NATURE rarer uses yellow

Camera : Canon EOS 550D - ©Maree Clarkson

NATURE rarer uses yellow
Than another hue;
Saves she all of that for sunsets,
Prodigal of blue,

Spending scarlet like a woman,
Yellow she affords
Only scantly and selectly,
Like a lover’s words.

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A splash of White

Not much gardening has been happening over the past couple of weeks - raking up leaves, tending to the compost heap, neatening edges, nothing exciting.

I've got no Shasta daisies in my garden this year, but I've always had a patch somewhere. What happened? (Note to self: get some more Shasta’s). As a child I always admired the Shasta Daisies in my father’s garden. What I remember most was the dazzling brightness of the white blooms that always offset the bright colours of the dahlias, larkspur, gazanias, arctotis and zinnias that grew so prolifically under the African sun.

The simple white flowers with yellow button centres are a symbol of purity and are perfect for cutting. Easy to grow, they are a favourite for beginner flower gardeners and are effective when planted in small groups.

Crab Spiders seem to favour Shasta's as their favourite while ambush-hunting their prey in flowers. These tiny spiders take on the colour of the flower they're sitting on and it's wonderful to come across a pure white or bright yellow little specimen on your flowers.

A white crab spider catching a butterfly on some Shasta daisies

Yellow crab spider

Until recently, Shasta Daisies were considered members of the Chrysanthemum family. But the daisies’ lack of fragrance and hairless stems caused them to be recently reclassified to Leucanthemum, the Sunflower family.

These Daisies like rich, fast draining soil, ample water and lots of sunshine. However, they are hardy and will tolerate poor soil conditions and partial shade. Work some old animal manure or compost into the soil to help promote abundant blooms. Picking often and cutting off dead flowers will extend their bloom period.

So do yourself a favour and get some of these easy-growing, sun-loving daisies for your garden and you'll always have an abundance of butterflies and ready-to-pick flowers for the vase.

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Shasta Daisies at my pond a couple of seasons ago. Every summer I SO looked forward to when my Shasta's would appear again. With their splashes of white they brighten up any corner of the garden and the more you pick them (they look lovely in a simple glass vase!), the more prolific they get.

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"If you want to live and thrive, let the spider run alive."

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Just living is not enough

Just living is not enough…

One must have
Sunshine
Freedom
and Flowers!

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I put a seed into the ground and said, "I'll watch it grow."

I put a seed into the ground And said, "I'll watch it grow." I watered it and cared for it As well as I could know. One day I walked in my back yard, And oh, what did I see! My seed had popped itself right out, Without consulting me! - by Gwendolyn Brooks
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I've always been fascinated by sunflowers, partly because they're so huge and have such a sunny disposition and partly because I feed a lot of sunflower seeds to my various birds and chickens. A couple of months ago, last year beginning October 2013, to be exact, I decided to plant a few of my own and scattered some seeds in an empty spot. I watered the area and then waited.
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24th October 2013
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They popped through the ground within a week, two tiny little plants reaching for the sun. Within another 2 weeks, they were already 30cm (12") tall. But there were only two, of about two dozen seeds I planted and they chose the most inaccessible spot to launch their growth, right next to my Barrel Cactus, so I couldn't even transplant them to a better position. But who am I to decided where is the better position, obviously they think that, right where they are, is perfect!
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 12th November 2013

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Three weeks later the tallest sunflower was already standing over 5' tall and showing the first signs of budding. I could just manage to look at its crown by bending the plant over slightly to take a pic.

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3rd December 2013

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7th December 2013 

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Another three weeks later, 8th December, and the tallest one was just over 15' and the flower had opened. The second one's flower opened a week later.

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16th December 2013, approx. 8 weeks after planting

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A couple of weeks before, the flowers would face East in the morning and by late afternoon would be facing almost due West. It really is true that Sunflowers seem to follow the sun! But as the plant matured, the flower eventually stayed facing East, due to the stalk becoming more rigid and to prevent scorching of the flower in the midday and late afternoon sun. 

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Just before Christmas, the flowers and most of the leaves started drying up and soon I was able to harvest some seeds for my birds! And to plant more in the garden...

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This was taken on the 16th January 2014, and it seemed it was going to take just as long before I could harvest the seeds as it took for the plant to grow! 

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So all in all it seems the farmer has to wait 18 weeks before he can harvest his crop and get some money in. No wonder sunflower seeds are so expensive!

