Garden flowers 5

Snow is in the forecast for later today, so it feels good to see bright colour and things from summer. Actually, when I look at my recent photostream, there is quite a surprising amount of colour for this time of the year. This winter has turned out to be another great one, like last winter, milder than most. We all know that more snow and very cold temperatures will have to be faced before spring arrives - can't believe how this winter seems to be flying by. On 12 September 2015, I drove further than I'd ever driven before - a total of 410 km (254 miles). I met my daughter at 9:00 am and we headed northwards, with our main destination being the Bowden Sunflower Maze. She was feeling well enough after her recent hospital stay, to get out for a day trip. (She is having surgery in 5 days' time, so once again, she will be out of action while she recovers). The quickest route from Calgary to Bowden is a distance of 96 km (60 miles), but I wanted to avoid the main, busy route. The backroads are more pleasant to drive - less traffic and, if one is lucky, the occasional old barn. There was one barn in particular that I had seen last year, that I really wanted to show my daughter and this took us a little out of our way. We drove through the town of Olds, stopping briefly to take a couple of photos of the bright orange grain elevator. Going north, we drove the roads to the west of the main Highway 2, and on our return trip we drove the roads to the east of Highway 2. I think this trip really convinced my daughter, more strongly than ever, that sadly she has a mother with almost zero sense of direction! "A young sunflower's flower head faces the sun to receive the sunlight it needs for photosynthesis. Heliotropism is the term for a plant's ability to follow the sun. That ability allows a sunflower to move with the sun as it arcs across the sky from east to west; the sunflower's bloom always faces the sun. When the sunflower plant matures, the neck of its stem no longer grows, and tracking of the sun's arc ceases. The blooms of most mature sunflowers face east, but some face other directions." From homeguides. homeguides.sfgate.com/sunflower-move-73855.html A very short (2 minute) time lapse video showing how Sunflowers move to face the sun. Quite beautiful: www.youtube.com/watch?v=g8mr0R3ibPU This was the first time I had ever been to Bowden and the Sunflower Maze. For years, I had wished we had a field of Sunflowers somewhere within reach, as I had seen so many gorgeous photos taken by other people in various parts of the world. I certainly didn't get photos like those, but I was happy to get the shots I did get. Many of the flowers in my photos seem to be facing every possible way, giving a rather messy look! Maybe that's what always happens when the flowers are past their prime? Apparently, that weekend was going to be the last chance to really see the flowers, so we were just in time. This maze at Eagle Creek Farm is apparently the only Sunflower Maze in Canada. There is also an adjoining Corn Maze, but neither of us wanted to walk through that one, thanks to remembering the horror movie, "Children of the Corn"! The farm also has U-pick vegetables and flowers. www.sunmaze.ca/ Thanks, Rachel, for spending the day with me - and for all your directions getting us there and back to the city! Lucky we went when we did, as it rained the next few days.

I wanted a bright, cheery image this morning, 12 January 2016, to wish my daughter well, and thought these little pink hearts were appropriate. Yesterday, she went in for supposedly day surgery, but phoned me after she was moved from the recovery room, to say that they were keeping her in overnight. She wasn't able to give me any details, so I'm keeping my fingers crossed that it was all straight forward. Speedy recovery, Rachel! At least you are in the best place for the time being, but I hope it won't be too long before you can go home. Update, early afternoon: my daughter is now at her home, after complications yesterday. Unfortunately, she now knows that she is most likely going to have to have major surgery with various accompanying problems. I am so upset for her. On 27 May 2015, I had a volunteer shift and afterwards, as the sun was shining, I called in at the Reader Rock Garden, where I found these beautiful Bleeding Heart flowers. There was rain in the forecast so I thought I'd better make the most of the blue sky while I could. Alberta was bone dry everywhere, with wildfires especially further north. Much as I really dislike the rain, we desperately needed it. From the Garden, I drove through the adjoining Union Cemetery and then another nearby cemetery, and then called in at a wetland in SW Calgary. A lot of people have a photo of Bleeding Heart flowers in their photostream - they are beautiful flowers. This garden is situated on a hillside and it's usually windy whenever I go there, lol, so these delicate branches of little pink hearts are a bit of a challenge to keep in the viewfinder. "Lamprocapnos spectabilis also known as old-fashioned bleeding-heart, Venus's car, Lady in a bath, Dutchman's trousers, or Lyre-flower is a rhizomatous perennial plant native to eastern Asia from Siberia south to Japan. It is the sole species in the monotypic genus Lamprocapnos. It is a popular ornamental plant for flower gardens in temperate climates, and is also used in floristry as a cut flower for Valentine's Day. It usually has red heart-shaped flowers with white tips which droop from arching flower stems in late spring and early summer. White-flowered forms are also cultivated." From Wikipedia. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lamprocapnos

Shoo Fly, Shoofly or Shoo-fly, Peruvian Bluebell, even Apple of Peru ... take your pick, lol. It is native to Peru, and it is known elsewhere as an introduced species and sometimes a weed. It is also kept as an ornamental plant, as at the Reader Rock Garden, where this photo was taken on 17 September 2014. This plant is a member of the Nightshade family, Solanaceae. The green or black-mottled calyces have always fascinated me. Branches of the mature Chinese Lantern-style fruits can be dried and used for winter decoration. I will add a couple of photos of the flower in a comment box below.

