today Hana, Melanie, and I crafted our newest creation: Summertime. Its a batch of soap that will bedazzle the senses while exfoliating with ground oatmeal. The essential oils used are: ginger, lemon, lime, orange, and a hint of mango! It is a light green soap that we molded into many different shapes! We had so much fun making it, will have pictures soon! Currently we have lemon mint, lavender rosewood, and raspberry patchouli soap for sale.

Only $4 a bar! Hand-milled, hand-molded soaps made from all natural ingredients containing no animal products! Thanks for visiting the site and have a great day!

Remember to visit our other blog and view pictures of the baby bunnies and llama that we have for sale!

August 1 and 2: Quit muckin' around!

2008-08-02T13:08:00.001-07:00

The past few days Hana and I have been working in a marshy, muddy, wet place. We are helping a private landowner maintain his trails! We were building bridges across the wettest areas with big cedar logs and 10 foot planks.The mud was so deep that the Quadrunner almost got stuckHana actually did get stuck...it was messy.But, she got out eventually and started throwing the logs around so that we could nail the planks down. I tried to help - but those logs are just so heavy! I left most of the heavy lifting to Hana.
She picks these things up like nothing!You need to be strong to muscle those boards around!Here is a picture that captures a lot of what we have been involved with at this particular home. We help upkeep gravel and rock around the house that directs water. Last year we helped scape the lawn pictured below. Our father is a custom carpenter and he built the porch that is pictured below - its fun when you can see the family's work all in one place!

Today I weeded the garden that is surrounded by the stone work.
Its fun to work out in the woods!

Gardening in Easton and Lisbon!

2008-07-29T18:00:00.000-07:00

Remember to visit our farm blog! We have baby animal pictures!

Hana and I had a lot of fun gardening today! We found the monster of all weeds while we were going along! What an eye sore! This lovely walk-way has vinca growing along it (that Hana transplanted there last year), bordered by decorative gout weed. The gout weed had taken over from one side and grass from the other. We exposed the vinca and all order has been restored where the chaos dwelled.

There will be more actual garden pictures after we finish up next visit!Here, I was in an herb garden at the Thyme To Heal Shoppe. There's a cricket on my thumb! We are apprenticing with Melony, who owns the shoppe. When we were done in her garden we gave her daughters a fiber lesson and they taught us how to make bath salts! Yum!
Thanks for viewing our blog!

Good-byes

2008-07-13T17:00:00.000-07:00

For my last day in Italy, Nik, India, Joe, and I went to the Vinschgaue Valley where the De Rachewiltz family owns a ruin and cottage in Tschengels. We visited historic towns and ruins, ate baguettes and gelato, and then Petra and Miche joined us for pizza that evening. We all spent the night in the cottage and had a wonderful farewell and thank you breakfast the next morning. It was such a wonderful way to spend my last few days in Italy!Here are Joe, Nik, and India! Thanks guys! I love the geraniums!
A river and waterfall!Tschengels ruin:
Petra, India, Nik, Miche, Joe: India, Nik, Me, Miche (checking out the Polaroid camera!)As we left for pizza...There was an old photo album in the cottage with pictures of the old farmer that had owned this ruin and cottage before Sizzo bought it. Many pictures were of meals around this table. It reminded my so much of my Oma and Opa's (grandma and grandpa) photo albums. They bought a run down barn and house in New York state and have an album of the parties and fixin' up they did to it. Being in Italy with the De Rachelwiltz family I really felt like part of their family. They made me feel so welcome and being in the cottage, with so much history was an honor that I cannot describe. It can only be felt.

Nik made us all crepes, Tirol style with jelly and nutella. We also head real European bread, hard boiled eggs, and tea. It was wonderful to spend my last few hours in such good company. Thanks you so much everyone! I look forward to a visit back soon!

Biological Gemuse

2008-07-11T05:28:00.000-07:00

Have you ever thought about the phrase "organic vegetable"? Its pretty funny that they use the word "organic" to describe a form of regulation. Well, in Europe, the synonym for "organic" is "biological" or bio. The following pictures are of an inspirational bio farm in Dorf Tirol. There is an incredible amount of production on this small piece of land, in the middle of town - and its all chemical-free. It should be a model for other small farmers. The owner of the farm, Franz, has a small market on Tuesdays and Saturdays. He produces vegetables and fruit. Franz and his family also raise chickens, goats, and have a miniature horse! Brunnenburg purchased their heritage breed chicks from Franz last week.

