WiseAcre Gardens

The flowers have been open for over a week now but you’d never know it unless you looked down between the pairs of fuzzy leafstalks.

Wild Ginger – Asarum canadense

My typical photos of the flowers are a lot like them – usually fuzzy. This time I got a decent focus and surprised myself. My old eyes never saw the ‘fangs’ in the mouth of the flower before.

The flower images are linked to a larger size (1024 x 768) for a closer look. Use them as desktop backgrounds if you like. But if you prefer something slimy wait till you get to the end of the post.

I figured you’d scroll to the bottom to find the icky stuff. Here’s a frog trio that seems to have oozed and fused together.

Yep – click for wallpaper version so you can see the frog in the middle.

Spring Beauty or Carolina Spring Beauty?

A photo of the flower won’t help. It takes a leaf to make an educated guess. Spring Beauty – Claytonia virginica has a single pair of long, narrow, opposite leaves midway along the stem.

Carolina Spring Beauty – Claytonia caroliniana has much wider, more oval shaped leaves that taper to a distinct petiole.

According to the leaves the Spring Beauty displayed above is a Carolina.

I couldn’t resist posting another Hepaticia flower photo. I found this one next to a moss covered log that made a great background.

OK back to the leaves. I know this is a Sharp Lobed Hepaticia because I looked at the 3 lobed leaf and it certainly didn’t look round to me. It also looked cool with the mottled green coloration. It made it through the winter in pretty good shape.

Usually hidden beneath the leaf litter on the forest floor is another aspect of Hepaticia’s leaves that leans towards the freakish side. I found some growing out of the moss on a rotting log. To me they look like a Muppet that never fully formed.

Did I mention I was happy?

I found some Bloodroot that naturalized in a Vinca bed at the edge of my woods.

And to leave on the right note – here’s a bloodroot leaf shot from last year.

Don’t you just love the way the leaf gently clasps the flower until it’s ready to open?

Thought so.

Each contestant will have two attempts to get your vote for today’s best pic.

Miss Meadowhawk appears honored to be chosen.

Curtsy

Try not to stare all in one direction at the same time.

Dragonfly Eyes

Compound eyes are cute but that Frons on her face isn’t going to win her any beauty contests.

I’m going to presume the next contestant is a male. ‘He’ has the look of a long long married man. Tense, lips drawn in tight, eyes bulging, face turning green and ready to croak. Yep, that’s the look you get after 30 years when you marry Miss Right before learning her first name is Always.

Still Life with Frog

His lifestyle might look cool, clean and tranquil but he still eats bugs. I guess that’s expected since he grow up with pond scum.

Four Eyed Frog

Help is available if you can’t think of a comment.

Stare into the eyes and relax. Relax. Reach deep inside yourself and find your inner frog.

Ah jeeze, no one said to eat that fly

As usual – pics are linked to larger images (1024 x 768) for either a closer look and/or to use as desktop backgrounds