Original house built in mid 1800s.  There have been changes in it's lifetime.  I have been told that the land was part of an Indian Reservation but I'm not sure about that.  A front porch that wraps around was added at some point in time and in the 1930s an addition was put on in the back.  The area around the house has been developed and the road has gone from a little travel one to a four lane.

This is a more recent picture but changes have been made in the landscape until it looks different.

Side yard near drive.   Peonies &  Liriope. 

 

 

 

 

Wonderful place to sit and relax and enjoy the results of gardening.

Back Yard and more peonies. 

Just a glimpse of no longer blooming Iris and the buds on my roadside lilies.  If you look closely you may discern a pink rose that was a Mother's day present from my youngest son right after I moved to the hill about six years ago.

Yesterday I went home from work, took the weed whacker up on the hill and tried to reclaim some of the area behind the Wash House.  I have sage grass that is simply horrid.  It has made gigantic mounds and I'm beginning to think it may win the battle with my weed trimmer. Heavy duty equipment and lots of determination may not be enough to beat it down.  

The garden is finally coming together.  Gotta add more mulch then we start work on the patio/sitting area in front of the "Wash House".  Have big plans for this little house.  I'm just not sure where I'm gonna find the time to get it all done.

One of the great things about gardening is that you can forget all the other things when you are "digging in the dirt".  

The Egyptian Walking onions are really doing well.   I don't have a picture but I've created a bed for them and hopefully they will provide me with a supply of green onions a little later this year.  I have no idea where my mother got her "start", but mine original ones came from her (Mom has been gone for twenty years) collection.  If you have never eaten these they are spicy.  You can simply snip them or pull them when they are small. Look them up if you are not familiar with them.

Hydrangeas, Iris, Peonies

Side yard.  Iris are in full bloom and the peonies have set buds.  Hydrangeas are slow to start but there are there.

 

The sunroom resembles a greenhouse.  The two split-leaf philodendrons are trying to take over.  The ferns and spider plants are doing fantastic.  In fact, all the plants love the environment, including the orchids that I have.  These have been in bloom since before mid-March and are still beautiful.

Global Warming, Kat, & Racoon

The temperature is sixty-seven degrees.  Sure seems more like spring than late February. Tomorrow the high is only suppose to be around forty-eight.  This afternoon and tonight they forecast rain and cooler temps and possible tornadoes.  Just never know what Mother Nature is gonna throw at us.

I have crocus bloomed and jonquils are several inches high, a miniature rose bush that had buds on it over a month ago.  Global Warming?  Don't subscribe to that theory at all.  The one thing I do know for sure is that I'm going to be mowing, trimming and pulling weeds very soon.

  I would like to introduce my newest friend, Kat, who seems to have adopted my place as her new home.  I know she looks like she had a rough night and maybe she did.  Wonder if I can teach her to pull weeds.  We found her outside one morning looking a bit hungry so we gave her food and she stayed. 

A couple of evenings later I heard a noise outside and when I looked out the window this is what was eating the cat's food.

Not only is he the biggest raccoon I have ever seen he is most brazen.  Turning on the outside lights made no difference to him.  The flash from the camera made him turn his back but a few minutes later he stood up, put his little front paws on an outside chair and looked back at my daughter as she stood in the window.  He was back the next evening and when he found no food he waddled around to the front porch and climbed the steps.  He was quite comical, I must say.  He has not been around lately which is fine.  Cute but not a creature I  would care to do battle with.

Blooming Orchids

My orchids are blooming!!   This one has 3 or 4 other buds and the one in the foreground will be somewhat of a

chartreuse colour when it finally opens.  

Last year they set buds but when I moved them to a different location they all fell off .  This time I've left them in the sun room.  I did not realize it took such a long time for them too open but they are well worth the wait.

It's been a long time

It's been a long time since my last post and lots of things have happened.  Spring is not just around the corner for us but the winter has been very mild so far this year.  I'll be back tomorrow with some pictures and comments, I hope.

Yellow Iris are Blooming

It was chilly out on the Hill this morning but we did not have frost. A couple of people in the office said that they had to scrap ice from windshields. Last weekend I had a load of landscape gravel delivered and, with some helping hands I have begun to create a drystream bed. We got this much of it done when the heavens opened up and rain came down in buckets. Hopefully will get back out there by Friday.

This bed of Iris was here when I arrived. It had some type of tree growing in the center along with a thicket of blackberry briers around and in it. The tree we took down and the briers I have tried to remove. One thing I have found is that deer do not care for Iris or Jonquils.
Standing on the walk that leads to the Wash House and looking up gives one the idea of just how steep my Hill really is. The bed of Iris that is faintly visible in the upper left corner is the one in the picture above.