Monoculture agriculture in this part of the country, is common-place. Apples and grapes are grown in rows with nothing else. Franz grows apples with vegetables in between! Here are squash and corn between, he also grows potatoes and peppers in other rows between apples.

Here, Joe poses for me to show the scale of the greenhouse. The greenhouse is so neat! There are strings for the vines to climb up to about 7 feet to take advantage of vertical space. There were tomato and a variety of squash vines that will fill this greenhouse. They are only wrapped around the string and they climb away!

Here is a beautiful currant bush that is part of Franz's fruit production. He also has cherries, strawberries, raspberries, and blueberries! What a wonderful field trip to Franz's farm!

Hike up to the Lakes!

2008-07-07T02:50:00.000-07:00

Yesterday friends of Brigitte and Sizzo came to stay at the Castle. One of the visiting family, Ian, and I went hiking up to the glacial lakes! Here are some pictures!

Below is our first lake that we found! It was very misty that day. When Ian took a picture of me in front of the lake it immediately misted over!!There really is a lake behind me! We mused that the Lock-ness must live in the lakes :)While we stood in front of the first lake, we heard the music of the goats coming along through the mist. They seemed to apparate from no where - it was beautiful. The cows and goats that are kept on the Alm all have bells - the goats have smaller bells, so higher pitched and the cows lower.

The goats were beautiful! Please listen to their "music" on the movie below!

Here were the lovely Grauvieh that rested below their farm. The cows were called Alma and Biggi. Ian and I pet Alma and she enjoyed the scratch!
This is Lang See - the longest lake at the top of our hike. We could have gone farther, but it was scheduled to rain shortly. The mist came and went as if we were at Avalon - I got this picture snapped just before it misted over again. We were literally in the clouds!
And more mist...beautiful!
Here is the view of the first two lakes on our hike down from Grun See and Lang See. The Grun See (green lake) was really green! It reminded me most of the water in the Keys - green and changing color with depth!
Here is the farm on the Alm that Marion and I visited two weeks ago. We stopped here for fresh milk and speck knodel suppe - or ham dumpling soup. Its a special meal that is served here and it is amazing!!
There are no pictures past this point because as soon as we left this beautiful farm house it began to drizzle. Then it began to rain. And then the hail came. We raced down and were soaked by the bottom! There was an amazing thunder and lightening storm while we were hiking down and one could watch the clouds rise from the valley as the pressure changed! It was absolutely fantastic! What a wonderful hike!! Gotta love those Grauvieh and fresh milk!

This week at a glance -

2008-07-04T12:16:00.000-07:00

Sunday: Llama Show in Italy?

Nik, India, and I went to an International Llama show in OberBozen! It was a really fun, laid back show at a llama farm! There were lots of cute crias running around. It was so fun to see llamas in Italy! Apparently there are over 400 llamas in South Tirol! Crazy!
This dynamic trio (a horse, dog, and llama) did tricks in the ring to cool music!
Crias!
Neat coloration...

Wednesday: New Tiroler Hut (Tirolean Hat)

Brigitte took me into Merano and bought me this wonderful Tirolean Mountain Farmer hat! Its supposed to keep rain off for over 4 hours! It is made from sheep's wool that is felted tightly so water cannot leak through it! Its the best present ever!

All Week!: Viticulture!

We've got so much done this week! We have worked in Weberacker and the Goldenraut. We weeded and put in the support poles for over 600 vines - check it out!

Below is one of the new young vines in Weberacker. I was weeding around each vine to allow the maximum amount of sunlight to get to those baby leaves! The grass has grown in quickly, but the vines are growing quickly as well!

Here are the rows with their new vegetation.The picture below shows how we keep the support posts next to the vines. There are wire clips you can purchase to clip them onto the wires the run along the spalier. This post will keep the vine upright and enable it to keep more grapes off the ground than it could hold by itself. These vines will not produce grapes this season, and will produce the most grapes after about three years.

India, Nik, and I work wonderfully together. I set the iron posts while Nik pounded them in behind me. India then clipped them in. The three of us finished it over a period of two days.
The following pictures are from the Goldenraut.

