Spiderwort buds
Click for greater clarity.
Another native plant I found outside the Austin Nature Center on February 22 was this spiderwort (genus Tradescantia). You’re looking at a cupful of its buds as they’re about to open.
© 2012 Steven Schwartzman
Aurons-nous droit à la voir une fois fleurie ?
lancoliebleue
March 2, 2012 at 6:21 AM
L’ancolie bleue (the blue columbine) asks whether we’ll get a chance to see a spiderwort once it has flowered. The short answer is oui, yes.
Steve Schwartzman
March 2, 2012 at 6:55 AM
Love the composition, Steve! Spideworts are one of new favorite flowers to photograph. I got a lot of nice images when I visited the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center (my first time there) last March with Sonya.
cindydyer
March 2, 2012 at 7:59 AM
Thanks for appreciating the composition, my fellow photographer of flowers. Not only are spiderworts photogenic, but they also have a wonderful scent. I hope you got a chance to sniff them when you were photographing them a year ago.
Steve Schwartzman
March 2, 2012 at 8:04 AM
Great shot Steve, I like the composition! The stem leads the eye to buds that are about to open!
dhphotosite
March 2, 2012 at 8:58 AM
I guess we could call the stem an eye opener (and bud opener, too).
Steve Schwartzman
March 2, 2012 at 9:50 AM
Spiderworts are one of my favorite wildflowers of Colorado and I love that you’ve captured the color so beautifully. That tinge of purple contrasts perfectly with the bright green. Great photo!
aveena
March 2, 2012 at 9:50 AM
Thanks, Jen. The spiderworts already flowering in central Texas give you something to look forward to in Colorado.
Steve Schwartzman
March 2, 2012 at 9:55 AM
Amazing shot Steve, it looks like the spiderwort is sprinkled with silver powder… beautiful
H2O by Joanna
March 2, 2012 at 10:12 AM
I think some (but not all) of the sprinkling was from small drops of dew that were still on the plant that morning; it wasn’t even 9 o’clock yet. You get to enjoy it without having to kneel or sit on the damp ground.
Steve Schwartzman
March 2, 2012 at 10:20 AM
My first thought — shades of Georgia O’Keeffe!
Bonnie Michelle
March 2, 2012 at 10:20 AM
This isn’t the first time her name has come up in these pages. Last spring I showed a picture of a different purple flower, a bluebell gentian, that two people (and a third later) felt was in the spirit of O’Keeffe.
Steve Schwartzman
March 2, 2012 at 10:26 AM
Exquisite! So glad I found your blog, Steve. I live in NW Austin and love to see what blooms here.
Cathy R. Dudley
March 2, 2012 at 11:11 AM
Greetings… from northwest Austin… to northwest Austin. I’m glad you found this local blog, Cathy. If you use the “Search on this site” box in the upper right and enter the word northwest, you’ll see how many pictures from this part of town have appeared in these pages so far are. I imagine there are at least a hundred.
Steve Schwartzman
March 2, 2012 at 11:26 AM
Love the coloring:) Have a Great Weekend!
cravesadventure
March 2, 2012 at 11:28 AM
Happy coloring and happy weekend to you too.
Steve Schwartzman
March 2, 2012 at 11:38 AM
A lovely shot of a lovely flower! But… but… no bluebonnet? After all, it’s our Independence Day!.
Thanks for what you do to help so many people appreciate this great state!
shoreacres
March 2, 2012 at 11:31 AM
Six days ago I saw my first bluebonnet of the season, but it was looking rather plain, so I didn’t take any pictures. We’re still early: let’s hope for a good crop of spring wildflowers, including the bluebonnets. One of the things I aim to do in these pages is show people how much more Texas has than just the most familiar wildflowers, though I’ve hardly ignored those (think, for example, of how many sunflower pictures I posted in 2011).
Steve Schwartzman
March 2, 2012 at 11:45 AM
Oh, my. I hope I didn’t sound as though I was criticizing – I certainly didn’t mean to. A friend from the Hill Country called this morning, excited about seeing her first bluebonnets on Texas Independence Day. I just wondered if you might have posted one because it’s the state flower.
shoreacres
March 2, 2012 at 11:58 AM
Never fear, Linda, I didn’t take your comment amiss. The bluebonnet I saw was at the Zilker Gardens, probably planted; I haven’t seen any in the wild yet, so I’m glad to hear about your friend’s report from the Hill Country. During the winter I’ve observed the basal rosettes of bluebonnets in various places around Austin but I haven’t been back to any of them to see how the plants are coming along. Shouldn’t be long now.
Steve Schwartzman
March 2, 2012 at 12:04 PM
Cool and hairy! Great macro. 🙂
Nandini
March 3, 2012 at 3:20 AM
And a great comment. Thanks.
Steve Schwartzman
March 3, 2012 at 6:06 AM