Views from the Cosmos: Friday Flowers
gardening
We got the beet!: Silent Sunday & LAPC
Spruce cones up close: SMM
A photograph of spruce cones up close that I took in my Bend, Oregon yard.
Sunshine’s Macro Monday (SMM)
Summer’s bounty on display: LAPC
Snowy quilts now cover the gardens, but I remember summer’s bounty
Glossy purple eggplants, leafy green artichoke buds, and garlic cloves wrapped in crisp colorful coverings
Rainbow shades of plump tiny tomatoes
A Fiery Western Columbine: SMM
Sunshine’s Macro Monday (SMM)
A sweet little onion in bloom: SMM
Sunshine’s Macro Monday (SMM)
Blazing star beauties: Friday flowers
I saw these blazing star beauties at the top of Pilot Butte in Bend, Oregon last August. Pilot Butte is an extinct volcano that is a state scenic viewpoint. It’s a great place to visit for a 360 degree high desert view! You can see in the photos that these flowers are growing on cinder rocks. The Sisters volcanic peaks are in the background of the last picture.
Continue readingA rosy outlook: Friday Flowers
Friday Flowers
Purple coneflower up close: SMM
These coneflowers’ colors are fading as summer turns to fall. Their form is still beautiful and I look forward to seeing them bloom next spring.
When the flower blossoms: Sunshine’s Macro Monday
A dawn bouquet: Friday Flowers
Friday Flowers
Old, new, borrowed, blue gardens: LAPC
The challenge for the Lens-Artists Photo Challenge this weekend is Something old, new, borrowed, and blue. I am highlighting the recent High Desert Garden Tour in Central Oregon.
Something old
I saw many plants I’m familiar with on this tour. Some I knew the names of, others I was like, “Uh… what was your name again?” Fortunately, the plants were labeled or the person whose garden it was could tell you.
Here are some old friends.
A swirling clematis: Friday Flowers
Friday Flowers
Bird Not For Sale: BOTD
I was visiting one of my favorite plant nurseries recently and saw a little sign on one of their grape plants. It says the plant is not currently for sale because it is occupied by a robin and her hatchlings. In other words, this bird is not for sale. You can see her with her beak pointed up in the air at the top of the picture. She is one proud and protective mother!
Granny Shot It Challenge – BOTD
I’m invisible standing here, right?: Wordless Wednesday
Wordless Wednesday
Sharp and soft: Friday Flowers
Friday Flowers
Purple Pretties: Friday Flowers
Here are a few of my purple pretties in full bloom in my High Desert yard in Central Oregon.
Lupine 
Phacelia 
Lavender 
Larkspur 
Aster
Springtime Cosmos: A Photo a Week Challenge
It’s always a thrill to see these lacy-leaved springtime cosmos in the morning sun.
A Photo a Week Challenge – Flowers
Sand lily – High Desert Star: Friday Flowers
The sand lily, also known as the star lily, is a delicate perennial wildflower found in western North America. It grows in sagebrush deserts, open montane forests, and in sandy and rocky soils.
The plant above is growing near sagebrush in an uncultivated part of my property near Bend, Oregon. There is only one plant and I look forward to it blooming every spring.
Cherry blossom time: Friday Flowers
Friday Flowers
Roses-Summer Blooms & Fall Fruit: Friday Flowers
I enjoy watching these roses growing along the Mill A Loop trail along the Deschutes River in Bend, Oregon. They produce a bounty in the summer and the fall for walkers and wildlife.
Friday Flowers
Lilies in the Rain: Friday Flowers
Friday Flowers
Harvesters of gold: Friday Flowers
Bright yellow blossoms
Inviting hovering bees
To harvest their gold
Prairie Smoke: Friday Flowers
A Rose by Another Name
Prairie smoke, Geum triflorum, is a native plant of the prairies and it’s a less showy member of the rose family. The sepals on their droopy flowers are fused shut so they can’t open fully. I was drawn to this plant with its plain flowers and deeply serrated leaves.
The plants grow 6-10″ tall and bloom in late spring through early summer. Once the flowers are fertilized, they are followed by feathery wispy “fruits” (achenes) that somewhat resemble smoke. Another common name for this plant is Old Man’s Whiskers. The semi-evergreen leaves turn varying shades of red, purple, and orange in the fall.
