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Post by Kimby on Apr 2, 2010 18:47:31 GMT
Walking around downtown, I found this: Since so little is in bloom this time of year, we have to buy our blossoms. This woman let me take a picture of her stand, but not herself. She had set up shop under the awning of a vacant retail building downtown. In a month or two, the farmers' markets will be up and running, with LOTS of flowers for sale later in the summer. But for now, we're grateful to folks like her who ships her blooms in from the west coast.
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Post by Kimby on Apr 2, 2010 21:29:33 GMT
And walking in the "back forty" I found this, my favorite wildflower: It's a pasque flower, also referred to as "prairie crocus" or "wild crocus" though it's in the Crowfoot (Buttercup) family
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Post by bixaorellana on Apr 3, 2010 1:46:52 GMT
I never knew what a pasque flower was. Look at how it pushed its way through all that cover. And it's blooming for Pasque, too!
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Post by Deleted on Apr 3, 2010 10:06:36 GMT
That's so cool that it's blooming on Pasque. I don't think I've ever seen a wild crocus. I have always marveled at how the hybrid ones also manage to push themselves up from the frozen earth and bloom amid the snow in some cases. And to think that saffron is derived from one of the species of crocus blows my mind. Along similar lines,sort of,yesterday while I was walking about the neighborhood,I came across this seemingly freak of nature. I can never remember what these are,some type of ornanmental fruit tree (bears no fruit),but,you see them all over town this time of year. This one however,had blooms sprouting out all over the surface of the trunk. The clusters of blooms all over the lower half of the trunk gave the appearance of having been artificially applied as you can see in the photos. They did not have any branches or stems. The top half of the tree was all leaves,and no blooms. The tree is quite old. I remember it being there as far back as when I first moved here.(which does indeed make it old ) Has anyone ever seen this before? It was a first for me.
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Post by Jazz on Apr 3, 2010 13:34:32 GMT
This is beautiful! I have never seen anything like this. I love the first photo.
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Post by bixaorellana on Apr 3, 2010 15:44:07 GMT
Totally extraordinary! It appears to be blooming directly out of some kind of trunk excrescence.
Can you get a close-up photo of the flowers & leaves? They aren't clear enough in the pictures above to attempt an identification. It's Easter weekend -- I wonder if it's possible to get the newspaper &/or tv news to come out publicize this before the flowers fade. If they're still there on Monday, you could try contacting various experts.
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Post by Deleted on Apr 3, 2010 16:45:30 GMT
I will go and get a closeup of the flowers this afternoon. There are no leaves amid the clusters of blooms,which makes it look that much more freaky! I swear, at first,I thought that they were artificial,perhaps some kind of April Fool's Day joke! And,all the people walking by,none of them stopped to take note of this. I left a message on Charlotte Seidenberg's voice mail. She is the author of The New Orleans Garden and a lovely woman.
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Post by Deleted on Apr 4, 2010 16:05:18 GMT
OK,went back and took some close ups. I tell you,to see this, close up,first hand,is freaky. Note,there are no leaves on the blooms.
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Post by bixaorellana on Apr 4, 2010 16:59:53 GMT
Nice pics! On the assumption that's a flowering cherry of some kind -- Prunus somethingorother -- I did some googling to try to find out about the flowers on the trunk. Results: www.pbase.com/jboard/cherry_blossoms (scroll for pics & comment close to bottom of page) My first thought when seeing the photos in #243 above was that some of the flowers clusters seem to be on places where branches were pruned in the past. This article may bear that out, & is interesting in any event, especially the part about "sleeping buds". www.kitsunebonsai.com/cherry.html
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Post by lola on Apr 4, 2010 21:19:45 GMT
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Post by bixaorellana on Apr 4, 2010 21:31:11 GMT
Hmmmm. They do look awfully redbuddish up close, plus a cherry-family tree would have smoother, probably redder bark, wouldn't it?
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Post by Deleted on Apr 4, 2010 22:03:08 GMT
Interesting piece on the cherry blossoms. I have seen them in Washington D.C. and will probably catch the last of them in NYC. I'm sure,after seeing Lola's link that they are redbuds.The flowers are identical and the right shade of pink. If indeed it is,this is a very old mature one.Maybe it just doesn't have the energy to put out anything more than blooms at this point. It's also a fairly neglected tree,none of the trees on that property were ever visibly cared for in all the time I've been here. Thanks!
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Post by lola on Apr 5, 2010 4:23:59 GMT
Is that tree in NO, casimira? Because our redbuds are just now starting to bloom; I'd have thought you'd be pretty far ahead of us on that. Maybe because it was a cool winter there?
We all got to go for a hike this morning on a trail just 20 min from our house. It's a county park near the intersection of two big highways, so you can hear the cars. Otherwise you could be way out in the woods. Hilly, with creeks, dirt trails.
Yellow, white, purple and dogtooth violets, false rue anemone, dutchman's breeches, celandine poppy, trillium, bellwort, what we call a buttercup. Big stand of the dogtooth.
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Post by bixaorellana on Apr 5, 2010 4:57:33 GMT
Ohhhh ~~ heavenly, Lola! How wonderful to have such a protected place full of wildflowers.
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Post by Deleted on Apr 6, 2010 11:12:01 GMT
Yes, Lola,this tree is a mere two blocks from our house.
I envy your wildflowers Lola. Hopefully,I'll be able to see and capture some pics of some woodland flowers in New York. What I am most looking forward to though,are the lilacs......