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Crawling among the Cosmos

Just outside our front gate, on both sides of the road, the Cosmos flowers were thick and bountiful after all the beautiful rain last summer. Every year I pick bunches for my vases and place them all over the house. Stray seeds also get dispersed by birds and the wind and I inevitably end up with some Cosmos flowers in my garden every summer. 

Crawling among the cosmos next to the side of the road to try and get a good shot of these annual flowers was quite an experience. I almost fell in a rabbit hole, got black jacks all over my pants, walked straight through a huge Orb Web Spider’s web before I realised it and even disturbed a family of Partridges, who scared the daylights out of me as they all raucously took to the air! 

Nature puts up this grand show every year from November, well into March, and tourists travel from the Cape Province to Mpumalanga to witness this spectacular event here in South Africa.  Hopefully I will have another beautiful Cosmos experience this year!

Cosmos are originally native to scrub and meadow areas in Mexico (where the bulk of the species occur), and occur in the southern United States (Arizona, Florida), Central America, South America south to Paraguay and South Africa. 

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December gifts

. . . tomorrow’s flowers . winter food for hungry birds . shapes and shadows for a grey landscape . something to look forward to . december's delights ...

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Early morning walk

In every walk with nature one receives far more than he seeks. 

- John Muir 

 

An early-morning walk on our smallholding is something I enjoy immensely and even though the landscape sometimes seems very ordinary, hidden amongst the grasses is the most beautiful delights, from lovely tiny, almost unnoticeable little flowers like the one above, scarcely 5mm in diameter, to insects, Dandelions, Sunflowers, stones, twigs and even the odd ground bird's nest.

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I had a keychain once, with  long rubbery tendrils, which looked just like this wild flower I found hiding amongst the grass. At first glance it was just another weed, but through the camera lens set on Macro, it's true beauty was revealed.

This little Dandelion flower amazes as it goes through its metamorphosis from bud to floret to seedhead, dispersing in the wind like tiny little parachutes.

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A newly-born sunflower struggling its way through the tall grass, soon to become Queen of the field, standing taller than the rest, showing all those around her which way the sun will be rising tomorrow morning.

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A perfectly camouflaged praying mantis waits patiently for some unsuspecting insect to come past. She almost escaped my eye she is so perfectly at one with the blue gum leaves.

A cluster of Ladybirds on an old piece of wood made me wonder whey they would be sitting there...?

A small yellow surprise basking in the sun...

And, of course, no outing is complete without the odd spider! Not a very good photograph, but I wasn't going to interfere in there to see what else might emerge!

Hope your early-morning walks also delivery some lovely delights and surprises!

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This is life...

As the year draws to an end and I stroll through my garden, it always amazes me the peace I find here. I'm grounded here, on my own tiny piece of African paradise...

The White Karees (rhus viminalis) and Black Karees (Rhus lancea) have now grown to about 15m, offering shade to the plants and home to all the lovely birds that have chosen this as their home. I feel honoured.

Every morning as I step outside to fill the bird feeders and give my special whistle, they sit watching me intently, hardly able to wait for me to finish. Then I spend a while sipping my coffee at the patio table watching as they flit from one table to the other, not being able to decide what to try first - the suet and fruit section or the mixed seeds. There's a lot of scrambling and busyness for a while, but it soon quietens down as they settle into the serious business of eating.

I finish my coffee with a sigh and head for my studio.

I just want to say thank you to all of you for stopping by, reading, commenting and sharing my experiences of the past year as I whirl through this journey called life. It means a lot to me.

May your new year also be filled with JOY, LOVE, SPARKLING LIGHT and INSPIRATION.

Camera : Kodak EasyShare C195. Flowers of the Acacia 'karroo' - Pic taken in my garden in Tarlton, Gauteng, South Africa.

Cosmos in South Africa

Cosmos in Mpumalanga, South Africa

Every March and November respectively our countryside explodes with colour when pretty pink and white cosmos flowers bloom in late summer. They grow easily in the soil at the side of the roads disturbed by the road scrapers widening the verges.

Cosmos is a genus of about 20-26 species of annual and perennial plants in the family Asteraceae, native to scrub and meadow areas in Mexico (where the bulk of the species occur), the southern United States (Arizona, Florida), Central America, South America south to Paraguay and South Africa

They are herbaceous perennial plants growing 0.3-2 m tall. The leaves are simple, pinnate, or bipinnate, and arranged in opposite pairs. The flowers are produced in a capitulum with a ring of broad ray florets and a center of disc florets; flower color is very variable between the different species.


