Plant geek: coneflowers for days!

 When we first bought our house, the landscaping was virtually a blank slate. We were lucky enough to have established trees, but the rest of the place was taken back to almost nothing because of the reported overgrowth of the yard when the renovation started. We tackled the chance to plan what we would plant in the existing beds and where we might install additional flower beds.

One idea I really valued was incorporating plants native to Kansas. This ideas was part sentimental and mostly practical. I grew up in the country and we rarely watered our flowers and plants, let alone our lawn. If you were plant, in order to survive, you needed to be hardy.

I carried that same philosophy forward. We have little time to water plants frequently and it seems like a waste of money to constantly water.

I had this dream of planting the native flowers and Jeremy really wanted something that would add some color to the south side of the driveway. The answer - a mix of native plants that have morphed over the years. Remember, only the strong survive. More accurately, only the plants that were planted in a place with the right amount of sunlight and moisture survived. Gardener's error or luck plays a large part in the failure (or success) of anything we have done.

 The coneflowers this year have been spectacular! I am not sure we have had blooms in this deep purple color.

 A perk of these native plants is their ability to attract insects and birds. We usually have bees and butterflies surrounding this bed. On day last fall, I saw a small bird picking the seeds of out the center of blooms.

This summer, we have been overrun with iridescent insects. They are strangely beautiful and also unnerving because they like to dive bomb you when walking through the yard.

Other than the occasional weeding and thinning out of the beds, these native plants are low maintenance and offer a lot of beauty.

Thanksgiving day delivery

Thanksgiving Day was a really low key affair this year. It was a simple meal and a small crowd, but still really special.

My dad brought a box of vintage finds from an auction he attended. Inside the box was a seed sack with GREAT color and a really cool imprint. He had a couple of rolling pins and some other kitchen items. Tucked in the box, there were several hard to find Mason jars, including the light purple jar in the photo.

Keep or sell? The struggle is real!

We also made a few yardstick stars from some pieces leftover from an earlier project.

The sweet little basket in the photo is an insert from a picnic basket that has seen better days.  The basket it toast! But, we salvaged the insert and the lid. The lid may make a good sign base? I think the basket, even with a hole in the side, can still be used for a display.

We are feeling thankful for the chance to bond over vintage finds and to create stuff together. We are lucky!

I heart old barns

I heart old barns...and old houses...and apparently old churches and school houses, too.

Many of you know that we have a passion for antique and vintage everything. Give us something that is rustic, rusty, patina-ed, and chipped and we'll consider it well loved and find it a place to be enjoyed.

We have made a very fun and successful small business out of connecting people with vintage and repurposed items. To further support our obsession, you should know that we live in an late 1800's limestone school house and we bought a historic church. And, I have been known to pull over to the side of the road to take a picture of an old place that has character. I love making up stories about the history and the people who lived in or used the space.

For this old barn, I don't need to make up much of the story. It used to stand on my grandparent's place. My dad owns the property now.

This old red barn always had a commanding presence in the farm yard and was used until the quonset was built.

This photo was taken on the weekend of my grandparent's sale. Even then, we knew that the barn's days were numbered.

And, it did fall down. My husband took this photo this summer. We didn't want to see the barn go to waste, so my dad and husband put some effort into salvaging some of the wood.

From the pile, they pulled some of the best boards and worked to get some of the flooring recovered.

A work in progress. We'll be back to try to recover some more.

And, the load for the trip home. This wood is now being repurposed into signs, benches and table tops.

For those of you who enjoy a beautiful, old building, here are a few images to enjoy.

 This is a lovely old barn that used to sit on Highway 24. I took this photo shortly before it fell down.

 This limestone barn was on Flush Road near our house. It was pushed over by the owners. I loved it in the background of the purple carpet of blooms. I think the purple blooms were actually weeds, but still really lovely. This photo was taken in early spring.

This might be one of my favorite photos...taken in Morris County near a camp where some of my student leaders held a retreat one spring. This is exactly the kind of place that I adore for the history and at the same time it haunts me. Why was it abandoned? Who lived there? How did they live?

