Showing posts with label marigold. Show all posts
Showing posts with label marigold. Show all posts

Tuesday, August 10, 2010

Sunken Garden visit, 2010

For the past six summers, I've made it a point to record in images the summer floral arrangements in the Sunken Garden of Garfield Park (a formerly simple and enjoyable task; but in recent years, it has become increasingly difficult -- not nearly as enjoyable -- because of an apparent misinformed security staff that tries to shoo away any photographers using (and this is their term) "fancy" equipment -- instead of just professional portrait photographers. But that, perhaps, is for another post).

I think my first visit to shoot the garden arrangements -- which was in July 2004, just five weeks after I had acquired my first digital SLR -- remains my most favorite, primarily because I think the arrangements that summer have not been topped since -- violet petunias bordered by white dusty millers in one arrangement, coral-colored blooms and bright green coleus in the other arrangements.

This summer, there are burgundy coneflowers, tangerine marigolds, apricot and dark apricot zinnias, bulls-eye salmon geraniums, Titan Bush periwinkle, Red Bunny Tails, diamond frost Euphorbias and Lantana "Lucky Peach." The coneflower images were the toughest to deal with in post-processing, although I expected that from the LCD views I was seeing after I took each image. The color was just not reproducing properly. I have the forgiving nature of RAW image format and Photoshop to thank for enabling me to restore those coneflowers' "look" to almost what I remember seeing!

Beneath the group of images below from this year's shoot, I've posted three images from the aforementioned shoot of the Sunken Garden arrangements on July 18, 2004.

Enjoy.

















FROM JULY 18, 2004







Sunday, May 30, 2010

Pictures from the gardens ... at home

This is my first year to grow beans in my gardens, and I didn't do much research before planting that would explain my shock when I saw the image above -- where I'd planted beans!

Well, it turns out that bean seedlings sprout flowers early in the growing process. My surprise was actually more eerie, because two summers ago, in the same spot in my garden where this emerged, I had grown pentunia annuals that gave me the same multicolored blooms as you see above. So I was freaking out at first, thinking that some residual seed from the petunia annuals two years ago had come roaring back.

A quick research online caught me up to speed on this bean-growing phenomenon ... and also warned me to get something for the bean plant to twine ASAP lest it fall over and rot. So ... I'm going to be looking to do that in the days ahead.

A few other surprises in this year's garden. Some seed dropped from last year's bachelor's buttons (blue boy) -- which I also thought were annuals, though I read that they were strong plants that could return -- apparently must have helped itself to several places in my garden last summer after quite a few of the plants were toppled by a severe storm. I'd left the toppled plants alone after the storm, so the tops (blooms) were in direct contact with the soil. There were too many of them to bother to upright with poles or sticks, and not enough room to do so. I'd done the same with my zinias, which also had toppled in the storm (and which are also supposed to be annuals), and lo and behold, I believe I'm seeing seed dropped from those downed plants emerge, too. The growth of the supposed zinias are quite a ways behind the bachelor's buttons at this point, but I'm going to keep my eye on them and catch pictures as soon as something serious materializes. Speaking of dropped seed from an existing plant ... the one sedum I have in my front garden is a result of that very phenomenon from one of the older sedums in my backyard fence-line garden.

You also see here some images of the beautiful, aromatic white blooms from my Henry's Garnet bushes in the backyard fence-line garden (the plant gets its name from how its foliage turns an awesome red in the fall, something I always look forward to). I put some seedling Garnets in my front yard garden last fall; it'll be a while before those get as full as their backyard counterparts and fetch much attention, but the two seedlings did produce some white blooms this spring, which I was thrilled about.

Also pictured are the bountiful buds on my asiatic lilies -- due to burst anytime in the next week and a half; those will be yellow and pink. Last year's show from these beauties was striking and inspiring.

You also see romaine lettuce, broccoli and cumumber plants making their appearance, as well as yellow day lilies, which bloomed only in the past week, and the spots for my two tomato plants -- one cherry, the other a beefeater. In my circular garden in the backyard, my red bud tree -- nurtured from seed dropped from a mature red bud in a neighbor's yard three summers ago -- took off in a big way this spring. Sprinkled around the spring remnant tulips foliage is marigold seed planted a week and half ago. I'm already seeing seedlings sprouting from that.
Above: A broccoli plant.

Above: Cucumber plant foliage.


Above: A hosta on the left, roses on the right. The roses are the only plants on my property that have been with me from the day I moved in 19 years ago. The roses are worth a separate post at a future date.

Above: The front garden that includes (front to back) not sure, one of two Henry's Garnet seedlings, spring tulip foliage, a day lily, a variagated hosta, spring daffodil foliage, another Henry's Garnet seedling and a sedum plant, spawn of one of the backyard sedums.

Above: The fence-line garden in the back, including two Henry's Garnet bushes (with the showy white blooms), a sedum (closest to you), and spring tulip foliage (middle). Not visible are my allium plants (in the middle back row), which are obscured by the foreground Henry's Garnet bush. I also put some marigold seed in the front row here.


Above: The circular garden, featuring a baby red bud and remnant spring tulip foliage. Tiny marigold seedlings are just starting to sprout.


Above: On the left, the genus garden (named for my son's first car, which sat here idled for three years before I developed the grass underneath it into a garden. My son had called his car "the genus"). The genus garden features day lilies, beans, romaine lettuce, my beefeater tomato plant and remnant foliage from spring bulbs. On the right are the asiatic lilies. Behind them are the broccoli, cucumber and a bachelor's buttons plant; in front of them (out of view), a cherry tomato plant.

Above: Closeup of one of the romaine lettuce plants.

Above: Closeup of one of the day lily blooms and a bloom-to-be. These emerged this past week.

Above: A bloom from the return of the Bachelor's Buttons (blue boy).

Above: Closeup of some of the asiatic lily buds.


Above: Blooms from a plant I can't identify; I believe it's from seed I planted last summer, thinking they were supposed to be annuals, but they never emerged. I can't find the package now to identify them. But ... here there are now, a year later?


Above: Closeup of a bloom from the above plant.