Cosmos next to a stream

Cosmos, along with many of our succulent and aloe species, have become regarded as indigenous in South Africa and bloom in various colours - white, pink, cerise and red - no yellow in South Africa.

It's against the law to pick the flowers next to the side of the road, but Cosmos seeds are now packaged and available at most nurseries. Growing them in the garden is easy and they make a wonderful country-style cut-flower arrangement.

"Cosmos" - watercolour on Bockingford 300gsm - Maree

Cosmos flowers is a favourite subject of, and has inspired, artists throughout the years and have been depicted on many a canvass.

Cosmos growing wild in the country-side (photo by Jo-Ann Kruger)

White Cosmos


Cosmos growing wild next to a stream



 

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South Africa's Flowers

'Namaqualand Daisies' watercolour on Bockingford 300gsm - Maree©
(Click on image to enlarge)

In nature there are many phenomenon's but very few as spectacular as the Namaqualand daisies.

Namaqualand! 100% Big sky country. Extending from the Atlantic Ocean in the west of South Africa to the small town of Pofadder in the east, north from the great Orange River and south beyond Garies, Namaqualand is indeed a vast and varied region.

During the arid summer months it is difficult for the tourist to imagine the phenomenon of the yearly wild flower appearance.

After the winter rainfall, Namaqualand dons her coat of many colours and for a brief moment, the wildflowers invade the countryside. Countless poems, novels, paintings and prose have been dedicated to this annual shower of God's colour.




Before the flowers appear


At the end of winter (Click on image to enlarge)

Dandelion

"Dandelion" pencil sketch and watercolour - Maree©

We have clumps of the weed Dandelion growing all over our smallholding and it is absolutely fascinating watching the tiny, fine, little white hairy tufts floating off in the wind, to settle somewhere and somehow penetrate the hard ground to bring forth new life. The tiny yellow flowers are a joy, and many insects, including bees and butterflies, seem to enjoy them immensely. And the flowers last a really long time in a tiny vase.

Other names

Taraxacum, foreign dandelion, wild endive, piss-a-bed, lion's tale or tooth as well as pu gong ying.

Description of the herb dandelion

Dandelion is a perennial with a thick tap root. The saw-toothed leaves form a rosette at the base of the plant. Solitary, bright yellow flowers appear from spring to autumn. Ribbed fruits bearing tufts of fine, white hairs follow flowers. Dandelion is well known as a garden weed.

Parts used

The whole plant is used in herbal preparations - the leaves, roots and flowers.

How It Is Used

The leaves and roots of the dandelion, or the whole plant, are used fresh or dried in teas, capsules, or extracts. Dandelion leaves are used in salads or as a cooked green, and the flowers are used to make wine.

Properties

Dandelion is a bitter-sweet, cooling herb that has diuretic, laxative effects. It also stimulates liver function, improves digestion and reduces swelling and inflammation.

It contains sesquiterpene lactones (tetrahydroridentin B and taraxacolide B-D-glucoside), phenolic acid derivative (taraxacoside), triterpenoids (taraxasterol and its derivatives), potassium and insulin.

Safety precautions and warnings

None

Internal use

Dandelion is used internally for gall bladder and urinary disorders, jaundice, cirrhosis of the liver, dyspepsia and constipation, oedema associated with high blood pressure and heart weakness.

The bitter substance in the herb also stimulates digestion.

In Chinese medicine it is used for lung and breast tumours, abscesses as well as hepatitis.

The high content of insulin makes it useful for people with diabetes.

External use

Chronic joint and skin complaints including acne, eczema, psoriasis. It is used in facial steam, as well as face packs. Folklore recommends dandelion poultices for snakebite.

The young leaves may also be boiled as a vegetable, spinach fashion, thoroughly drained, sprinkled with pepper and salt, moistened with soup or butter and served very hot. If considered a little too bitter, use half spinach, but the Dandelion must be partly cooked first in this case, as it takes longer than spinach. As a variation, some grated nutmeg or garlic, a teaspoonful of chopped onion or grated lemon peel can be added to the greens when they are cooked. A simple vegetable soup may also be made with Dandelions.

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