I returned to the Prairie Walk gardens in the early evening to clip old plants and grass and pick up trash. These rabbitbrush branches caught my eye as they glowed in the sunlight. As usual, I couldn’t resist trying some filters on them with my photo editing software.
Rabbitbrush Branches
Well, the snowdrifts have melted away enough over at the Prairie Walk Gardens so that I could get some photos of the new buffaloberry blossoms. What a treat to get out and see some of the signs of spring!
After I photographed the frosty trees in the yard yesterday, I went over to the Prairie Walk to see what new compositions might await me. Every visit offers something a little different, whether it’s the weight of frost on branches, the height of snowdrifts, or the light and shadows on the wintry forms.
It was a beautiful morning here in Bowman; calm, sunny, and about 15 degrees above zero. I took my little digital camera with me when I went to the drug store to buy some Christmas ornaments, in case there was something to see and record along the way. There was a light coating of snow on the plants and rocks at the Prairie Walk, so I got out and looked around.
The snow on the clinker and petrified wood was fresh and delicate, and made for some nice wintry compositions. Much of the garden was buried under snow, and a good part of it was in shadow.
Shadow of Fence on Snow
Bergamot in the Snow
Frost on the Window of Sod House
Guess that wraps up this little excursion at the Prairie Walk. The batteries in the camera quit working, so I decided to do the same. The forecast is calling for some below-zero weather soon, so it was good to get out while I could.
Rabbitbrush
Later in the afternoon, I took my camera along to the post office, where I mailed some invitations to the Prairie Rose art reception to be held on December 1st. On my way back from there, I stopped by the Prairie Walk to get some photos of late November.
Rabbitbrush
Silver Sagebrush
There wasn’t much that caught my eye, but I managed to get some shots of rabbitbrush and silver sage. The snow has melted in quite a few places, and where it remains, it is kind of crusty and hard. It seems there is always something to focus on, though, if you look around long enough.
Well, October has been a month of beauty. Thought I’d wander over to the Prairie Walk gardens and see what I might find to photograph on the very last day. The wild rose leaves on the south side of the garden were in fine form, so that’s how we’ll wrap things up on the 31st. Happy Halloween, everybody.
After photographing the snowfall in the yard on Sunday, I went back over to the Prairie Walk to have a look. I wanted to reshoot this beautiful vine, which had too much moisture on it the other day. I’d planned to also rephotograph the plants around it, but they had been weighed down by the snow. You never know from one shoot to the next what will be available.
As I was walking through the parking area, I noticed that leaves had fallen into the snow around my feet. The snow had pretty much melted from the branches, so this was where I put my focus.
Went around to the back of the museum and photographed these wintry buffaloberry branches before returning to the warmth of home. I love having four distinct seasons in a year, sometimes they even appear two at a time! Maybe I can expand my portfolio from autumn/winter to spring/winter as the next months unfold out here on the northern prairie.
Here are the photos I took yesterday at the Prairie Walk gardens. It was enjoyable to make a return trip and come up with things I didn’t notice the day before. Some of the leaves were gone, but others had newly arrived, just in time to have their portrait taken.
Milkweed Leaf
Yellow Leaves
I went back with the intent to recompose some of the photos I’d taken earlier, leaving the grass out of a few compositions, and making sure I included the grass in others.
Quite a few of these images were photographed at the edge of the garden, where little chips of scoria added to the mix of colors, shapes, and textures.
All this leaf gazing has made me think that one of the best parts of autumn is when the leaves have left the trees, and fallen into new arrangements with the rocks and grass.
This time I tried to make sure I didn’t include leaves that were too light. I had some nice images the other day, but one leaf was too high in value, and didn’t fit into the picture as a whole.
This golden leaf appeared in yesterday’s post, but from a different angle. What a difference a day can make.
The background for these three leaves was provided by a concretion that used to be spherical, but has since cracked and shattered throughout the seasons.
These are buffaloberry leaves that fell into some snowmelt on a slab of petrified wood. It was drizzling when this was taken, and you can see a ripple in the watery foreground.
After looking at the photos I posted yesterday, I decided to reshoot some of the leaves from a more perpendicular vantage point, to get sharper details.
Sometimes it was a challenge to duck under the branches of the surrounding shrubs. At times I used one hand to hold a branch out of the way, and the other hand to click the shot. Who’d believe these colors would be found in a prairie garden?
I love the way the rocks in the garden set off the leaves. It was a visual feast for an observant prairie walker, and a real joy to discover all the subject matter that was literally at my feet.
The rosy red golden currant leaf was near this leaf yesterday, but was lying face down with its dull side up. I decided to lift it up and flip it over to complement the wonderful stem on the other leaf.
Wild Roses
I had a little more time and energy to spare after this photo session, so I ventured around to the south side of Pioneer Trails Regional Museum and got a few more pictures for my fall portfolio. There were some extraordinary colors on the wild roses and bergamot. Was glad I decided to see what might be over there.
Bergamot
I was astonished to see the burgundy and purple tones on the bergamot leaves. Once again, this is a plant I’ve never really noticed until this year.
Virgin’s Bower
It also came as a delightful surprise to me that there were still beautiful white blossoms on the virgin’s bower. Guess there’s always something to learn about the prairie plants that surround us.
Well, we’ve come to the end of this October tour of the Prairie Walk gardens. Was glad to be able to see and share the colors of autumn out here in the southwest corner of North Dakota.
It was a gorgeous last day of September, so I went over to do a few chores at the Prairie Walk gardens. After I cut down some elm saplings, trimmed a sagebrush, and swept off the fountain pavers, I snapped a few garden images.
Milkweed Pod and Leaf
Goldenrod in Garden
Goldenrod in September
Rose Hips in Sunlight
Went back over to the Prairie Walk gardens today to see if I could photograph some bees. Wore a long-sleeved shirt to give myself a little more confidence. They were still really zooming around the rabbitbrush blossoms, so intent on their mission that they barely noticed me. There was a moth or miller of some kind who’d come in for a landing also.
Had much better luck getting bee images today. The sun was out, it was fairly calm, and just a great day to be soaking in the end of the garden season. Will try my upgraded digital camera in the future, but am happy with these bee photos for now.
Just the slightest change in angles, and the wings of the bee glisten in the sunlight. There was a wasp in the garden also, but too low and too dark for a picture. Maybe next time. We’ll see how much longer the warm weather lasts. There have been frost warnings lately.
Detail of Clinker Fountain
As I was leaving the garden, I snapped a quick photo of the clinker fountain. I noticed a woman parked in front of the fountain. She was reading a book, listening to the water cascade down the front of the large clinker boulder, and watching the birds who flock to it. What a wonderful way to spend a September day! The garden has an interesting mix of visitors, most of them not observed by the casual passerby.