tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6049626897935912366.post6494529625224722921..comments2024-03-28T15:00:12.581-04:00Comments on Letters from a Hill Farm: A different way of gardeningNanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15547916206007733970noreply@blogger.comBlogger28125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6049626897935912366.post-75372691651380998082021-08-05T19:45:59.508-04:002021-08-05T19:45:59.508-04:00I wonder if mowed paths might work. To me, you are...I wonder if mowed paths might work. To me, you are wonder woman with all the work you do (and your husband!).Nanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15547916206007733970noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6049626897935912366.post-1024416868235501542021-08-05T19:43:07.585-04:002021-08-05T19:43:07.585-04:00I bet there is a great variety available in Florid...I bet there is a great variety available in Florida! I'll be interested in what you choose, and how it looks when you make the garden.Nanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15547916206007733970noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6049626897935912366.post-34430448014013825812021-08-05T12:12:23.274-04:002021-08-05T12:12:23.274-04:00Many of the wildflowers native to New England also...Many of the wildflowers native to New England also grow here in Kentucky along with some that enjoy the milder winters. We've learned in our 11 years in KY that lawns/yards and verges must be kept mowed to combat ticks, chiggers and snakes. I've been slowly creating areas for native flowers: several varieties of coneflowers, wild asters, monarda, prairie sage, along with some purchased achilleas. One of my triumphs from seed is blackberry lilies. Finding the balance between stamina to tend the gardens and the joy of them becomes more of an issue with the years.<br />Times of unrest that threaten our children and grandchildren tear at our hearts; often so little we can do but stand by and pick up the pieces.Morning's Minionhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01912356455981434029noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6049626897935912366.post-86433352168976520162021-08-05T11:59:35.689-04:002021-08-05T11:59:35.689-04:00What a lovely post! I am awaiting a book from the...What a lovely post! I am awaiting a book from the library to help me find plants to attract birds and butterflies. The heat in north Florida is so intense that I can't copy an English garden design. Oh how I loved the red poppy gardens I'd see when we traveled there.Tinahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08553212447308502910noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6049626897935912366.post-75402810118845665432021-08-04T13:11:45.837-04:002021-08-04T13:11:45.837-04:00Thank you for telling me all this!!!! Wolves. So m...Thank you for telling me all this!!!! Wolves. So many people long for them to be back. And some think they have seen them. I don't know if they mate with coyotes or not. I should do some research. I'm happy we don't, so far, have skunks. We had them years ago. I wonder where they went. No raccoons either. Smart deer. Every year I say a little prayer when I see "our" deer after the season ends. In fact, that was in my first blog entry back in 2006 before hunting began.Nanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15547916206007733970noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6049626897935912366.post-76225402714509940582021-08-04T12:52:09.300-04:002021-08-04T12:52:09.300-04:00As I wrote above to my friend Les, a quote I heard...As I wrote above to my friend Les, a quote I heard on The Cafe - Weeds are flowers whose virtues have never been discovered! In the past couple years I have come to love what I'm sure most people think of as a weed called Lady's Bedstraw. Nanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15547916206007733970noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6049626897935912366.post-42959388649180838192021-08-04T01:08:13.393-04:002021-08-04T01:08:13.393-04:00The descriptions of your garden remind me of Eliza...The descriptions of your garden remind me of Elizabeth Goudge, an author I am sure you have read! Unfortunately, mine has been quite neglected this summer and the weeds have taken over. Next year I think I need a professional to do a spring cleanup and pruning for me.CLMhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03595294217111602231noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6049626897935912366.post-91235687476999282352021-08-03T08:22:20.206-04:002021-08-03T08:22:20.206-04:00I love that you have so many different wild animal...I love that you have so many different wild animals coming in close to your home. We are in a suburb of St. Louis where no one lets their grass grow longer than a week. But in the past five years or so we are getting all kinds of animals that were never around here before. I've been seeing foxes around, and one time heard one doing some sort of strange call that sounded like a baby crying, all along a sort of creek drainage area behind a line of trees just a about 1/2 block from my front porch. The sound moved all along the drainage