Firewheel fading

Every spring you’ve seen pictures here of Gaillardia pulchella, the colorful wildflower called firewheel, Indian blanket, and blanket flower. One flower head* of that species provided background color in the photograph you saw last time. A firewheel’s flower heads are also appealing when they fade, as this one was doing on June 8th, 2015, along the Smith Memorial Trail. Of particular interest to me was the withered ray flower* that had fallen, had gotten caught on a bract—I think with the help of some spider silk—and was slowly spinning even in the slight noontime breeze. Oh, just try and stop that swirling: it will send your mind a-whirling.

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* If you’d like to review the meanings of the related terms disk flower, ray flower, and flower head, you’re welcome to turn back to a post from 2014.

© 2016 Steven Schwartzman