Grass in Bloom

On my walk this evening, I was reminded that we have entered the season when all the grasses are blooming. What an invitation to photography!

What an invitation to frustration. To turn the camera on is to invite the breezes and an unexpected blur.

Nonetheless, occasionally, one gets a picture of tiny little blossoms hanging down from the dangles on a stem.

And the variety is wonderful.

My neighbor took her dogs to walk out at Pioneer Park yesterday. She said that, thanks to the July rains, the grasses out there are stomach-high -- a horse's stomach, that is. She promises to show me these range grasses.

The grasses here are all city grasses; undoubtedly one or more is a wicked invasive, but as I look at the pictures, I really don't give a damn!

More Links: The latest mural is done -- I know because the final panel has ravens looking on critically -- and Paul over at PrescottStyle has a post and link to a Flikr slide show of the entire 90 feet. Sheoflittlebrain alerted me to the remarkable photo of a hawk moth at Arizona Babylon; it's hard to believe the tongue on that critter. But don't overlook the hawk sitting at her site, BTW.

Summer Interlude

Last night I introduced you to what I call my five o'clock. It does have a proper name; maybe you can see why I picked the name I did. According to 100 Roadside Flowers of Southwest Woodlands, easily overlooked during the day, long-flowered four o'clock springs to life at dusk as the pure white flowers unfold, revealing long, purple filaments and orange anthers. A few species of hawkmoths with extremely long tongues are the only pollinators of the flowers. I have to disagree with the experts on one point; I do not think those long delicate tubes waiting to open are easily overlooked.

As for the hawkmoths -- those night-flying fellows who hover like the hummingbird -- I refer you to The One Acre Wood. And as for the grass below, I just thought it was a pretty little orphan with no specific post idea as home and therefore included it here.