Here is a sample of my wife Pam’s photography skills by way of a video with music created by her IPhone 8.
Category: Flowers
First Blooms
Floriography!!!
“Like other ericaceous plants (i.e. of the heather family -Ericaceae), most rhododendrons prefer acid soils with a pH of roughly 4.5–5.5; some tropical Vireyas and a few other rhododendron species grow as epiphytes and require a planting mix similar to orchids.”
“Rhododendrons have fibrous roots and prefer well-drained soils high in organic material. In areas with poorly drained or alkaline soils, rhododendrons are often grown in raised beds using media such as composted pine bark. Mulching and careful watering are important, especially before the plant is established. Rhododendron species have long been used in traditional medicine.”
“Animal studies and in vitro research have identified possible anti-inflammatory and hepatoprotective activities which may be due to the antioxidant effects of flavonoids or other phenolic compounds and saponins the plant contains.”
“In the language of flowers, the Rhododendron symbolizes danger and to beware. Floriography (language of flowers) is a means of cryptological communication through the use or arrangement of flowers.”
“Meaning has been attributed to flowers for thousands of years, and some form of floriography has been practiced in traditional cultures throughout Europe, Asia, and Africa. Plants and flowers are used as symbols in the Hebrew Bible, particularly of love and lovers in the Song of Songs, as an emblem for the Israelite people, and for the coming Messiah. William Shakespeare ascribed emblematic meanings to flowers, especially in Hamlet. Interest in floriography soared in Victorian England and in the United States during the 19th century.”
“Gifts of blooms, plants, and specific floral arrangements were used to send a coded message to the recipient, allowing the sender to express feelings which could not be spoken aloud in Victorian society. Armed with floral dictionaries, Victorians often exchanged small “talking bouquets”, called nosegays or tussie-mussies, which could be worn or carried as a fashion accessory.”
Reference: text in italics and quotes is from Wikiedia, “Rhododendron.”
Copyright 2023 Michael Stephen Wills All Rights Reserved
August Scenes
Grandfathering Around Tompkins County
Copyright 2023 Michael Stephen Wills /all Rights Reserved
Spring Ritual
Feeding Apple Trees
A spring rite of ours is caring for three apple trees. We provide each, a Cortland, a McIntosh, a Delicious, with 15 fertilizer spikes ; 45 in all.
I am way past using a hammer to pound in each. The preferred method is to drive a space into the ground beneath the drip line (the other reach of the branches), lift the handle and drop the spike into the ground, remove the spade and tamp down the ground.
These helpers are now experts in the dropping and counting. Then, enough is enough, time for play.
And lunch….
Copyright 2024 Michael Stephen Wills All Rights Reserved
Ad Astra
To The Stars
A mass of lavender asters produced for a painterly, restful esthetic. Over the years I have tended beds of these wildflowers. The sunlight of late August/early September here in the Finger Lakes is especially clear and this is when these asters bloom. This were caught on a clear September evening with the sun just behind a stand of large Ash trees.
Click Me to visit this image in my fine art gallery
“Symphyotrichum novi-belgii (formerly Aster novi-belgii), commonly called New York aster. Symphyotrichum, a genus in the family Asteraceae, whose species were once considered to be part of the genus Aster. Plants in both these genera are popularly known as Michaelmas daisy because they bloom around September 29, St. Michael’s Day. The Latin specific epithet novi-belgii (literally “New Belgium”) refers not to modern Belgium, but the 17th century Dutch colony New Netherland which was established on land currently occupied by New York state (as Belgica Foederata was the Latin term for the United Netherlands at the time).“
Reference: Wikipedia “Symphyotrichum novi-belgii.”
Copyright 2023 Michael StephenWills All Rights Reserved
Wild Carrot
have you ever noticed the black petals in the center?
Found in a meadow of the Brock-Harvey Forest Preserve. The function of the central dark florets of D. carota has been subject to debate since Charles Darwin speculated that they are a vestigial trait.
It has been suggested that they have the adaptive function of mimicking insects, thus either discouraging herbivory, or attracting pollinators by indicating the presence of food or opportunities for mating.
One study in Portugal found that the dark florets contributed to visitation by the varied carpet beetle, Anthrenus verbasci, and that higher numbers of dark florets correlated with increased visitation, whereas inflorescences without dark florets had fewer visits. Replacing the dark florets with one or more freeze-killed A. verbasci, who are similar to the florets in size and shape produced similar results to those observations of inflorescences with intact florets..
This specimen was found among many others in a meadow of the Brock-Harvey Forest Preserve
Click me for another post from this forest preserve.
References
Wikipedia, Daucus carota
Copyright 2023 Michael Stephen Wills All Rights Reserved
Lake Treman
formed by a 1930’s Dam on Buttermilk Creek
Dam on Buttermilk creek that forms Lake Treman. Here is stunning Civilian Conservation Corp (1930’s) work in this 36-foot-high stone dam that is not only a spectacle to observe but also serves as part of the trail that encircles Lake Treman. The man-made lake’s wooded shores and placid waters are a stark comparison to the gorge’s rocky cliffs and surging water
August 2023, Buttermilk Falls New York State Park, Ithaca, Tompkins County, New York.
Copyright 2023 Michael Stephen Wills All Rights Reserved
Wild Ducks
On Lake Treman.
Two species of wild ducks rest on a fallen tree trunk.
That is a female Wood Duck (Aix sponsa) on right.
Wood Ducks mainly eat berries, acorns, and seeds, but also insects, making them omnivores. They are able to crush acorns after swallowing them within their gizzard.
August 2023, Buttermilk Falls New York State Park, Ithaca, Tompkins County, New York.
Copyright 2023 Michael Stephen Wills All Rights Reserved
Jewel of a Day
from our porch
Copyright 2023 All Rights Reserved Michael Stephen Wills
Thin Leaved Sunflower
The flowers attract many kinds of insects, including bees and butterflies.
As with other members of the family Asteraceae, Thin Leaved Sunflowers are composed of ray florets. The scientific species name “decapetalus” is inaccurate on several counts. The flower is composed of 8-12 (not only 10, as in “deca”) of these ray florets, not petals. These ray florets are part of the flower reproductive organs, a flower petal is adjacent to, not a component of, a flowers reproductive parts.
The flowers attract many kinds of insects, including bees and butterflies, some of which, such as the painted lady and the silvery checkerspot, use the plant as a larval host. The seeds provide a source of food for birds. Muskrats eat the leaves and stems and use the stems in the construction of their lodges. Here we see a honeybee gathering nectar and pollen.
August 2023, Buttermilk Falls New York State Park, Ithaca, Tompkins County, New York.
Michael Stephen Wills Photography 