I was surprised to see these crocus growing in a friend’s garden. It’s a flower I thought only grew in the spring, often pushing through the melting snow. For a second there I thought we had skipped winter and gone directly into spring 😏.
Most flowers are not as vibrant as they were earlier in the summer but they still hold a special beauty.
A took this photograph in a friend’s garden in mid-August. She told me its name which I’ve forgotten but I believe it’s a member of the orchid family. A summer beauty.
I was looking at some Queen Anne’s Lace in the garden and saw this single flower off to the side. It seemed to be floating, suspended in mid air. A little garden gem.
Orange hawkweed is considered a weed but it produces a lovely flower and it grows just about anywhere. It’s also favoured by honeybees so it can’t be all bad!
A lot of old homes in my neighbourhood have wrought iron fences with flowers peaking through the gaps. The grass is always greener…
I hadn’t remembered taking this mauve poppy last year and found it when I was searching for a photo to post. I still prefer red poppies but the mauve has a delicate beauty all its own.
Our woods, roadsides and gardens abound in these daisies throughout the summer. The mimic fly was on a common daisy while the fleabane stood on its own. Both attract pollinators but only one did that day.
I look forward to seeing wildflowers each summer. They are hardy and don’t need special conditions to grow: just some soil, water and sunshine, and a few pollinators. Left undisturbed, that’s about it.
I do enjoy walking alongside meadows. In June, lupines are a common sight and shine like gems in the grass.
My eye was on the tortoiseshell butterfly, I didn’t see the bee at first. This was the first and only time I’ve seen this kind of butterfly. It’s interesting to see more than one insect on a plant at once, a bit of drama at play. In the end the butterfly blinked first and moved on.
I saw quite a few sulphurs last year, all within the span of a few days. We were walking along some flower beds in a botanical garden hoping to see some painted lady butterflies. The day was a bonanza of butterflies, we saw three different kinds, including the sulphur.
The size of the tree frog perched in a dense clump of flowers and the light proved quite the challenge. I have only ever seen a couple of tree frogs before and I couldn’t walk away without a photo. I waited, changed my position and waited some more but he never turned my way. In the end though, I was pretty happy with the shot I got.
This colourful fly landed on the daisy as I was composing my shot. One of the things I like about nature photography is that you can’t always predict what you’ll encounter or the outcome of a shot. The possibilities are endless.
There is something special to me about walking through fields like these in summer. The colours and smells and sounds never, ever disappoint. So much to see and photograph.
At the best of times, watching bees visiting flowers and gathering pollen is a good sign for nature and our part in it. In these troubled times, it’s reassuring to see that life continues, there is still order and more will return in time.
Queen Anne’s Lace is a flower I enjoy seeing and photographing. It grows alongside other wild flowers and grasses which makes for interesting compositions and it’s such a fine looking flower all on its own.
Another sure sign of summer are cabbage white butterflies. Their caterpillars are rough on gardeners but as adults they feed on nectar and are a pleasure to see. Unlike many butterflies, they fly slowly between the flowers and seem to linger longer than most.
Ants and peonies seem to go together. Ants feed on the flower’s nectar and also keep harmful insects away from the plant. The ant was racing along the bud but I waited until it finally slowed down and took the shot.
Three trilliums for this cold day in May. Last weekend the weather was warm and sunny, today we’re having snow showers. Despite the weather, the flowers know it’s there time. I took these photos in May two years ago. I imagine they’re about ready to bloom this year too.
The first photo was taken at our favourite reserve. We see a few irises along the water’s edge every June. The second photo was taken in a neighbourhood garden. The cultivated irises are beautiful but I prefer the more subtle colour of the wild flower. And though it looks delicate, it really can’t be as it thrives in this natural setting.
I imagine that somewhere, people are enjoying the sight of tulips and daffodils. Ours make an appearance mid-Spring. I took this photo at Ottawa’s Annual Tulip Festival. I never miss it!
On a sunny day last July, we found a shady spot by the water to cool off. The air was hot and still and the scent of iris hung in the air. The snow might be falling outside right now but a scene like this reminds me that we’re headed in the right direction. 😊
As we were about to leave the park after several hours in the field, we saw a flash of yellow by the side of the road. The goldfinch was feasting on the seeds of the dried flower. As he moved the fluff would separate forming a fan around him.
By late March, the ground begins to thaw and the ice starts to melt on the waterways. We’ll be outside with our cameras, enjoying the beginning of spring. I live in a country of contrasts – the snow and ice of winter giving way to the warmer days that follow!
This flower is an annual, native to North America, and often grows close to a water source. Every summer I see it growing by a small pond in a wonderful tangled mass of colour.
I think the milkweed plant is its most beautiful in the fall. The pod stood out against the dry grasses and brought contrasting colour and texture to its surroundings.
Daisies are some of our earlier wild flowers, sunflowers appear later in the summer and last long into the fall. They are both members of the same family of plants, Asteraceae, which I look forward to seeing when the warm weather returns.
This photo was taken in late October. I liked the contrasting shapes and colours of the flowers and leaves. There’s something very appealing about these fading flowers, beauty in their imperfection.
These frogs can be grey, brown or green. This one was a lovely shade of green. I’ve heard them calling a few times but had never seen one close up. A friend was focused on a patch of sunflowers as we approached and he pointed to this well camouflaged frog. They overwinter under leaf litter and snow.
Since I took this photo, we’ve had snow, freezing rain and a week of -C temperatures. The weather has moderated a bit but scenes like this are over until next year. Thank goodness for my photo catalogues where I can retrieve sights like these.
I saw the last swallowtails of the year in August although other butterflies were still around until early October. A very good year for them all. The swallowtail made picture taking very easy as it lingered on the Joe Pye weed, a plant they love.
With the temperature in the minus single digits today, I thought some summer cheer was in order. I had taken this photo shortly after a rain and the flowers practically shone. They appear to have an old fashioned quality which I like as well.
These were taken earlier in the month. Most of our wildflowers have gone to seed but a few still remain, including these hardy wild sunflowers. We’ve only had a few nights that have dipped below the freezing mark and the days have been mostly sunny so the flowers might last a bit longer.
With a frost advisory on the way tonight I thought it was time for another look at some late summer flowers. These were taken mid-September; the first in a field, the second in a neighbourhood garden.
I came upon these faded beauties on a recent walk, a few more still to bloom. The flowers take on a special beauty as the season draws to an end and summer lingers just a little longer.
It’s not quite fall but a good number of flowers are wearing their turn of season appearance. Queen Anne’s Lace is no exception. It was framed by some goldenrod that created an attractive background glow.
The bees are making the most of the late summer flowers. They were everywhere that morning. Some worked together, some worked alone and some like the bee in the first photo didn’t want any company.
It’s been a terrific year for butterflies in my part of the country. When visiting a local botanical garden, in among the clouds of painted ladies was this solitary sulphur butterfly. I went back a day later and I saw it again. Unlike the painted ladies who were constantly on the move, the sulphur, Pink-edged or Clouded (I’m not sure which) savoured the nectar for a while.
I’ve never seen a sunflower this colour before. It seemed rather fitting for this time of year. The sun isn’t as bright or warm as even a week ago and this flower seems to fit in perfectly with the changing season.