The next two pictures show the longest vines at the top of the spalier. When they got so long it makes it difficult to harvest grapes and uneven amounts of sunlight get to all the leaves.So India went along and tied (with the "clicker") the vines up vertical to the main trunk.Then Nik went along with the clippers to prune the tops. Its obvious Nik has a lot of fun in the vineyard. He dances and chants while he's working (or does that mean he's crazy?)Here is the finished product: beautiful! Its important to have at least 110 to 130 centimeters of leaf/vine growth per grape cluster. After these have been cut, they will stimulate new growth. This new growth that grows out and up will give the grapes the best concentrated sugar compared to other parts of the vine. Its an important growth stage for the vine and the grapes.Then we went through and "de-leaved" the north side of the grapes. To do this its important to leave the stems and only take the leaves as to not stimulate new growth. Its done on the north side so that the maturing grapes don't get too much sunlight, but dry out more quickly after a rain. A word on pruning:
Nik told me more about pruning today. After harvesting the grapes, all the vines are cut back except one, which will be tied to the wire in place of the brown one seen below. In the autumn, each green vine will grow a woody bark to overwinter. At that point it is time to start pruning. In the case of the vine below, Nik said that he would most likely keep the lower right stem and cut the others. He said to always leave one bud extra aside from the stem you are keeping.
All Week: mowing in the pear orchard!

I got to use a mega-super-duty weedwhacker! The motor and gas tank ride on my back on straps like a back-pack and I hold the other end. When caring for an orchard or vineyard the usual goal is to have a monoculture - to promote the life and ultimate production of one crop. (In my opinion Brunnenburg is a huge polyculture of monocultures...but that's another story). I've decided that this has given me excellent training to be a goat later in life. I can barely walk on or climb up this orchard and I got to weed whack it! It was thrilling! I only wish I would be able to taste the pears or the schnapps before going home (which is impossible because I'm coming home in 10 days...). Enjoy these beautiful pictures!

The sun shone through the clouds onto the pear orchard while I was there today to silhouette the castle.I mowed another pear orchard today that is on the other side of Brunnenburg. I am scheduled to a lot of mowing the next few days. I'm glad that I can take over mowing for Nik - he hurt his knee and is difficult for him.

My Daily Travels to Work

I look forward to a lot of things each day. One of my favorite parts of the day are the walk to and from work. To get to the outer reaches of the grounds where some of the vineyards lie, I may walk along the stone steps that connect past the castle. There are lots of stones here, so they are used in many ways. Stone walls hold back the earth that the vines are grown in and edge lots of other places. Here are the steps through the Schlossacker that takes me past the castle wall.
This is my favorite part of the walk - if one took a wrong step you would go off the edge instead of up to the next tier! Ha!Closer to the castle there are walls of fruit trees - apricots.The apricots have just been ripening...Here is the view through the apricot trees.
And along the castle wall, to home.What a lovely journey.

More vet visits!

2008-06-28T11:35:00.000-07:00

Here is a picture of Brunnenburg on a lovely Thursday afternoon. There was a wonderful medieval concert at the Schloss Tirol that evening. The geese were out serenading and nibbling the grass.

This is me, Saturday morning before Marion came to get me for our second day of vet visits!Before Marion picked me up I snapped a quick picture of Nik in his full body-suit and mask that he wears while spraying the grapes. Here, he is pictured mixing chemicals to protect against mildew and downy mildew.Marion (pictured below) and I rode up to the Alm (alpine pasture) in a cable car used only by farmers and vets. Other than hiking, this is the only way to get to these farms up on the Alm. We rode up with groceries for the week!On our way up we had wonderful views and cool breezes. This is an Alm Hut, or a vacation hut up on the Alm. Marion said that 30 years ago everyone from Dorf Tirol would bring their families up to the Alm to spend time there. It was a fun community for learning and playing. She says now its not as popular and usually farmers are the people that still live there.This is the first farm we "landed at" to change cars.Here is their herd of Grauvieh and Fleckvieh (pronounced "grau-fee" and "fleck-fee). The Grauvieh is literally translated as "gray cow." They are a breed of cow indigenous to the area. They navigate the steep slopes very well. Other breeds are prone to falling and becoming stuck in places and sometimes need to be airlifted by helicopters! I had not been so close to the Grauvieh before and was unable to appreciate how beautiful they are! They are also a very small and calm cow. Here are some more close-ups... All the cows have big bells on their collars, so one can find them up in the Alm. It sounds like music when riding by on the cable car!
Our second cable car trip brought us to the high lakes that are filled by glacial water. Rivers flow down into Dorf Tirol where one can go swimming!Here is the herd of goats at this farm.
and close up...
We came all this way to artificially inseminate one Grauvieh. We stayed at the top and Marion and I were given a fresh glass of milk each. The times when I may sit with Marion on the Alm, drinking fresh milk, are my favorite experiences so far in Italy. It makes me feel very connected with the work I am doing at Brunnenburg, and what I can do helping Marion. It also reminds me of home, in Vermont and New Hampshire, and all of the possibilities to explore in local food production. If drinking fresh milk makes me feel this good, perhaps it can make others feel the same way.
Here, I thank a Grauvieh for the milk. In this sequence of pictures I see if she will accept a good scratch and massage. I am going to hike back up here next weekend so I may see this farm again. Its such a fun place to be!

