Yellow Salsify

Yellow Salsify~ tragopogon dubius

The development of this flower is very interesting. Years ago I was fortunate to capture the three stages of its life cycle in one photo (the second photo). First, the closed pod appears and inside it the flower develops: suddenly the pod opens and the yellow flower appears. During its flower stage it closes at night and on dark or rainy days, and re-opens the next day. At the final maturity of the flower it closes, and inside the pod the seeds develop, after which it opens one last time and the seed head appears to allow the wind to spread the little parachutes of seeds.

They aren’t all just pretty when they’re blooming.

Yellow Salsify~ Tragopogon dubius

Wildflowers in the rain

Pointedtip Mariposa Lily, Three-spot Mariposa Lily, Baker’s Mariposa ~ Calochortus apiculatus

Woolly Groundsel ~ Packera cana

Poison Larkspur ~ Delphinium trolliifolium

Yellow Salsify, Meadow Goatsbeard ~ Tragopogon dubius

Howell’s Pussytoes ~ Antennaria howellii

Choke Cherry ~ Prunus Virginiana

Mountain Lady’s Slipper ~ Cypripedium montanum

Antelope Bitterbrush, Antelope-brush ~ Purshia tridentata

Rydberg’s Penstemon ~ Penstemon rydbergii

Starry False Lily-of-the-valley, Star-flowered Solomon’s-seal ~ Maianthemum stellatum

Smallflower Miterwort, Side-flowered Mitrewort, Cross-shaped Mitrewort ~ Ozomelis stauropetala

Feathery False Lily-of-the-valley, Plumed Solomon’s Seal, Plumed Spikenard ~ Maianthemum racemosum

The thing about photographing wildflowers is that you have to be there when they are blooming, which means lots and lots of trips into the woods, the meadows, the trails and along the streams – sunshine or rain. That’s my story and I’m stickin’ to it!

It’s getting along toward that time of the season

Last Saturday there some shrubs along the trail with pairs of red berries; Utah Honeysuckle. Then today as I was enjoying some Serviceberries (my favorite wild fruit) I noticed the seed head of a Goat’s Beard, and I realized that it is already getting into the mature time of the season.

Utah Honeysuckle, Lonicera utahensis

Yellow Salsify, Goat’s Beard, Tragopogon dubius

Saskatoon, Serviceberry, Amelanchier alnifolia

Wildflowers of spring (6)

Arctic Lupine ~ Lupinus arcticus 5/19

Antelope Bush ~ Purshia tridentata 5/22

Sticky Geranium ~ Geranium viscosissimum 5/22

Yellow Salsify ~ Tragopogon dubius 5/22

Black Hawthorn ~ Crataegus giyglasii 5/22

Falsebox, Oregon Boxleaf ~ Paxistima myrsinites 5/22

Born in the rain

These are the first blossoms of their species to appear around here this year and when I saw them this morning while I walked in the rain, it seemed important to me that they be displayed. Then as I clicked the shutter from under my umbrella, the reason occurred to me: the exuberance of these brand new arrivals that entered our world on a rainy day needed to be shared.

Goatsbeard,
Yellow Salisfy
Tragopogon dubius
Aster family

Chokecherry
Prunus virginiana
Rose family