TOMATO BLOG

Chef Carol in the kitchen

I had such a great time today at my “Cooking Through the Seasons” Lunch Express class! The first Jersey field tomatoes have arrived at Sickles Market and were the king of the day. We feasted on Tomato-Cheese Tart, Quick Summer Pasta, Broiled Tomatoes and made our own Bruschetta while savory tomato aromas wafted from the beautiful Taste and Technique kitchen.

Chef Carol's Summer Pasta

The touchstone moment for me today, came unexpectedly, when I cut into the first local tomato of the season and was immediately transported back to my childhood and all the summers since (I’m a Jersey girl) by the genuine, unforgettable smell of a Jersey tomato. They are the best and there is no denying that. This smell signals for me the start of yet another summer and all that is yet to be enjoyed in this most fleeting season of the year. And, then after this, comes blackberries and corn and peaches, oh my!

Tomato Tart fresh out of the oven!

Come join the fun at my next class on July 18th from 11-1 where we will celebrate Mr. Sickles’ Blackberries. Details on this class and the rest of the series is available here where you can register online or come visit me at Sickles, say hello and register at the market. See you then! Seats are limited and going fast!

~Chef Carol Maxwell

My bonus recipe, as promised:

Cornmeal-Basil Fried Tomatoes
Season 1/2 inch thick slices of ripe tomatoes on both sides with kosher salt and fresh ground pepper, and press a basil leaf onto both sides. Dredge tomato slices in cornmeal, making sure basil is not dislodged. Preheat a heavy, or preferably a cast iron skillet, over medium-high for 1 minute. Add a few tablespoons of olive oil to skillet and cook tomato slices for 1 minute per side, until golden brown.

Wonderful (and beautiful) summer side dish!

Garlic Scapes: A Curly Tangle for the Kitchen



Bunches of garlic scapes
Union Square Farmer's Market, NYC



When it comes to cooking, nothing delights me more than becoming acquainted with a new, seasonal vegetable and exploring ways of preparing it.

Not a trailblazer, I rely on cookbooks and food media to introduce me to new produce. If sufficiently intrigued by an article profiling a newcomer on the agricultural scene, I pack up my canvas tote bags and either head to a farmer’s market in search of the new item or ask John Gormley at Sickles to source it.

A few years ago, it was the unruly, green tangle of garlic scapes that caught my fancy. New York Times food writer Melissa Clark was the one who introduced them to me in an article.  Until then, I had never heard of garlic scapes, but Clark described their “gently spicy undertone and exquisitely fresh green, mellow taste” so beguilingly that I had to get me some and try one of her recipes.

Once discarded, garlic scapes are now sold
Union Square Farmer's Market, NYC

The curly flower shoots of garlic bulbs, scapes used to be cut and discarded by farmers to encourage the growth of the income-making garlic bulb. At some point, due to the popularity of outdoor markets, some enterprising farmer figured out that instead of wasting the scapes, he or she could sell them for $1 a bunch to curious urbanites who would discover novel ways to use them in the kitchen.

In her article, Clark supplied a recipe for a white bean dip with a puree of garlic scapes and lemon. In this incredibly quick and easy dish to make, which is perfect for impromptu summer entertaining, the scapes add a restrained garlic flavor and a lively green hue. It’s become one of my mother’s favorite bean dips.

Clark's white bean dip with garlic scapes

 Using Clark’s tips, I’ve minced garlic scapes instead of chives in a lemon-herb vinaigrette to prepare a zippy pasta salad that I brought to the beach last Wednesday for the summer solstice. I’ve also sauteed them in butter with peas. I imagine that they would be good with sugar snap peas or snow peas, as well, along with a squirt of lemon juice. Martha Stewart tosses them with crispy new potatoes. When I finally get my charcoal grill fired up, I’ll try grilling them whole, brushed with olive oil and sprinkled with crunchy sea salt, as suggested by a New York City chef in Clark’s article.



