Wild Asters in Bloom

Gardening

It has been hot and sticky for the last few days (26°C), and today we are back to the rain showers.  The garden is thriving.  Both flowers and vegetables are doing nicely. 

The asters look very pretty in the front bed and are producing more blossoms than the same plants growing on the north side.  I'm considering moving these particular plants to the front next spring.

Painted Daisies

I've also planted some flowering kale and red and yellow snapdragons.

Sunny Morning

Wild Asters

In My Winter Garden

Asters and Snowflakes

Friday's Flower

Perennial Aster and Fritillary Butterfly

The asters are looking beautiful this year.  Although I've had these plants for three or four years, I've never seen so many blooms before now.  This has been another rain soaked week for us, but yesterday morning, thankfully, we looked out on a blue sky and glorious sunshine.   The bees and butterflies were the first to arrive in the garden, then a few birds, notably the juncos, and at mid morning a happy and most grateful  photographer/gardener came out to view the scene.

To view more pictures of butterflies please refer to the labels on my sidebar.

Winter is still upon us...

I took this photo a couple of days ago.

And this one of wild Asters was taken last August. I hadn't noticed it before, but I do believe there's a tiny crab spider on one of the blooms.

Today's Flowers

Wildflowers

While out walking yesterday, I came across some dried spent flowers poking up from the crusty snow. They do have a certain loveliness about them.

Winter Asters

Winter Yarrow

Wildflowers

These are some flowering plants I saw while on a recent camping holiday in a semi-arid region of British Columbia.

I came across this little Aster flower when I walked a section of the historic Cariboo Wagon Road. Built between 1862 and 1865, stage coaches and freight wagons rumbled along the cliffs of the canyon, linking the Cariboo gold fields to Vancouver.

Growing to one side of the path in gravelly soil, these cheerful flowers leaned out on a soft, fuzzy stem. Another characteristic: the yellow disc flowers gradually turn purple as seen in the photo.

This plant, known as Curly-cup Gumweed Grindelia squarrosa was found in another spot, close to the main highway. Other common names are Resinweed and Tarweed. The green backward curled bracts produce a sticky substance, and its roots can go down six feet, making the plant very drought resistant.