Here is a row of beautiful Holsteins. We visited this farm for a cow with mastitis. We also visited another farm to see a Fleckvieh heifer that was having a bad recovery from birth. We saw a pair of Fleckvieh twins while we were there! The Fleckvieh is a brown and white cow used for milk and meat that produces a good quantity while staying healthy living in a barn.
Here is a picture of a little rabbit that I helped neuter today! Between spaying the cat on Wednesday and neutering a rabbit today I am all set to start my vet practice! Just kidding, but what an interesting way to be involved. I love working with cows for a few stops and then having a mix of small animals as well. If you would like to see pictures from the surgery, email me or I'll show you when I get back.

Riding around with Marion is such a wonderful experience! She shows me wonderful places around the valley and in the Alm and gives me great exploring ideas. I also get to meet some cool farmers. I'm interested in harvesting hay by hand since I have seen so many doing it. I'm going to practice with a scythe while I am here and visit some good 'ol Vermonters that harvest by hand (that means a trip to GMC! Look out Kenneth, here I come!).

What a fun day!

"Vet-iculture"

2008-06-25T06:36:00.000-07:00

New Magic!
This is a picture of the newest addition at Brunnenburg. She is a "volnessar-ackel shaf." We are currently trying to find a good name for her. This is her first day outside with the herd and she is already climbing like a pro!
Here is another example of my amazing "de-bushing" work. This whole edge was covered with bushes and I brought back the rock wall!
Viticulture
I am learning new things in the vineyard! Now I am taking away the vegetation from around the base of the vine where Nik has mowed. I go through and prune at the same time. This is important for the health and vitality of the vine, to help it to grow in a way for simple harvesting as well as getting the vine the most sunlight for the highest quality grapes. Below is a before ...

and after picture.Look at those beautiful, clean rows!

Garden

Here is a lovely look at the tomatoes! They were a jungle and I trimmed them back and tied them up to stakes. Brigitte and I worked for a few hours on them - there will be lots of tomatoes later this season! We are already eating lots of fresh salad from the garden! Vet Visits

Today I got to ride around with Marion on some vet visits. Marion used to live at Brunnenburg while she was studying. Her and I had a great time visiting different places to do some general veterinary work. Here, in the Alps, vets have a few more jobs than in Vermont. The vet does a lot more general care and will also do all the artificial insemination. Here is our first stop:

We stopped at a farm where there were several heifers that needed to go up to the Alm (alpine pasture). They were being dried off and given antibiotics. Marian let me do one cow and she did the others. These are the special "gray cows" that live mainly in the Tirol valleys. They are very good at navigating the steep slopes and produce a lot of milk for the farmers. I was very excited to see some!

Here is another farm we visited, higher up. This time we just dropped off antibiotics for the farmer to administer himself. The Tirol farmers are on a schedule to get their cows up to the Alm for the summer months, not milking them at that point. They will then bring the cows down in October to begin milking through June.Along a pass to an Alm close to Austria, we were stopped while a helicopter did work on the rock ledges. They were lowering down chain-link material to hold back falling rocks.Here is a farm with gray cows that we visited. And higher still... At this place we artificially inseminated a cow and sat down for a fresh glass of goats milk! The farmer who served us said he milked 70 goats by hand! Marion said that most of the goats in this area are used for meat. There are over 5,000 goats slaughtered (at about 2 months of age) each spring for the meat market. She needs to do blood testing on lots of goats each year! On the way back we found Haflingers!! With "gray cows"!!
Look at how beautiful she is!
Here is a pasture where many animals were being delivered today!
Today I also had the privilege of aiding in a surgery! We spayed a female cat and took her kittens to the animal shelter. We also gave a Tirolean sheep puppy a microchip and vaccinations and put a cat to sleep. What an amazing experience and an amazing day!

