In the Garden

Ah, figs … a wonderful way to welcome Indian Summer to the South. There was a time when everyone’s grandmother had a fig tree at the home place. I am lucky to live and work at Big Mill B&B – it is my home place. We have the old orchard, but the fig trees are… Read more

Our hummingbirds arrive at Big Mill B&B sometime around Easter – and it is with a flourish and a big show, chattering and demanding food.  And since we are a designated Bird and Breakfast Bird-Friendly Business, we willingly obliged. Guy’s outstanding photo, taken here at Big Mill B&B, earned him 1st place in the 2010 Beaufort County Arts… Read more

Did you know that bees are responsible for every third bite of food that we eat? Bees are fascinating little creatures and they are in trouble. The Great Sunflower Project was begun in 2008 by the biology department at San Francisco State University to study the wild bee population. In 2009, lots of us were… Read more

 Oh, there is absolutely nothing quite so tasty as that first homegrown tomato… … and a tomato sandwich is even better! There are many versions of this classic sandwich, but the down-home plain and simple sandwich made with white bread and Duke’s mayonnaise is the award winner. Chloe's Farmhouse Tomato Sandwich Oh, there is absolutely nothing quite so… Read more

Hurricanes bring out the spirit of hunkering down and staying put, so when Hurricane Hanna blew through eastern North Carolina, those of us here at Big Mill Bed and Breakfast hunkered down. After the wind stopped several of us wandered out to check out the damage. In the orchard we found bushels of pears lying… Read more

There is a difference between a sweet potato and a yam. They aren’t even related yet sweet potatoes are often mistakenly referred to as yams. Sweet potatoes are actually the root of a morning glory vine. A yam is the tuber of a vine grown in Central and South America. Yams are quite toxic if eaten raw… Read more

Growing up on the farm in North Carolina, we loved picking berries right off the bushes. We picked blueberries that we called huckleberries or blackberries that we called briar-berries. I only grew up in the summer – there are no fun stories about winter. My nephew Barney and I would get on our bicycles and… click to get Innkeeper Chloe Tuttle’s Southern Blueberry jam Recipe

To me, summers at Big Mill are about the night. The air is soft. Sitting in a wicker swing, for a few moments all is quiet. Then the sounds come. Bullfrogs show off with their throaty noises and then you can hear kaplop as they swim away. I am always amazed to see how big… Read more

All the flowers are popping out and the grass is green and growing fast. Time will move slowly if you just relax in the hammock or sit in the wicker swing that hangs from a pecan tree planted that my folks planted in 1922 I make  an annual pilgrimage to Virginia Beach in search of… Read more