Tag: flowering plants

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Love and Modesty

ellenparkerwrites

Poets applied these attributes to the violet. Perhaps that leads to the phrase ‘shy violet’.

This small, woodland spring flower can do some mighty things. Native to Eastern North America, it thrives in woodland but tolerates full sun.

Invasive? This non-expert gardener welcomes early violets into her flowerbed. Did you know the blooms are pollinated by bees and then the seeds distributed by ants?

If you live in Illinois, Rhode Island, New Jersey, or Wisconsin, the violet is your state flower.

When photographer Serena Carter visited all the Missouri State Parks, she would have encountered many patches of violets in spring and into the summer. Check out her adventures in the sweet romance, Morning Tryst. https://amzn.to/35gH37S

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Pick any color — except Blue.

ellenparkerwrites

Spring flowers tend to bring smiles. In cooler climates, where winter keeps the ground cool for three or four months, tulips bring cheer.

Easy care? Plant deep after the first frost, enjoy winter activities, and watch for the leaves to poke up in early spring. The bloom stems will follow. If you select your variety with care, they will return for several years — but with smaller blooms.

Not much room to garden? Tulips will fare well in containers. Consult garden experts in your area to learn if containers may remain outside or need to be taken into cool shelter.

Tulips would have been a familiar flower to the Deutsch immigrants in the mid-19th century. I can easily imagine a few clumps of spring color near the front step of either a farmhouse or a residence in town.

Check out New Dreams, a sweet historical romance, to find a story of two 1851 immigrants — a baker and a thief looking to reform. https://amzn.to/3vWydWE

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Smile: The Daffodils are Here

ellenparkerwrites

Actually, I’m a little late with the greeting. In St. Louis, the daffodils have had their moment. Aside from crocus, these bright yellow, or yellow and white, blooms are cheerful indicators of spring.

Yes, some years the bulbs, like humans, misjudge the weather and end up blooming above a fresh snow blanket.

This happy looking group of daffodils was photographed on March 1st of last year.

Early to bloom in the season, daffodils often symbolize rebirth and new beginnings. Have a friend with a March birthday? Daffodils, a card featuring the bloom, are a spot-on token.

Pretty and cheerful, daffodils do come with a caution. DO NOT EAT! However, this has not prevented them from being used historically to induce vomiting or numbness.

During her year photographing Missouri State Parks, Serena Carter would have encountered daffodils throughout the month of March and perhaps into the first portion of April. Either wild, or escapees from long-ago farm gardens, daffodils bob their blooms in a cheery “hello” from all portions of the state.

Morning Tryst, the sweet romance featuring Serena, also introduces the reader to Zack Sans, a man of few words and many secrets. Follow the link to learn more: https://amzn.to/35gH37S

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Keeping Separate Rhythm

ellenparkerwrites

The spinning earth, rotating moon, and central sun all keep their own steady rhythm. Days. Months. Years. The solar system maintains a complicated dance.

This is rumored to trickle down to plants, animals, and humans. Growth and activity cycles are often keyed to seasons, temperature, or length of daylight.

I think one of my houseplants failed to get the memo.

This is definitely NOT an Easter Cactus.

When I compare the leaf shape to a chart, it says Christmas. However, for five years, it has chosen to bloom closer to Halloween (or All Saints Day) than to either Canadian or American Thanksgiving — and certainly not at Christmas.

As a bonus (or symptom of further confusion) the plant has bloomed for a second time, with fewer blossoms, close to Valentine’s Day.

It’s a good thing I’m not fussy with my plants. I choose to enjoy the blooms, no matter the month on the calendar.

For a sweet romance that’s enjoyable at any time of year — check out the historical New Dreams. You’ll step back to 1851 Illinois among the German immigrants.

https://amzn.to/3vWydWE

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Golden Shrimp, Please

ellenparkerwrites

Sorry if the headline made your mouth water. Yes, I enjoy a nice plate of golden, fried shellfish as well as the next person. But I’ve a different sort of Golden Shrimp in mind today.

Shall we modify to Green & Gold Shrimp?

Pleased, and surprised, to find this bed of a tropical/semi-tropical, flower in an outside area of the Missouri Botanical Garden on a summer visit. I knew we were having a warm July — but really — have the planting zones moved this much???

Considering their location, I expect before the frost arrives this fall, the plants (or a portion of them) will be moved to one of several greenhouses on the property. I’ll need more visits to follow their appearance in this outside area.

Outdoor photography is an art — practiced by Serena in the sweet romance, Morning Tryst. Focusing on Missouri State Parks, she captures flora, fauna, and sunrises. Check out her adventure here: https://amzn.to/35gH37S

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A Corpse to Remember

ellenparkerwrites

What were you doing in July 2017?

Do you have prompts such as photos or notations on a calendar or planner to prompt your memory?

When I was looking through photos from past summers, I came upon this:

This huge (or pick another word) flower was not in full bloom yet. However, a few days later, after mention on local radio and television, there was a line of people to see the corpse flower.

Yes, some held their nose (or breath) when they got close. I was thankful for a poor sense of smell — it’s always described as similar to rotting meat.

Have you ever seen one? It’s really an experience — even a few days before fully open. Keep an ear, or eye, out for mention of one at a public garden near you.

Want to treat your mother? Consider an outing to your local public gardens. The hero in the sweet romance, Stare Down, spends a fine day doing that exact thing.

More about the book here: http://amzn.to/1LXiTwP

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Memory Prompt

ellenparkerwrites

Gardens. Flowers. August.

In the vegetable garden August is filled with picking, washing, cutting, and canning. Hot water in great quantities as mother performed (and directed) the preservation and storage of vegetables to tide us through the winter.

Flowers formed a joyful spot in their own garden, or on the edge of the vegetables. Their names escape me now but I do remember the year I was ready to take gladiolus to the county fair as part of my 4-H project. However, it was also the year we had a puppy — who decided the best place to roll and scratch his back was in the middle of the flower bed. (I took the dahlia. — It’s always wise to have a back-up plan.

Our neighbors grew difference flowers from our variety. They had hollyhock beside their garage. Decades later, the sight of this portion of the Missouri Botanical garden takes me back to the flowers grown by previous generations.

Do you have a flower garden? Fond memories of other gardens?

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The Little Things

ellenparkerwrites

Big.  Bold.  Beautiful.

That is one way to be noticed.

Petite.  Delicate.  Fragrant.

These can be charming, especially in the floral world.

The first house I lived in had a lilac bush beside the steps to the front porch. Under and almost hidden were some floral gems. They also happen to be May’s designated flower.

Four and a half decades later, and too many residences to consider, I moved into a condo and needed to fill a flower garden. A large oak tree made the area shady, limiting the plants which would thrive. I soon decided what I wanted and talked about it at work. A few months later, at the height of a St. Louis summer, a co-worker offered me some plants when a home renovation project was destroying their current home. I accepted, planted, and prayed.

The lily-of-the-valley thrived in their new location — after a few years of getting established.

This year the experiment continues — the first full year without the shade of that large oak tree.

 

 

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Finding Holiday Spirit

ellenparkerwrites

The music is playing in public spaces.  Decorations of green and red with more twinkling lights than a person can count adorn trees and doors, and walls, lawns. Every retail outlet, large and small, urges you to buy, buy, buy.

Are you feeling overwhelmed?

I bring you bad news.  It is twenty-two days to Christmas.

If you are hunting for a quiet, yet pretty space, to decompress from all the noise and advertising I may have found one.

This is from the Missouri Botanical Garden in 2017. The displays complimenting the trains change each year. Do a little research and find a public display you can enjoy at leisure.