Hike to the Muthofe

2008-06-21T06:35:00.000-07:00

Today I got in five hours of good hiking! I hiked up to the Muthofe. It was a great hike because it was difficult enough that it left all of the German tourists back on paved roads and I had a lovely morning. Here are some of the pictures I took:

Apparently Sizzo gave me good directions because I found the trail:Up the trail you can see some amazing geological phenomena... and amazing trees with faces in them....
Here is what I saw when I got to the top.
Farmers harvesting hay by hand where machines would not go. This was really cool! I stopped and watched for a few minutes. Then realized that right behind me, more farmers were turning hay by hand on another slope. Also, at the top, there were pera-gliders!
Brunnenburg is in this picture, can you find it?

Here are some hikers enjoying the view.

Here is the lovely sunset a few nights ago.

I need to apologize for the spelling mistakes. The spell check on this website, though an American website, spell checks in Italian from the computer I am using, therefore making it almost impossible to spell check. I will fix it when I return to NH!

First Day in the Vineyard: Schlossacker

2008-06-18T10:21:00.000-07:00

Das Schlossacker: Viticulture

Here is my walk down to the vineyard. The vineyard I was working in today is called Schlossacker, or the Castle-acre. This vineyard is at the foot of the castle. I was working on the Pinot Noir variety today. Here are the different entrances into the vineyard. I took the second on the right to reach my destination somewhere in the middle. The first step in my job today was clipping off suckers and extra shoots below the main arm of the vine. The suckers grow from the base of the vine and the extra shoots may grow at any node along the vine. To shape the vine into a useful shape for harvesting (and with the interest of getting the vine the maximum amount of sunlight), it is good to cut all the vines into one, uniform shape. In this case, I would go to each vine in the row and cut off what you see below: Below are examples of suckers. This is what the completed vine looks like below the arm. (The black hose is used for irrigation).The next two pictures are to show what the vine should look like with a bare trunk below the arm:

The next step in the process is to tie or train the grapes. The tool used may be called a "duratool" or "hand-tying tool," depending on where you look for one. Any local grape supplier should have one that works well. This machine (pictured below) works fantastically!

Here is where the tape is:
It loads staples easily too. You just click it once to stretch the tape and then click it around the vine and the wire and it staples! Walah! Its such a nifty tool, around here we call it the "clicker." We use extremely technical terms while we are working because we are professionals.
Here's how this beauty works: click and tie! click and tie!
This is what the Pinot Noir looked like before I began.
This is what it looks like now!Nik says it will look even better after he mows around the vines.

Here, Nik holds a few leaves to show what certain pests look like. Below is a fungus called downy mildew. This is what it looks like after a fungicide has killed it. Here are some eggs from an insect that bothers the grape vines. Nik says that this insect does not hurt the yield enough for him to need pest management plan.
The grape vines are grown in a way that makes harvesting simple. This is the example of the pergola system that Nik has for some of the vineyard. For harvesting here you would reach above your head to harvest the grapes.

The system that I am working on here is a terrace system. I am tying all of the vines up so that when the grapes are ripe one can walk by and pick them off the side of the vines at a comfortable height.

Here, Nik shows Miche how to use the clicker...
and which suckers and shoots to cut...and Miche gets it!Here, Miche shows Nik how to tie a jugular vein...and here, how to prune extra, unwanted, appendages. (Please don't try this at home).Nik is a great boss - he brings us ice cream (gelato!) all the time. He gets it from Samy, who owns Samy's Ice Cream shop in Dorf Tirol. Samy makes the best ice cream in SudTirol, with the most amazing assortment of flavors. Did we eat it all? Nik has been mowing for three days now and has a few more to go. He mows around the grape vines and the pear trees several times a year so that harvesting is made simple and to keep competitive weeds out of the production areas.