Zippy pasta salad with a lemon vinaigrette & scapes

Thanks to John Gormley, we now have garlic scapes at Sickles. Embrace a culinary challenge and the scapes' seasonality and cook them while they’re still around.

Now, if someone would just tell me how to prepare something with kohlrabi, a vegetable challenge I have yet to conquer. . . .

Diana Pittet, the get-cooking cheesemonger

Green Golden Moments with Chef Gioacchino

While most of the folks at the Jersey Shore were wilting under miserably hot and humid temperatures this past Thursday, a fortunate few were experiencing a fun, educational and tasty afternoon at the very cool (as well as air-conditioned) Taste & Technique Cooking Studio in Fair Haven, where Sickles Market’s Guest Chef Gioacchino Passalacqua and I taught a class on Green Gold:  The Fine Artisanal Olive Oils of Italy and California. Chef Gioacchino is a passionate supporter of fine artisanal Italian foods and had much to share with the class participants, including how extra virgin olive oil is made, where it comes from and how to properly taste it.  I offered everyone creative olive oil pairings with everything from orange marmalade with sea salt and seven grain bread to olive oil drizzled over goat cheese and melted Sicilian chocolate.  The highlight of the tasting was Chef Gioacchino’s preparation of organic, Slow Food lentils from the tiny island of Ustica, drizzled with extra virgin olive oil.  They surprised everyone with their delicate yet distinct texture and incredible depth and richness.

Gioacchino preparing the lentils

We ended the class with our “Bottle Shock II” Competition:  A blind tasting between Aulente, a lively Italian olive oil composed of three varietals, from the northern coast of Sicily, and Talcott, a blend of olive oils from organic Tuscan olives located in the Domaine Carnernos region of Napa, California.  It was close, but Talcott won the competition and I was all smiles, being a California girl myself!  Talcott also received a SOFI Silver Award at the Fancy Food Show this past spring, so you may want to come by the store and ask for a tasting!

Cheri: California Girl holding the winning Talcott Oil!

I have Chef Gioacchino’s lentil recipe for you below as well as a link to an informative video from one of our favorite Italian olive oil companies, Merico, giving us an insider’s view of the olive harvest.  The family has been making olive oil at this small farm in southern Puglia since the 1700’s, with olives from trees that are over 500 years old.  If you missed our olive oil class but would like to experience a class or a series centered on a particular food, our own Bakery Manager, Chef Carol Maxwell will be featuring a different fruit or vegetable each time in her Cooking Through the Seasons Series.  Tomatoes, blackberries, peaches, and of course, New Jersey corn, are just some of the tempting classes on the horizon.

Enjoy!

Cheri

Culinary Marketing Specialist

SICKLES MARKET’S GUEST CHEF GIOACCHINO’S ITALIAN LENTILS

3 stalks celery, 3 carrots, 1 sweet onion, all sliced thinly (this is called mirepoix)

¼ cup fine artisanal extra virgin olive oil

1 carton of Pacific Vegetable Broth (1 quart)

1 Bag of Lentils from Ustica, rinsed (available at Sickles Market)

Sea Salt to taste and freshly ground Pepper

Simmering water in a separate pot

Sauté celery, carrots and onions in olive oil until they are softened.  Add vegetable stock and rinsed lentils.  Bring to simmer and cook for about 20 minutes.  Season with freshly ground pepper and sea salt to taste.

NOTE:  While cooking down, add hot water, a ladle at a time, if you need more liquid to complete cooking.

Immortal Milk: 9,000 Years of Cheese

Cheese has been famously described as milk’s leap toward immortality.
What a wonderfully succinct way to express the magic of something as highly perishable as milk transforming into a foodstuff that can last years.

What is even more wondrous is the longevity of cheese’s presence in our human diet. Eaten for over 9,000 years, cheese has been with us since the dawn of agriculture.



