Ice Tissue {What Is It?}

 

IMG_2159-002.

.

I’d like to share with all you wonderful readers a very fun and interesting phenomena we have that happens on our farm this time every single year.  The story goes like this….

Continue reading

  1. Luanne Erickson says:

    Never heard of frost flowers! Lucky for you when your summer flowers die you can look forward to frost flowers!

    • Dori Troutman says:

      Hi Lu,

      I know… when I saw the name Frost Flowers, it just seemed so right! 🙂

      Love you huge, best friend of mine!

      – Dori –

  2. April says:

    A friend of mine Oklahoma has found them in the woods this same time of year. So lovely.

    • Dori Troutman says:

      April,

      I can see how Oklahoma would have them too… the humid conditions in early winter are definitely a part of their formation. And they are so lovely!

      – Dori –

  3. Cheryl says:

    Never heard of frost flowers but they are beautiful!! Thanks for sharing!

    • Dori Troutman says:

      Cheryl,

      I hope you get to see them someday. If you are ever in the South in the early winter and you see tissues in the field… make sure you stop and look close! 🙂

      – Dori –

  4. Hi Dori. I have seen these before, and they are beautiful. Mother Nature News (mnn.com) had an article on them last year, I think it was. I’ve only seen them in places where there is humidity, so never here in Colorado where things are just too dry. 🙂 They are so amazing!

  5. Jeff Smith says:

    That is amazing Dori I’ve never seen any thing like that before!

    • Dori Troutman says:

      Hi Jeff!

      Isn’t it funny that when I was out in the pasture taking pictures I thought of you??? I thought, “Jeff would be out here with his camera taking thousands of pictures at amazing angles”! They truly are magical little miracles of God’s work.

      Love you huge, sweet brother of mine!

      – Dori –

      P.S. Do you know how much I love it that you read my blog posts?! 🙂

  6. Nanette Boots says:

    Your photos of the Frost Flowers are beautiful. Isn’t it wonderful that you can move to a new area and have something so unique!

    • Dori Troutman says:

      Nanette,

      I think moving to Tennessee has been such an awesome experience for us – even in the beginning when the changes were very hard there was always new and positive things. And Ice has been so new and interesting to me. Not just these gorgeous Frost Flowers but the ice in the trees is so incredible. I’d never seen that before moving here to the South. Thank you for writing!

      – Dori –

  7. marge hofknecht says:

    Thank you so much for sharing these photos. I’ve never heard of frost flowers. God’s world is so incredible. Did you see the full moon last night? I just can’t seem to get enough of a look of our beautiful moon when it’s full.

    • Dori Troutman says:

      Marge,

      I think there are so many amazing things in nature that sometimes it seems God made just for our pleasure; I certainly strive to love and appreciate every bit of it. And that moon???? YES! It was so gorgeous! 🙂

      – Dori –

  8. Marilyn Collins says:

    I do not know what that is,but they look like Angel hair. Thanks for the photos.
    Marilyn

  9. Nancy says:

    THAT is sooooo cool. And I thought one inch ice on the water dishes was cool when the temperatures dipped. You definitely have a neat sign of winter is coming!!!!!
    Nancy from Ontario.

    • Dori Troutman says:

      Nancy,

      Winter has always been something I’ve not looked forward to… but I do notice that this year I’ve tried to look at it from a different perspective and these Frost Flowers are definitely helping that! 🙂

      – Dori –

  10. Nicole Christensen says:

    Hi Dori,
    What a great post! I have never seen them (that I can recall) and certainly haven’t noticed them. They are beautiful! Are you getting them now? Our temperature this week got so very warm. We were trying to decorate yesterday for Christmas and I was in a summer t-shirt! A year ago we were F-R-E-E-Z-I-N-G! It was like spring. I know it won’t last long though! Thanks for teaching me something new. I will be on the lookout for frost flowers from now on. Farmgirl Hugs, Nicole (Suburban Farmgirl)

    • Dori Troutman says:

      Hi Nicole!

