Idle Hour Yard of the Month
Congratulation to our Yard of the Month for April: 169 St Ann!
Our first YOTM for 2024 features a neighbor who only moved to Idle Hour a year ago, and with some strategic improvements has created a lovely front yard featuring spring bulbs, tidy landscaping shrubs, a beautiful shade tree, and a sparkling new front walk.
We loved hearing about her future plans and applaud how she has created such powerful visual impact in such a short time as caretaker for this bit of yard!
Thank you for making Idle Hour such a beautiful place to live!
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Scroll down to see the previously selected yards!
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The IDLE HOUR NEIGHBORS ALLIANCE, initiated its “Yard of the Month” program in 2016 to highlight homes that have an especially attractive curb appeal. From April through October, Alliance board members will look, from the sidewalk, at every residence on every street in Idle Hour and select the one that impresses them as being a notch-above the rest. Members of the Alliance Board recognize that home by placing a small sign in the yard to bring attention to the effort of creating a beautiful appearance.
We look for creativity and care evident in a property’s landscaping and yard maintenance, and we disregard circumstances beyond a residents control like crumbling curbs, leaning light poles etc. We hope to give recognition to those residents who beautify our neighborhood and provide a pleasurable experience for passers-by. IHNA board members are not eligible for this award.
The Board asks the resident of the chosen property for approval to place the sign in their front yard. The IDLE HOUR YARD OF THE MONTH sign, shown below, was designed to be visible without detracting from the overall appearance of the yard. The sign will be placed in consultation with and at the discretion of the resident.
We also ask the resident if a snapshot of the yard along with the sign may appear on our website. We invite the recipient to be recognized at our next quarterly Alliance meeting. Also, the recipient may, if she or he wishes, be part of the committee to select the next IDLE HOUR YARD OF THE MONTH.
Idle Hour is a beautiful part of Lexington. Thank you for making it so!
Previous "Yard of the Month" winners
August 2016
2097 St. Christopher Drive
Recipient of our very first IDLE HOUR YARD OF THE MONTH
September 2016
224 St. Margaret Drive
October 2016
2125 Coburn Blvd.
April 2017
235 Idle Hour Drive
May 2017
2040 Saint Michael Drive
June 2017
130 Saint Ann Drive
July 2017
145 Saint Margaret Drive
August 2017
138 St. James Drive
October 2017
137 Saint William Drive
May 2018
2134 Saint Mathilda Drive
June 2018
154 Saint Philip Drive
July 2018
129 Saint Margaret Drive
August 2018
2109 Saint Teresa Drive
September 2018
149 Saint James Drive
October 2018
2057 Saint Teresa Drive
April 2019
162 Saint William Drive
May 2019
186 Saint Margaret Drive
June 2019
2032 Saint Teresa Drive
July 2019
2069 Saint Christopher Drive
August 2019
279 Idle Hour Drive
September 2019
161 Saint Phillip Drive
October 2019
204 Saint Ann Drive
July 2020
240 Saint Margaret Drive
August 2020
216 Saint Ann Drive
September 2020
2032 Saint Christopher Drive
October 2020
174 Saint Ann Drive
April 2021
177 Saint William Drive
May 2021
2112 Saint Mathilda Drive
June 2021
166 Saint Phillip Drive
July 2021
2024 Saint Michael Drive
August 2021
180 Idle Hour Drive
October 2021
2041 Saint Teresa Drive
April 2022
2136 Saint Mathilda
Our selection committee loves the all season interest of sedum, evergreen shrubs, and driftwood in this space that brightens up our neighborhood even through the cold and dark months of the year!
May 2022
141 Saint William
We love the whimsical birch woods they’ve created in their front yard, giving way to views of Japanese maples, framed with a mix of topiaries and potted shrubs. They’ve even landscaped a charming brick path through the median!
CONGRATS! To Libby at 2000 St Michael for being our June Yard of the Month!