My tartiflette, made with Pont L'Eveque,
a monastic cheese
Culinary Historians of New York

Helping us understand the quasi-immortal place of cheese in Western civilization is Dr. Paul Kindstedt, professor of food science in the Department of Nutrition and Food Sciences and codirector of the Vermont Institute of Artisan Cheese, both at the University of Vermont. In the spring his book, Cheese and Culture: A History of Cheese and Its Place in Western Civilization, came out with Chelsea Green Publishing. On a recent book tour, he gave a talk to the Culinary Historians of New York, a group for which I am on the program committee. Over the course of a mere hour, Dr. Kindstedt outlined cheese’s 9,000 years of nourishing the West.


Dr. Kindstedt's book, Cheese and Culture, for sale
Culinary Historians of New York

Acknowledging that it’s impossible to cover that expanse of time in a brief talk, Dr. Kindstedt touched on three themes in the story of fermented dairying: human spirituality, global climate change, and environmental degradation.

A schmear of rich and buttery Fromager D’Affinois on a baguette may feel like a divine experience, but Dr. Kindstedt was talking about something more profound vis a vis cheese’s relationship with spirituality. Taking us to the farthest reaches of cheese’s history, to ancient Sumer, Dr. Kindstedt linked the rise of agriculture with the simultaneous awareness of human spirituality. Central to the pantheon of gods in Uruk, a centrally administered Sumerian city, was Inanna, the predecessor of Aphrodite. According to the Uruk’s mythology, Inanna married a mortal shepherd, Dumuzi, because he could promise her limitless dairy products. From then on, to propitiate Innana and thereby protect the kingdom’s prosperity, Uruk’s temple elite offered her cheese and butter daily. To keep track of the offerings, writing was developed for the purpose of recordkeeping, a prototype of cuneiform. Cheese may not be the direct source of the invention of writing, but it was there at the very beginning.

Coeur a la Crème, made with fromage blanc,
one of the earliest cheese types
Culinary Historians of New York

We may currently be in an age of massive climatic change, but it’s nothing like the 13F rise in temperature 11,000 years ago that allowed agriculture and cheesemaking to occur. Within this time period, however, around 4,000 B.C.E., there was a minor fluctuation in temperature that caused tremendous change in Europe: colder winters and warmer, wetter summers that challenged long-established agricultural practices. A positive outcome of this upheaval was that trees grew more slowly in thickly forested Europe, allowing for neolithic farmers to clear their way inland, away from the river valleys and toward the mountains. This change in climate and habitat led to the tradition of transhumance, the leading of animals up into the mountains during the summer to eat the lush grasses that are inaccessible in winter. From this, hard Alpine cheeses came into being, which we still enjoy today (e.g., Scharfer Maxx, Gruyere, Emmental, Comte, Beaufort, etc.).


A timeline of cheese's history
Culinary Historians of New York

Climatic changes and population growth can also lead to environmental degradation. The famous cheeses of Holland (e.g., Gouda and Edam) are the product of this. The Dutch, almost a thousand years ago, reclaimed soggy land from the sea to create agricultural land. This innovative feat was undermined by a rise in sea levels, around 1300 C.E., which caused saltwater to flood the fields and make them unsuitable for agriculture. Another innovation, dykes, salvaged the fields, but they were still too wet to grow grains. They were suitable, however, to support dairying, and thus began, albeit late in human history, Holland’s esteemed position in dairying which resulted in the tremendous and influential wealth of this postage stamp-sized country.



Unfortunately, the threat of environmental degradation still affects cheese today. For instance, due to global warming, many varieties of grasses and wildflowers are no longer growing in the Alps, or new ones have been introduced, which negatively affect the flavor profile of those well-established mountain cheeses. Beyond the realm of flavor is the economic insecurity of developing countries like Mongolia, where climatic changes have reduced the traditional ability to dairy. On a positive note, a new spirituality has arisen around cheese, especially in the U.S. for the past thirty years, that celebrates stewardship of the land. Keeping land in small-scale agriculture can direct us to a more positive, sustainable future.
Eat cheese and enjoy history.

