Saturday, April 19, 2008

Tulip time

If you wander over to Karoliina's Photos from Prescott, you will surely enjoy her series of individual tulip flower pix. I wouldn't try to compete, so here are masses of blossoms from a neighborhood garden. The gardener in question is a youngish male, so when it was suggested that he plant tulips in clumps, he did it guy-style -- he planted groups of 12-15-20 bulbs in a big hole, not the 3 to 5 that is more usual. Maybe more folks should follow his example; the garden is brilliant this early spring.

One spring, while he was away, his electric fence failed and the javelina had not one but several great feasts. However, enough bulbs had been planted that many survived and others were scattered to spread the color.

I confess to a fancy for the little wild tulips as they come from the Mediterranean and Middle East; the flower above is a native of Crete. Of course, just because they're wild and from far away doesn't make these tulips any less appealing to the javelina; I've lost most of mine, not having an electric fence.

No, I am quite aware that this is no tulip but it is blooming at the same time. The stock-model purple iris has naturalized to Prescott so completely that a large garden-sized bed of purple iris in an otherwise empty field can be a clue that long ago a house stood near by. Our little pigs? No, they don't touch the iris. Nor daffodils, which are quite poisonous to man and beast.

9 comments:

  1. I love that poor lonely imprisoned iris!

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  2. I thought of it more as a frame when I took the picture, lucy, but you may be right.

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  3. Love the little wild tulip!

    Mari-Nanci

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  4. Anonymous10:28 AM

    What a great series to see along with my tea and cereal; love tulips, irises, and daffodils. I didn't know the latter were poisonous.

    Yes, please, do a post on the old bookstores, or the ones that sell "previously owned" books. That would be a lovely post indeed!

    ~Anon in AV.

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  5. SnS -- now that you remind me, I think I'll get more this coming fall -- they are most charming and a not nearly as stiff as highly bred tulips.

    anon av -- now that I think about it a bit more, I'll enjoy doing that post!

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  6. Anonymous3:21 PM

    I do love a photo of a flower. A bit too early for those in Germany, but I suspect I will be able to take a few. Nice shots.

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  7. steve -- I hope it warms up for you soon; I look forward to your flower pictures.

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  8. Anonymous5:13 PM

    I love these pics and the Iris is ... well, is there such a thing as "visually juicy"?

    But, I confess, my original motive for dropping by is to tell you, (you kinda asked for it?;-p) you've just been tagged for the "Six Word Memoir." Congrats!

    :-)

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  9. enigma, r. -- of course -- I didn't think of those paintings when I workd on that picture. As for the memoir, I'll get there one of these days...

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