Flowers Around Me

California Redbud Tree in Spring Bloom

This blog post is about the flowering things that are around me that I did not plant.

The first is the California or Western Redbud seen in its colorful Spring glory in the above photo. This interesting tree was here when I arrived. Obviously, it is named for its Spring profusion of reddish pink blossoms that attract hundreds of bees everyday. This tree literally buzzes with activity very loudly all day long. The bees are focused on gathering their sweet nectar that they don't bother me when I walk underneath the tree on my way to my chicken coop. Oh, a few fly around and follow me for a short distance, but then go back to the blossoms. As the blossoms fade in mid-Spring, the tree grows lovely green leaves and stays that way until Fall, when it then drops it leaves and shows off all of its thin brown seed pods that rattle in the wind. When I read the Wikipedia article about the Redbud, I learned that it is in the legume family of plants, hence the seedpods. I learn something new all the time around here!


Bush Lupine

The purple blossomed bush in the photo above grows wild here in the Sierra foothills. It is also a legume, a type of Lupine. This is a purple Bush Lupine. We also have smaller purple, white and yellow lupine flowers that grow closer to the ground in fields and along roadsides. I mostly have the larger bush variety growing on my property. This year I have several big beautiful specimens all around my home. I planted none of them. They just grow here and bring me beauty. When I first moved here (10 years ago now) I brought some of the pretty lupine flowers inside in a vase and quickly took them back outside, as their heavy pollen scent was too much for my nose to handle. These legumes are good for the soil in which they grow as legumes enrich their soil with nitrogen making it fertile for other green things to grow.


Rosemary bush in bloom

The photo above is a close up of one of my Rosemary herb bushes that the previous owner planted out in back of my house. I have several of them all in a row out there. They are beautiful, useful culinary herbs that also smell good and are almost care-free. They need a little water now and then, especially in the Summer. Another nice thing about them is that they are not tasty to the herds of deer and other wild critters that live here with me.

So that's it for today's flower tour. These are the easy-care flowers that live here. Some other day I will show you the not-so-easy-care flowers and trees.

Spring color and easy-care all at the same time. Lovely.




© Copyright 2008 Mountain Harvest Basket