Layers of Leaves © 2012 Bo Mackison
“And see the peaceful trees extend
their myriad leaves in leisured dance—
they bear the weight of sky and cloud
upon the fountain of their veins.”
– Kathleen Raine, Envoi
Bo Mackison is a photographer and the owner of Seeded Earth Studio LLC. She is taking an August break from writing long blog posts, but the garden walks and the photos continue. Bo photographed these gorgeous leaves at the Olbrich Botanical Gardens in Madison, Wisconsin.
Flowers for Buttonhole Bouquets © 2012 Bo Mackison
We visited Old World Wisconsin, a Wisconsin State Historical Site, during Laura Ingalls Wilder Days, August 4-5, 2012. We didn’t know about the special event, so we were pleasantly surprised to see all the hands-on activities at the different villages. When we arrived at the Koepsell Farm, in Yankee Village, a young farm couple (museum docents) were making tiny bouquets for anyone who wanted one to wear.
It was a rather celebratory crowd, since the weather was cooperative. It was a perfect walk-around kind of day.
Making Buttonhole Bouquets © 2012 Bo Mackison
We stepped up to the table to pick out the flowers for my mini bouquet.
Each bouquet had three flowers, plus a bit of green foliage, fastened together in a foil wrap. The docent said the folks at Old World Wisconsin were following instructions from a womens’ publication dated from the 1870s, the oldest reference they’d found for making buttonhole bouquets.
I picked a peach colored rose, a purple zinnia and a yellow dahlia for my bouquet, plus a bit of greenery whose name I can’t remember. There were huge metal pails filled with flowers and greenery. What fun to choose from the many flowers and foliage!
Wrapping Flowers into a Bouquet ©2012 Bo Mackison
Once I’d picked the items for my bouquet, the young woman cut the stems to arrange the flowers, then arranged the placed the foliage behind the flowers. She put a dab of wet moss in a square of paper, tucked in the bottom, and then rolled the paper around the stems. A large pin held everything in place.
Docent with her Buttonhole Bouquet © 2012 Bo Mackison
One of the docents kindly gave me permission to take a quick portrait of her, wearing one of the buttonhole bouquets. She was taking a short break and she needed one! Her role that day was to rake the hay in a field into a large pile so the adventurous children could climb the hay pile and jump in the hay. The kids loved the activity, and she was enjoying herself, too.
My Buttonhole Bouquet © 2012 Bo Mackison
Here is a photo of my bouquet, propped on a wooden bench. What a fun and easy idea. And my bouquet stayed fresh until the next day. The moistened moss provided enough moisture to keep the flowers in good spirits! And it was fun to walk through the outdoor museum, and see what flowers the many women and girls chose for their buttonhole bouquets. Great variety!
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Bo Mackison is a photographer and the owner of Seeded Earth Studio LLC. Each Sunday she posts a group of photographs on a theme – the Sunday Series.
Opening to the Earth © 2012 Bo Mackison
What is seen by the eye is transformed and colored by the vision of the mind. ~ Robert Wade
Another macro view, this time highly abstract, so it’s hard to identify the flower. It’s a different view of the hybrid lily photographed at the Test Gardens west of Madison, Wisconsin. Aren’t these colors amazing, almost like a blazing fire. A perfect match for the fiery days of August!
Bo Mackison is a photographer and the owner of Seeded Earth Studio LLC.
Pink Lily Abstract © 2012 Bo Mackison
“Who would have thought it possible that a tiny little flower could pre-occupy a person so completely that there simply wasn’t room for any other thought.” ~ Sophie Scholl
Another macro view of the pink lily at the test gardens west of Madison, Wisconsin.
Bo Mackison is a photographer and the owner of Seeded Earth Studio LLC.
Red Flower Wearing Her Layers © 2012
While there is perhaps a province in which the photograph can tell us nothing more than what we can see with our open eyes, there is another in which it proves to us how little our eyes permit us to see. ~ Dorothea Lange
The simple zinnia provides an interesting study of the pattern of petals. It reminds me of a velvety red circular staircase. (Maybe a staircase to heaven?)
Oops, my mind headed in a different direction with the vision of Stairway to Heaven. How can you ignore the strains of one of the best songs ever, Stairway to Heaven by Led Zeppelin. (And yes, I saw them in concert in 1975, second from the top row in the Chicago Stadium, However the YouTube clip is from a concert at Madison Square Gardens!) I love the Zep enough to conquer any fear of heights or claustrophobia I may have had, and sat mesmerized through their sets.
Any other Led Zep fans out there? Especially from years of youth in the 1970s?
Isn’t it amazing how a simple red flower can send you on a trip through your memories?
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Bo Mackison is a photographer and the owner of Seeded Earth Studio LLC .She went on a trip down memory lane, all because of a photograph of the petal structure of a zinnia.