      Yes, we are getting them now. And it has something to do with it not being really that cold yet… just below freezing on the ground but yet warm enough within the grass that it doesn’t freeze. And there also has to be humidity. So it is a tricky phenomena! And as soon as it gets where we are getting deep freezes then we won’t get them until next year! 🙂

      We have been having some really warm days, but that is actually fairly normal for us. Our Thanksgivings are usually nice enough to play volleyball outside after our big lunch!

      Today I’m working on building some wooden snowmen with my grand-girls today and it is quite warm here too! 🙂

      Hugs,

      – Dori –

  11. Linda Lockwood says:

    Hi Dori,
    I so enjoyed your photos and article about the frost flowers!
    I’m 60+ and have never heard of these flowers.
    Your writings are always very interesting!
    Thank you!
    Linda

    • Dori Troutman says:

      Linda,

      Thank you! I will have to admit here that writing about the Frost Flowers was ALL my husband’s idea! 🙂

      – Dori –

  12. Krista says:

    Wow! These frost flowers are so beautiful. I have never seen them before or even heard of them. They remind me of angel hair. I would love to see some of these in real life! Thank you for sharing this beautiful piece of nature and finding out what they really are!

    • Dori Troutman says:

      Hi Krista,

      Aren’t they amazing? I’m starting to feel very privileged that we have them on our farm as it seems that even some of our closest neighbors don’t get them on their farms. Interesting isn’t it?

      – Dori –

  13. Wayve says:

    Dori, I love this! I only live 10 miles from you and I’ve never seen these. When we moved here, people talked about the ground “spewing up”, which turned out to be ice needles, but ice flowers are new to me. I wonder if it has to do with the higher altitude of your property. Thanks for sharing.

    • Dori Troutman says:

      Hi Wayve,

      I wonder if the altitude could be part of it because come to think of it, we only seem to see them on the hillsides. Never in our lower hay pasture. Hmmm. I wonder. Glad you asked your Daddy about it too!

      Hugs,

      – Dori –

      P.S. I canned the tomatoes when they ripened and we are eating the last of your amazing red bell peppers, those were incredible. I froze pumpkin from 10 of the pumpkins and the others I put in our tornado shelter to stay cool until I can get to them. Thank you again!!! 🙂 I’ll get over there soon to return your bucket and box!

  14. Wayve says:

    Daddy said he’s never seen anything like that, either, and he’s 90!

  15. Winnie Nielsen says:

    I have never seen these tissue flowers but they are absolutely stunning! Wow, the close up photos are just incredible. What a beautiful gift to your farm from Mother Nature to someone who had been growing bundles of bright and lovely flowers only a few months before and was feeling a bit sad to see the season end!

    • Dori Troutman says:

      Hi Winnie,

      What a wonderful way with words you have… just warmed my heart! I’ve been wondering why it is that in the 4 winters we’ve been here, I haven’t fully appreciated the Frost Flowers. And I think it comes from the fact that when our summer growing season was over and I was heading drudgingly into Fall and Winter I gave myself a very stern talking to and decided that I would do everything I could to find the beauty in the coming seasons. And these Frost Flowers certainly are beautiful. And I’m realizing we are definitely lucky to have them! 🙂

      – Dori –

  16. Marcie says:

    Hi Dori,
    I have to say “WOW”, it grows here – I’m definitely getting some for my Tennessee yard. What you have is called “Frostweed” – check it out at this site – http://www.wildflower.org/plants/result.php?id_plant=VEVI3
    this is from the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower center in Austin. We had this back in central Texas and I love it. I would post some of my photos if I could. In the late summer the stalks grow pretty white flowers that the Monarch and other butterflies love and depend on during their migration and in the winter the sap freezes and the stalks split open and the sap looks like beautiful swirling ribbons.

    We retired to NE Tennessee from Texas and I have wanted some Frostweed and Elbow bush since we got here but was not sure it would grow here (don’t know about the Elbow bush yet), but now I know the Frostweed will. Trust me girl, you have a keeper of plants and they’re native.

