I have put together a sequence of photos, taken over a period of about two weeks, which show off the development of a Calendula flower. Most of these photos are of the same individual bloom.
The Calendulas in my garden are third or fourth generation self-seeders. I bought a packet of seeds a few years back, but have never needed to buy more. Funnily enough though, the original packet was a mixed colours one, but I now seem to have only yellow flowers. What happened to the creamy ones and the deep orange ones, I wonder?
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| Greenfly evidently find the Calendula attractive too |
Whilst the Calendula is undoubtedly a beautiful flower, it can also be useful in the kitchen. You can eat the petals, and some people use them to brighten-up a salad. You can also infuse the petals in warm water to make a food-colouring which can serve in lieu of saffron.
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P.S. I got some better pictures of Harlequin Ladybird larvae yesterday...
It is a shame you couldn't have done it on time-lapse - still great though and makes the humble marigold seem a little more special.
ReplyDeleteLovely Mark that`s real patience
ReplyDeleteYour photos are a real treat to view, as usual, Mark. Have I asked you which lens you use to get your amazing macro shots? Brilliant pics of the ladybird larvae - I'm seeing loads of them all of a sudden which is reassuring as, surely, they'll need to eat up the aphids to restore balance in the garden!
ReplyDeleteCaro; my camera is an Olympus E-450 Digital SLR, and the Macro lens is the Zuiko Digital 35mm f3.5, though I have to say that many of my macro-looking shots are actually done with the standard 14-42mm lens.
ReplyDeleteSome super photos! I like Calendula even more now after seeing your 'fashion show'. If only I could get a bit of sunshine in NI! We had almost a full day of sun on Wed - the highlight of the week's weather.
ReplyDeleteI love ladybirds.
ReplyDeleteI have a nice sunny flower too. Just one of my mammoth sunflowers came up that I planted behind the tomatoes (the tomatoes grew too fast, next year they will go behind the squash I think). Unfortunately it is not real "mammoth" It has a fairly small head for a mammoth sunflower but I'll take what I can get and hopefully improve on it next year.
ReplyDeleteThose are great photos of the flowers. For all the things I love about my camera, it doesn't take close up shots near as well.
ReplyDeleteWonderful, beautiful flowers!
ReplyDeleteGreat Macro of the bug, too!
Have a great day!
Lea
Lea's Menagerie
You have to take the sun wherever you can find it at the moment.
ReplyDeleteLike Elaine I thought timelapse too.Have you tried taking lots of photos with your camera in the same position and set them up in a slideshow to create a sort of animation?
What a cheerful little flower! Brightened my morning!
ReplyDeleteA burst of cheery colour, just what I need on such a dreary day as today.
ReplyDeleteLovely pics, beautiful flowers!
ReplyDeleteFabulous photos, Mark - you've brought a little bit of sunshine on a very rainy day! x
ReplyDeleteThe flower pictures are poetry!
ReplyDeleteWow... That flower looks so beautiful! I particularly love the close up shot and the one with the fly.
ReplyDeleteLovely sunny colour.
ReplyDelete