July brings a distinct group of attractive wildflowers, including our state flower, the Showy Lady Slipper. Showy Lady Slipper (Cypripedium Reginae) Harebell (Campanula rotundifolia) Black-eyed Susan (Rudbeckia hirta) Swamp Milkweed (Asclepias incarnata) Bouncing Bet (Saponaria officinalis)
Author Archives: jimr77
Peonies
Peonies are beautiful garden flowers that bloom for a short time in late spring and early summer in temperate climates. Two peonies we planted last year in north-central Minnesota came through with gorgeous flowers in late June. Peonies are known as the “king of flowers” in China, where they have been highly appreciated for over …
Giant Mayfly
Yesterday there were huge numbers of the Giant Mayfly (Hexagenia limbata) covering building surfaces facing the shoreline of Leech Lake in Walker Minnesota. The images below were taken on Walker’s public dock. In the central image above, the Mayfly to the right is male and the one to the left is a female. Males typically …
Solstice on the Lake
Sunrise Scenes Sunset
Early June Favorites
Returning to Minnesota lake country in early June, we were happy to see several favorite roadside wildflowers. The slideshow below shows four small beauties.
Magnolia and Mimosa
This is one more look at trees of SE Louisiana, where Magnolia and Mimosa trees bloom in the late spring. The next blog post will shift focus back to the lake country of Minnesota. Magnolia Southern magnolia (Magnolia grandiflora) are highly valued trees that are strongly associated with the southern United States. It is the …
Gardenia and Star Jasmine
Eastern Band-Winged Hover Fly on Gardenia bloom The “Insect ID” app identifies the insect on this gardenia bloom as a Eastern Band-winged hover Fly, Ocyptamus fascipennis. Hoverflies have mimicked the body shape of wasps and hornets, but are actually harmless. They are beneficial to garden plants because they feed on aphids and serve as pollinators.
Cherrybark Oak
Cherrybark oak (Quercus pagoda) is a large and valued Red Oak found in the southern United States. They commonly attain heights well over 100 feet and can have trunk diameters of up to five feet. I have an awesome specimen of this tree in my backyard in SE Louisiana — because of it, my backyard …
Louisiana Spring #2
This is simply a slide show of four beautiful flowers now in bloom in SE Louisiana. First is the Virginia Iris, it is followed by Flame Azalea, a Common Blue Violet, and Wisteria.
Cherokee Rose
White blooms of the Cherokee Rose (Rosa laevigata) are a common sight along southeastern Louisiana roadways in early March. A native of southeast Asia, in the United States it is an invasive species. It has thrived in the southern US since its introduction here long ago (~1780), and was adopted as the state flower of …
