quick, what flower it this?

i have photographed viburnum many times. but always in winter. it is one one of the few plants that offers me translucent red berries all winter long. i love how the snow piles up on top of the berry drupes, looking very much like a beanie hat. we call viburnum highbush cranberry, even thought it is not a true cranberry at all. it is native however.  i pass this particular viburnum at least once a week. so, i was a bit stunned today when i saw these flowers. if i did not know that his particular bush was indeed viburnum, i would have assumed those flowers were hydrangea flowers. i love that i can still be stopped in my tracks with wonder, after all these years of doing STILL.

ameican highbush cranberry (either Viburnum opulus var. americanum or Viburnum trilobum)

an over-constrained problem

for those of you who have been with me for a while here on STILL, you probably saw this photo coming after yesterday’s image.  as i have mentioned before, some of my very favorite microseasons are the most difficult for me to capture–in particular, apple blossom season and lilac season. that is because, STILL was conceived as a place to pause, to look at one thing at a time; in other words, a place to be still. so, how does on one capture the over-the-top abundance of spring apple blossoms and lilacs on a platform designed for exactly the opposite?  i have made many different attempts over the years. none of them satisfying me entirely yet. perhaps i have over-constrained the problem, and there is no solution as we say in mathematics (actually, we would say the solution is the null set, but this is a nature blog and not a math blog).  anyway, today’s circle of lilac florets is yet one more attempt to show the abundance of lilac season…while still being true to STILL.

lilac florets (syringa)

whew! back in time for lilacs

when i left for nyc six days ago, the lilacs were just starting to boom. i was afraid i’d miss them. walking the neighborhood in may, when the profusion of lilacs are perfuming the air, is one of my favorite weeks of the year. the week just happens to coincide with my birthday (today), so perhaps that may be a contributing factor. regardless, it is wonderful time to be alive and present–spring in all it’s exuberant glory. flowers blooming, birds singing, lilacs wafting, strawberry-rhubarb pie cooling, and  sunshine kissing my shoulders (sight, sound, smell, taste, and touch). such abundance!

common lilac panicle (Syringa)

young adults now

this young adult fern did not want to have its picture taken–sort of like my young adult children. i went outside with my white diffuser as a backdrop to make this photo. it was awkward and difficult because of the breeze. next time i try, i may have to dig up a spade-full of plant and dirt and bring the whole thing indoors for an hour. but we all know how willful those young adults can be–i just know he’d start to wilt the instant i brought the shovel out of the garage.

ostrich fern nearing full height

details matter

every detail of the fern plant is photogenic. these young leaflets on the straight frond stems always get my attention. honestly, i was expecting the spacing to be even more uniform that they are. hmm, similar but different. like each of us.

interrupted fern leaflets