area until it finally stopped. It was about 4:30 in the morning. At first I thought someone was carrying a crying baby, but I realized that didn't make any sense at that time of morning, and as it got closer it didn't sound exactly like a baby. I googled the sound and I discovered it was a certain call that female foxes make sometimes. We have a lot of possums, raccoons, occasionally a deer, and skunks (unfortunately). I am sure there are coyotes, I have seen them in other nearby neighborhoods. I think one time I saw 3 wolves about 1/4 mile from our house. They were in a very wooded area of an office park at the edge of the road. I thought they were coyotes at first, but as I looked closer, I noticed that they weren't moving in a slinky manner and they were much larger than the coyotes that I have seen and their legs were heavier boned than the coyotes which have a little bit more spindly legs. My theory is that the wildlife follows the railway right of ways which go directly through the Missouri River bottoms up to an area near our subdivision, though we live about 20 minutes from the Missouri river by highway. We get the occasional deer around here during hunting season. I think they are hiding from hunters by coming into the neighborhoods where people aren't hunting them.<br /><br />People are seeing occasional bears here in the St Louis area in some of the subdivisions that are not near mine. I might get a little scared if I was outside and a bear showed up, just because I haven't any real experience with how they act.susie @ persimmon moon cottagehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01653330247272673990noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6049626897935912366.post-65251370012006015382021-08-02T17:18:17.859-04:002021-08-02T17:18:17.859-04:00Thank you. We were lucky when we bought our place....Thank you. We were lucky when we bought our place. Prices were low then. I do have space and "good sense" but the energy comes and goes. haha. I've also got a bad knee from a car accident 58 years ago (yesterday as a matter of fact), and it is hard to get down to do much on the ground gardening but luckily once things are planted, it is mostly standing up! Hope you are having a blast on your trip!Nanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15547916206007733970noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6049626897935912366.post-67830824156820608402021-08-02T14:21:48.738-04:002021-08-02T14:21:48.738-04:00This really sounds wonderful, Nan. You are so bles...This really sounds wonderful, Nan. You are so blessed to have the space, the energy, and the good sense to approach your gardening and land management this way. The animals must really love it.Sam https://www.blogger.com/profile/17448913705757509608noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6049626897935912366.post-23866925335947817392021-08-01T19:33:14.461-04:002021-08-01T19:33:14.461-04:00Thank you! I love it that you are leaving some wee...Thank you! I love it that you are leaving some weeds. I just heard on an older English TV show, The Cafe, "Weeds are flowers whose virtues have never been discovered". Great, huh!<br />And Blogger did it all by its little self. Actually, I tried another picture, and it was bigger but not right, so I tried this one, and voila! Thanks for noticing.Nanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15547916206007733970noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6049626897935912366.post-40742601036089921572021-08-01T14:51:09.460-04:002021-08-01T14:51:09.460-04:00I love this post! I can just picture all the beaut...I love this post! I can just picture all the beautiful plants and the happy buzzing bees! We have an area next to and behind the garage that is need of weeding, but I look at some of those weeds and think they're rather pretty and the bees like them, so I'll wait until later in the year to pull them out.<br /><br />I'm also very happy to see that your header fills the entire page! Did you follow my directions or has Blogger fixed the problem? I'm afraid to change mine!Les in Oregonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15053880852764886416noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6049626897935912366.post-30856778877058304092021-08-01T12:58:38.203-04:002021-08-01T12:58:38.203-04:00I sure love it! Miss seeing your garden.I sure love it! Miss seeing your garden.Nanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15547916206007733970noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6049626897935912366.post-50744747140323199222021-08-01T12:54:12.720-04:002021-08-01T12:54:12.720-04:00That is terrific about the wildflower meadows. I w...That is terrific about the wildflower meadows. I wish that happened on the big farms in this country.