Tag Archives: plants

nature, Photography

Ornamental Grasses

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Autumn is soon ending and winter is officially starting on December 21, so there aren’t many of those lovely fall colours left, but they’re not completely gone.

There are lots of grasses still and some of them are beautiful. I find that this one almost looks like a weaving.

On second thought, it’s not so much the colour as the texture of these grasses that I find so appealing. We are suddenly getting some very cold winds, so seeing these lovely plants is somehow very comforting.

Happy weekend.

nature, Photography

November 22’s Friday Fleurday

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It’s unfortunately come to that time of year where there aren’t many blooms about, but I did find a few for today’s flower post.

These dianthus or sweet william flowers are still sweetly and brightly blooming among the fallen leaves.
The indomitable hydrangeas are also continuing to bloom. It’s so lovely, especially at this time of year, to unexpectedly come upon them in all their glory.
A single rhododendron bush in one of the public gardens is continuing to bloom in a couple of places on the right side of the bush. The rest of the buds are all tightly closed, so only a little seasonal confusion for this rhodie!
And a lovely summer memory: a pond lily from mid-August.

These will probably be my last flower finds for this year, so for the foreseeable future I’ll probably be posting pictures from the warmer months or whatever else I can find to brighten our Fridays.

Happy weekend.

nature, Photography

Japanese Garden

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I frequently walk through Penticton’s small but lovely Japanese garden. It’s very peaceful and relaxing, even in winter.

Although we’re fully into autumn now, it’s still quite green although most of the hydrangeas are fading …

Cotoneaster

… and some of the plants are showing their fall outfits.

Azalea bushes

What’s more indicative of autumn is the slant of the sun, the cool edge that the wind now has…

… and the tint of the sky. Somehow, this grey is different from the summer greys.

Japanese garden fountain

I can’t visit the garden without stopping to watch the fish for a bit. Some of them are very large and their colours definitely fit right in with the season.

Happy October. 🍂

nature, Photography

Flower Power

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Right now we have beautiful hydrangeas blooming everywhere. They are very sensitive to soil conditions which is why we can find a wide variety of stunningly attractive colours.

This blue and light yellow is caused by a higher aluminum content in the soil.
A lower aluminum content will tend to cause pink flowers.
Red hydrangeas aren’t common, but their gorgeous colour is caused by exposure to iron.
I’ve never tried this, but apparently, adding coffee grounds to the soil will cause hydrangeas to become a deeper blue as this allows the plant to better access aluminum.
The ever-lovely white hydrangea. These aren’t affected by soil pH; they maintain their creamy colour no matter the conditions.

Have a flower power day.