Diana Pittet, the curious cheesemonger

Heligan Gardens in Cornwall

 Heligan Gardens in Cornwall has a very different story to Biddulph – the garden visited in my last post.
Known as “The Lost Gardens of Heligan” as the garden was quite literally ‘lost’ for decades, Heligan is today most definitely found. The most visited garden in Britain (yes, even more than Sissinghurst!) Heligan is an exquisite example of a working Victorian estate and a very unusual story.


Created with Admarket's flickrSLiDR.

At the turn of the 20th century, Heligan was in its heyday – a fully sustainable estate with farms, quarries, sawmill, flourmill, brickyard, brewery and orchards. The Tremayne family had been on the property for over 400 years and the estate had flourished under their stewardship. They were closely involved through marriage with the Victorian plant collectors and had a long tradition of growing new and unusual plants. In the 1800’s, Heligan became a hothouse of experimental growing as many new plants on their arrival into the UK, were sent south to the temperate climes of Cornwall to be grown on under the watchful eye of the Tremaynes.


Espaliered Malus (Apples) in the Productive Garden

Even within this age of gardening excellence, Heligan was considered an estate of outstanding caliber. Their dedication to growing exotic species, their adoption of new agricultural inventions - Heligan had a fully functioning manure heated Pineapple Pit - their outstanding collections and commitment to fine gardening - Mrs. Tremayne’s perennial borders in the Sun Dial Garden were considered the finest in the country – all earned Heligan a formidable horticultural reputation.

Sadly, this all came to an end with WWI. Young men and farm laborers responded to the call for duty and left for the trenches of France. Few returned. With a skeleton work force, the Tremaynes could no longer afford to keep the Heligan running. By WWII, Americans were occupying the house readying for the Normandy evasion and by the 1970’s, the house was sold. Throughout this time, the gardens remained completely untouched – a Victorian time capsule smothered by briars, vines and weeds.


Ranunculus ready for picking in the Flower Garden

Salvation came in the form of a severe storm and a simple morning walk. Fallen trees and storm damage exposed long forgotten and hidden rhododendrons. The latest beneficiary of the estate and a Dutch music producer, who had recently moved to the area, were assessing the damage the morning after the storm. They discovered the trees and so began the largest garden restoration project in Europe – ever.

Visiting Heligan in the Cornish spring is a thrill. The Rhododendrons are dripping with blooms, if you’re lucky and it’s a good day – my visit wasn’t – you’ll get spectacular views from the Northern Summerhouse across to the coast of Devon. You see the fully working Victorian Kitchen garden and eat the produce at the restaurant. You’ll see the famous perennial borders once again in full bloom and if you venture down across the meadow and into the gully to The Jungle you’ll discover a tropical Eden where towering tree ferns and Chusan palms jostle for space amongst the rhododendrons, banana trees, canna lilies and gingers.

Gardeners Notes for May

Sickles on The Road is going to England in 2014 to visit some of the countries finest gardens. Send me an email kdougherty@sicklesmarket.com to receive the latest tour updates!

~ Kirsty Dougherty

Biddulph Grange and Heligan Gardens – Two British Victorian Gardens

A rainy afternoon yesterday created the perfect atmosphere for some armchair garden travel with the Hazlet Garden Club.

Julie Dickerson and I were in Hazlet to give a presentation on British Victorian Gardens. An era of gardening characterized by remarkable invention and one many describe  as  the ‘golden age of gardening ‘

Our armchair tour saw the group visit Biddulph Grange in the Midlands and Heligan Gardens in Cornwall. These are two of my favorite British gardens – quintessentially British and Victorian in their ingenuity, gracefulness, elaborate plantings, and immaculate maintenance.  The Brits have a great sense of fun and are unafraid to let it show in their gardens. Both Biddulph and Heligan’s quirky surprises makes visiting these garden pure delight!

Kirsty's photos from Biddulph Grange:


Created with Admarket's flickrSLiDR.

Biddulph Grange, at only 15 acres, is a powerhouse of Victorian Mixed Style.This popular style, showcasing buildings and plants from around the world, reflects the success of plant collectors who bought home new and exotic plants from far flung corners of the expanding British Empire.

