Cattail tales

The cattails in the pond are starting to take over again. Since I can't have them dug out again without damaging the oncoming lotus flowers, I went out in my kayak to cut them down. Two hours later, they are gone for another season. While out there, I took some pictures of water lilies. They look much better from the kayak, but that is not always convenient for photography.

Water Lilies

The water lilies are now in bloom in the pond behind my home.  They have multiplied from just a few initial plants and are beautiful to see.  Interestingly enough, they close about 4 PM in Ithaca, so are very daylight dependent.  Right now, there are both pink and yellow flowers to enjoy.  Once the lotus bloom, the water lilies become overwhelmed by the leaves of the lotus plant.

New blooms!

Each day brings new and different blooms! The poppy unfolded to show its unique center, the Clematis wound its way to the top of the supporting pole and opened its lovely flower, and the single peony is in full bloom. Single peonies last through the spring rains in better condition than do the thicker ones.

Early Morning flowers.

The morning light and dew on the flowers are magical! Here is pictured the Allium, daisey, and lavender iris. With back lighting, the flowers look elegant.

Rhododendrons and f stop

The Rhododendron is in bloom under the large oak tree, with soft light filtering onto the flowers. I borrowed a tripod and took several shots of the same flower. Those shown here are f13 on top and f2.8 on the bottom. Were I to hand hold the camera, this would have been an exercise in blurr.

If anyone is in the Ithaca area, the Rhododendrons are in bloom on the knoll behind the new visitor center at the Cornell Plantations. Quite a spectacular sight and photo opportunity!

Tree Peony

The recent rain is still on the foliage and flowers of the magnificent tree peony in the Young Garden of the Cornell Plantations Botanical Garden. The flowers are delicate, yet magnificent! The Young Garden specializes in plants that reflect enjoyment by the senses and that have symbolism of use in art, aesthetics, and rituals. The garden can be enjoyed during many seasons of the year.

Garden Blues

Blue is the hue in the garden right now. Centaurea, native to Europe, have spread over the garden from one initial plant. The early morning sun causes them to sparkle as they dot the garden with color. Forget Me Nots are also scattered throughout the garden, self seeding each spring. Each day brings more growth in the annuals. I can't wait for the weather to be more stable so I can plant annuals in planters and the garden.

May Montages

The first weekend for the Garden Conservancy was May 8th and opened in a garden near Trumansburg for those of us living in this area of Central New York. The garden contained many specimens of fragrant lilacs and a collection of tulips and small tree peonies scattered in gardens behind the farm home. I photographed the flowers and then manipulated them to produce several montages pictured here.

I also produced a montage from tulips growing in the Cornell Plantations Young Garden, which is a portion of the Botanical Garden that is devoted to how we use flowers in our own lives, such as for births, weddings, deaths, Mother's Day, etc. The garden changes throughout the season and is well worth a visit.

Cornell Plantations

The Cornell Plantations includes many acres on campus and includes the gorges, the arboretum, the botanical garden, the wildflower garden, and several other sites. It is a wonderful place to wander and take pictures all during the year. I just took a walk this afternoon and photographed several plants in the gardens. This was with the macro lens that I am still getting used to.

Spring gardens

Both red and white bleeding hearts are in bloom, with their ever so perfect flowers. When the sun shines through them or dew drips from the tips, they are a sight to behold. Other flowers coming into bloom in the garden are Forget Me Nots and Bachelor Buttons (common name) which have spread to all reaches of the garden. Will have to cull some after they bloom to make room for other perennials.