Pinkish

The dogwoods have gone from bud to flower in just three days, so I decided I will go from photo to manipulation in just 7 hours!

Original with some sharpening and lighting work.

A New Gentleness on the Land

Spring is tender and pastel. We respond as if we are seeing a newborn child or a miracle. We may dance in the fields but with light-footedness so as to not crush the new blooming violets or frighten the waking fairies. We smooth our joy with gentle giggles and with restrained if open-mouthed glances. Deep sighs and soft smiles are traditional as well.

Orange You Smart?

It is amazing how many orange hues fill my world these days if I open my eyes and look for them!  It is the official color of fall after all.

 

Sunny Day

Taking a digital paintbrush to the sunflowers which I have managed to save, if ever so briefly in time.

A Boat Beneath a Sunny Sky

BY LEWIS CARROLL

A boat beneath a sunny sky,

Lingering onward dreamily

In an evening of July —

Children three that nestle near,

Eager eye and willing ear,

Pleased a simple tale to hear —

Long has paled that sunny sky:

Echoes fade and memories die:

Autumn frosts have slain July.

Still she haunts me, phantomwise,

Alice moving under skies

Never seen by waking eyes.

Children yet, the tale to hear,

Eager eye and willing ear,

Lovingly shall nestle near.

In a Wonderland they lie,

Dreaming as the days go by,

Dreaming as the summers die:

Ever drifting down the stream —

Lingering in the golden gleam —

Life, what is it but a dream?

It Is Heliotropic

Okay, I am in love and rather than scribbling its name on the edge of my notebook paper or drawing hearts on my desk or bringing the name into the conversation every few minutes, I will just work this into a blog post.  My love began its life in this country with the Western American Indian two or three thousand years ago.

It was sustenance for all.  They ground the seeds for flour and ate the head as a vegetable.  Hopi Indians got dyes from the seeds to color their clothes, body and pots.  They even discovered medicinal properties for healing skin bites and injuries.

In 1510 the seeds were taken to Spain and then to Russia where it was hybridized and the seeds both eaten and pounded for oil under the reign of Peter the Great.  It was Joseph Stalin who hybridized the plant until it produce flower heads over 12 inches in diameter.  Then it was returned to this continent in the sacks of the Mennonite farmers that were escaping the purge in Russia and was grown once again by American farmers.  One inventor found that the pith in the stem could be used to add float ability to lifebelts such as those worn by survivors on the Titanic.

In 1888 Vincent Van Gogh captured the beauty of this plant while fighting depression.  He wrote to his brother, "I am hard at it, painting with the enthusiasm of a Marseillais eating bouillabaisse, which won't surprise you when you know that what I'm at is the painting of some sunflowers."  While the sunflower painting did not prevent his suicide, it did sell for $40 million many years later.

The sunflower, Helianthus annuus, produces the world's fourth most popular oil and is a snack and great bird food.  Heliotropic means it turns its head to the sun.

Now that you are so smart, go below and enjoy my sunflowers.

The bud seems so harsh and angry.

But eventually it begins to dance.

Some blossoms are a little embarrassed at their beauty.

And others are just a little shy.

But most indulge us with their beauty as their faces follow the sun.

My goldfinch wait patiently for the harvest and visit each morning and evening.

They get so very tall!!!

As I have written, somewhere, they remind me of a baby giggling.

The Red Show

I have been so busy that I almost missed the blooming of these lilies. Every year their fiery red show catches my eye beside the driveway and this year they seem to have arrived and are beginning their departure toute suite.  So sad!  Well tiger lilies are soon behind, so maybe I will be able to enjoy those.

We have something new blooming in the yard this year and we are pretty excited as we have been waiting for years for it put on a show.   See if you know what it is...

First it starts modestly giving me just a peek.

This looks like a fruit but it is not.  It is the bud.

Here the bud is just breaking open in our two days of heavy rain.

First to be seen is the center stamens...notice the abundance of little fertilizers.  That is important in identifying this plant.

Then comes the petals sliding out beside all those yellow stamens.  The flower petals are very delicate and within a few days begin to fall littering the ground below with red fairy wings.  Have you guessed it?  Last year we got three blossoms and no fruit.  This year we have over a hundred blossoms...so surely we will get some fruit?  Stay tuned for the fruit, for then you will know!

3,000 Words

"Hang in there, little one, your time will come."

Iris Noir

Spring Dancers

These fairy ballerinas in their silken costumes last way too short a time dancing in the spring winds.  They swirl and twirl and waft on grape perfume and then are gone almost before the wind dies down.  You must click on them to feel the breath of a spring wind on your face.

Four From One

I got only one red tulip from the dozens that I planted after the raccoon dug and threw them across the deck for several nights in a row!  So I made a bouquet of four from the one while killing the better part of an afternoon when I should have been doing so many other things!  I reduced the size, but if someone wants a higher resolution, let me know.

The Original

The one in the rain.

The one that glows in the dark.

The one made of lace.

Feeling Full

I have come to the conclusion that apples on the tree are almost as filling as apples in the stomach.

Boing!

What is spring without flowers!!??

Bonnet Head

I posted this photo (in a higher resolution) on RedBubble in my portfolio because I was fascinated with the colors, texture and shapes that I was able to capture with very little post production work.  Flowers blossoms go so fast.  They last only a few days and if you are busy you fail to see the bud, the opening, the blossom and the fade.  This poppy's seed pod, on the other hand, is just as lovely in its futuristic beauty as it was in its full orange petal brilliance a few days earlier.

Don't you think?

My Virgins

Lily:  "To the ancient Egyptians, the trumpet-shaped lily was a symbol of Upper Egypt, the southern part of the country. In the ancient Near East, the lily was associated with Ishtar, also known as Astarte, who was a goddess of creation and fertility as well as a virgin. The Greeks and Romans linked the lily with the queen of the gods, called Hera by the Greeks and Juno by the Romans. The lily was also one of the symbols of the Roman goddess Venus.

In later times, Christians adopted the lily as the symbol of Mary who became the mother of Jesus while still a virgin. Painters often portrayed the angel Gabriel handing Mary a lily, which became a Christian symbol of purity. Besides being linked to Mary, the lily was also associated with virgin saints and other figures of exceptional chastity."  The Myth Encyclopedia  


This Asiatic lily below is the first to bloom in my garden and has a little bit of blue in the red.  The petals are as smooth as a baby's bottom and the flowers open their faces up to the blue sky.

My second lily to bloom puts on a big show before opening her buds. The buds are large and full of interesting texture and almost look like an alien animal.  The petals remind me of red leather.  

When the flower actually blooms she is so full in your face that you must briefly look away before you move in for that longer study.

This lily is more orange and edgier, although it does not appear so in the photo above.  This lily must look sideways and not up to the sun. She is more demure.  Neither of these two lilies have that thick sweet smell of the stargazer lily.  But they are so beautiful, I do not mind.  The next to bloom is my tiger lily...which is still forming little buds.