<br />I like all your animal visitors except weasels and rats. I hate to even write the words. hahaNanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15547916206007733970noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6049626897935912366.post-5821452276407935472021-08-01T12:52:50.926-04:002021-08-01T12:52:50.926-04:00The pictures I have seen look like it is paradise....The pictures I have seen look like it is paradise. So, so beautiful.Nanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15547916206007733970noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6049626897935912366.post-75649764002684008522021-08-01T12:26:27.312-04:002021-08-01T12:26:27.312-04:00I love those "winding pathways". The fir...I love those "winding pathways". The first time I ever saw one was an older lady's garden over 40 years ago. She was ahead of her time. <br />What a nice memory that is. I know scythes are not easy to use, but they make such a nice sound and I love the look afterward.Nanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15547916206007733970noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6049626897935912366.post-59283417939382094242021-08-01T12:18:20.146-04:002021-08-01T12:18:20.146-04:00This is great. This is great. Lisa at Greenbowhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09310556337842514199noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6049626897935912366.post-90331244230913303212021-08-01T05:25:31.730-04:002021-08-01T05:25:31.730-04:00As I live in a town or city of just under 100,000 ...As I live in a town or city of just under 100,000 inhabitants, wildlife here differs somewhat from yours - but there is still a surprisingly lot of it. We get foxes and hares, rabbits and weasels, red squirrels and of course rats, moles and mice, birds and bees and butterflies and so on.<br />Some years ago, a new regulation was passed that prescribes farmers to dedicate a certain proportion of their land to wildflower meadows, usually in the shape of narrow strips along their large fields. Not only does that look really pretty, it also helps with biodiversity.<br />I am looking forward to the pictures you meant to go with this post!Librarianhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05704656564078750607noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6049626897935912366.post-73467811566682503582021-08-01T02:40:53.665-04:002021-08-01T02:40:53.665-04:00I think we’re kindred spirits! I do the same. My g...I think we’re kindred spirits! I do the same. My garden in Shropshire is gradually gaining in wildflowers while the mowing is becoming more and more selective. Diversity is everything x Deb (herbalgirl on Instagram)Herbalgirlhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03127478318407455605noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6049626897935912366.post-14409324044478522332021-08-01T02:33:56.712-04:002021-08-01T02:33:56.712-04:00It's wonderful to read this. I've seen a f...It's wonderful to read this. I've seen a few gardens where the habit of not mowing in May has spilled over into June and July, with just winding pathways cut through lawns. I remember when I was young seeing a garden that was full of wild flowers, my father explained that the man who lived there cut it once a year for hay - with a scythe.John "By Stargoose And Hanglands"https://www.blogger.com/profile/00832873074550725579noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6049626897935912366.post-91488850788002529102021-07-31T19:48:57.629-04:002021-07-31T19:48:57.629-04:00It is less work without mowing and weeding too muc...It is less work without mowing and weeding too much. Hahaha.<br />Thank you.Nanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15547916206007733970noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6049626897935912366.post-52047620856814342262021-07-31T19:47:55.287-04:002021-07-31T19:47:55.287-04:00Thank you.
The bear wouldn't be hungry for you...Thank you.<br />The bear wouldn't be hungry for you! haha. Black bears hardly ever attack. They are mostly in the woods. I think you might have seen the igram pic of it on our porch? Anyhow, I am going to put it up in another post. Nanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15547916206007733970noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6049626897935912366.post-86601213166692535542021-07-31T19:46:15.928-04:002021-07-31T19:46:15.928-04:00Yes, there are loads of others. I just don't k...Yes, there are loads of others. I just don't know their names. Happy to be feeding them, though.Nanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15547916206007733970noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6049626897935912366.post-74988262697566501952021-07-31T19:45:38.223-04:002021-07-31T19:45:38.223-04:00Yes, the wild is white. It grows all over the plac...Yes, the wild is white. It grows all over the place. The stuff we bought is yellow, and red. <br />And thank you for your words, as always.Nanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15547916206007733970noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6049626897935912366.post-72600318954741482602021-07-31T19:17:47.695-04:002021-07-31T19:17:47.695-04:00I love your description of your lawns and how they...I love your description of your lawns and how they are full of wildflowers now. It all sounds so beautiful. And the wild life visiting too. I would love to see pictures when you have the time. I am enjoying gardening this year, but our "yard" is about 1/1000th the size of yours and is still a lot of work for me. TracyKhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08303342674824383688noreply@blogger.com