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Post by Deleted on Apr 10, 2010 21:06:51 GMT
Meyer Lemon blossoms today
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Post by Kimby on Apr 10, 2010 21:23:29 GMT
We finally have crocuses blooming, from bulbs I planted 23 years ago. You all know what they look like, no picture needed.
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Post by gertie on Apr 13, 2010 6:38:20 GMT
Wonderful, Kimby and everyone, love all the pictures. My cherry tomatoes and my pansies are blooming like crazy right now, and so is my potted bell pepper plant. Today when I was watering, I noticed an odd something, then realized I have a baby pepper!
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Post by bixaorellana on Apr 13, 2010 23:33:32 GMT
Today when I was watering, I noticed an odd something, then realized I have a baby pepper! You're gonna be one hot mama!
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Post by Deleted on Apr 16, 2010 22:36:57 GMT
Here is a specimen of brunfelsia,a woody shrub,fragrant,also known as "Yesterday,Today and Tomorrow" because the bloom colors fade, so, one day is purple,next lavender,then white. This is one of the largest I've ever seen. For some reason ,I've never had one of these. I do enjoy seeing them though, every year at this time. Is an old New Orleans garden standby,and very reliable given the rough winter we had this year. Seems very happy.
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Post by lola on Apr 17, 2010 16:03:29 GMT
What a great bush. I've never seen those.
I have Lilies of the Valley just now coming in, they of the gorgeous scent. These are descended from a patch in my dear Great Aunt Myra's yard in Poplar Bluff MO.
Irises are starting to be everywhere., azaleas. My peonies have some big buds.
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Post by bixaorellana on Apr 17, 2010 17:19:45 GMT
I have never seen such a magnificent brunfesia! We always want what we can't have -- I would die for lilies of the valley and peonies. I have irises, but will never see them blooming with the darling little white bells of lilies of the valley. Sprekelia formosissimamy pictures!
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Post by Deleted on Apr 18, 2010 1:35:41 GMT
What a fabulous photo tryptic of those lilies Bixa. That's a bulb I really want. I remember you taunting us with it last year,and now this. I usually don't go in for the reds very much,but,that particular hue is gorgeous,coupled with the simple geometry of the bloom,I love it. Do they bloom profusely? I ask primarily because this is a bloom I would love to use as a cut flower in my home,often.
Yes,that particular brunfelsia is massive,I would have severely pruned it if it were mine. It does really stand out but looks quite awkward where it is located,right by these people's front steps.
Lillies of the Valley,and Peonies,oh Lola,you are taunting me. Next,you'll be talking about Lilacs I presume!! (Am hoping to catch all these guys in NY)
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Post by lola on Apr 18, 2010 19:06:00 GMT
My lilac's had its best year yet, is 10 ft tall, covered with blooms, and recovered from the severe shaping I gave it two years ago. Blossoms are starting to fade; was best last weekend. If you dash to NY soon you should hit the lilacs nicely.
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Post by cristina on Apr 19, 2010 1:06:23 GMT
Without having a garden, I have little personal to report. I can say that I am trying to water the big pot of geraniums on my front steps and keep the hotter and hotter days from doing them in. However I can tell you that throughout my part of the city, the olive trees are blooming. And they are absolutely killing me. Pass the Alavert, please. And Kimby, it has been over 15 years since I last saw a crocus. I wouldn't mind seeing a picture, for the memory. There are some really beautiful flowers on this thread. I admire all of your skills and eye for detail.
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Post by bixaorellana on Apr 19, 2010 21:19:32 GMT
My lilac's had its best year yet, is 10 ft tall, covered with blooms Taunting. Absolutely. Cruel, smug, heartless taunting. that particular hue is gorgeous,coupled with the simple geometry of the bloom,I love it. Do they bloom profusely? Casimira, I haven't had a chance to see my sprekelia at its best. When I moved into this house at Easter last year, I was told the house had been empty for five or six years. However, the sprekelia came up and bloomed with no help from me. I promptly dug one up and gave it to a friend. She planted it, & the flower persisted for several days. I separated and replanted bulbs in my little garden, & it looks as though they might all bloom this year. They hold up quite well in the sun (from morning to well past noon) and the hot wind. I agree with you about the color -- it's so pure. What only shows a little bit in the triptych above (& only in the middle picture) is the opalescence of the petals, especially the top one. That, combined with the rich matte of the petals and the lacquered look of the stamens, is outstanding. Here's a photo of the latest bloom, which captures those features a little better: And yes to the "simple geometry" as well. Looking at it, you have to wonder if it wasn't the sprekelia that inspired the fleur-de-lis symbol, rather than the iris. I think the design possibilities are endless. And it would make a great barkcloth design ~~
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Post by Deleted on Apr 19, 2010 23:25:24 GMT
OMG! Bowl me over,jeez...I have to look into getting one or two of these. They make even the fanciest of the amaryli appear to be so plain. I wonder if they would do well here. I'm going to ask the people on my garden forum about these guys. A must have. And yes,are you weaving away some bark cloth with your new pigments/dye that you pilfered?
(Lola is a tease!!)
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Post by Deleted on Apr 20, 2010 19:36:16 GMT
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Post by Kimby on Apr 20, 2010 22:48:13 GMT
Kimby, it has been over 15 years since I last saw a crocus. I wouldn't mind seeing a picture, for the memory. Right after I took this 2nd one, I stood up and pinched ANOTHER bee between my shorts and my leg. Ouch!
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Post by Kimby on Apr 20, 2010 22:51:09 GMT
Our latest wildflower to come into bloom: Trillium There would not be any of these left if I hadn't protected them from the deer with chicken wire baskets staked to the ground, same as I do with the pasque flowers.
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