[OT from cottage renovations]
dandelions: what folks think of this species depends greatly on who one asks. gardeners can't stand them but kids love them. there are even winemaking possibilities.
like them or not, there's still a tiny world of detail to be seen.
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found growing in the drainage culvert.
[OT from cottage renovations]
when a warm day like this one comes along it seems that everything that has been fixing to bloom sooner or later decides to get on with it right away; whether the plan had been for last week or next, suddenly it's all immediate.
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the Virginia bluebells are something I look forward to every year and as soon as the first tips appear I start watching them closely to see how they are coming along. they don't need the attention but that doesn't hold me back.
the first image shows how far along a couple of them have already gotten; the second is more representative of current conditions.
with the sun out the time seemed right for revisiting the swamp (marsh) buttercups [edit: fig buttercups, a/k/a lesser celandine] at the other end of the athletic field.
they're happy as can be: click through the second one to see its pollinator.
quite a change from the other day.
the Spring Beauties are another seasonal highlight here in the Grove. they can be expected to remain in bloom for a month or so but one never tires of them.
[OT from cottage renovations]
a heads-up email from Ann sent me down to check out her report of swamp (marsh) buttercups in bloom [edit: turns out they are fig buttercaps, also known as lesser celandine].
overcast skies and rain might not provide the best lighting for getting a picture, but since affinity for abundant moisture is a trait for which the plant is named (Ranunculus translates literally as "little frog"), soggy and froggy conditions seemed eminently suitable.
(click through these thumbnails for higher resolution images)
[OT from cottage renovations]
when morning turns to afternoon and wet overcast yields to sunlight, what better time could there be to revisit the crocus meadows?
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there's nothing like a few hours of warmth and light to open things up.
... and to bring out the texture of the petals.
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fully extended they catch the sun and paint interesting effects of shadow in settings where everything seems to curve into arcs and circles.
this cluster was receiving an airborne visitor, demonstrating pollinators at work.
was this too far across the Grove to have been operating out of one of ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif){kind=small}
betsy_beekeeper's hives?
translucent petals with finely traced veins can be perfectly stunning in strong light.
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the delicacy of shading and the intricacy of detail just keep on getting better.
another crocus meadow, equally well established, can be found over on Grove Road, across from the athletic field. with a complete disregard for property lines it has spilled over into a neighbouring lot. who wouldn't welcome such an invasion?
with full sun streaming down these images became more about colour than form.
[OT from cottage renovations]
anybody can take pictures when there's light, but when it runs out sometimes things just get more interesting.
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it's almost time for the westbound passenger train when an eastbound freight rolls through the station.
spray paint vandalism seems to afflict more freight cars than not these days. at first glance that might seem to be what's going on with these trilevel auto racks but (you might need to click through to the larger image to make it out clearly) the dark markings are actually the shadows of evergreens and lamp posts, cast by lights in the station's parking lot.
the Moon had come up above the clouds and behind this sycamore tree.
this view is from further along Grove Road with camera braced against one of the tennis court's fence posts.
I couldn't decide which one was the keeper so sorry, you have to look at both of these.
[OT from cottage renovations]
afternoon light plays with leaves of oak and maple.
(click through these thumbnails for higher resolution images)
[OT from cottage renovations]
the sun came out and with a light breeze things started to get just a bit less soggy. extended puttering, more of a mental health measure than anything else, kept me from getting out until the light was somewhat more faded than usual.
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these leaves aren't going to last a great deal longer but they are catching the light and emitting a soft glow that this image doesn't adequately convey.
I'm starting to wonder whether these blossoms have decided to go to a year-round schedule.
is it just me, or don't these two look like hummingbirds? they also resemble an exotic species of fish or a certain aircraft.
October is apple season around here. these are great deal smaller (not to mention less edible to our species) than most but they are participating in full.
this redbud's leaves were following the example of the paw paw up on the Circle.
across the way, looking up one sees an intricate tracery of delicate details with soft lighting and colours high above as a background.
with its jester's crown it's hard to take this rose hip seriously. like the morning glory blossoms above it is also strongly evocative.
[OT from cottage renovations]
still blooming in late October, this morning glory blossom is most of the way through its one day of existence. even as the bloom folds in on itself and begins to shrivel there's still plenty of texture and colour to be seen by any who might pass by.
(click through this thumbnail for higher resolution image)
[OT from cottage renovations]
for a couple weeks the days have drawn me away from the Grove and I have been obliged to lay down camera and take up other pursuits. Saturday provided the start of a three day weekend, a welcome chance to take it all in again at least for a while.
(click through these thumbnails for higher resolution images)
for some reason our hibiscus flowers seem to be more horizontally than vertically oriented. that aspect, and the morning light, were sure to catch my attention.
morning glories, radiant in, well, glorious morning light.
click on through for a better look at how it all came together.
disregard for a moment the Subject: line of this post. this last image was actually taken on Sunday afternoon.
[OT from cottage renovations]
tried a 2nd reshoot of a botanical subject here in the Grove only to discover that the 3rd time was not the charm. maybe some other time. or not: it doesn't always happen that hardware, software and process can combine to capture an image that correlates well to the one in the mind's eye.
passed these on the way and they made for a closer match: dark, diffuse, and slightly blue.
