Texas bluestars
An online report on the morning of March 24th quickly prompted a 45-minute drive northwest to the Doeskin Ranch in Burnet County, where I hoped to see some flowering Texas bluestars, Amsonia ciliata, a species I almost never come across in Austin. After a mile-and-a-half of wandering I found the reported colony.
© 2021 Steven Schwartzman
Portraits of Wildflowers 
Gorgeous, and congratulations on your laudable and successful quest.. They remind me of the vinca/periwinkle that grew in our garden in Omaha.
krikitarts
April 2, 2021 at 4:51 AM
Regarding my bluestar quest, vinca in Italian is an imperative that means ‘conquer,’ and so I did.
Steve Schwartzman
April 2, 2021 at 5:57 AM
These are really beautiful !
picpholio
April 2, 2021 at 6:06 AM
And I appreciate them all the more for not often seeing them.
Steve Schwartzman
April 2, 2021 at 7:50 AM
Exquisite. So much beauty in nature.
Dianne
April 2, 2021 at 7:46 AM
Amen.
Steve Schwartzman
April 2, 2021 at 7:50 AM
I love this photo—the contrast of colours and the sharp focus and soft blur.
artsofmay
April 2, 2021 at 7:48 AM
You summarized the photograph well. We might add the diagonal sweep from lower left to upper right.
Steve Schwartzman
April 2, 2021 at 7:52 AM
Yes, the movement is lovely.
artsofmay
April 2, 2021 at 8:00 AM
You could say I was inclined to compose that way.
Steve Schwartzman
April 2, 2021 at 8:05 AM
I’m leaning toward the same thought!
artsofmay
April 2, 2021 at 8:29 AM
Touché!
Steve Schwartzman
April 2, 2021 at 8:35 AM
Adorable! It was worth the drive!
Alessandra Chaves
April 2, 2021 at 7:51 AM
Yes, it was. I also got good portraits of two other kinds of wildflowers, plus some non-floral things.
Steve Schwartzman
April 2, 2021 at 7:55 AM
This is one of my favorites. I should say “these,” because we have a different species down here: Amsonia tabernaemontana. I usually find those closer to the coast, while I see this one west of Kerrville, around Utopia, Medina, and such. I didn’t realize there were two species until I noticed the difference in the leaves. Then, I thought about the possibility that the same plant would grow on hill country soil and Brazoria prairies, and went, “Oops!”
Their buds always are especially attractive, with that transition from purple to blue.
shoreacres
April 2, 2021 at 8:29 AM
I recently came across references to the tabernaemontana species, which I don’t think I’d been aware of. What you say about the different soils makes sense. At the Doeskin Ranch I took only a couple of pictures of bluestar buds, concentrating on the flowers. In the first year of this blog I posted a picture of some buds: https://portraitsofwildflowers.wordpress.com/2012/04/09/blue-stars-buds/.
Steve Schwartzman
April 2, 2021 at 8:42 AM
You turned your Texas bluestars into a fascinating image that looks more like a painting than a photo. Happy Easter, Steve!
Peter Klopp
April 2, 2021 at 8:46 AM
You could say I paint with light. Happy Easter to you.
Steve Schwartzman
April 2, 2021 at 9:07 AM
Your search and tenacity paid off, Steve. I think this photo is truly exquisite.
Jet Eliot
April 2, 2021 at 8:55 AM
Thanks, Jet. I was happy with the way this portrait turned out.
Steve Schwartzman
April 2, 2021 at 9:08 AM
It’s pretty. I think it worth the drive and wandering to find it.
circadianreflections
April 2, 2021 at 10:38 AM
And with a fair amount of elevation gain, it was good exercise, too.
Steve Schwartzman
April 2, 2021 at 5:47 PM
Beautiful shot, Steve. Simple and elegant.
Tina
April 2, 2021 at 12:29 PM
And that’s a simple and elegant description.
Steve Schwartzman
April 2, 2021 at 9:20 PM
These are so pretty I had to look them up and ‘yay’ I can buy them over here. Apparently hardy down to -10C
“They are not invasive, easy in any soil or situation, slug and snail resistant, fully hardy, and flower reliably each year.” Anything that is resistant to the S&S is a bonus!
Heyjude
April 2, 2021 at 1:50 PM
Just so long as you’re not resistant to the S.S. who posts these pictures.
Steve Schwartzman
April 2, 2021 at 9:21 PM
😂
Heyjude
April 3, 2021 at 3:23 AM
₷₷
Steve Schwartzman
April 3, 2021 at 6:12 AM
Beautiful color, lighting, and composition in general.
Lavinia Ross
April 3, 2021 at 11:49 AM
Thanks for appreciating it. I tried out various compositions and this was one that pleased me the most.
Steve Schwartzman
April 3, 2021 at 11:56 AM
Nice needle in a haystack stalking, Steve. It’s a lovely little flower and your shot made the seeking well worth the effort.
Steve Gingold
April 3, 2021 at 6:48 PM
After I finally spotted my first bluestar, I realized it was at the fringe of a whole colony of them, so I had my pick of individuals to portray. This one worked well. Lovely little flowers they are.
Steve Schwartzman
April 3, 2021 at 7:15 PM
That’s been my experience often too. Look and look and look, then find one and there were many there the whole time.
Steve Gingold
April 4, 2021 at 2:37 AM
Unlike other species, including the one in my post this morning, the blue stars were ample in the colony of them that I found, yet I came across no other group or even individual the rest of the two hours we walked around.
Steve Schwartzman
April 4, 2021 at 5:05 AM
So worth the drive Steve!
Julie@frogpondfarm
April 8, 2021 at 4:24 AM
Definitely. We took a much longer drive last Friday in quest of wildflowers (which we found) and may take another tomorrow.
Steve Schwartzman
April 8, 2021 at 5:10 AM