    • Dori Troutman says:

      Hi Marcie,

      WOW!!!!! I cannot believe the info that you shared with us. We read the link you included and now I am so interested in the Frostweed that does seem to be where the Frost Flowers form. That makes sense on why it only occurs in certain places on our farm… and those are the same places that it occurs every winter. It is so interesting. We are going to pay more attention to those areas in the summer to see if the native grass looks different.

      Thank you so much for the info! It was super exciting to read!

      – Dori –

  17. Meredith Williams says:

    I have never had the good fortune to see a frost flower but I will look for them from now on! Lovely photographs!

  18. Debbie says:

    Well, I must say that seeing your Frost Flowers is a first for me too. Such a perfect name for a flower farmgirl like you! I love that! Your captures of them are amazing… they remind me a little of the inside of the plant milk weed, minus the seeds… So soft, white and airy looking! I can relate to discovering things about a new place too and those first difficult adjustments. Mother Nature can always find a way to delight us in unexpected ways. Thanks for sharing your hilltop frost flowers with all of us. They are magical… So fitting for the season.
    Big hugs!
    Deb ( Beach Farmgirl )

    • Dori Troutman says:

      Thank you Deb,

      You should’ve heard me laugh when I finally stumbled on their official name. It just seemed so fun to think that I still have flowers on the farm! 🙂

      Now we’ve been having a lot of rain and really warm temperatures with it so haven’t seen any more Frost Flowers… probably won’t again until next year. The conditions have to be exactly right for them to form.

      Happy December, Deb!

      – Dori –

  19. denise says:

    I hear people talk about hoarfrost, could that be what that is?

    • Dori Troutman says:

      Hi Denise,

      No… we have hoarfrost usually in the winter and it doesn’t look quite like this. Hoar frost (at least here in Tennessee) comes when it is bitter cold and freezing solid. These Frost Flowers only occur when it is mildly freezing. I will say, though, that Hoar Frost is absolutely gorgeous too.

      Thanks for writing!

      – Dori –

  20. Jeannie says:

    We enjoy Hoar Frost here in Wisconsin on foggy mornings in fall, winter and spring. and I love taking photographs before the sun melts it away. I couldn’t find a way to attach some of last spring’s beautiful scenes.

    It would be great to see the Frost Flowers and have that chance to capture their beauty.

    Thank you for sharing this new phenomenon with us!

    • Dori Troutman says:

      Jeannie,

      Last year we had Hoar Frost on our trees and it was just magical. First time I had ever seen it.

      Thank you for writing! Oh, and I’d love to see some of your Hoar Frost photo’s. Email them to me: redfeedsack@gmail.com

      – Dori –

  21. Lizvc says:

    We have Frost Flowers in our Missouri woods. I was blown away the first time I saw them. Great photos!

    • Dori Troutman says:

      Hi Liz,

      Did you know they were called Frost Flowers and do other people in your area have them? I’ve been shocked when I talk to locals around here that no one has seen them. And if they have, they just say “oh those little ice things”?! 🙂 I just think they are amazing.

      Thank you also for the link. Headed to look at it right now!

      Thanks for writing and sharing.

      – Dori –

      • Lizvc says:

        We saw them on a hike in Pickle Springs Natural Area 5 or 6 years ago in November. I only knew that was what they were called because I looked them up after we saw them. I have lived in Missouri on wooded land for 60 years and that is the only time I or my husband have seen them. They are truly awesome looking!

  22. Joan says:

    WOW Dori, your pictures are spectacular and the information is so good to hear. When I was growing up on a farm in Nebraska 1940’s – 60’s – we had them but of course we didn’t have the internet to investigate. I love the name – we just called the ‘ice pods’, my Grandfather said they had been there all his life so they were a natural happening. Thanks so much for this great post – always something interesting to read. We did have a grateful Thanksgiving and hope you did too. What’s the quilt you are starting? Merry Christmas and God bless.

    • Dori Troutman says:

      Thank you Joan!