(click through these thumbnails for higher resolution images)
[OT from cottage renovations]
here's an image that didn't make the original cut for the entry about this year's School Bus Attack, though just barely. the bamboo walker dropped by; on seeing it she encouraged me to relent.
... or lack thereof
[OT from cottage renovations]
we have day lilies all over the place. that doesn't keep me from feeling compelled to stop and capture these images.
now repeat after me:
"I will not waste bandwidth with more flower pictures"
"I will not waste bandwidth with more flower pictures"
"I will not waste bandwidth with more flower pictures"
"I will not w ---
sorry, it doesn't count.
I had my fingers crossed.
(you probably have no idea how hard it is to type with crossed fingers, but yes, it can be done. )
[OT from cottage renovations]
it happens every morning, at least while school is in session. Tracy comes in bus no. 172 to take the Grove's kids across the tracks to the elementary school and leaves, not just with passengers but also with a full load of our hopes and dreams. before the Rockville office closed it was often the case that I would be passing the bus stop around the time of this daily ritual so it became a part of my day, too.
it happens every year. as the school year draws to a close the children and parents collude to wish her the best for the summer. last year's School Bus Attack was documented in this space; the tradition continues.
her children are a transient lot from year to year: come the fall she will lose several to the Middle School but others to magnet school programs elsewhere in the County.
[edit: this one didn't make the original cut but I had hesitated. it is added at the suggestion of the bamboo walker. ]
as Tracy was pulling away a late arrival came rushing up, so she made a second stop to accommodate the last passenger.
[OT from cottage renovations]
sweet peas always seem to come out during that time when late spring is turning into early summer. the flowers are quite attractive, looking a bit like wisteria on a smaller scale. just don't go eating its seeds -- they're a neurotoxin.
(click through these thumbnails for higher resolution images)
[OT from cottage renovations]
there's a clematis on the wood fence in the median of the paved road out back. it's a spot that gets plenty of sun so it's no wonder that it does so well there.
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and down at ground level are some more star-of-bethlehem
[OT from cottage renovations]
a couple of warm days was all it took to bring out the crocus bulbs in many parts of the Grove (not all, though: there still aren't any in the Circle, at least not yet).
today's high was around 60°f. three days from now the forecast is calling for a low of 21°f and snow. snowdrops are still blooming in the Circle, they shouldn't have any problems, but how the croci will fare remains to be seen.
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most impressive: this crocus has punched right through a fallen leaf in order to launch stalk and bloom into the sky.
... has a crocus meadow, one that never fails to knock my socks off every spring. it went from no blooms to a few blooms to this massive display (of which just a very small part is pictured) over a period of 48 hours.
halfway across the Grove an excellent stand of crocus can be found in Woodward Park, between the tennis courts and Grove Road. it's smaller than the one in Jackson Park but has greater chromatic diversity: mixed in with the purples are some whites, yellows, and this beautiful mix of shades and stripes.
would you like to do a lawn? here's how to do a lawn.
you'll get:
it will be worth waiting for.
[OT from cottage renovations]
(click through these thumbnails for higher resolution images)
these tufts caught the very last of the afternoon light; within a couple of minutes they were overtaken by the shadow of the cottage in the background.
yesterday's snow gave the Town Hall's roof a makeover, changing the colour balance and accentuating its crisp polyhedral edges.
[OT from cottage renovations]
today's balmy weather came with light that started out intermittent and became quite steady. in other words, an irresistible lure to head out and about with camera.
(click through these thumbnails for higher resolution images)
yuletide is past but the hollies are abundant of berries. their colours seem to be tracking along with the holidays, tending more toward an orange shade around Halloween and Thanksgiving, settling in to the deeper reds by year's end.
these bushes are quite large and the berries cluster around the branch stems in pleasing garlands.
the pattern of light through these leaves was complemented nicely by the shadow of the branch to which they are (still) attached. I didn't look closely at the bush but these are probably honeysuckle.
these Oak Leaf Hydranges are growing across from Howard Park, next to the church parking lot.
a couple of blocks away one is reminded that the tracery of branch doesn't always need the embellishment of leaves.
[OT from cottage renovations]
the cottage fronts onto the Circle, but vehicular access is via the paved road out back. strictly speaking it's the 400 block of Pine Avenue, but it is shown on maps and is known as the 400 block of Grove Road.
Thursday morning at the very moment of sunrise (07:40 local) the upper branches of this sycamore were already bathed in the first rays of the day's sunlight while its base was still wrapped in shadow and ground fog. I captured this image from the back deck (in my nightshirt, but nobody was around to have been offended and anyway the exposure was 1/200 sec. -- it's not like I was out there for much longer than that).
(click through these thumbnails for higher resolution images)
I tried two different crops of this image: the first (wider) one is trying about the tree and the other, with more foreground detail (or clutter) is about the setting.
the thumbnails really don't adequately convey what it was like; you should click through twice to get to the full size images.
which do you prefer?
[OT from cottage renovations]
this time of year the hibiscus and crepe myrtle seem to be the most showy of the many plants in bloom. however pleasing they are to us while out for a walk around the Grove, their true purpose is to attract creatures to bring targeted mobility to their pollen. here's some of it happening:
(click through these thumbnails for higher resolution images)
that tan background of the first image is the plywood of Castle McClelland.
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