We love the way her house is framed by specimen shrubs which draw your attention to smaller, sweeter details like these lovely blooming succulents and borders formed of rough stone.
We got to chat with Libby about her yard and she told us that her landscaper, Dave Roland, who helped her improve her yard, asked if she wanted him to remove these cute little plants that had sprouted independently but she made him keep them!
Thank you Libby (with help from Dave, who she told us will be absolutely thrilled about Yard of the Month) for helping to make Idle Hour a beautiful place to live!
Congrats to our July Yard of the Month: 2020 St Christopher!
We love this pollinator friendly, native plant focused yard and all the precious details that reward a slow stroll past (in fact, we saw many a happy bee feasting on vibrant flowers).
Here’s what Mary had to say about her yard:
“I started noticing the lack of insect and butterfly life during my time at EKU when I was involved in Environmental Sociology.
“I began researching urban pesticide use and the forms of urban landscaping that were creating "green deserts." Areas that have been fertilized, treated for weeds, sprayed for mosquitoes, fungi, etc, have reduced the availability of the natural connections shared between organisms.
“Preserving this biodiversity is extremely important since organisms in an ecosystem depend on each other for survival, and native plants play a vital role by providing food and shelter for insects and wildlife.
“I have greatly enjoyed watching the different varieties of bees, butterflies, and small wildlife visit my little patch of natural landscaping. It is always changing and providing new wonders. It is so much more than just a green carpet at my front door. I would like to give recognition to Wild Ones and Beate Popkin who introduced me to natural landscaping and were enormously helpful at every stage of the development.”
Thank you so much to our neighbors at 2020 St Christopher for sharing your unique yard with us and contributing to making Idle Hour a beautiful place to live!
Congratulations to our August Yard of the Month: 2053 St Teresa!
We have long appreciated this yard because of the ways that the owner has creatively turned practical solutions to common yard issues into lovely little areas that charm the passerby to look closer.
For example, a downed tree has become a lovely natural pedestal for a potted plant that blends seamlessly with perennials, trees, and bushes. And the need for good drainage has been artfully transformed into dry gardens.
And of course we love a whimsical yard sculpture!
Thank you so much for creating such a lovely yard that brightens our neighborhood and makes Idle Hour a beautiful place to live!
Congratulations to our September Yard of the Month: 2092 St Teresa!
We noticed how much work these neighbors had been putting into their yard this summer and wanted to highlight just how much change can happen in a short amount of time with some elbow grease and imagination.
This yard gives the impression of a tropical garden or wilderness that has been taken over by magical gnomes!
We love the combination of interesting specimen plants with lovingly placed yard art.
Make sure to take a stroll past and slow down to admire all the sweet details. We can’t wait to see how this yard continues to develop next year!
CONGRATS to our October Yard of the Month: 2084 St Teresa!
Picking a Yard of the Month was tough this month! There were a ton of contenders (keep your eyes peeled for an upcoming post of some runners-up) but this yard really stood out for going above and beyond!
We loved the miniature graveyard that was created, complete with Pet Cemetery and all of the spooky touches (make sure to swing by after dark and closer to Halloween for some spooky special effects)!
Other great details include the use of one of the large trees as the final resting place of Mr. Bones after a run-in with some giant spiders, the creepy bloody “Beware!” on the house windows, and even some cute, hand carved pumpkins from the junior decorating team.
Definitely stop by for trick or treating and to see this year’s costumes and the yard in its full glory (we’ll be adding more photos and videos to document the full transformation)!
Thanks so much for making Idle Hour a fun (and spooky!) place to live!
Picking just one yard for our October Yard of the Month sure was tough this year!
Luckily, there’s great October weather (sunny and crispy cool) to take a tour around the neighborhood to take in all the spooky (and cute!) Halloween sights!
We definitely recommend taking a walk after dark as well, as there are tons of other yards not featured in this post with fun and exciting light up displays!
Please enjoy these photos of some of the runner ups to this year’s October YOTM.
And keep it up, because there’s always next year!🎃👻🎃👻
Congratulations to our December Yard of the Month!