      My plan for a quilt is not at all set yet! I’m struggling with patterns and fabric. I want to make two quilts to fold at the end of the twin beds in my guest bedroom. Not full size, just the perfect size for unfolding to nap under or just a little extra warmth at night. And to pretty up the bedroom of course! 🙂 I’ve quilted quite a bit in my life on small projects and made a few large quilts from start to finish. But it has been years, so I’m kind of excited to get started! I’ll keep you posted!

      – Dori –

  23. Forgetmenot says:

    I’ve never heard of nor seen ice flowers! They are just beautiful! Thank you for sharing. Still learning something new every day.

  24. JennJenn Buffington says:

    ………………Just WOW!!!!! Lovely!

Leave a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Birthday Trips Are The Best Trips!

IMG_1657-002

.

I don’t know if you remember the post I wrote back in March about my two wonderful girlfriends that I’m so lucky to have?  Well, here’s a little story for you.

Continue reading

  1. Diane says:

    I love doing trips like this with my girlfriends. Sounds like you all had a great time. I loved the pumpkins that you made, but I didn’t see the pattern or how to make them. Can you please send this to me? I saw the dishcloths and that looks like another great, quick project for my train commute every day to the Big City of Manhattan! Have a great day!
    Diane

    • Dori Troutman says:

      Diane,

      The tutorial I wrote for the pumpkins is on MaryJanesFarm online magazine sister issue, which you can access if you are a member of the Farmgirl Sisterhood. However, if you are not, there are many tutorials online for fabric pumpkins. If you are a Sisterhood member and having a hard time finding the sister issue online, let me know! (The membership is only $20 a year and is so many, many things that it is totally worth it. The online magazine alone is worth it.)

      The dishcloths would be the perfect thing for your commute!!!! 🙂

      What do you in Manhattan? And how far is your commute on the train? I find it fascinating as I’ve never been there before and can only imagine it.

      – Dori –

  2. Maureen says:

    You were at one of my favorite places in Colorado. I’m blessed to live close to Estes Park. We have a gorgeous view of Long’s Peak outside my upstairs windows and when we have company, we always visit Estes Park. It’s really cool, when they ask where we’re going, to point at Long’s Peak and say “UP There!” I’m so glad you and the ladies had a wonderful time here.

    • Dori Troutman says:

      Maureen,

      It really is such a gorgeous place. There were so many things that we experienced that I didn’t even mention in the post. Like the Elk. Oh my word. I have never been that close to them and so to see them up close and personal was quite an experience! We loved our visit. Such a special place.

      – Dori –

  3. Diane says:

    I am an Administrative Assistant for a great Actuarial company here in midtown Manhattan. I work across the street from Madison Square Garden. OK – are you ready – my commute is 2.5 hours in the morning and the same at night (door to door). In the morning I usually sleep on the train and at night we have a group of ladies that either crochet, knit, cross stitch, beading, etc. We are all part of another group called Home Bureau and we love CRAFTS and to make things to give back to our community. If you can provide any more easy projects for the train – any would be welcome! Have a great day! Diane

    • Dori Troutman says:

      Oh my word, Diane. I can hardly imagine! I bet you get very good at sleeping on the train in the morning! I just would love to sit and visit with you about your work in the city and your life there. It is fascinating to me.

      I’m working on a project right now that I’m thinking about doing a post on soon… it is a fantastic “on the go” craft!

  4. CJ Armstrong says:

    What fun! Thanks for sharing . . . sorry you weren’t feeling good part of the time!
    You were in my state, however, 400 miles (one-way) from me on the other side of a lot of Colorado Rocky mountain passes.

    I’m hoping to enjoy more things like this with friends in the future!
    Lucky you!
    CJ

    • Dori Troutman says:

      Hi CJ,

      Colorado sure does have a lot of those mountain passes! 🙂 But it’s a gorgeous state isn’t it?

      – Dori –

  5. Marilyn Collins says:

    It looks like a good time was had by all. Lovely exchange of gifts.
    HAPPY BELATED BIRTHDAY TO LUANN,MICHELLE AND DORI
    Marilyn

  6. Krista says:

    What a fun trip. It looks like you guys had so much fun! Colorado is such a great place to visit. I love going there. I haven’t been there in a while and should make a plan to get there again sometime soon.
    Those pumpkins you made are absolutely adorable! I am sorry you felt ill for some of your trip but it sounds like you have such supportive and wonderful friends by your side. Do you plan on waiting until next years birthday trip to take the husbands? Or will you make plans to go earlier?
    Happy late birthday! Hope it was everything you wanted plus more!

