Dogwood Branch © 2010 Bo Mackison
Nothing in nature quite persuades me it is spring again like the lovely dogwood. Dogwoods don’t grow in Wisconsin. (We do have particularly lovely crab apple blossoms in our clime, but the crab apple spring show is still a few weeks away.)
These particular dogwoods are from my hometown in western Illinois, where the trees are dotted throughout every neighborhood, and many of the trees are now beginning to flower. Always a lovely sight.
White Dogwood © 2010 Bo Mackison
These Dogwood blossoms were dressed in their Sunday best, and showing off their beauty in a tiny landscaped area in front of a century old church. Most everyone was inside the building, dressed in their Sunday morning finery, but I was outside in the warm sunshine, preferring to examine and photograph a bit of nature’s fleeting beauty.
The blossoms were such a soft creamy color and had bits of feathery plum accents on each bract (the part that looks like a petal). I could have looked at the blossoms for hours. See the tiny circular area that almost looks like a tiny eye? Reminds me of the “false eyes” that some butterflies have on their wings as defensive adaptations. And notice how the dogwood blossoms are in layers, facing towards the sun–getting their full share of sunshine? I love that.
These white parts of the dogwood are really a modified type of leaf. The flowers of the dogwood are the little green bits in the center — the flowering head.
This dogwood was photographed in Quincy, Illinois, nicknamed the Dogwood City because it has an unusually large number of both pink and white dogwood trees. There is an annual Dogwood Festival and Parade in the city, held the first weekend in May.
(This festivities for this year are scheduled for April 30 – May 2, but it appears the party will go on without the dogwoods in bloom. Peak will be in 7 to 10 days, I’m thinking.)
Early Spring Bulbs are Blooming
I was intrigued how the tulips, just beginning to open their buds yesterday, rather hunkered down against a rather sharp wind and sudden drop in temperatures today. I like the dreamy nature of this photograph, and how the bits of the interior of the red tulip are quite hidden from view.
Decorative Cabbage © 2008 Bo Mackison
I don’t think a flower can be any prettier than this decorative cabbage. I love the contrast of the purples and greens. Yesterday was the last day of the Dane County Farmers’ Market on the Capitol Square. Happily, the market now moves inside so we can shop in comfort. I love my Saturday forays to the Square, but I’m not fond of getting my fingers frozen pinching the produce.
Japanese Beetle © 2008
The Japanese beetle has invaded my gardens and yard. They have been voracious this summer and really inflicted a great amount of damage. The beetles eat the surfaces of the leaves, but avoid the vein which remains intact, and therefore the foliage looks lacy. However, it is not a pretty sight to any gardener.
Lacy Leaf Damage on Filbert Tree © 2008
The beetle was first discovered in the United States in 1916, and it is thought it was accidentally introduced in New Jersey in imported Japanese iris. The beetles are controlled in Japan by natural predators, but are unchecked in the US. They are found in every state east of the Mississippi River, except for Florida.
The best defense in my smallish garden is removal by hand – yuk! There are traps using pheromones, but some studies show the traps can actually attract more beetles than they catch. I’m not one to use much in the way of chemical control if possible, but I”ve been using Bonide from Garden Naturals in the worst areas and that seems to have helped.
Anyone else fighting these pests successfully with other means?
