Phlowers – Flower of the Day/Fan Flower

On June 19, 2020June 19, 2020 By TimelessladyIn Phlowers12 Comments

I love Fan Flowers (Scaevola aemula) for many reasons. The fan-shaped bloom comes to mind first. The ease in growing them and the way the blossoms cascade over the edge of a hanging basket is also a plus.

They combine well in their pot with yellow and black pansies, purple heliotrope and diamond frost euphorbia.

My plants are often visited by goldfinches. They pluck the ripening seeds from the lower branches of the plant, giving me many moments to admire their beauty as they feed. Fan flowers are one of many plants that attract and shelter backyard birds.

I have a pinkish fan flower, but it is not as vibrant as the purple. I like having more choices though, and this color combines nicely with other shades of pink and purple.

Fan flowers are one of my favorites for flower pressing. If picked just after they unfurl they retain their color perfectly. They combine well with other pressed flowers.

This post is part of Skywatch Friday and Cee’s Flower of the Day.

Photograph – Throwback Thursday/Look Through My Window

On September 1, 2016September 12, 2016 By TimelessladyIn Photo Challenge at Wordpress, photo challenges, photograph4 Comments

The Daily Post Photo Challenge Frame:
“This week, I’d love for you to look at things a bit differently. Whether it’s through an actual picture frame, a few stalks of grass, or even the spokes of a bicycle tire, find an alternative frame to the world around you and share what you see.”

I love watching the birds from my back window. Look through my window with me and get a close-up view of a male goldfinch eating sunflower seeds. A good way to attract goldfinches is to grow plants they use as a food source. Some of these are: sunflowers, echinacea, zinnias, black-eyed susan, rudbeckia, and thistles. I thought this photo was perfect for this week’s Daily Post Photo Challenge. It inspired me to look up an old song from the 1960’s, “Look Through My Window,” by the The Mamas and the Papas. I think it’s a perfect way to celebrate the first Throwback Thursday of September.

Pheathers – Color My World in Goldfinches

On April 27, 2016April 27, 2016 By TimelessladyIn Pheathers, Quirkiness6 Comments

An American Goldfinch changes colors with the seasons. In autumn the male molts from summer’s gold to winter’s tan. In the spring, another change begins and the male goldfinch becomes bright yellow.

Today was the first day I noticed the goldfinches sporting their summer feathers. I had two pairs visiting my yard and photographed this sweet couple having a snack at my feeder. These beautiful birds are the perfect choice for today’s Color Your World – 120 Days of Crayola Challenge – Yellow.

Plants – Three for Autumn/Lobelia, Echinacea and Cockscomb

On September 12, 2014October 13, 2014 By TimelessladyIn PlantsLeave a comment

Blue Cardinal Flower (Lobelia siphilitica) is a perennial lobelia. The flowers bloom in late summer. I love this plant, and if you saw my gardens at the moment you would not need an explanation as to why; the plant is growing EVERYWHERE! I started out with one plant over twenty years ago. Blue cardinal flower produces large amounts of seed, microscopic, they make up for their size by plenitude, hundreds upon hundreds of seeds in each pod. Each blossom develops a seed pod. You can imagine the millions of progeny that have been distributed in my garden beds over the years. I have also helped them out and broken pods over each and every flower bed on my property.

Yesterday I spotted a hummingbird sipping nectar from a blue cardinal flower growing in the front garden. I was ecstatic, I thought the small winged creatures had already left for warmer climates. Blue cardinal flower is an excellent hummingbird plant.

Excuse the quality of the goldfinch photograph. The moment was captured through my window screen. Goldfinches are feasting on the seedpods of my echinacea plants. They quickly flutter away anytime I try to approach them with camera in tow. Echinacea is the workhorse of my garden.

Beautiful, and full of goodness also, Echinacea is a tried and true herbal remedy. The maturing seedpods draw Goldfinches. Attracting Goldfinches is always a desire of those who watch birds.

Cockscomb (Celosia cristata), what a beautiful plant, is a perfect choice for an Autumn ornamental. I purchased this plant from a farm market this week. It is a perfect disguise for plants that are beginning to wane and fade away.