At first glance the first of today's images could easily be mistaken for a butterfly's wing but actually it is the shimmering petal of a Perennial Geranium.
It was because of the strong colour that I took these shots but it was only when I looked closer when I was processing the pictures that I realised how the surface of the petals reflected the sunlight so beautifully.
Getting in close to see the central components of the flower you can see how delicate it is and the fine hairs on the inner petals and on the stamen which I presume are use for capturing pollen.
I love these pictures and I hope you do too.
This lovely purple flower is a wall bellflower.
It is difficult to get a sense of scale from these photos, especially as I don't know what size these pictures will appear on your screen. The bud in the second shot was just a couple of milimetres across and the open bloom was no more than a centimetre. They would have been easily overlooked but with the help of my macro lens we get to enjoy a nice close up view of a real gem.
There are many different varieties of Rhododendron (over 1,000 in fact) and the flowers are really quite beautiful, with vibrant colours and delicate petals. Although they are actually native to Asia, and the national plant of Nepal since their introduction to the UK they have run wild, to the extent that in many parks and gardens they are being removed because they impede the growth of many of our native plants and shrubs.
When they are in bloom they add a really nice splash of colour and the pictures above show the development of the flower from bud to blossom (obviously working up the page) and I am sure you will agree it's quite lovely.
When preparing for my walk I considered what lenses I was likely to need and I very nearly decided to reduce the weight of my pack by leaving my macro lens at home. I was so glad however that I didn't because when I found this tiny flower only my macro lens would do.
It was growing in an area of very boggy ground and so I got wet knees as I got down close enough to get the shot but I think it was definitely worth it. I am not sure what variety of plant it is but I will do a little more research to try and identify it, but in the meantime if anybody out there can tell me I will be very grateful.
Just one picture again today. This thistle is a good specimen and the colours are as sharp as the thorns...
Only 2 pictures today, combining the two colour themes from recent days, Purple and Yellow.
Have you any idea how difficult it is to identify flowers? I didn't want to say here's another picture of a plant I don't know so I started by googling "purple flower with yellow pollen" and the very first picture is one of these beautiful flowers but clicking on the link does not identify the plant itself; so frustrating...
An hour later after a lot of false leads I was able to find out what it is and I can tell you it is a variety of Spiderwort... but you already knew that from the title of this post.
I really love the deep purple with the contrasting golden yellow pollen, i love the fragile papery petals and the wispy, fern like stamen combining to make a really remarkable flower, enjoy!
