Bent but still flourishing
Something had crimped the stalk of this four-nerve daisy but it kept growing, gradually curving back upward and even managing to produce the flower head you see here. The only thing different about it from a usual flower head of Tetraneuris linearifolia was that it was a bit flattened instead of circular. I found this testament to survival in the greenbelt north of Old Lampasas Trail on March 15th.
If you’re interested in the craft of photography, you’ll find that points 1, 2, 4 and 18 in About My Techniques apply to this image.
© 2016 Steven Schwartzman
Portraits of Wildflowers 
Very nice shot!
montucky
April 13, 2016 at 5:19 PM
I was pleased with the lighting and the overall diagonal movement.
Steve Schwartzman
April 13, 2016 at 8:03 PM
I know just how it feels. I’m getting my second new knee tomorrow…
krikitarts
April 13, 2016 at 9:18 PM
Now that’s an unusually personal connection. Happy new, as my wife likes to say.
Steve Schwartzman
April 13, 2016 at 9:57 PM
Good luck with the operation, Gary. I don’t envy the recovery experience, although you’ve survived one already so you know what you are dealing with, and hope all goes smoothly. I am sure you are looking forward to walking pain free again. I know a few folks who had both done at the same time. Can’t imagine it.
Steve Gingold
April 14, 2016 at 4:05 AM
Inconceivable!!!
krikitarts
April 16, 2016 at 9:57 PM
You’re speaking from experience.
Steve Schwartzman
April 16, 2016 at 10:19 PM
I always wonder what causes these curves and strays from the straight and tall. They are not usually around to give evidence and I wonder also whether there is something happening within the cellular structure that causes this. Anyways, nice view, sweet warm light and lovely background.
Steve Gingold
April 14, 2016 at 4:02 AM
I wonder about the causes of crimps and breaks too. We have plenty of deer around here, so they’re likely suspects. I’ve never considered something in the plants themselves being the culprits.
I like your description of “sweet warm light” and “lovely background.” Spoken like a photographer.
Steve Schwartzman
April 14, 2016 at 7:13 AM
In addition to the unusual curves, I like the way the “nerves” are highlighted, and the way their green and gold combination is complemented by the background. It may be true, as Frost wrote, that “nothing gold can stay,” but this flower seems to have made quite the effort to do just that.
shoreacres
April 14, 2016 at 7:45 AM
Well said about the daisy’s perseverance. It had a lot of nerve. A cross-section through the middle of a ray flower in this view confirms the four “nerves” in the common name.
Steve Schwartzman
April 14, 2016 at 8:13 AM
Wonderful image .. We have agapanthus that have the odd misshapen stem. Nature is amazing isn’t it?
Julie@frogpondfarm
April 15, 2016 at 3:17 PM
I see plenty of strange things as I wander about in nature, that’s for sure. I’m glad I caught this one.
During my month in NZ probably the most common flowers I saw were agapanthus. Too bad they’re not native over there.
Steve Schwartzman
April 15, 2016 at 4:14 PM
They are classified as a weed here which is a shame. Prolific growers ..
Julie@frogpondfarm
April 15, 2016 at 5:36 PM
That’s what gets them considered an alien invasive, and it accounts for why I so many of them and so few native NZ wildflowers.
Steve Schwartzman
April 15, 2016 at 6:27 PM
It’s seldom good introducing plants ..they can quickly become invasive as you say.
Julie@frogpondfarm
April 15, 2016 at 7:54 PM
Steven,
I’m hoping to get your permission to use this image of the four-nerve daisy with a poem it inspired me to write this morning. I’ve already included links to this and a few of your other articles in my post, but I’d love it if I could pair the image with the poem.
Thanks
MSS
My Small Surrenders
May 7, 2016 at 12:34 PM
Sure, go right ahead. Let us know when you’ve got it set up.
Steve Schwartzman
May 7, 2016 at 4:47 PM
Steven,
I was hoping all afternoon that you would say yes 🙂
Thanks so much for your generosity. I hope you enjoy the poetry you inspired.
Flourishing: An Ode To A Yellow Four-Nerve Daisy – http://wp.me/p5JzjS-iE
My Small Surrenders
May 7, 2016 at 5:40 PM
[…] into seeing the soft brush strokes of a floral portrait. While the bent stalk of a bright yellow four-nerve daisy (Tetraneuris linearifolia), and the words Steven Schwartzman used to describe its fate, inspired my brain to connect with the […]
Flourishing: An Ode To A Yellow Four-Nerve Daisy | My Small Surrenders
May 7, 2016 at 5:37 PM