Pennsylvania Herbal Road Trip Came to An End with More Herbs and A Sweet Remembrances Afternoon Tea!

So as I talked about the first day, we did start day three of our herbal adventure at the Herbal Springs Farmstead at Ephrata.  We were both lamenting the fact that there were more herbs to purchase there that were calling our names!  So we stopped by and met Rhoda's son, Dave because Rhoda was helping her daughter who was moving paint the new place!  We will see you again Rhoda!

Then we thought about going to the Landis Valley Village & Farm Museum to see their gardens and our friend, Shelley, after we came back said that is one place we need to go to next time!  So one of the stops on the Rosemary House bus trip was to Cloverleaf Herb Farm in Mt. Joy.  Kathy and John Musser (newly retired to the business) own and operate Cloverleaf in their backyard.  I was impressed with the neat and orderly appearance of every bed.  She has a lovely gift shop and even though it was later in the season, she still had interesting varieties of herbs and old-fashioned flowers.  One of the big events they attend every year in early May is the Herb & Garden Faire at Landis Valley Museum in Lancaster, PA.  Bonnie, we may have to do this next year.  I remember going to one early on and thought it was great.  They have approximately 80 vendors now and I bet it is not to be missed!

Entrance to the Gift Shop and Herbs and Flowers Under the Pergola!

Lots of Herbal Goodies in the Gift Shop!

A Lovely Knot Garden

The Thyme Bed Was Fabulous!

Kathy and John Musser Enjoying Their Lives!

Then one of the main reasons to go to central Pennsylvania was so we could stop and see the Reppert sisters at Rosemary House and have afternoon tea with Nancy at Sweet Remembrances.  Bonnie and I enjoy going to both places have been there many times and always enjoy our visits.

Lovely Herbs and Flowers to Walk Through and Stop to Enjoy!

A Whimsical Arbor of Broken Teapots!

A Remembrance Plaque for The Repperts!

Bonnie and I Getting Ready for Our Tea!

Old Country Roses Pattern

My First Pot from the Bottomless Tea Collection Was Assam!

A Summer Berry Salad Dressed with a Raspberry Vinaigrette!

The Sandwiches Were Egg Salad, Chicken Salad, Olive and Cream Cheese and A Zucchini Muffin with Relish!

Cream Scones Warm Out of the Oven (Oh, Boy!) and a Selection of Fruit!

Dessert Was Raspberry Cheesecake, Coconut Cake with Lemon Curd and Mexican Wedding Cakes!

I always enjoy taking a stroll through Rosemary House's herb and flower garden.  So full of life and charm.  Miss the birdhouse wall on the garage in the back of the property.  They had to replace the siding with vinyl and David said no more nails!  I love that they remember their parents with a plaque and I always stop to say a little prayer for both of them.  I was lucky to meet Bertha and Byron and have learned so much from Bertha and I am still learning.  Byron was a favorite on the bus trips because he always had such corny wonderful jokes and was a diehard Penn State fan.  I got a big bag of my favorite chai, Rosemary's chai and another favorite, Roastmary!  So glad that Susanna and David are carrying on with Rosemary House and Nancy has Sweet Remembrances.

So let's talk about Nancy's fabulous teas.  She does a SereniTea every Wednesday and the first Saturday of the month for any number of people by reservation between 11AM and 2 PM.  She also does fabulous themed teas to coincide with the Rosemary House schedule of events.   I call Nancy, "She who plays with her food"!  She does it so well.  She always starts with a lovely salad of seasonal fruit and greens with a delicious dressing.  Then comes the first of many pots of tea if you like.  I had three different flavors!  Then comes the tea tray and Nancy comes to go over the selections she has made for the day.  BTW, she always asks about food preferences when you make your reservation so you are sure to have just the food you can eat.  Bonnie's and my favorite part is that the scones come out of the oven warm and are so flaky and light!  I caught Bonnie picking up the flakes of the scones with her fingers so she wouldn't miss anything!  We never go away hungry from Sweet Remembrances.  In fact this time we both took dessert home.  The Herbal Husband enjoyed mine immensely!  I don't think Bonnie shared!  We are already trying to find a way to get back for another tea and maybe a class at Rosemary House in the fall.

We are really icky and sticky here in the 'Burgh!  The temperature is in the high 80's but feels like 90's!  So I hope you have enjoyed this latest PA/NJ herbal road trip.  Will get back to some herb garden news or maybe a post about my latest English trip.  Stay tuned.  Hope you had a great day!  Talk to you tomorrow!