Shared for the Lens-Artists Photo Challenge #27: Travels
Looking At Flowers Close Up
Cee has invited us to share close up pictures or macro shots as part of this week’s Fun Foto Challenge – who could resist? My first is a close up of the extremely double Clematis ‘Josephine Pink’. The flower changes considerably as it opens: at this stage, mounds of overlapping inner petals are almost obscuring the bigger ones that form an outer ruff, with still more petals to come.
The great thing about a close up is the textural quality it gives. I hardly know whether the pointed petals would feel stiff or soft if I could reach my hand out and touch the flower. Continue reading “Looking At Flowers Close Up”
Festive Fun: Decorating The Blog For Christmas
It may seem far too early, but cut me some slack: I’ve decided this blog needs some festive cheer. Not the cheer-on-a-loop designed to sell things, but pure, just-for-the-fun-of-it cheer. In this post, I’ll be putting up some festive blornaments (= blog ornaments; see definition at the foot of this post). Alternative ones.
For my first blornaments, stars, I’ve chosen the annuals pictured above, which I found tumbling from a hanging basket at The Southport Flower Show and preserved in pixels to brighten a moment. To my way of thinking, if the flowers featuring the stars are miniature trumpets, so much the better. Continue reading “Festive Fun: Decorating The Blog For Christmas”
Looking Out From The Limestone Paving Above Malham Cove
I enjoy walking, especially through a garden or in the countryside, but words (as so often) matter: you’ll find me less keen to set out if the journey might best be described as a climb or hike. So it took my sister (for whom hills are little more than hiccups) several seasons to get my sweetheart and me to accompany her to this point, where we could look out over the edge of a broad expanse of limestone pavement above Malham Cove in Yorkshire. Thanks little sis – it was fun and you know I’d never have done it without you!
You might recognise the pavement from scenes in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows if you’re a fan. I was fascinated by the pavement itself: its deep cracks and the odd bits of ferns and wild flowers that somehow have a foothold on life within it. Continue reading “Looking Out From The Limestone Paving Above Malham Cove”
Name The Colour Of These Flowers
While visiting the flower shows this year, I was drawn to a colour thread represented by the flowers I’m showing here. I’d filed the pictures as Clarets thinking ‘Anyone for claret?’ would be a good post title, but reluctantly concluded that claret was stretching things too far…
though not quite so far as the liberties taken in naming this ‘New Vintage Violet’…
or this ‘Dark Angel Violet’. Plant names are a minefield at the best of times, even before you add colour into the mix. Continue reading “Name The Colour Of These Flowers”
Sweet Peas On The Holy Island
Gertude Jekyll and Edwin Lutyens created a kitchen garden with herbs, vegetables and flowers for cutting on The Holy Island of Lindisfarne. We found these sweet peas overlooking the garden from a string trellis, one summer evening.
For more about Lindisfarne’s garden, visit the National Trust website.
Mill on The Floss – a new pink English rose for 2018
The recent RHS Hampton Court Flower Show offered the chance to see some new varieties up close. Today I’m sharing a few pictures taken at the show of a new introduction from David Austin, Rosa ‘Mill on the Floss’. Continue reading “Mill on The Floss – a new pink English rose for 2018”
Susan Rushton 