Sea Daisy

Sea Daisy - Erigeron glaucus is a member of the Aster family. It is a real asset to our coastal garden. The less rain it has the more it flowers of so it seems.

Sleeping Poppies

It's poppy time in the garden. I love the variations in colours of the opium poppies. Papaver somniferum or literally ‘sleep-inducing’ poppy. When I was reading up about poppies I found this interesting article.

https://www.kew.org/read-and-watch/tale-two-poppies

What is real ?

The same type of poppy and a hoverfly but which is the best picture? 

Did I tidy up the flower in situ or in photoshop and was the hoverfly even there at all? 

Photoshop and peoples skills with photoshop have improved so much over the years that I have now started to question the originality of some images particularly nature images.

The reality is that the first picture is as it was. In the second I thought I had tidy up the same poppy flower by hand and then put the hoverfly in with photoshop. What I didn't see until I put the two side by side was that it was a different flower. I never noticed the difference in the centre capsules of the two flowers which had identical petals but completely different capsules.

The First Cosmos

Cosmos have been the mainstay of all the annuals in the garden since I first discovered them.  Providing you deadhead them they will flower and flower into October. I don't remember ever seeing them as a child.

I'm still standing.

Allium christophii, star of Persia or my least favourite name for this beautiful flower the Persian onion. Whatever the name this member of the Allium family is still standing tall in our windswept front garden in Southport after the 50 mph winds we have had over the last 24 hours. Yes, we are in June.