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Saturday, September 8, 2007
Fuzzy Contemplation
Like I've said before, the subject is important but
the background can really make or break the image.
The pink around the hummingbird is from the flowers
(or more technically the bracts)
of the Bougainvillea he is resting in. I love the
contrast with his beautiful feathers.
This is actually an older shot, it was in my first show.
The show was a flower theme, but interspersed in the flowers
were small shots of hummingbirds. Seemed fitting to me. :-D
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Sunday, March 25, 2007
Bouganvilla
There is always something blooming around here!
Which is great for someone who loves to take
flower pictures. This is the Bougainvillea that we have coaxed
over our back fence, it's always happy. So happy in fact
I just had to tuck all it's new growth in so the gardeners
don't come by and cut it.
As I recall, last year this time
I almost had to change the name of the site
to "The Calla Lily of the Day," since they go wild this
time of year too. Fortunately, this
year we planted some spring bulbs out front and they
are looking good already so I'll have lots of subjects
to keep things interesting. Now all I need is more time to play with my cameras.
Too bad that won't grow as easily. :-D
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Thursday, November 23, 2006
Bougainvillea
One of the important tasks I had to do to get ready for the
holiday was clean up our giant Bougainvillea.
When we moved in, we noticed this plant peeking under our fence.
On the outside of the fence they keep it trimmed back so often it can barely
bloom. We decided to coax it over to our side.
It is now in a huge arch over our fence and it is
constantly covered in blooms.
I think it appreciates the chance to grow.
Rather than trim it, I tuck the new growth in and tie it so it goes in the
direction we want it to. I do this about once a month which is just often
enough that the new growth has not quite wooded over yet so I can
still train it to go where I want without breaking it.
My wife fed it with a high phosphorus fertilizer (10-50-10)
one time that is supposed to promote blooms, and it really worked!
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Monday, September 25, 2006
Pink and White Bougainvillea
The Bougainvillea are going wild around here right now.
This one is in a hanging basket in my neighbor's yard.
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Friday, June 2, 2006
Bougainvillea Bricks
The hound has been taking me on a little bit different
walks in the evening. Actually, it is foxtail season
and I have tried to nudge her away from our current route
because those things can be nasty for a dog with ears that
are easy to trip over. And none of us wants another trip to the vet!
At any rate it has given me the chance to enjoy more of our
neighbors' gardens.
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Tuesday, May 9, 2006
Bougainvillea Sunlight
This is a nice Bougainvillea that was growing
on the outside of our fence. We have been
coaxing it up into an archway over our gate.
It is starting to bloom like crazy and it is
quite a site especially in the evenings when the
light shines through it.
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Tuesday, February 7, 2006
Bougainvillea Bracts Close-up
This is one of those plants like a Poinsettia.
The red things are actually technically more like
leaves than actual flowers, they are called "Bracts." The real
flower is a small white bloom that comes out from
the center of the groups of red leaves. You can see
a couple of the buds in this photo.
Although they are not technically part of the flower
the bracts serve an important role in the pollination
of the plant. They act as kind of a beacon
for pollinators that might otherwise miss the small
white flowers as they fly by.
Daisies are another type of plant
with a similar structure. What is commonly called a
daisy flower is actually a cluster of small flowers
(called the Capitulum) surrounded by bracts.
In this image the
bracts are white and the capitulum is yellow.
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Saturday, March 5, 2005
Mrs. "A"
Looking back I realized it has been almost three weeks since I
put a hummingbird online.
This is Mrs. "A". She was kind enough to build her nest
in my potted Bougainvillea right outside my glass patio door.
The first sign something interesting was happening was the male hummer.
He came one evening and sat near this same spot in the Bougainvillea.
He would come at dusk and leave at dawn. He did this for about a week.
Then just as I was starting to think I could get him used to my presence
with my camera, he disappeared. The next day she showed up with a few twigs. Two days later, the
nest was done. She sat on two eggs for a couple of weeks and they hatched on my birthday.
Until I got my Hound Dog, I couldn't have imagined a better birthday present!
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