Flowers for Friday – my uncle’s sunflowers
When I was back in Indiana for my cousin’s wedding (recall that last week I posted wedding flowers), I took a whole ton of photos. A bunch of them were flowers, another bunch of them were farm related, and a third bunch of them were an attempt to archive &/or at least get copies of older black and white family photos.
My uncle showed me his flower garden, which included a bunch of different types of sunflowers.
Only three types (all yellowish) were currently in bloom.
I was also fascinated by the one that he told me would end up being a purple sunflower when it bloomed. Sure enough, when I looked really closely, I could see a tinge of purple in the greenery surrounding the closed bud.
Last year, I remember being at a flower store or a grocery, and seeing sunflowers that were orangey-red. I remember wondering if they were real (or if they had been made by putting them in water that had red food coloring in it).
Tangent
Did you ever do that as a kid? You know, take a celery stalk that still had the leaves on it, or a white carnation, and put it in water that had food coloring in it? I did. I preferred to use blue food coloring… and if you wait (days?) for the celery or the carnation to soak up the colored water, the veins will turn blue and can make a very pretty contrast against the rest of the cells that haven’t changed color yet.
End tangent
Anyway, come to find out, I guess those red sunflowers must’ve been real. Because my uncle was telling me that he has seeds that will make purple ones, red ones, and the more traditional yellow ones.
And even the yellow ones are different from one another.
This one, for example, is all yellow, but the ends of the petals are pointed.
I particularly like this photo for the unopened buds in the top half of the photo… but also for the light that highlights the hairs on the stalks, the edges of the edges of the leaves, and the shadows that are cast on the larger leaves.
It also makes me feel a bit like I’m walking through a shadowed wood, or a jungle… or somewhere a bit secret….
… or that I’m just really short.
Notice how this yellow sunflower has petals that are curved on the tips.
I guess I had never really noticed before how many different varieties exist.
It was a fun time. Can you tell I was happy, amidst the flowers?
I (and my uncle) took these photos with Tweedledum, my Cyber-shot DSC-P71.
jenski says:
I get the best flower desktops from your website, Danielle! This time it’s the top one — I really like the hand in the picture. At first if looks as if someone is going to pick it but then I decided that the hand is just tilting the blossom to show it off more.
Danielle says:
You got it right, that is my uncle’s hand tilting the flower for me. At first, I almost asked him to let go of the flower… but then I realized that I really _wanted_ his hand in the photo. It reminds me of him, and his pride for and love of his garden. And even though it isn’t a picture of his face, I know that he was smiling when he was showing me these flowers.
I’m thrilled to hear that you make my photos into desktops.
Momo says:
Lovely sunflowers! They are really neat flowers, I like them alot. Thanks for educating us on the different varieties, I didn’t know that either.
And yes, I can tell you were having fun…your eyes say it all!
Amber says:
Ohh SUNFLOWERS! They are so beautiful. I like them because they make me think of the sun adn they are bright and cheery. I don’t know if you can grow them here in Minnesota, though. When I was little there were sunflowers that would grow wild out in a field behind my house. They were the yellow pointy petaled ones and the orange-gish ones.
About using your photos as a desktop, I still have that lizard on the moon one as my background. It’s too neat.
kristine says:
Guess who’s going to the book store tomorrow!!!??
Ern says:
Wow, I haven’t been over here for awhile, sorry. I see you are making good use of your new D70! I especially like the one of the red flowers that includes their shadow, the first one with the bee, and the last of the car photos (the one where you can see the reflection of the neighboring car). Can’t wait to see what else you capture!
I love sunflowers too. We used to grow the big dinner-plate sized sunflowers when I was a kid–the ones that attract birds to their seeds. And I can recognize a couple of wild types of sunflowers that grow in the Rocky Mountains. They do look so cheerful! So it is fitting that you look so happy. Does your uncle’s place back right up against a field and the woods? Gorgeous.
Danielle says:
Momo, I figured if _I_ liked learning about them, other people would too. Glad you enjoyed it!
Amber, when I was replying to Jenski about the desktop, I thought about you and the lizard one.
Sunflowers make me happy too. I almost dedicated this post to you, in a small attempt to cheer you up, but I wanted it to be more for my uncle.
Kristine, do you know which ones you are getting?
*whispers – Sara Donati – Into the Wilderness* (jenski and SeaQueen will back me up on that)
Ern, the red ones and the bee ones are the only ones I’ve posted so far with my D70. The other ones are actually with the Sony Cybershot, which really is a good camera. It just made me work harder at ‘tricking’ the autofocus to focus where _I_ wanted it to focus. The D70 doesn’t require me to go to such extremes. And in the long run, I think I’ll end up taking better photos with it.
My aunt and uncle’s house sits on a piece of land with numerous trees that is surrounded by the farmland that has been in his family (for I don’t know how long). In the last photo, the green field is alfalfa, and the line of trees in the background follows a creek separating some more fields. The top pic originally had a patch of wheat in the background, but I cropped it out, bummer. But I already plan to post more about that, probably this weekend or next week, so you can see more later, if you want. And yes, it IS gorgeous.
Carol says:
Beautiful!! I love sunflowers.
“I should like to change into a sunflower most of all. They’re so tall and simple.” – Maude
LadyBug says:
Oooh, Danielle, sunflowers are my FAVORITE! They’re so sunny and cheerful and TALL! But then, it makes me a little sad when they get full of seeds, and the flowers get too heavy, and start to droop over under the weight.
But! Still! So tall and pretty and cheerful.
Although…purple sunflowers seem a little…I don’t know…weird, maybe? I guess I’m just a traditionalist when it comes to sunflowers. ;o)
Squirl says:
Danielle, you know I love the yellow flowers. I’ve seen versions of the yellow and the orange-red ones. I don’t think I’ve ever seen purple. Ichabod likes them because they’re native to America. He likes to see people plant native plants. Thanks for the beautiful Friday flowers!
poopie says:
these are gorgeous danielle! i used to do the food coloring thing with buttercups
Amber says:
Aww, thanks for the thought though. Your uncle does shine through in this post.
Besides, just the sunflowers are enough to cheer me up. hehe.
Now, about those purple sunflowers..I want to grow them. If I find out they can grow in mnnpls/stp, I’m really going to get into gear to find a house with a yard.
honestyrain says:
so beautiful!
Colleen says:
i love these! van gogh would be inspired! and i particularly enjoyed your tangent, and the fact that you got in the picture. you look very content!
thanks for the smile!
Amber says:
I sent you an email.
Ash Ried says:
Beautiful sunflower pictures, just like letting the sun into a dark room.
Ash