Italian Garden steps leading away from the house

Visiting Biddulph is a graphic reminded of how far these plant hunters travelled in the quest for new garden species. There’s an Egyptian Garden – complete with sphinx, a formal Italian Garden, a Rhododendron Walk bursting with color in May from plants which were at the time, new arrivals from the Himalayas. An American Garden with a stunning avenue of Giant Redwoods (Wellingtonias) , huge Monkey Puzzle trees (Araucarias) from Chile tower in the Pinetum amongst other global conifers and gorgeous cut leaf maples shine in the spectacular  Chinese Garden which features an imitation of the Great Wall.  It is an extraordinary accomplishment and one of Britain’s more exciting gardens. A ‘not to be missed’ garden destination in the English Midlands! Take a look at their website to see more photos and visiting information. http://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/biddulph-grange-garden/   

The Egyptian Garden



The Chinese Garden

Check in next week for my post about Heligan Gardens!

Sickles on The Road is going to England in 2014 to visit some of the countries finest gardens. Send me an email  kdougherty@sicklesmarket.com  to receive the latest tour updates!

~Kirsty Dougherty 

Sickles On The Road: What we've been up to!

Sickles On the Road has been very busy of late. Back from a scouting trip to Sicily (before our October gourmet Tour), we were on the road again a few days later uncovering more homegrown gems. With our latest day trips mostly sold out, the pressure is on to find new and delicious local destinations!

Last weekend I went to Earthly Delights. Having only been living in the States for a couple of years, I love it when people tell me about unique events – and Bertha, a Sickles friend and previous employee, definitely tipped a winner with Earthly Delights.

Billed as NJ’s premier Garden and Antique show, this is one of the best horticultural events I have been too. Rare and unusual plant sellers such as Peace Tree Nursery, Linden Hill Garden, and Rare Find Nursery amongst others showcased the stunning diversity possible in our gardens. (Click here to find out more about Sickles Tropical Event with Peace Tree Farms!)

At Earthly Delights, beautiful plants are combined with fabulous antique and garden furnishings. Whatever your taste, there was something for you. The selection and quality was outstanding. I for one fell in love with John Dransfields’ exquisite outdoor furnishings. Ordinarily, such high quality vendors and rare plants would be enough, but at Earthly Delights, we are also treated to a speakers program of the caliber not usually associated at a country event. Dr Richard Lighty and Rick Darke, two of the most influential horticulturists in the North East if not the country, are charming men and their talks topped off a wonderful day for me.

Finally, a component of the day fundamental to the event’s success is its location. Situated on the property of Andrea Filippone, your event ticket gives you full access to the garden and home of this remarkable designer. A garden of exceptional texture, rusticity, strong structural design elements with a resident Dalmatian, I would travel to the show solely for this privilege - to walk and photograph one of the best private homes in NJ.

I felt indeed cultivated. Earthly Delights certainly lived up to its name. Keep an eye on our website for dates for our Earthly Delights 2013 Sickles bus trip or send me (kdougherty@sicklesmarket.com) your details to be included in our tour email list.

Yesterday, Tori Sickles and I were behind the wheel again, this time headed for Philadelphia. Lacroix Restaurant Manager Meredith Merlini invited us to lunch at the Rittenhouse Hotel. Our mission was to taste the new summer menu our group will be having next month. Tough assignment I know, but we’re troopers and dropped everything to accept this most generous invitation!

Having stayed there last year when I was leading a group of Australians on a garden tour, I was familiar with this spectacular hotel. In everyway, this hotel shines. Their diamond rated accommodation and service, the location overlooking leafy Rittenhouse Square, the exquisite interiors and of course, Lacroix Restaurant. With dark wood furnishings, gorgeous Asian style lanterns, interior garden elements that compliment the landscape outside and elevated views across the Square, we both felt this was a perfect lunch destination for our discerning customers.

