Prairie meets bog
One of the first native plants we encountered when Melissa took us to the Volo Bog on June 7th was Geum triflorum, known as prairie smoke. Here you see a few buds. From what I’ve read online, the flowers of this species occur in threes. From what I’ve seen with my own eyes, the flowers of Geum triflorum are quite different from those of the Geum canadense that grows in Austin.
© 2016 Steven Schwartzman
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Very pretty.
Gallivanta
July 17, 2016 at 5:41 AM
We’re in agreement on that.
Steve Schwartzman
July 17, 2016 at 7:27 AM
Great image, Steve. All the little hairs and the texture. Well done!
elmdriveimages
July 17, 2016 at 6:29 AM
Thanks, Dan. I’m with you in appreciating how much the little hairs add to the texture.
Steve Schwartzman
July 17, 2016 at 7:30 AM
Really lovely.
Sherry Felix
July 17, 2016 at 7:01 AM
It is. Too bad this species doesn’t live in central Texas.
Steve Schwartzman
July 17, 2016 at 7:31 AM
Wonderful detail and colour.
Pete Hillman's Nature Photography
July 17, 2016 at 8:50 AM
I’ll give credit to the plant for the color and to my macro lens for the detail.
Steve Schwartzman
July 17, 2016 at 9:53 AM
And to your will and eye for aiding in capturing such beauty.
Pete Hillman's Nature Photography
July 17, 2016 at 10:26 AM
Thanks. My will took me to Illinois so I could turn my eye loose there.
Steve Schwartzman
July 17, 2016 at 10:30 AM
I’ll add my voice to the chorus, Steve. This is a very nice image.
melissabluefineart
July 17, 2016 at 9:17 AM
It’s good to hear that the singers are all in tune. I’d heard of prairie smoke but had never seen it, so naturally I jumped at (or actually knelt at) the chance.
Steve Schwartzman
July 17, 2016 at 9:52 AM
beautiful plant and photo.
taphian
July 17, 2016 at 10:35 AM
Thanks. I wish I’d been able to see the flowers at their peak.
Steve Schwartzman
July 17, 2016 at 10:41 AM
we have them in our garden at the little pond, too. They are beautiful.
Hope next year you can see them at their peak.
taphian
July 17, 2016 at 11:00 AM
These flowers aren’t native anywhere near Austin, so unless I travel a good distance (as I did to Illinois), I’m not likely to see any.
Steve Schwartzman
July 17, 2016 at 11:07 AM
that’s a pity. Maybe you should take a little plant with you when you come there again.
taphian
July 18, 2016 at 3:50 AM
To tell the truth, I’m no gardener.
Steve Schwartzman
July 18, 2016 at 5:10 AM
but good that you love flowers inspite of it
taphian
July 19, 2016 at 10:15 AM
I came to the flowers through the photography.
Steve Schwartzman
July 19, 2016 at 12:37 PM
well, that sounds nice. I had a garden and then started to photograph the flowers.
taphian
July 19, 2016 at 2:46 PM
Very beautiful Steve! So simple and so elegant. The pink combined with the green is a winner combination:)
Inger
Inger
July 17, 2016 at 1:45 PM
Hi, Inger. I went 2000 km north from Austin to see this, but not as far as 69° north.
Steve Schwartzman
July 17, 2016 at 2:44 PM
Very beautiful.
Roland Theys
July 17, 2016 at 3:17 PM
Enjoy.
Steve Schwartzman
July 17, 2016 at 5:35 PM
stunning
sedge808
July 17, 2016 at 9:02 PM
I’m pleased to see this picture has found favor.
Steve Schwartzman
July 17, 2016 at 9:09 PM
Fantastic shot and what a beautiful flower.
Beautywhizz
July 18, 2016 at 4:19 PM
I’d never seen an opening bud like this one.
Steve Schwartzman
July 18, 2016 at 5:38 PM
Nice. Different is good, no?
Steve Gingold
July 18, 2016 at 4:39 PM
Sure. Vive la différence!
Steve Schwartzman
July 18, 2016 at 5:36 PM
I saw prairie smoke on Sunday, but it was brown and gray, and wafting into the sky. These are much lovelier. The leaves are eye-catching, too. They remind me of staghorn fern. The Missouri Botanical Garden page mentions another name for this one: old man’s whiskers. I’m catching up, so I don’t know what lies ahead, but I have my fingers crossed that you got to see some of these in that latter stage.
shoreacres
July 20, 2016 at 6:01 AM
As you’ve probably found out by now from the follow-up post, I did get to see a bit of the “smoke” that these plants produce. In that next post I also mentioned the “old man’s whiskers” name that’s so close to the “old man’s beard” of Clematis drummondii. There are good bunches of the latter in at least two places in Great Hills Park, so for the better part of each year I’m no more than about half a mile away from floral plumage. Unfortunately, one of the biggest mounds of it that I knew about, the one on the prairie shown at
https://portraitsofwildflowers.wordpress.com/2015/09/08/a-formidable-mound-of-clematis-drummondii/
was lost to construction this spring, as you recently read at
https://portraitsofwildflowers.wordpress.com/2016/06/22/loss/
Steve Schwartzman
July 20, 2016 at 6:20 AM
Just down the street from me, a wonderful, large section of land filled with trees — a block long, and extending far back to a bayou — recently disappeared over night. I’d seen some activity on Saturday: a few pieces of equipment, some trimming, what appeared to be a short gravel road. Sunday morning? There was nothing. They’d come in under cover of darkness, bulldozed the trees, scraped the ground, put up a fence. There was nothing left but a few huge mulch piles. The trees already had been shredded.
One of my readers nagged city hall until she found the explanation: a new assisted living facility. Well, I have a certain sympathy for old people, but two huge “luxury adult living” complexes have gone up in the past year, less than a mile away. I’ll spare you my commentary on changes in the social order, and just acknowledge how shocking it can be to see land transformed in that way.
shoreacres
July 23, 2016 at 8:34 AM
I’m sorry to hear about your loss of that property. I’m also unfortunately not surprised, given my experiences in Austin and the fact that Texas remains among the fastest-growing states.
I’ve thought about approaching the owners/managers of the various facilities that have covered tracts in nature where I’ve worked, and asking if they’d like to buy photographs to put up in their buildings showing how things once looked in those very places.
Steve Schwartzman
July 23, 2016 at 8:43 AM
The stand out elements for me are all those tiny hairs, the shade of pink and the way it droops down to look a little like a lampshade or decoration. You’re in fine form, Steve. 🙂
Jane
July 21, 2016 at 10:16 PM
I was in fine form because it was in fine form.
Steve Schwartzman
July 21, 2016 at 11:07 PM