Here is one of the grape vines from Weberacker - see the leaves sprouting? They are all beginning to sprout now and are well on their way to becoming grape producing vines!

The Schloss Tirol: museum visit

The Schloss Tirol (or Castle of Tirol) is just up the hill from Brunnenburg. I visited last Sunday afternoon to learn more about Tirolean history. This is the vineyard I take a shortcut through to get to the museum.

Here is the view of Brunnenburg on my walk up to the Schloss.

Here is one of the famous Schloss Tirol Portals. There are two at this castle that dates to about 1200. The symbolism with the two portals is fascinating. One could read about and examine the Portal all day - and I practically did!

The archangel Gabriel brings the word of God (center). The flapping bird (bottom left) symbolizes moving toward eternal life. The lion symbolizes good in some forms and evil in others. There is a dragon on the right that is cut off that is flaming away from the portal, to show that evil will not dwell inside. Those are just a few of the interesting things, there are over 25 different symbols around each portal.

More cool animal pictures

There was a request for more pictures of pigs! So here they are.

Here is Gulliver. His wool has been absent since the hot weather. The girls are beginning to shed now as well.

Look at this great smile!
This is Mira - look at her cute curls! Here, Mira scratches on her favorite rock!Its bath time.

Gulliver lays next to his food trough ans slowly falls asleep...

...

Here are the Zackelschaf grazing by the museum. Lola has recently had a lamb and will join the flock with her little girl in a few days. The lamb has turned out to be half Zackelschaf and half Brillenschafe. The Brunnenburg Brillenschafe (Philo and Sophie) are grazing on the alm (alpine pastures) with lots of other sheep right now. Apparently Pedro, the Zackelschaf ram did not do a good job in keeping Philo, the Brillenschaf ram, away from Lola. This little lamb is all black with one white spot on its forehead. Brillenschafe don't have any horns and we wonder if this little lamb will have horns. Nik thinks it will have one curly horn out of the center, like a unicorn!Here are the goats, happy to be out this afternoon.

My new apartment!

This afternoon, on the steps of my new apartment, I found a little lizard!

I moved into my apartment now that the visitors who were living there have gone home. Tomorrow there will be a new class coming that need to live where I had been residing. This is the normal farm boy/farm girl apartment.

Here is the view from my side window:

This is looking out my front door. This is my 800-year-old "balcony" copmlete with lawn and 90 year old secoya tree.

This is the walk way to my door...
from a cool catwalk around the side of the castle with a really big drop off the side. Pretty cool huh?

Work Work Work

2008-06-15T02:40:00.000-07:00

On Thursday I cleared out brush around the vineyard so that the grapes are not shaded and have plenty of sunlight to begin growing! While cutting back the brush I chased out a scorpion! They're pretty cool. They are small and black and apparently only sting like bees.
This is the view from the castle Saturday morning. I opted to do chores for the animals this weekend because I enjoy working through the cycle of the day. So I was up in the morning to take this pretty picture. Brunnenburg is seemingly in the middle of nowhere, but what's nice is that as you climb out of paradise you end up in a little village called Dorf Tirol. Here are the outskirts of it on the hill. Its an cool view from the castle :)
Here are a few pictures of the trail that leads down to the new vineyard, weberacker. The climate is just a little bit warmer so that there are more plants. Vines cover trees and there is green everywhere! What a beautiful place to work :)

Playing in the Garden!

2008-06-12T11:58:00.000-07:00

On Wednesday I tricked Nik into letting me play in the garden - all day! I only worked two hours in Weberacker in the afternoon. I weeded and mulched everything down so I'm ready for lessons from Brigitte when she returns!

Permaculture
Below is the magnificent rosemary bush! Brigitte says she has bigger ones at their home in Tuscany!
Here is the equally brilliant sage bush, see in the next pictures how big the leaves are compared to my hand! Warm weather and longer growing seasons work wonders on food production!
Here is the bean patch that I weeded and mulched.
Here, the onions and lettuce are grown together, in a way known as companion planting, or permaculture. They are planted this way to help each other as well as make the most use of space. In the same area, not as many of just lettuce, or just onions could be planted. Also, many times one plant will deter certain pests from another. I will wait and ask Brigitte more about this certain patch, when she returns from Tuscany.
Here, I have weeded and mulched! It was a jungle before I began!Here is a picture of the sweet corn and squash that I planted below the garden. This will also be the winter pig area. After the corn is harvested, the pigs will have fun pulling down the stalks and eating it! I will also seed some other plants around the corn to help with runoff and for roughage in the fall/winter.