Warmly welcomed and seated by a window, we were ready for the day’s most important task – eating! Choosing our appetizers, charmingly called ‘smaller plates’ was the first challenge. Everything was interesting. Torn by a choice of the carrot soup with sunflower seed and ricotta or a frisée salad with pork belly, asparagus, hedgehog mushrooms and cured egg yolk, Tori chose the latter. The pork belly was, she said the best she’d ever had. The cured egg yolks were the most surprising element of the dish and totally delicious. My Hamachi was heavenly. Wasabi tobiko (flying fish roe and wasabi) gave crunch and a little heat while the red beet ponzu was a perfect companion.

Larger plates were Yakutat Halibut with black garlic and crushed spring legumes for me and Diver Scallops with Peach, Haricot vert and saffron jus with dill for Tori. The halibut was cooked to perfection and I have fallen in love with black garlic. I have to ask John if he can get this in the produce department! Tori was equally enamored with her scallops. Both meals were light and refreshing, which was good news as we had room for dessert! Again, portions were perfect and our delightful waiter bought a selection of mini sweet treats for us to choose from. Tori opted for a peach apricot profiterole, while I selected a chocolate chip cheesecake. Again, every flavor and texture was perfect. A coffee each and we were ready to explore Rittenhouse Square.

Given our experience yesterday, our lunch at Lacroix Restaurant next month promises to be outstanding. The ingredients are excellent - high quality and seasonal and the dishes were interesting. For our July 7 trip, Meredith is organizing some special treats for Sickles - a behind the scenes hotel tour, visits to the kitchen to meet the chefs and entry into their very own Lacroix Chocolate Laboratory. I can’t wait!

~Kirsty Dougherty, Director of Sickles on the Road

STRAWBERRY BLOG

Well, it was all strawberries, all the time at my “Cooking Through the Seasons” Lunch Express Class: “Sweet Sumptuous Strawberries” at “Taste and Technique” in Fair Haven yesterday.  The room was filled with strawberry smiles as we dined on Old Fashioned Strawberry Shortcake, Strawberry Pie, Strawberries Romanoff and then finished the class with Chocolate Dipped Strawberries.  We had a wonderful, surprise guest appearance from Bob Sickles who helped us sample our strawberry offerings and later emailed me that he smiled all the way back to the market!  Strawberries can do that!

The food memory touchstone for me today was using my mom’s old Corningware pie plate to make my pie crust - my mother was a wonderful home baker (and the queen of pies) who inspired me at a very young age to love baking and the simple satisfaction of making people happy by what you create for them.  I think we did that today.

The next two classes in our “Cooking Through the Seasons” series will be “Green Gold - Fine Artisanal Olive Oils of Italy and California” on Thursday, June 21st, followed by “That’s One Tasty Tomato” on Wednesday, June 27th. Check sicklesmarket.com for further details and a complete listing of classes through December.  Spaces are limited.  You can register by phone, online or come visit me at Sickles, say hello and register in person.  Join the fun!

Chef Carol

Here’s my bonus recipe as promised:

STRAWBERRY SPARKLE

2 PINTS STRAWBERRIES (PREFERABLY LOCAL), SLICED IN HALVES

3 TBSP. GRANULATED SUGAR

TWO 8 OZ PKGS. CREAM CHEESE, SOFTENED

1/2 CUP CONFECTIONARY SUGAR

1/2 CUP MILK PLUS 1/4 TSP. ALMOND EXTRACT (IF DESIRED)

ANY TYPE OF LEFTOVER CAKE, MUFFINS OR COOKIES; BROKEN INTO BITE SIZE PIECES

SPRINKLE GRANULATED SUGAR OVER BERRIES AND SET ASIDE.  BEAT CONFECTIONARY SUGAR INTO CREAM CHEESE.  SLOWLY ADD THE MILK AND EXTRACT IF USING, AND BEAT UNTIL LIGHT AND FLUFFY.  LAYER THE (CAKE, MUFFIN OR COOKIE BITES), BERRIES AND CREAM INTO FANCY, INDIVIDUAL DESSERT DISHES OR USE A STRAIGHT SIDED TRIFLE DISH TO MAKE ONE LARGE DESSERT.  SERVES 6-8.

