Karyn only if the Teenager will help in the garden lol And I take Jake (?) ...with his highs, he can do a lot of things around the house too...indoor painting is coming up and will you believe it...I am not done with the house outside yet either ha ha ha Glad everyone had fun. Just wait till we play the LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOONG game ha ha ha ha From Pictures for GW friends Going out today :-) Hugs Lucy

Sharon, I'll give it to you. Les developed all three plants. Where did you eventually find the information? I got the question out of this months issue of Gardens West. They talk about the "Prairie Horticulture Pioneers". This includes Cecil F. Patterson (1892-1961), Les Kerr (1902-1983), Percy Wright (1898-1989) and Bert Porter (1901-2000). A very interesting read. So, you're now up! Syreeta

jemdandy, I recall my grandmother making kraut and pickles in crocks--unfortunately none of mine were inherited from her. She would take a lid from a smaller crock, so that it fit inside the pickle crock, then weigh it down with a clean stone or brick, wrapped in cloth, to keep the cabbage or cukes below the level of the brine. Thanks, triciae, I was hoping that I had a treasure! :[ If you left a link, it didn't make the jump, but I'd love to see more pics. I googled 'sharp eared crocks' hoping to find info on the potter, and found this informative site. Scroll down for American stoneware. I think I might have a cream pot: "The stoneware cream pot ... appears throughout the eastern seaboard down through the Carolinas and west to Indiana. This vessel, illustrated here, has a high shoulder and wide mouth, where the shoulder slopes in slightly to a flat, shaped rim. There are two semi-cicular(sic) lug handles on the shoulder. The interior of this vessel was glazed with Albany slip, which was more common in the North. They were made in sizes from one to five gallons. They were often used to separate milk from cream and to store cream. Many of the vessels had an incised line at the level of the handles."

I had been presuming shakes because of the rural setting and because it's really a very plain Italianate house - basic center-hall style (originally - they remodeled and moved the stair and removed the hall), no bay windows, none of the other fancier elements. But I'm very glad to hear about Downing's advising for metal. I really could see this house with a metal roof, even more so than shakes. His mention of that in his book will enable me to justify it to the folks who will have the final say on renovations being aligned with its historical styling. In fact, if you have the time and the inclination, could you write out the exact reference (only if its a sentence or two) and tell me the title, page number and edition of the book you got that from? If you don't have time, please just tell me the title and I'll dig it up from our library system or have a university reference librarian friend look it up for me, so it's not a problem. I have to submit a proposal for all the work we'd do (we're applying to be resident curators - live there "free" for life, on 10 acres in a state park, for fixing it up which becomes a tax deductable donation). Here's a pic: But then my next question is, what modern metal roofs look similar to the metal roofs of the mid-1800's? And what color would an early Victorian metal roof have been? If anyone has links showing either old roofs or new, I'd appreciate it!!