Anne Elliott's photos with the keyword: wildlfower

Another hot day today (getting up to 30C - to feel like 32C - this afternoon). Yesterday was the same, when five of us had the chance to botanize the beautiful 320 acres belonging to philanthropist, Davd Bissett and his wife. This land, roughly half wooded, with several small ponds in the open area, lies SW of Calgary. For anyone not sure what "botanizing" involves, we visit someone's property for the day, listing every single species of plant and tree, bird, insect, fungus, lichen, moss, liverwort, etc. that we find. It is always a win/win situation, as we are lucky enough to have the chance to explore a new area and the landowner receives a highly detailed list of everything found on his land. David Bissett's giving to community causes, especially education, has been a hallmark of his philanthropy. He has donated to a wide range of community cultural organizations, and he has a passion for wildlife conservation. Just one of his endless donations resulted in the creation of the Bissett Wetlands at Heritage Park here in the city, a popular educational destination. calgary.ctvnews.ca/inspired-to-give-1.676279 mtroyal.ca/ProgramsCourses/FacultiesSchoolsCentres/Busine... There are several different kinds of Agrimony and I'm waiting to hear if this is Agrimonia striata. I think I have only ever seen Agrimony in maybe one or two locations, one being the Ann and Sandy Cross Conservation Area, SW of Calgary. When I have seen it before, there was just the one plant. Yesterday, we saw many dozens of them along the trails - so good to see. "Agrimonia, commonly known as agrimony, is a genus of 12–15 species of perennial herbaceous flowering plants in the family Rosaceae, native to the temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere, with one species also in Africa. The species grow to between 0.5–2 m tall, with interrupted pinnate leaves, and tiny yellow flowers borne on a single (usually unbranched) spike." From Wikipedia. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agrimonia The heat, and the fact that my camera isn't working properly, took away most of my energy yesterday, but I managed to get a few photos that will be OK to upload. Looks like I have no other choice but to do something about this. I will try and throw in the occasional bird or animal photo taken on other days in other places, as I know many of you are not really interested in plants : ) Just not getting time to go through my photos these days. Many thanks to Christie, the young woman who looks after this property, for inviting us out for the morning, and for walking the trails with us! Very much appreciated!

This small, native wildflower, from the Sunflower family, grows on dry prairie grasslands and eroded slopes mid-April to May. It is found in maybe only three places in the city. The flowerheads are about an inch across. White or sometimes pinkish. Always a thrill to see these flowers - in fact, I found several at a location in one of the parks this afternoon.

We saw a few of these bright red and black beetles at the Erlton/Roxborough Natural Area this morning. Not sure if it is a red Turnip Beetle. An amazing area for wildflowers!

A small member of the Aster family, introduced from Europe.

We were first attracted to this tiny plant by it's bright, light green colour. Took this photo today and the green "asparagus-like" stalks now have attractive, tiny, mostly pale greenish-yellow flowers. Today was not conducive to kneeling to take a supermacro - it was raining and snowing (21st May!). "Plant is widespread, abundant and easily located in a variety of wooded situations. Tends to form large clumps and extensive colonies. It is the only member of this genus with distinctively yellowish-green colouring in the stem and flowers. Later in the season, the orchid remains recognizable because it develops fat yellowish drooping seed pods." From Canadian Native Orchids website.

Went for a short walk yesterday and came across several clumps of these beautiful wildflowers.

I alway think this flower is so delicate. Belonging to the Buttercup family, the name Columbine comes from "columba" (dove) because it was thought that the five petals look like a ring of doves, heads together and wings spread.

I think this wildflower, Wild Bergamot, has the most interesting shapes and patterns when it is in bud, partially open and later, when the petals have all fallen.

In the fall, the leaves turn a mixture of colours and the berries turn from green to orange or bright red. It's a widespread and common plant in Alberta. Quite attractive.

I'm not going to even attempt to identify this kind of Vetch or Milkvetch - there are just too many of them to choose from. I liked the pattern of the little green leaves in the top right corner.

This must be one of the brightest flowers around. It never fails to catch my attention.

Such a bright splash of colour on one of my local walks.