    • Dori Troutman says:

      Hi Krista,

      Well… we didn’t get that far on when our next trip would be! We used to do these yearly but that was before grand-kids!!! Now, trips to visit them must come first! (I’m lucky to live near mine and see them every day but not so for the other girls.)

      It was the very best birthday I think I’ve ever had. Really!

      Thanks, Krista, for reading and commenting!

      – Dori –

  7. Joan says:

    So happy you got to enjoy ‘my’ state – well it is where I live now. Love Estes – and the Peak is beautiful from my ‘ranch’ view – but going up there is not on my agenda – especially now that we have had 10″s of snow – BLOWING drifts to 6′ – so your pic’s are reminders of what was so recently. God Bless.

  8. Susabelle says:

    Altitude Sickness is a real thing and you should not allow yourself to suffer from it! There is a treatment you can take beforehand to make it so much easier to detox when you get to altitude. Talk to your doctor about taking doses of Acetazolamide before you travel and for the first day you are at altitude. I used to visit the Rockies from Missouri, and I was so sick every time…until my dad told me I could be treated, and it made all the difference. Now I live here, so no more altitude sickness for me! I live about 25 miles from Estes Park. 🙂

    • Dori Troutman says:

      Susabelle,

      Thank you so much for this. I actually went to Urgent Care while I was with my daughter-in-saw and son and the NP told me somewhat the same thing. The other thing she told me is next time to drink massive amounts of water before arriving and during my stay. I was completely dehydrated when I went to Urgent Care and because of a sinus infection I had actually been drinking a lot of water (I thought) but not NEAR enough for the altitude difference. It was quite a shock to me how much it affected me! 🙂 So I learned a lot and next time I will do things differently. (It probably didn’t help that the day after I arrived we rode the tram up to Pikes Peak!!!) I’m thankful that I had a really awesome trip regardless and next time I will be way more prepared! Thank you again for your advice.

      – Dori –

      • Susabelle says:

        Dori, I’m glad you did go to urgent care. Too bad they didn’t give you the altitude med, it would have really helped. Yes, drink drink drink…more than you think you need to. I’m a midwestern girl, born and raised, but never drank as much as I’ve had to drink here. But even with extra fluids, the altitude sickness might not have been helped. It is a chemistry thing, and the acetazolamide basically “detoxes” your blood stream. That headache thing – that can turn into something worse if not treated or addressed. I hope you’ll come back some day, as it is gorgeous here, and there is so much to see!

        • Dori Troutman says:

          Don’t you worry – I will be back! Now that my son and daughter-in-law live there nothing is going to keep me away! 🙂 I’ll just be ready and prepared next time!

          – Dori –

          P.S. I have something to say that is quite embarrassing really. Someone actually commented on my FB status when I said I was going to visit my kids in CO and they said something like, “Be prepared for the altitude… altitude sickness is a real thing.” and I kind of chuckled because I’ve been to CO many times in my life and never had a problem. But I was also living out West in a 4000 – 5000 ft elevation already so kind of used to it somewhat. Now, I’ve been in TN for almost 5 years where we are at 400 ft elevation. Anyway…. I learned the hard way. Altitude sickness is real.

  9. Julie Pruett says:

    Looks like you all had a great time! My birthday is October 4th and I was in Estes Park and around Boulder when you three girls were there. It brought back how much I loved it there. Did you see all the Elk around town? It is SO beautiful there….

    • Dori Troutman says:

      Hi Julie!

      Yes… we saw elk everywhere! Even swimming in that little lake right outside of town! I don’t think I’ve ever been that close to Elk before and I didn’t realize they were that massive. It was beautiful and such gorgeous weather while we were there.

      Wish we could’ve met! 🙂

      – Dori –

Leave a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *