Monday, May 10, 2010

Autumn Botanica

Leaves from the Maple tree

Leaves from the Maple and Mandevilla

Colour Diversity

Leaves and twigs from the Philadelphus and Maple

Autumn leaves and seed pods from my white flowering Crepe Myrtle 'Indian Summer-Natchez'

The weather here has been so pleasant, blue skies and sunny days, more like Springtime than Autumn . . . though the evenings have been much cooler with that welcome, slight chill in the air.
I have spent some time in my garden over the last couple of days, apart from watering and tending my plants I have been collecting leaves for my scans . . . some which have fallen and some which are changing colour but still hanging on tentatively to their twigs and branches until the next breeze comes along and sets them free.

When I was reaching up to pick a small sprig of leaves from the philadelphus I brushed against the lavender and rosemary growing outside my kitchen window,
the warmth of the sun had released the perfumed oils from the foliage and the fragrance was delightful; I took great pleasure in brushing my hands over the leaves.
As you walk along the curved, paved pathway to the patio you brush against man
y fragrant plants such as the prostanthera, the geraniums and another small plant from the westringia family which has soft bright green leaves and when you touch them the fragrance is just like a mix of passionfruit and pineapple . . . so lovely.
I have planned this part of the garden this way as it is so lovely to brush past the fragrant foliage as you walk along the path.

It was Mothers Day here yesterday and as I wasn't expecting anyone to visit until dinner I decided to take myself to the garden centre where I had a lovely time enjoying all of the many greens and textures of the plants, trees and pretty flowers.
Of course I couldn't resist leaving there without a plant or two, so I bought a white flowering daphne which is named 'White Star', it has the heavenly daphne fragrance with a hint of lemon; a white flowering perfumed petunia which I have put in a hanging basket so that the foliage can cascade over the edge and a canna lily with large leaves which are variegated with light lime green stripes, very tropical looking; I will post some photos of my purchases at a later time.

If any of you celebrated Mothers Day yesterday well I hope you all had a lovely day; I certainly did, I love being in my garden and amongst Nature, it is such a pleasant diversion from everyday life and it is good for the mind and soul . . . ♥


30 comments:

Little Lamb said...

I'm glad you had a happy mothers day. Those leaves are pretty.

Kathleen Scott said...

Sounds like you had a lovely day. Plus wonderful living presents to remember it by!

I love the sculptural quality of the leaves as you've laid them out. And the beautiful blush of the crape myrtle leaves.

Lee said...

Nicely presented. When I opened the post I had images of Joseph Banks and his reports from the colonies.

dianne said...

Thank you dear Lil Lamb , yes I did have a happy Mothers day and I'm so pleased that you like my leaf scans. xoxoxo ♡

dianne said...

Thanks dear Kathleen
yes I spent the day doing what I enjoy most, a day in the garden a visit to the garden centre and dinner with my family.
My children were very generous with some money (for plants) and other gifts.
It is so nice to buy a living present, something that will last.
I love the colours of the leaves of the crepe myrtle, had a problem scanning those because of the thickness of the seed pods, I had to cover my scanner with a cover but as you can see there is still a bit of shadow. xoxoxo ♡

dianne said...

Thank you dear Lee

I love those botanical drawings of our flora which Joseph Banks collected and classified and other botanical artists of the time ... and those of current day artists such as Celia Rosser ... that is the effect I was trying to achieve here.
I think the botanical illustrations showing the anatomy of the plant, flowers and seed pods are really beautiful. xoxoxo ♡

Anonymous said...

I enjoyed those arrangements Dianne, in fact you could get a whole photo project going on just that subject matter, throughout the seasons too ? Thank you XX

dianne said...

Thank you Glyn dear,

I'm pleased that you enjoyed my arrangements, I'm one step ahead, it had already occurred to me that I could scan some petals, foliage and seeds from other seasons and native plants.
My only limit is what I can fit under the lid of the scanner; as you can see there is some shadow on the scan with the crepe myrtle seeds as they were quite large. I tried covering up the gap between the lid and base of the scanner with a black piece of cloth but I will have to find a better solution. xoxoxo ♡

darkfoam said...

lovely fall leaves. i love the fall season but am glad to appreciate it through you right now. i'm thinking it would be nice to walk through your garden.

dianne said...

Thank you dear Foamy
Yes the leaves are lovely and Autumn/Fall is a lovely Season.
You can appreciate it through me as you are now enjoying your much welcomed warmth of Spring after that harsh, cold Winter.
You are welcome to walk through my garden at any time, today is yet another beautiful sunny day ...
we could sit in the sunshine and have some iced tea. :) xoxox ♡

Anonymous said...

i always admire
the work of gardeners

besides childbirth, growing
a living garden is truly creative

you are blessed, dianne

× × ×

/t.

dianne said...

Thank you dear /t.

Yes I am blessed in so many ways, I have my children, my family, my friends, my blog friends and my love of Nature and my living garden.

xoxoxo ♡

chickory said...

nice work! i love how you wrote about brushing against plants to release their fragrance. You loved your garden and your garden loved you back. this is a deep and abiding love.

i cut some of my sweet peas and brought them in, but their perfume was so sweet and strong i couldnt take it and had to move them out of my bedroom! four blooms and the room was filled. amazing.

i love the picture on the sidebar of the field flowers. i just love that. if i could afford it, i would have my upper field hydroseeded with wildflowers. now that would be RICH baby!

beautiful post. i can feel the cool in it. so enjoyed my visit. xo

dianne said...

Thanks dearest chickory

I'm so pleased that you enjoyed my Autumn post.
Yes you understand, Nature is just so wonderful with the bounty of beauty she gives us ... it gives me much happiness.
I take great pleasure in brushing my hands over the fragrant foliage as I pass it; when I was outside the other day I thought how blessed I am to have such lovely colours and fragrances surrounding me.

The scent of sweet peas is lovely, so too gardenias but I cannot have them in a vase in my bedroom now either as the fragrance is too strong and just a few flowers can perfume a whole room... so I leave the gardenia blooms on the the plant and just let the fragrance waft on the breeze, I can still enjoy it that way.

Yes I love that photo on my sidebar, the wild meadow flowers amongst the green grasses look so lovely ... I can't remember exactly where I found it, probably when I did an image search for meadows, I think it was in the UK.

There are many sites which provide wild flowers for hydroseeding, how lovely that would be for your upper field, now that would be just the BEST baby! :) xoxoxo ♡

chickory said...

do you have honeysuckle in AU? because that is the best...and it is an amazing shape plus it is yellow and white.

dianne said...

Yes dear chickory,we sure do have honeysuckle (Lonicera) in AU, there is a photo of mine way down there on my sidebar, just below the 'I Support Care Australia' poster.
My flowers are a creamy white and yellow as they age,the flowers are such a lovely shape with their long stamens and the perfume is beautiful especially on a summer evening.
I have many happy memories of going for a walk of an evening in Spring and Summer with my Mum and Dad, we lived about one block from the beach and the sea air was always fresh and mixed with the fragrance of honeysuckle growing in many gardens ...
What great memories they are, I remember how clear the sky was, filled with stars,the moonlight, the fragrance of honeysuckle, moths flying around the street lights and the sound of the waves as they lapped the shore ... magic!
xoxoxo ♡

ANNA-LYS said...

Love 2 U Nature Woman ;-)

dianne said...

Thank you dear Anna-Lys

Love to you too, we are both Nature 'Girls' at heart. :) xoxoxo ♡

Helene said...

I always enjoy your pictures of nature... even your leaves are lovely!!! =]] I also agree 100% that being with nature is good for the mind and soul! Its grounding (no pun intended lol)

The weather in Philly has been cool. We had one really warm week then it got cool again. I suspect from here on in it will be warm! Fingers crossed!

How are things there? xoxoh

PS are you on Facebook?

dianne said...

Thank you dear Helene

It is lovely to hear from you again; I hope all is well with you?
I'm pleased that you enjoy my pictures of nature and my lovely leaves. :)
Yes time spent in the garden and outdoors is good for you.
Your garden must be bursting with vegetables, herbs and flowers by now.

The weather in Philly sounds like ours, it doesn't seem to know what season it is. We have had some really warm days, just like springtime ... the nights are getting cooler which is good as there is no humidity.
It is difficult to believe that winter is almost here and this week is the first time I have had to put on a jacket, very unusual.

Nothing exciting happening here, life just goes on as usual.

Sorry Helene, no dear I am not on facebook ... thanks again for stopping by. xoxoxo ♡

Dan Felstead said...

Dianne...what a beautiful series of photos...many of the flowers/plants here are so different than your photos. Beautiful. thanks for sharing them. Have a great weekend.

Dan

dianne said...

Thank you dear Dan I am so pleased that you enjoyed my series of
'Autumn Botanica' photos.
I coloured the background by printing sheets of paper in the colours I created in 'paint, then I had fun arranging the leaves and seeds on the scanner to hopefully get the right effect ... I was happy with the result.
I hope you have a great weekend as well. xoxoxo ♡

Craftsman of light said...

Hi Dianne,
how i have missed this space....i learn a lots about plants and botany from you!
But as you already know what draws me the most is the beauty in all things, and to yours i'm drawn like a bee.
hugs
j

Craftsman of light said...

Love the photos of your leafy layout, very creative!!!

dianne said...

I have missed you too dear COL and I'm so pleased that you have returned here and that you enjoy your visits ... I do try to post things of beauty, trees and plants are very important to me.
I am very happy when I find a new shoot on a plant or a lovely plump bud which is ready to open revealing the petals of its beautful flower as they unfurl.
I'm pleased that you liked my leafy layout, I really like the illustrations and plates of plants which show the anatomy of their leaves, flowers, seeds etc,in old botanical books and journals and this was just my way of displaying my Autumn leaves.
Hugs to you too! xoxoxo ♡

puerileuwaite said...

The best thing about maple trees is the syrup.

Also, "Crepe Myrtle" would be an excellent name for my Alt-Rock band.

dianne said...

Yes Puggles my sweet, maple syrup is very nice, I have had it on pancakes.
I am curious, why "Crepe Myrtle" for the name of your Alternative Rock band? What instrument do you play?
xoxoxo ♡

Leovi said...

Very beautiful compositions such leaves. I love the pictures of leaves between crystals.

Leovi said...

Very beautiful compositions such leaves. I love the pictures of leaves between crystals.

dianne said...

Thank you dear Leovi , I am so pleased that you enjoyed my leaf compositions.

xoxoxo ♡