Yellow Blooming Prairie

September 13, 2012 by 5 Comments
Prairie at Governor Nelson State Park

Prairie in September Bloom © 2012 Bo Mackison

“The real things haven’t changed. It is still best to be honest and truthful; to make the most of what we have; to be happy with simple pleasures; and have courage when things go wrong.”  ~ Laura Ingalls Wilder

I walked in the prairie yesterday. In mid-September, the prairie is a mix of blooming flowers – mostly Late Goldenrod and Showy Goldenrod. Wild Indigo and a few stalks of Prairie Blazing Star are scattered in the yellows. Oak savannas are in the background.

Prairie Flowers at Governor Nelson State Park

Prairie Flowers, Prairie Seeds © 2012 Bo Mackison

The true way to live is to enjoy every moment as it passes, and surely it is in the everyday things around us that the beauty of life lies.”
~ Laura Ingalls Wilder

By this time of the year, many flowers have long gone to seed – Rattlesnake Master and Common Milkweed, the yellow Cone Flowers and many of the sunflower varieties.

Some of the paths wander through prairie that is waist high, but some of the taller prairie lands rise high above my head. It is an hiking experience not often found, walking on a dirt path through flower stalks that are several feet above my head.

The view is all flower and sky!

These prairies were photographed on the Morning Side Trail at the entrance of Governor Nelson State Park, north of Madison, Wisconsin.

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Bo Mackison is a photographer and the owner of Seeded Earth Studio LLC. Walking is her daily pleasure, her daily meditation. Walking in the tall prairie is a walk for the senses and for the soul.

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Sunflower Fields, Singing

August 11, 2012 by 14 Comments
Fields of Sunflowers

Field of Sunflowers © 2012 Bo Mackison

In summer, the song sings itself. ~ William Carlos William

August Break 2012

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 photos continue.  So many lovely flowers!

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Mesquite in Bloom

April 12, 2012 by 9 Comments
Mesquite in Bloom

Mesquite in Bloom © 2012 Bo Mackison

The more you actively look, the more the action will become intuitive and natural, subconscious and effortless. With practice your eye will be intuitively and subconsciously drawn to light and the light will be drawn to your eye. ~ Wayne Rowe

In Arizona, the trees stand bare branched much of the winter. As the spring warms and a bit of rain falls, the mesquite gets a few leaves, as if a film of green gauze was twisted about the branches.

And then suddenly, almost as if a mystical being tapped all the trees with a magical wand, the trees burst forth in bright yellow. The flowers are almost like yellow fuzz, and when the southwestern winds start to blow, the yellow bits are blown from the branches and seem to dance along the sidewalks and streets.

Magical mesquites?

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Bo Mackison is a photographer and owner of Seeded Earth Studio LLC, living and photographing in southern Arizona . . . and enjoying the dance of the yellow mesquite.

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‘Loraine Sunshine’

June 27, 2011 by 5 Comments
'Loraine Sunshine' False Sunflower

‘Loraine Sunshine’ False Sunflower © 2011 Bo Mackison

I always thought this flower in my garden was a sunflower. Now I find out, while doing a bit of research for blog writing, that it is not a true sunflower, but a false sunflower. It is a good thing a flower’s beauty is not in its name, but in its looks. Botanically speaking, a sunflower has green leaves, while this flower has green and white variegated leaves. Hence the false label.

'Loraine Sunshine' Variegated Foliage

Variegated © 2011 Bo Mackison

It is a ‘Loraine Sunshine’ heliopsis and when I was in the nursery picking out replacement stock for a few spaces in my garden, one of the reasons I chose this flower was because of its deep yellow color. A second reason was because of its unusual foliage.

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Bo Mackison is a photographer and the owner of Seeded Earth Studio LLC. She is enjoying the backyard garden this year, especially since plentiful rains are keeping everything green and growing.

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