Viticulture

Here are the anchors for the corner posts in the vineyard. We had to dig holes, then twist these suckers into the ground, and then pray there were not rocks underneath (which many times there were!) Miche said he got all the rocks, but I barely got any!Here are a few that are almost finished.Here are Miche (left) and Nik (right) after a long day at work, in high spirits, as usual :) Nik has irrigation tubing on his shoulder, while Miche wields the crow bar we used to do numerous things around the vineyard.Majik!

Here are the unicorns that I get to see twice a day for chores! Aren't they beautiful? Its only fitting that there are unicorns at a castle. They live in the fields around the castle, and I feed them peanuts!

Here you can see their majikal horns through the trees...

This is Lily, leader of the unicorns. This is the youngest unicorn. She is very shy, and has one crooked horn.Here is the majikal creature about to disappear until this evening....

Here are Pan and Grace (above) and Glauke (below). They are big clowns and have lots of fun teasing me and jumping up like puppy dogs.

600+ vines!

2008-06-10T12:00:00.000-07:00

Well, we are done planting this vineyard. This particular one is called Weberacker, which translates into weaver-field. Weber is one of those last names like we have here such as carpenter or mason, except this one is weaver. Nik adds "acker" or "field" to the end to show that it is a vineyard. Weberacker has been planted with a hybrid grape that is resistant to fungus. This vineyard will be an experiment and if all goes well, he will not have to spray this field as he would a venifera variety.

The other vineyards are called: Piwiacker, Schlossacker, and Goldenrautacker. In the Piwiacker he grows a fungus two fungus resistant varieties (which is what PIWI stands for). The Schloss is the castle, where he grows a little Vernatsch, Schardonnay, Merlot, Pinot Noir, and a few others. In Goldenrautacker he grows primarily gold muscateller. Nik says this is normally known as a sweet wine, but he likes to make a dry wine with this variety. Now that we are done planting, we need to put in the irrigation system. We started that today as well as finished off raking the rocks out of the paths for easy mowing.

I am getting to know the animals and they, in turn, are beginning to trust me. Today I had four Zackleshaf come up to me at feeding, when in the past only one has - I'm sure it must be the peanuts! The Zeige (goats), shaf (sheep), and swein (pigs) all love peanuts! Mira and Bella even "sitz" (sit) for peanuts!!

There was a thunderstorm this afternoon - what fun! Lightening was crashing off the Alps. The picture below is the view from my breakfast balcony. My kitchen is huge and I dine on spiced meats and local cheeses with yogurt for breakfast (no, I am not on a weight-loss plan). I am really settling in now and find myself getting a lot of relax time in. People asked me along my travels if I was "going on holiday?" Well, I feel like I am on holiday, I find time to work in the garden and do yoga almost every day!

I finally got these evasive chickens on my camera! They are called Appenzeller Spitzhaunbenhuhn, and now I do not have a translation for THAT yet :) The ducks and the chickens here have very dignified "tufts" on their heads. Sometimes I think they look like poodles, and other times, like royalty.
I need to find better pictures of the Zackleshaf, but this is the best I can do right now. Below is the ram, whose horns slant outwards, and a ewe, whose horns curl straight back. They are like black and silver unicorns with two horns each. They're very cool!

Permaculture:

Brigitte, one of the owners of The Brunnenburg Agriculture Museum, has been taking classes in permaculture and has also learned a lot from her grandmother on the subject. Permaculture is companion and ecological design in gardens. Its mostly used with vegetable gardens or other edible landscaping. The idea is to create more of an ecosystem than a garden by planting things together that will help production and well-being of the whole garden, while building the soil structure and life at the same time.

Brigitte is gone for the week, but has left me with instructions and will teach me a lot when she returns. I am reading Bill Mollison's Introduction to Permaculture right now and before I came here dabbled in the Edible Forest Garden texts. Both are fascinating. I will have pictures and updates of the garden soon - it is beautiful and I will begin drying herbs to bring home soon. The climate allows rosemary bushes to grow as small bushes and are beautiful!