Bushy bluestem covered with droplets
As you heard once before, on the morning of December 3rd last year I set out to get some fog pictures. I didn’t get any, unless you count pictures of plants covered with droplets that had condensed out of the fog. The bushy bluestem (Andropogon glomeratus) seed head shown here is another example. If you’re unfamiliar with this native grass that takes on delectable colors and textures in the late fall and winter, you can look at a stand from farther back in space in time.
© 2018 Steven Schwartzman
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Grasses and droplets are one of my favorite combinations, and bushy bluestem can catch a lot of droplets. It’s amazing how even the most slender thread of fluff has hosted its own row of beads, and the color’s really appealing.
shoreacres
February 6, 2018 at 6:34 AM
I’ve noticed over the years that the color of bushy bluestem seed heads can vary from the reddish-brown shown here to almost grey. Time may fade the color toward grey, yet even fresh seed heads show an intrinsic difference in color. I’ll bet at least some of that difference is due to the soil the grass has sprung up in.
I usually find bushy bluestem growing in damp soil or even in actual water. This time, the first I remember, the water was in droplets on the seed head—what an abundance of droplets.
Steve Schwartzman
February 6, 2018 at 7:53 AM
Wow! What an incredible photo! Is the water hanging off a spider’s web?
PurplePumpernickel
February 6, 2018 at 7:09 PM
Thanks. In this case the droplets have gotten caught on the feathery seed fluff of the bushy bluestem. I suppose a few strands of spider silk could be mixed in there, but it’s primarily the grass that’s hosting the sparkly show.
Steve Schwartzman
February 6, 2018 at 9:27 PM
Incredible! I love it.
PurplePumpernickel
February 9, 2018 at 7:52 PM
Me too. It remains the most dew-dabbled bushy bluestem I’ve ever seen.
Steve Schwartzman
February 9, 2018 at 8:29 PM
Lovely with the droplets, not a bluestem species I have in my area, I think.
tomwhelan
February 6, 2018 at 8:42 PM
I just checked the USDA map at
https://plants.usda.gov/core/profile?symbol=ANGL2
and noticed that this species has been found in several far-eastern counties in Massachusetts. I see the map is marked for Long Island, too, where I grew up, but I didn’t pay attention to such things as a kid.
Steve Schwartzman
February 6, 2018 at 9:36 PM
Wow, that old picture is cool. I remember another one of you pictures of something that looked like reed, but was softer like a grass, but I do not know what it was.
tonytomeo
February 6, 2018 at 10:21 PM
Sorry for the delayed reply. I just discovered your comment in WordPress’s spam folder. Yes, I was fortunate to find natural fog droplets added to a plant that’s already photogenic. Some photographers spray flowers to create that look but I’ve never done so.
I wonder if this is the picture you were remembering:
https://portraitsofwildflowers.wordpress.com/2017/09/17/new-zealand-panache/
Steve Schwartzman
February 14, 2018 at 6:23 AM
And speaking of remembering, I have to remember to check WordPress’s spam folder more often. Every so often I’ve found a real comment mistakenly placed there. Along with yours I discovered one other.
Steve Schwartzman
February 14, 2018 at 6:25 AM
No need to worry; it was not that long ago. That picture does not look familiar. No worry about that either. I just thought that the more recent picture looked familiar.
tonytomeo
February 14, 2018 at 9:48 PM