Flint Hills Discovery Center

 Last week, I finally had the chance to spend some time at the Flint Hills Discovery Center.  The Center officially opened last spring and is part of a larger redevelopment project.

I was hosting a mini event for students one afternoon  this week and was really excited to finally check things out for myself.

The Center is really striking.  I loved the lobby and meeting spaces and the views were really spectacular.  We did get the chance to sit in on the 4-D movie which was nice.  The 4-D elements of the movie included smoke, wind, and bubbles that felt like snow.  I am in love with the prairie, so it was neat to see prairie presented as important and beautiful.

There were some amazing voices telling the story of the prairie throughout the movie.  A quote stayed with me, "...it is beautifully irrational to love a landscape." Love this.  It perfectly captures how I feel about the prairie.

The outdoor meeting space is well designed with an outdoor fireplace and some water features.  I could imagine having groups of all ages use this space and having a great time.

I am not a...5-star Horticulturalist

Sometimes, you just have to share something that makes you laugh, even if you don't know what to make of it!

My husband is really good at finding awesome things on Craigslist.  He's great about scanning the listings and discovering some item that we just have to add to our collection of collections.  And, every once in awhile, he will stumble on a particularly creative, funny or weird post.  I am not exactly sure how to classify this post, but it made me laugh!

Folks, how many times have you gazed forlornly at your sad and sorry roses and thought to yourself, "How I yearn for a few dried cow patties* to rouse and revive them!"?

Ah, well, your wishes CAN come true! 

 Yes, I have risked chiggers, heatstroke, and a vast array of spiders to provide you with a bag of all-natural cow manure. And this didn't come from just any old herd--these are special Gelbvieh/Limousin cows--loved and petted at Prairie Springs Cottage; why there is even a lovely one named Erma!

Munching on Flint Hills grass, drinking from spring-fed (soon-to-be-brackish) pond-water, and nibbling a bit of George Ebert's hay (Hey! We're in a drought if you haven't noticed!), these cows have ruminated and digested (and expelled) a perfect, pretty-much-organic, fertilizer just for you.

Despite barbwire tearing a hole in my shirt, a grasshopper thwacking my eye, and enduring the thrumming of hovering Chinooks, I am still willing to give you a tremendous bargain: $8.00 for a pillowcase-sized bag; cash only.

On second thought, all of you should get off your lazy duffs and get it yourselves--maybe you too would get to see one of these little endangered horny toads, become 'one' with nature, and have an all 'round great day...!

*disclaimer: I am not an Herbivorologist, a Poopologist, nor a 5-star Horticulturalist--I have no idea how much to put on roses--google it yourself, please.

Prairie history

If you love the prairie and you love history, you have to read The New York Times article by Tony Perrottet, Chasing a Prairie Tale.

Signs of spring

Spring is marked by a few important traditions in our home and in our area. One of the first things that happens in our house is the planning phase. In the dead of winter, seed catalogs begin to arrive and we start scheming.

March marks the beginning of the open houses at our favorite nursery and garden shops. This year, we had a bit of a false start with late cold weather and snow. But, this weekend meant it was time to plant!

On Saturday, we picked up rocks in the areas of our yard still bare from construction. We have been tilling and picking up rocks for weeks! Finally, we were in a good place to plant grass. In the afternoon, we decided to select the plants for flower beds and general landscaping around the house. Next weekend, we are set on getting vegetables in the garden.

This was our haul. Nearly four hours after pulling into the drive way, we finished with the planting. I will remember to stick to the list and not impulse shop for flowers - every plant geeks weakness. Impulse shopping equals a lot of extra work for a gardener.
This is the view outside my office window. I spend a lot of time at the office and this is one of our most intense times of the year. It is so relaxing to look out and see this beauty.
And, our neighbors are burning pasture. For the uninitiated, spring burning is a vital part of range management and strikingly beautiful at night. The hill behind our house has been on fire for the past few nights as different sections are covered in the controlled burn.

Spring is here!!!