Continue readingChives vignette: Friday Flowers
The color has faded in these blossoms but they are still beautifully framed by the long spiky leaves on this chive plant.
Friday Flowers
Colorful Border on Fall’s Eve: Friday Flowers
A colorful border full of flowers on the last day of summer at Oregon Garden in Silverton, Oregon.
Friday Flowers
Corn Flowers: Friday Flowers
“A light wind swept over the corn, and all nature laughed in the sunshine.”
Anne Bronte
Friday Flowers
Quote on the Cosmos: Friday Flowers
Other times, you’re doing some piece of work and suddenly you get feedback that tells you that you have touched something that is very alive in the cosmos.
Leonard Nimoy
Friday Flowers
Purple Crocus Vignette: Friday Flowers
Friday Flowers
Purple polka dot pansies: Friday Flowers
Pretty purple pansies.
Friday Flowers
Oakleaf Hydrangea: Friday Flowers & FOTD
Unusual hydrangea
This type of hydrangea has interesting flowers and foliage. This shrub blooms over a long period of time in the summer. The white flowers fade to pink in the fall. The large leaves turn maroon, orange-bronze, or red in autumn.
Flower of the Day – Pink hydrangea
Friday Flowers
Outdoor Bonsai: Artful Miniatures LAPC
A sculpted garden of outdoor bonsai plants
I saw these outdoor bonsai trees on the High Desert Garden Tour in Bend, Oregon this summer. I marveled at the artistry that went into sculpting these plants. Though I’ve seen bonsai trees in the past, I was pleasantly surprised to see tree species that grow locally sculpted into small replicas of full size trees. You can see why they are referred to as “living art.”
Cotoneaster
Maple
Larch
Juniper
Juniper
Lens-Artists Photo Challenge – Small is beautiful
Flower Border at Old Mill: Friday Flowers
Flower border in full bloom
It’s been a while since I walked one of my favorite short trails in Bend, Oregon . The flower border along the Mill A Loop trail is spectacular right now. Even my dog had to stop and smell the roses.
Friday Flowers
Summer & Winter Prickly Pear Cactus: Friday Flowers
Prickly pear cactus in my garden
The prickly pear cactus in my garden are highlighted in the summer with bright yellow flowers and in the winter with layers of snow. The sharp needles make their presence known throughout the year.
Friday Flowers
High Desert Garden Tour: Colorful
Colorful Flowers on the High Desert Garden Tour
Here are some pictures from the High Desert Garden Tour located in Bend, Oregon. Lots of colorful gardens out there!
There were gardens with winding paths and comfortable places to sit to take in the scenery.
Ice plant in my garden: Friday Flowers
These colorful ice plant blossoms brighten up my garden in the spring and summer months. This a drought resistant plant that the bees love. The small succulent leaves are interesting too. Ice plants are a low-maintenance ground cover plant that does well in areas with hot, dry summers.
Apple blossoms: Friday Flowers
McCoin Orchard apple blossoms
I saw these apple blossoms in the McCoin Orchard near the trailhead for the Gray Butte trail. This orchard, near Terrebonne, Oregon, was originally planted in the late 1880s and it was rescued by range specialists 100 years later.
There’s a nice hike here with some spectacular views of the country. The close up views of spring flowers are great as well.
Tatarian honeysuckle blossoms: Friday Flowers
Pretty but invasive
These honeysuckle blossoms are pretty but they are on an introduced plant that has been so successful it’s considered invasive in some parts of the country. These tall shrubs are growing along the Deschutes River and they produce a lot of berries later in the summer.
Friday Flowers
Red Hot Poker: Friday Flowers
Red Hot plants in the garden
Sometimes the common name of a plant really fits. Here is one of those plants. The red hot poker plant is native to Africa and it grows well in the high desert of Oregon. It is a drought tolerant perennial that has both herbaceous and evergreen species. They are also known as torch lilies.
Red hot plants can grow to a height of five feet and their colorful flowers attract hummingbirds, butterflies, and bees. Orioles are also attracted to the nectar. Here’s a post from Mountain Valley Growers showing orioles busy sipping nectar. This plant is deer and rabbit resistant.
The Better Homes and Garden site refers to this plant as “an eye-catching burst of color that is both whimsical and architectural.” Yes, that description fits the red hot poker well. 🙂
All spruced up and nowhere to go: Wordless Wednesday
Wordless Wednesday