2045 St Teresa is putting on a spectacular holiday show and is overflowing with seasonal spirit (Josh and Stephanie even dressed up as Mr. & Mrs. Claus and took free photos with neighborhood kids in their front yard North Pole!)
We love the attention to detail and enthusiasm in these holiday decorations, as well as clever touches like combinations of string lights, fun characters, and uplighting to enhance the mood!
Thank you so much for making Idle Hour such a beautiful and fun place to live!
Congratulations to our Yard of the Month for May: 130 St Margaret!
We have long admired the bright contrast between lime green sedum and cherry pink phlox that illuminates this wonderful yard each spring.
Thank you for making Idle Hour a beautiful place to live!
PS did you know that the Yard of the Month tradition began with these very homeowners? Terry and Janet Layman introduced the idea to IHNA years ago, imported from their time spent on a military base when Terry was in the Air Force!
Congratulations to our June Yard of the Month: 154 Saint James!
We’ve had our eye on this charming yard for quite some time — the mix of clustered plants and lovely yard decor draw the eye and add a whimsical flavor.
When we spoke to Ms. Followell, she told us that as an aging gardener she prioritizes perennials — plants that come back year after year. Take that gardening wisdom to heart as you observe her clever groupings of hostas, iris, sedum, and hen and chicks.
Thank you for making Idle Hour a beautiful place to live!
Congratulations to our July Yard of the Month: 158 St Phillip!
This well-maintained lawn and tidy plantings create a cozy scene for this neighbor’s house.
If you’re a turf lawn enthusiast, you must walk by to see the neat mowing and crisp edging.
And if you’re a goose fan, then swing by for the real star of the show: a charming front stoop adornment who gets a new outfit for every holiday!
Thank you for making Idle Hour a lovely place to live!
Congratulations to our August Yard of the Month: 2136 St Michael!
We love this eye-catching display of colorful foliage for late summer in neat beds, artfully placed pots, window boxes, and hanging planters!
The unique colors of heuchera (also known as coral bells) and sweet potato vine are lovely accent plants and well-chosen for a spot with morning sun and shady afternoons.
This neighbor told us they had just redone their planting this year and we say “great work!”
Thanks for making Idle Hour such a beautiful place to live!
Congratulations to our September Yard of the Month: 2073 Saint Christopher! Late summer is the time when most of our plants are starting to go dormant in preparation of autumn and this Yard of the Month perfectly highlights one of the ways homeowners can still make their property lovely and inviting with a wonderfully decorated front porch!
In fact, when we went to award them, one of the owners was enjoying the cool September afternoon out on his porch, while working on a woodcarving project! We chatted about how relaxing on one’s front porch has become a bit of a lost art and we complemented him on his well chosen and coordinated ornamentation (he gave all the decorator’s credit to his wife).
We hope you enjoy these cheery photos and that they inspire you to explore your own front porch!
Congratulations to our October Yard of the Month: 134 Saint Phillip!
For many years we have been thrilled by the massive spooky display at this neighbor’s house — giant 12 foot high skeletons, multiple gauzy ghosts, and even a true-to-cinema bust of one of our favorite horror icons, Pinhead!
Make sure to walk by (maybe even in the dark of All Hallows Eve 👻🎃) and appreciate all the creepy crawly details!
Thanks so much for making Idle Hour a fun and unique place to live!
PS: there’s one more Yard of the Month to be awarded in December! We’ll be choosing the brightest, cheeriest, funniest, most heartwarming holiday display by 12/15, so start planning out your extension cord strategy now!
Congratulations to our December Yard of the Month: 183 Idle Hour Drive!
We love the cheery and cozy vibes they’ve created by using the classic big bulb multicolor holiday lights! And what luck to document our winner on the first snow of the year! As the season ramps up and you head out to tour colorful displays, make sure to stop by and get your hit of holiday nostalgia! Thank you for making Idle Hour a fun and festive neighborhood!