It is 'Iris reticulata'
Gemini_Sage told me.
I have misplaced all my tags.
Tulips opening today.
Hopefully they will be fully opened tomorrow,
unless the Hail beat them down a little while ago.
We had tornado warnings here..Its over now I hope.
Very pretty!
My tulips in back are just barely open, but those in front that get only morning sun are still in tighter bud. Another day like this one and they'll all be blooming.
Hi, Sunfarm
Sunfish,do you have that quilt block on your barn? I have been wanting to paint one for Dad's barn. Does anyone have info on the trails across KY of the blocks?
I have been to busy to take many pics, but Spring is here! I have creeping phlox blooming in 3 colors, peonies are budding, daffs, redbuds and dogwoods are just beginning to open. Spring is my favorite time of year. The daylilies are up and florishing, hosta is peeking up and unfurling those fresh new leaves!
Hi Teresa,
Yes, I painted the quilt square over a year ago. It is on our equipment shed, visible only when you come up our driveway. It is not on the official Estill County Quilt Trail (which has about 50) because we are at the end of a dead end gravel road and don't want traffic except when we are selling Christmas trees. That's why I came up with the particular design. Look up quilt trails on Google using the county name to narrow it down. I know there are quite a few in Madison County. They are so pretty and so varied!
Living sustainably comes with learning to see the world in a new way.
I did not grow up in Kentucky (I am a Utah native), but moved to Lexington in 1965. In 1997 my husband and I went in with our daughter to buy a farm in Estill County. She had bought a veterinary practice in the county in 1994 and needed to move to a place closer to her work and big enough to accommodate her two horses. The farm had two houses, very close to each other, so it was an ideal setup for us. She took the newer house (built in the late '70s) and DH and I "camped out" in the original farm house which was built about 1847, when we came to the farm on weekends.
We moved to the farm from Lexington when I retired in 2004 and I am loving living in the country for the first time in my life. We have met descendants of the original farm's owners. In fact, I had known one of them for more than 25 years in connection with my work and did not know he was from Estill County. Amazingly, this was his uncle's place, so he has been able to tell me stories of his growing up in the area. Here's a picture that was taken about 1900.
We met the granddaughter of the woman with the umbrella when she and her husband just showed up one day. She was kind enough to share this and the picture from about 1945 which I will post next.
Living sustainably comes with learning to see the world in a new way.
This is one of several photos taken around WWII, but is the best showing the old house. Note that an open porch had been added. The original house (previous post) had two rooms over two rooms, with a kitchen wing at right angles at the back. By the time this photo was taken the wing was gone and there had been two rooms added to the main part of the house, the present kitchen and what we use as a den but may have been a dining room. Still no indoor plumbing!
Living sustainably comes with learning to see the world in a new way.
When we first saw the farm in 1996, the old cabin barely visible in the previous post had been replaced with a modern house, The front porch had been partially enclosed and screened. The old house had indoor plumbing by then, but no central heat.
Living sustainably comes with learning to see the world in a new way.
In preparation for moving we upgraded the bathroom added by the previous owner (on left in this picture) putting in a shower to make bathing more convenient even though we kept the clawfoot tub. We also upgraded the kitchen and took out the old Warm Morning stove that took up too much space and did a terrible job of heating any but the room where it was. The first winter we were here we added central heat, with ductwork mostly in the attic and ceiling registers for the downstairs rooms. The bathroom has a basement under it, which connects to the dug cellar under the original two rooms.
Living sustainably comes with learning to see the world in a new way.
The following year we replaced the roof (putting plenty of insulation under it) and repainted the exterior in a new paint scheme that I later found out was similar to what it had been 50 years before. Part of the old paint scheme was retained on the cooking porch added across the back of the house sometime before we bought the place.
Having broken my leg in 2004, I decided we also needed a main entrance at grade and some way to better insulate the exterior walls. The old porch was falling off, so in 2008 I designed and we built something that would replace it and wrap around the side of the house, making an insulated buffer for the bedroom and living room. I also wanted it big enough for DH's hammock. Here's how the house looks now. It is quite a change from the previousappearance, but since we used sandstone from the farm to match the basement foundation walls, I think the porch blends well with the old house (and certainly adds to its comfort).
Living sustainably comes with learning to see the world in a new way.
How beautiful! I love old houses, and grew up in one similar to yours. I love what you've done to it, the sandstone and roof color along with the trim work well together. Bet that house is happy to be looking so good again!
Here's the other end of the porch right after the sidewalk was poured for the new main entrance. We have since stained the concrete a walnut brown and backfilled it so it does not look so obviously new. The cooking porch door is at the right. The picture was taken from DD's porch.
Living sustainably comes with learning to see the world in a new way.
The sun shines bright in our old Kentucky homes! Show us your mountains, your lakes, your farms, your architecture. Tell us what you love about our state. There are threads within this forum for all of you. Come join with us as we celebrate Kentucky!