Flower for the Day Oriental Lily III 6-14-18

This is a downward facing lily. Beautiful but slightly more difficult to photograph.

Neath Feb 2015

Lily

I held onto her hand tightly, guiding her through a field of lilies .
The sun shining bright as we weave through.
She stops and let's go of my hand.
I turn around and stare into her blue eyes, words escape her lips.
"I can't..."
Thus engraved in my mind an image of a thousand lilies.

Flower for the Day Oriental Lily II 6-13-18

This oriental lily is new this year. I have hidden it among some wildflowers to save it from my deer herd.

It proudly displays its organs.

Flower for the Day Horse Mint 6-12-18

About two years ago this horse mint appeared in the front garden. It has come back yearly. It is quiteintricate and beautiful. It is a monarda and is also called spotted bee balm. The spots are impressive.

Flower for the Day Creeping Thyme 6-10-18

An important part of my gnome garden is the infrastructure. Between the stepping stones I have planted various 

"steppables". The most hardy is creeping thyme which is now in bloom. My other favorites are elfin thyme and corsican mint but they are not as hardy and often require replacement after winter. Here is creeping thyme.

Flower for the Day Magnolia 6-9-18

Imagine our 40 year old little magnolia tree by the side of the house. The scent is amazing. The bee was slowly dislodging pollen clumps from the anthers after which they would fall into the blossom cups. See the yellow mass directly below him. He would 

then nudge them around. Interesting.

Flower for the Day Day Lily I 6-8-18

As soon as the iris disappeared I knew it was time for the day lilies (Hemerocallis). Hemerocallis is now placed in family Asphodelaceae and used to be part of Liliaceae which includes true lilies. They are very dependable and popular. There are more than 80,000 cultivars. They bloom for a day and die off the next night. I love the colors and the ruffled edge of this one. Many more to come.

LaNita Apr 2017

plant love

I'm watching a daylily
Sprout through the back deck.
The faith it maintained.
The focus one must have on the light.
There's just one crack,
A single slit of sun allowed underneath.
Yet here she comes, drawn to the heat.

This plant rebirths through the dirt,
Sharing it's seed as whole plants
Growing from the root.
It's grows green from beneath.
Containing some extra power.

The tips of this plant are not giving in.
They have no plans on missing this season.
They are committed to growing.
To feeding. To nourishing the ground above.
This selfless love is my focus.
This way of being,
It's in my heart.
Plant people of the ages hear the same call.
She's calling, if you hear respond.

#npmimportant

Flower for the Day Bluestar 6-7-18

This bluestar (Amsonia ciliate) has been growing in the 'tall' wildflower garden for many years.

It grows from stalks over five feet high and has five  powder blue petals forming the star. It is striking from afar

and up close.

Flower for the Day Stargazer Lily I 6-6-18

D-Day was a special day for our family and ultimately for all our families. We can celebrate as the lilies have started to arrive. The stargazer lily (Lilium orientalist -stargazer) was created

in1974 by Leslie Woodriff, a lily breeder in California to overcome the downward look of previous rubrum lilies. Woodriff called his new cross stargazer because the blooms faced upwards to the sky.

Flower of the Day Penstemon 6-5-18

Penstemon has a 2 lipped flower with a staminoid, an infertile stamen.

As shown the staminoid is typically a long straight filament extending to the mouth of the corolla. In some the staminoid is more hairy inspiring the common name beardtongue.

If you look closely you can see the hairs coming straight off the filament and lots of tiny hairs coming off the flowers themselves.

Flower for the Day Sweet William 6-4-18

This is the time of the year to walk in my wildflower gardens. The Sweet William (Dianthus barbatus)

were planted from seed over 10 years ago and have done very well. They have been moving (by wind and birds)

to the north and now cover parts of the gardens covering 50-60 yards. Come by anytime.

Some places they are thick. Others not so much but they are gorgeous in the depth of their color.