Two species, three prominent colors
Plenty of native species have been planted around the pond at the intersection of Gault Lane and Burnet Road. On the morning of July 7th I made this group portrait that includes a pavonia mallow flower (Pavonia lasiopetala), several purple bindweed flowers (Ipomoea cordatotriloba), and a yellowed leaf on the bindweed vine. The cordato in the species name means heart-shaped, and that wavily fits the bright leaf.
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I’ve mentioned a few times that a group of people who believe in the traditional purpose of a university—the pursuit of knowledge, whatever facts and truths that may lead to—are busy founding the University of Austin (UATX) right here where I live. An inaugural summer session was held in Dallas, and I invite you to read the talk that Bari Weiss gave to the first class of UATX students. It’s called “The New Founders America Needs.”
© 2022 Steven Schwartzman
Portraits of Wildflowers 
At first glance I thought the yellow leaf was a butterfly!
circadianreflections
July 15, 2022 at 8:42 AM
I wonder whether there’s a butterfly somewhere in the world that resembles that leaf.
Steve Schwartzman
July 15, 2022 at 12:46 PM
I bet there is!😀
circadianreflections
July 16, 2022 at 11:05 AM
Prominent is an understatement for the uppermost flower. The heart shaped bindweed leaf is one of nature’s finest works of art. I agree with circadianreflections…a butterfly look-alike.
Steve Gingold
July 15, 2022 at 11:08 AM
Somehow I hadn’t tuned in to the butterfly-ness of the yellowed leaf. I wish now I’d done some closeups of the leaf in its own right.
Steve Schwartzman
July 15, 2022 at 12:49 PM
Quite often it takes another pair of eyes.
Steve Gingold
July 15, 2022 at 12:56 PM
I’d try to grow another pair but then my cost for glasses would double.
Steve Schwartzman
July 15, 2022 at 1:04 PM
What strikes me most is the scattering of spots on the yellow leaf that match the colors of the flowers: almost as though the bindweed blooms were dripping color onto the leaf. The leaf’s texture is interesting, too. It looks as though it’s been quilted.
shoreacres
July 15, 2022 at 6:01 PM
I was so taken with the majority yellow area on the leaf that I didn’t pay attention to the spots and their colors. As I mentioned to Steve G., I’m sorry now that I didn’t make some close portraits of the wavy-margined leaf in its own right. If not for the fact that it must be long gone by now, I’d head back there.
Steve Schwartzman
July 15, 2022 at 6:51 PM
Well, you could go back, but I suspect a slight revision of Heraclitus’s wisdom would apply: ““No photographer ever records the same subject twice, for it’s not the same subject, and he’s not the same photographer.”
shoreacres
July 15, 2022 at 7:16 PM
Heraclitus was right. If I’d gone back the next day I might have stood a chance. After more than a week, that leaf is long gone. Whether any other leaf might be turning colors now, who knows?
Steve Schwartzman
July 15, 2022 at 10:05 PM
That explosion of color should work better than a cup of high-octane coffee to get anyone moving forward! Wow! Really unique!
The link has opened, but my eyes and body are really really tired, so I surrender yet again to my sleep sessions, so the body can do the work needed to restore my wellness. Almost there! Lisa
Playamart - Zeebra Designs
July 16, 2022 at 12:06 AM
Happy colorful high-octane coffee substitute to you. I was sorry to read in your latest post about your fall but glad to hear you’re almost back to wellness. Can we say that injuring that part of your body made you a hippie?
Steve Schwartzman
July 16, 2022 at 6:19 AM
Love the colours – nature knows how to put on a show! 🙂
Ann Mackay
July 17, 2022 at 7:40 AM
Once I saw the three vivid colors together I couldn’t resist taking pictures.
Steve Schwartzman
July 17, 2022 at 7:57 AM