After a bitterly cold day yesterday (17 January 2016), standing in a temperature of -15C with a windchill of -22C, I needed a warm, sunny shot for today. Fortunately, at least the Hollyhocks and Gladioli were still in bloom and in good condition when I called in briefly at the Reader Rock Garden after an afternoon volunteer shift on 26 August 2015. Most of the flowers there had finished for the season and many of the ones that did still exist were past their prime. Still managed to get a few photos, though, including this beautiful pink Hollyhock flower. "Alcea (Ál-ce-a), commonly known as hollyhocks, is a genus of about 60 species of flowering plants in the mallow family Malvaceae. Most species are native to southwest and central Asia, although a few are native to southeast Europe or Egypt." From Wikipedia. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alcea I wasn't sure whether I should go there or not that day, as the air quality had been very poor for a number of days, due to smoke blowing across from the devastating forest fires in Washington State, northwest US. Fortunately, the rain that had been falling for a few days helped the firefighters fight the flames.

Took this macro photo of a vibrant Painted Tongue flower at the Reader Rock Garden, on 24 June 2015 after a volunteer shift. It snowed overnight and it's still snowing this morning, 24 January 2015. After posting several wintry "white" photos the last day or two, I needed something bright and cheery to add to my photostream. As I type, the temperature is -2C (windchill -9C). Not bad at all for a mid-winter temperature in Calgary. Really feel for all those folks on the east coast, dealing with such a major snowstorm! "This half-hardy, branching annual from Chile, growing about 2 ft. high, produces funnel-shaped flowers 2-1/2 in. long and wide, of velvety texture and in many colors, the interior of the blossoms being strikingly veined .... Salpiglossis belongs to the Nightshade Family. All cultivated sorts are of the species Salpiglossis sinuata or its var. superbissima, which is unbranching and therefore more upright or columnar." www.plant-care.com/salpiglossis.html .

After posting quite a few cold, wintry images recently, I thought I'd post a photo of a different colour and subject this morning, 27 January 2016. I can't believe that February is almost here! This morning, the temperature is a balmy 6C (yes, that's +6C, with a windchill of +3C). It is supposed to climb to +8C this afternoon. What crazy temperatures for us here, near the end of January! The forecast is for colder temperatures in a few days' time, along with more snow. I took this photo of a Cornflower at the Reader Rock Garden, on 24 June 2015, when I called in after a volunteer shift. Not sure if this is Centaurea dealbata (Persian Cornflower)?

Does anyone know how to transfer photos from Flickr to another site such as Smugmug? Transfer them, keeping titles, descriptions and tags. I have all my photos on the ipernity site, as well as Flickr, but it looks like ipernity is probably going to have to shut down, unfortunately. Thought I'd mention this, just in case anyone hasn't seen their latest blog posting. It would be very unfortunate if they do close, as it is an easy-to-use site. I use Tampermonkey to transfer my Flickr photos to ipernity. www.ipernity.com/blog/team/4392064 After posting quite a few cold, wintry images recently, I thought I'd post a photo of a different colour and subject this morning, 30 January 2016. I can't believe that February is almost here! This morning, the temperature is +3C (with a windchill of -2C). Just three days ago, we reached +8C. What crazy temperatures for us here, near the end of January! The forecast is for snow today, 30 January 2016. No sign of any snowflakes yet, but it is overcast and dreary. I took this photo of a colourful Columbine flower, plus a little visitor, at the Reader Rock Garden on 24 June 2015, when I called in after a volunteer shift.

Fortunately, at least the Gladioli and Hollyhocks were still in bloom and in good condition on 26 August 2015, when I called in briefly at the Reader Rock Garden after an afternoon volunteer shift. Most of the flowers had finished for the season and many of the ones that did still exist were past their prime. Still managed to get a few photos, though, including this vibrant, daisy-like flower. I know so little about garden flowers, so if you know what kind of flower this is, I would love to know. I wasn't sure whether I should go there or not that day, as the air quality had been very poor for a number of days, due to smoke blowing across from the devastating forest fires in Washington State, northwest US. Fortunately, the rain that had been falling for a few days helped the firefighters fight the flames. It's an overcast, dreary morning here, with a temperature of -1C (windchill -5C). The sun is supposed to come out this afternoon, along with cloudiness.

This photo was taken at the Reader Rock Garden on 6 May 2015, when I called in after a volunteer shift. I think I have the correct ID for this plant. It felt so good to see a reasonable number of different flower species. Even though we had had a wonderfully mild winter, it still was a joy to see vibrant colours once again. I was glad to come across this photo in my archives last night, as it adds a splash of a different colour to my photostream. "One of the easiest Primrose species to succeed with, performing well in a wide range of climates. Plants form a lush mound or rosette of large green leaves, bearing upright stems with a ball of flowers on the end, beginning in mid spring. Blooms range in colour from white through shades of pink, violet, blue and purple. Flowers are lightly fragrant, and wonderful for cutting. Plants prefer an evenly moist site, and will even grow well beside a pond or stream. In cool summer climates these will also succeed in full sun, provided with enough moisture." From Perennials.com. www.perennials.com/plants/primula-denticulata.html www.kew.org/science-conservation/plants-fungi/primula-den...