Old plainsman, phlox, and other wildflowers
On April 4th along FM 467 southwest of Seguin I saw some old plainsman (Hymenopappus spp.) coming up and towering over the other wildflowers. The magenta flowers are phlox (Phlox spp.). Mixed in are some Indian paintbrushes (Castilleja indivisa) and bluebonnets (Lupinus texensis).
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I’m out of town for a few days. Feel free to leave comments, but it may take me a while to answer them.
© 2014 Steven Schwartzman
Steven, this must be a fantastic site to see a large field of them. And btw, wherever you are – have a good time. Carina
anyone4curryandotherthings
April 14, 2014 at 6:32 AM
Good morning from Lubbock, a city at the base of the “panhandle” of northwestern Texas, where the temperature has fallen to a ridiculously low 33°F (1°C). I’ll swap for Bangkok’s temperature any time.
Yes, it’s a wonderful sight to see swaths of land covered with wildflowers, especially mixtures of bright colors like this. I wish I could transport you there for real and not just show a photograph.
Steve Schwartzman
April 14, 2014 at 7:56 AM
Love the lines of colours. Great photo. 😀
Raewyn's Photos
April 14, 2014 at 1:34 PM
Thanks. I was really happy to see that color combination.
Steve Schwartzman
April 14, 2014 at 9:56 PM
I’d love to see a field of blooms like that right about now…matter of fact a bloom of anything. Lovely field bouquet.
Steve Gingold
April 14, 2014 at 6:14 PM
I’m in Lubbock, where the overnight temperature was what I’d expect where you are but not in Texas in the middle of April. Two days ago in west Texas 150 miles from here we had 90°.
Steve Schwartzman
April 14, 2014 at 10:00 PM
i want to flrolick
sedge808
April 14, 2014 at 8:50 PM
A good field of Texas wildflowers will do that to you, no question.
Steve Schwartzman
April 14, 2014 at 10:00 PM
Interesting how the paintbrush appear a loose stripe toward the back.
Susan Scheid
April 15, 2014 at 11:33 AM
It’s good of you to notice that, Susan. Your words “loose stripe” reminded me that there’s a wildflower called loosestrife.
Steve Schwartzman
April 16, 2014 at 8:08 AM
Ah, yes, loosestrife! Which definitely causes strife when let loose. But it’s wonderful in the wild, particularly paired with goldenrod (ah-choo), which is how I’ve seen it where we are now.
Susan Scheid
April 16, 2014 at 9:09 AM
Actually, according to the current understanding of these things, goldenrod doesn’t affect most people. If you look at a flowering goldenrod, you’ll often see lots of insects attracted to it. In other words, goldenrod relies on insects to pollinate it. In contrast, ragweed doesn’t rely on insects but instead sends lots of pollen into the air—and into our eyes and respiratory tract. Ragweed and goldenrod bloom in the same season, so it seems that goldenrod got blamed for the suffering that was actually being caused by ragweed.
Steve Schwartzman
April 16, 2014 at 10:44 AM
You know, I have a vague recollection of reading this very thing somewhere and am glad to be reminded that I can love goldenrod with impunity!
Susan Scheid
April 16, 2014 at 5:38 PM
I’m happy to have restored goldenrod to its golden rank for you.
Steve Schwartzman
April 16, 2014 at 11:39 PM
[…] recently saw some landscape photographs of fields covered with dense wildflowers, among which were prominent stands of magenta phlox. Phlox comes in various colors, including bright red, as you see here. I took this closeup in […]
Phlox bud | Portraits of Wildflowers
April 27, 2014 at 6:01 AM
Beautiful!
john todaro
May 13, 2014 at 6:43 PM
Thanks, John. I’m particularly fond of this view.
Steve Schwartzman
May 13, 2014 at 7:38 PM
Ah! Thanks for that. 😀
Shannon
March 12, 2017 at 1:24 PM
I hope the wildflowers you saw near you were as dense as these.
Steve Schwartzman
March 12, 2017 at 4:05 PM