Wordless Wednesdays: 12 Views of Purplish Blooms and Blossoms

It Was the Morning of the Sixth of May

“It was the morning of the sixth of May,
And May had painted with her soft showers
A garden full of leaves and flowers.
And man’s hand had arranged it with such sweet craft
There never was a garden of such price
But if it were the very Paradise.”
— Geoffrey Chaucer, from The Canterbury Tales

A man’s hand crafted the lovely grounds of the Washington Park Arboretum in Seattle, and it has become one of our city’s paradises.  The city of Seattle hired the Olmstead Brothers (successors to Frederick Olmstead, who designed New York City’s Central Park among other famous commissions) to develop the landscaping plans for the Arboretum.  The Olmsteads were proponents of connecting urban dwellers to wild and natural spaces.

Here are some photos of my Spring visit to the park:

Signpost for Seattle's Washington Park Arboretum

The paths are perfect for strolling, jogging, and walking the dog.

Magnificent trees and wild spaces

Mushroom along the path

Bottle-brush plants in a low spot

A bed of ferns

Ferns

Ferns

Bench along the path, Washington Park Arboretum

Bluebells

Green foliage

 

 

 

 

Colorado Road Trip (11): A Celebration of Wildflowers

I know that several readers out there are gardeners, and this post is for them!  Here are some more photographs of Colorado’s abundant wildflowers:

Native prickly poppy, Soapstone Natural Area north of Ft. Collins

Blanket flowers in the morning light, Estes Park

Paintbrush, Rocky Mountain National Park

Rocky Mountain bluebells, Rocky Mountain National Park

Rocky Mountain Bee Plant, Great Sand Dunes National Park

Cow Parsnip, Coalbank Pass

One of those yellow wildflowers at a rest stop on the Million-Dollar Highway

More yellow wildflowers

Colorado Columbine

Colorado Columbine growing wild at Maroon Bells

Monument Plant, Maroon Bells

A single open flower on a monument plant

Fireweed, Maroon Bells

Yellow wildflowers, Maroon Bells

Unidentified wildflower, Maroon Bells

And my very favorite wildflower from this road trip, the Mariposa Lily, Maroon Bells

Mariposa Lilies, Maroon Bells

Mariposa Lily

Mariposa Lily

Flower in the Crannied Wall
by Alfred Lord Tennyson

Flower in the crannied wall,
I pluck you out of crannies,
I hold you here, root and all, in my hand.
Little flower — but if I could understand
What you are, root and all, and all in all,
I should know what God and man is.