Flowers of Brodiea AKA Triteleia laxa

Rainy Days Remembered

Posted on by Ann Mackay

NB: A note for WordPress Reader users – you need to click on the title of the post again to come out of the reader and go to the post itself. This allows you to see the whole of the top photograph. (Otherwise you may see just a tiny section!)

These are pictures from earlier this summer, on a day in early July when the rain had left all the flowers glistening with raindrops. Summer rain is not something we can take for granted in the east of England. Long dry periods can leave the garden parched and the plants practically gasping for water.

This year we have had some very dry periods but those earlier rains, much heavier and more frequent than usual, have allowed the garden to grow more lush than we’d normally see. The grapevine that covers a small arbour for shade has turned into a monster with wildly waving arms (and grapes hidden under all that foliage). At this stage it’s almost inaccessible to prune. Next year I’ll have to make a point of cutting it back at a time when I can get a ladder close enough to the arbour to be able to get at the vine.

The wisteria that I planted to grow over and through an old laurel that has become a tree is also becoming overgrown. I’m really not sure how I’ll tackle this one – a pruner on a long extending pole helps, but isn’t enough. More drastic action may be required in future…

This summer’s extra rain brought us plenty of flowers. The Triteleia laxa (also known as Brodiaea) ‘Queen Fabiola’ in the top photograph is long-gone for this year. It is a perennial bulb and will come back into flower again from late next spring. However, in the photo below, the gaura (Oenothera lindheimeri) is still in full flower and will be for a long while yet. (It can flower well into the winter and often ends up covered in frost. You can see one of my frosty photos of it here.)

Both of these flowers looked lovely when coated in raindrops. Summer rain brings some variety to flower pictures and it shows that it can be good for both gardens and photography. Sometimes the rain is welcome!

Flowers of Gaura lindheimerii
Oenothera lindheimeri, formerly known as Gaura lindheimeri
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Published by Ann Mackay

Photographer, mixed-media art adventurer and completely daft about plants.......

14 thoughts on “Rainy Days Remembered”

  1. I also love raindrops on petals, Ann. (It sounds like something Julie Andrews might have sung, by the way.) Your images are lovely, showing the pearl-like droplets in detail.
    The image of your vine waving its arms wildly made me smile. I hope it won’t capture you and keep you prisoner in the arbour. 😊

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  2. The Lindheimer’s gaura looks a lot brighter in its warm-weather apparel of dewdrops than clad in frost crystals. As you said, rain can be a welcome thing. I see that the original Triteleia laxa (which I wasn’t familiar with) grows primarily in central and northern California.

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  3. There’s that Gaura that you’ve mentioned in the past. It is lovely, and the droplets are nicely arranged. I like the subtle bits of yellow and lavender in the background; they don’t overwhelm the gaura, but add some pleasing complexity to the photo.

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    1. I think my other Gaura photos are all taken fairly late in the year, so that the colour from the summer flowers is gone. This makes a little change and it pleases me to realise what a long time the Gaura flowers for. (I think they’ve done better this year, maybe because these plants are better established. They don’t live for many years, so I buy new ones from time to time.)

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  5. ‘Queen Fabiola’ is fabulous. I’m glad your garden has enjoyed the more than usual rain. We have certainly not been short of it here. Though August has been somewhat drier compared to the rest of the year. I just hope we have a drier winter so I am not as housebound as I was last winter. September has begun in the far too usual Cornish mizzle and I watch the landscape slowly disappear.

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    1. It is a pretty flower and has thrived in a neglected area. I’m in the process of moving my greenhouse to be just beside them (it’s in a temporary spot until I get the base done). I’ll have to be careful not to cover them over! And I should really plant more elsewhere too. I hope you do get a drier winter that lets you get outside…rain can be too much!

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