Notes:  You can substitute any berries for the strawberries if you like.  This is a great way to use up leftover baked goods.

The Merry Band of Travelers

Pat Dumas
Garden Blog
June 4, 2012
 

Remember when we didn’t have to pay taxes?  That time we had maids, butlers, and servants galore?  Ah, yes. That was a time.  A time for big money, no responsibilities and a chance to do whatever you wanted.   Remember that?

If you do, or if more likely you say “not in my lifetime”, and want to explore the opulence, there’s no place like Longwood Gardens in Kennet Square, Pennsylvania where myself and a little group of travelers, under the expert guidance of Sickles tour guide Kirsty Dougherty took a day trip in April.  Part of the new tour program -- Sickles On the Road -- that Sickles has rolled out this year, Longwood Gardens is a trip to savor in the heart as well as the palate.  Sickles Market staff rolls out the red carpet on the bus with breakfast, wine, snacks, good talk and hearty companionship.  

The site of Longwood Gardens has a long history.  We closed our eyes and traveled  back in time with a bit of a hush --- this opulent living won’t happen again; but, we can learn from the rich and famous.  This is where our visit took us.

On our way, we traveled through small towns with little houses in the Brandywine Valley that lead to the manor.  I think to myself these were the small houses of the help. They were the masons, gardeners, pantry workers and chefs.  Out of the small town, the open land seems to beckon lovers of trees and peace.

In 1798, the first owners of the land on which the Longwood estate  stands, planted their version of an arboretum which heartily welcomed the public from the very start. The Pierce brothers were known to have the finest arboretum in North America by 1850.

Our story gets more involved, as it was the dawn of the industrial revolution and land owners with a love of nature, trees and plants were in the minority.

In comes one very industrious capitalist: a lover of nature named Pierre DuPont.  He bought the land from the Pierce brothers to keep the trees from being farmed for lumber.  It became his obsession for the rest of his life, and the grounds of Longwood are now a mecca for all who love the things that are preserved: acres of land, trees, flowers, greenhouses and homes. 

Pierre DuPont (founder of Dupont Chemical)  made millions bringing smokeless gunpowder to the United States and producing it here in the Brandywine Valley.  Master of war as he was, he also had a passion for all things growing on his land, and left a legacy of power, money, pollution and guns as well as one of redemption in his trees, plants and flowers. 

 We are thankful for his good conscience. After his death, he left part of his wealth to the Longwood Foundation which provides for upkeep of the estate, cultural events, and one of the finest horticultural research centers in the world. Over the last 30 years, over 5,000 students have attended programs in horticulture at Longwood. A legacy indeed.  As the ever social-conscious Dupont stated in his will, the gardens were to always be open to the public and to be a place of educational endeavor. 

The jewel of the Longwood estate is the Conservatory.  A massive greenhouse, DuPont’s conservatory boasts a fabulous pipe organ and many ornate fountains. Lush orchids, tropicals and plants never seen in a lifetime wind in and out of fabulous themed decors.  There is even a children’s garden meticulously conceived for children as well as the young at heart.    

The grounds are seasonally themed with long walkways with fields of flowers and trees. Water features that defy engineering in the 19^th century are everywhere.  It’s impossible to understand the way they worked without electricity.

Dupont loved to see his flowers in a natural state, and much of the grounds boast an easy, natural look with masses of flowers, vines, and trees in a natural setting.  A grand tree house stands out as miraculous. Not only for the young, this tree house is heavily draped by wisteria, old age, and a good dose of old fashioned whimsy. 

Relaxed meandering through Longwood Gardens is a delight.  Free time, and lunch under the trees at the fabulous cafeteria capped our day off.  On the way home, a movie on the bus was followed with a good white wine and tired merriment.

Would we like to live in this time again? Most of us might say maybe. I say too much free time and idle hands!  But, if you like to learn about things past, present and future with a healthy dose of fun, wine and education, one of Sickles’ tours will feed your desire for a laid back adventure.