Centennial Park in the Cold

Centennial Park on a cold gray day in winter looks deserted initially. There are no fishermen on the shore or in small boats…not women pushing strollers along the path around the lake…no groups of power walkers.

I didn’t stay very long – only enough to notice a young oak with leaves still clinging while all the other trees around were bare. There was a breeze that cause riffles in the lake so the reflections were only good where the jetty acted to smooth the water. This time of year the red railing is a welcome bit of color.

In the few minutes I was there, I did see 4 other people walking. One had a dog. They were all bundled up I their coats, gloves, hats and scarves. They were tougher than me in the cold damp of an early winter day.

Longwood Gardens Orchids – September 2015

I always take orchid pictures when I go to Longwood Gardens and our visit last month was no exception.

Orchid flowers are such a mix of unusual characteristics….signaling the path for their pollinators to follow through: shapes, colors and structures. This first one had yellow tendrils at the beginning of the runway then wings to mark the side boundaries of the path, and red to mark the spot.

The slipper shaped orchids always remind me of carnivorous plants. It isn’t as clear (to me) where flower wants the pollinator to go. Is there a surprise in this slipper?

I’m not sure what this structure would eventually become – probably an orchid flower but I liked how pure the curve looked…how solid it was with the green stain in the center.

And then there are the flamboyant ruffles of other orchids. The colors of this one must be irresistible to the pollinator.

Do orchids in the Longwood conservatory ever have pollinators that their flowers evolved to attract?

As an after note – the conservatory room with the banana palms is near the orchids. I’d never noticed how bananas are attached to the stem of their parent. They are packed very tightly. The remnants of the flower are visible on the outer end of each banana too.

Through a Hospital Window

The view from my mother’s tenth floor window at the new William P. Clements Jr. University Hospital was of downtown Dallas…

And bridges.

Reunion Tower was easy to spot

And Southwest planes taking off from Love Field.

She was only in the hospital for one night...and it was an easy night. She slept well and we were up to see the sunrise. Reunion Tower’s lights were still on and the office buildings still glowed from the night lighting.

Then the horizon turned red and orange

Before the sun popped over a nearby building.

The pedestrian and shuttle structure for Southwestern Medical School snakes away from the hospital and around other nearby buildings.

US National Arboretum - Bonsai collection

Another area I enjoyed at the US National Arboretum this past weekend was the bonsai collection. I am not patient enough to attempt to train a tree…but admire the skill of others. It is somehow calming to look at the beauty produced by someone else’s patience.

The azalea bonsai were in bloom just as their untrained counterparts.

Single contorted pines are what I usually visualize when I think of bonsai but there is still almost endless variety in the shapes created.

Sometimes a group of trees - a small forest - is trained.

The bald cypress seems to still have the characteristic shape of the untrained (and very large) trees - although this one had no knees.

Last but not least - I enjoy the landscaping of the walkways around the bonsai collection: the color of foliage and stone lanterns.