Tangled Branches: Cultivated
happenings in and around my zone 6b gardens in northern Virginia and in central Virginia
Wednesday, June 06, 2007
Stuck on Blue
The Brazilian Verbena (V. bonariensis) is in bloom so where are my butterflies?
Here, nowhere near the Verbena, but instead on a not-yet-blooming daylily.
The warm colors of the dayliles will be along soon, but for now I'm stuck on blue. Even the butterflies - the yellow butterflies wouldn't stay long enough for a picture.
I've been trying for a couple of days to get the camera to show you how lacy and weightless the 'Blue Cloud' Larkspur is, and I think I've got it now.
Except for the flowers, the plant is practically see-thru.
Update: Just as I hit the publish button, a little voice in my head said "You should have titled it Tangled Up in Blue". Nah, too late now.
Labels: butterflies, in bloom, NoVA
17 Comments:
Great shot of the blue butterfly! Do you know what kind it is? I don't think I've ever seen a blue one before.
it's that espirit d'escallet again
Ki: It's an Eastern Tailed Blue. They usually rest with their wings folded closed, so the blue isn't obvious unless you see them fluttering around. And they're small and easy to overlook. This is a bigger version of the same picture.
Marci: Yeah, I always do that....never quick-witted enough to think in real-time.
I love the Blue butterfly!
Larkspurs grow here, and yours is particularly beautiful, Entangled - you did capture the airy quality of this variety.
You thought of it just a few seconds late - I usually realize that I've missed out on a bright idea a lot later... maybe by 3 AM.
Annie at the Transplantable Rose
Blue butterfly pretty!!!
Your Larkspur looks wonderful, do you have it in white and pink too? In my previous garden I had all 3 colours but most where blue. I will try sowing it again next year. ;-)
Great shot of that butterfly! Don't you just love these kinds of "fringe benefits" that come with flower gardening? I actually had cedar waxwings eating the flowers off my lilac and lupine blooms...I think they were impatient for the nearby mulberries to ripen. Either way, I was happy to help provide the snack!
The Brazilian Verbena is so pretty - your shot of it is really clear. I don't think I have ever seen a larkspur that is so light and airy. The blue is a gorgeous colour. It's my favourite time in the garden when the purples and blues look so vibrant.
And the butterfly is beautiful!!
Annie: Oh, I do the 3 AM thing too. In a book by Stephen Lacey (The Startling Jungle), he says he does his best gardening in the bathtub. That's really when and where I do my best thinking.
Yolanda Elizabet: I only have the blue larkspur at the moment, but I bought some seeds of a blue/white mix that I think is the same airy type of flower. Didn't get around to planting them this year, but maybe there's still time.
Lisa: I'm always happy to host butterflies and birds. I became a butterfly gardener by accident - one day I saw at least 4 different kinds at one time, and then started planting more nectar plants. We get cedar waxwings in the fall when they come for the holly berries, but I only remember seeing them once in the spring.
Kate: This larkspur may be a different species (Consolida regalis vs. C. ambigua?). I had seeds long ago from Shepherd's Seeds and I was happy to find it again a couple of years ago in the Select Seeds catalog.
That is such a beautiful picture of the butterfly!
It reminds me that I need a new camera.
Such beautiful blues!
Sylvana & Nika: Thanks for the compliments! I've been having a lot of fun with the camera I got for Christmas.
gardening with camera in hand is somehow more gratifying :-)
Oh, wow! We had verbena in our garden behind our old apartment. This makes me want to grow more! Great pics!
I really love this Verbena! We have it too, but it didn't thrive where we planted it, and it decides to seed itselves on the most unexpected, not so handy places, ... where it does very well.
I wish it would stay in the border, it's just so lovely!
Katie: Maybe there would be room for some Verbena in your new veg garden? The tall ones don't take up much floor space (so to speak). I'll be watching your blog to see all the healthy veggies :-)
Godelieve: Hmmmm, I keep hearing that the Verbena will seed itself everywhere, but mine hasn't so far. I even started a lot more of it from newly purchased seed this year. Maybe next year I'll be lucky (or unlucky depending on one's point of view).
What a beautiful shot of the butterfly.It looks like jewelry! It reminds me of years ago when we lived high in the mountains of Trinidad-we used to see all sorts of butterflies edged in golds or silver, and beetles of silver, iridescent multi colors and greens!
Nicole, I'm so envious of your tropical flora and fauna. Gold and silver-edged butterflies really would be like jewelry.
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