Oooh That's Nice!

 Oooh That's Nice! is the reaction I got for the first of today's images, which for me is closely tied with the second image as my favourite. 

I really like Foxgloves, they are such dramatic flowers and especially when you get a nice straight specimen like the first image it is really special. The colours are so vibrant and the pattern inside each flower is so striking, it is no wonder they are so effective at attracting bees.

I like the second image with the contrast between the bright flowers and the stone wall, there is something quintessentially English about this.

When I took the third shot I thought it would work a little better, the fern in the foreground is in focus as are the flowers with a nice shallow depth of field so overall it is a nice image.  However, I think the foreground is swallowed up by the green background and perhaps needs more contrast, I wonder whether it might look better for someone with better colour vision than me.

Insect Heaven

I love these white Cone Flowers (or Echinacea), their strong white petals folding back to reveal the spiky orange centre that attracts all manner of pollinating insects. 

Where's Lenny?

So the title of today's post is slightly cryptic but will make sense to anyone who watches the cartoon The Simpsons.

"How?" I hear you ask...

This lovely yellow flower is Sedum caereleum and the variety is "Carl". In The Simpsons Carl's best friend is Lenny so having posted these pictures of Carl I pose the question where is Lenny?

I don't have any pictures of Lenny but a little bit of research means I can share a link to the RHS website where you can see pictures of a Hibiscus variety that is called Lenny 

Anyway back to Carl, you can see from the first image how the flower head is actually a mass of tiny star shaped flowers with little coiled stamen. 

I am really happy with all three of these pictures and hope that you enjoy them.

Fade to Green

There is so much about this flower that I love, the soft delicate petals curled around waiting to unfurl and reveal the heart of the flower, the soft white outer edges that gradually fade into green that looks like it has been applied in fine brush strokes, the shape like a candle flame and the way it stands out against the lush background. It is almost perfect but if you look closely at the left hand side you will see half way down a slight crease which shows how fragile this lovely plant is.

Blue Salvia

This beautiful and delicate looking flower is a variety of Salvia (Salvia macrophylla I think).


It has lovely  soft tissue like petals with a covering of tiny hairs. I really like the colour too. Each stem has an abundance of flowers and the contrast against the green background is quite stunning. I have chosen a nice macro shot though to really show off the best of this wonderful flower.

Hot Lips

Today's flower like yesterday's is a variety of Lamiaceae which are part of the mint or deadnettle family.

This particular plant is Salvia microphylla "Hot Lips" and it is easy to see how it gets the name.  I wonder if the name was also inspired by the character Hot Lips Houlihan from the movie and TV show M.A.S.H. 

Whatever the inspiration this is a lovely little flower and deserving of a place in my daily blog.

Hard At Work

So I had gone to Ness to photograph the summer flowers but of course where there are flowers there are also going to be bugs and with my macro lens and a lot of patience I can get in close and get some great shots.

Today's selection shows a beautiful bumble bee hard at work gathering pollen from Actaea simplex "Brunette" a hardy herbaceous perennial with flowers almost as soft and furry as the bee itself.

I am really happy with these shots, not just for the clarity of the images of the bee with its strong colours and glassy wings but also for the bokeh in the first picture and while I tend not to blow my own trumpet I am sure you will agree they are pretty darned good.

Verbena

I have photographed this type pf flower before but didn't know what it was but after visiting Ness Gardens I now know it is Verbena. I love the purple flowers and if you zoom in on the the first image you will see that the centre glistens and has fine filaments and the petals appear to have a dusting of something shiny which glitter as the sunlight hits them.

Big, Bigger, Biggest

I think that this flower is a white Cosmo and it is really stunning especially when you get up close and see the detail. That is the beauty of using a macro lens, you can get in really close and bring out the fine detail that otherwise you would miss.

There is so much beauty in this flower from the delicate white petals with their gently scalloped edges, the folds where the petals meet in the centre and the colours and shapes in the central cluster of stamen and the tiny grains of pollen.

Apparently they are a big hit with bees and butterflies, I can see why.

Roses are...

Is rose a colour, is it a fragrance or is it a flower?

Of course it is all three but it isn't one single colour, one single scent or just one type of flower there are many different colours  and varieties of rose all of them beautiful and today's selection of photos showcases just a few from the gardens at Rufford Old Hall.