Anne Elliott's photos with the keyword: Anemone patens

Yesterday, on the way home after a volunteer shift, I called in at Sandy Beach to look for Prairie Crocuses. Though the first one was reported early this year, on 14th March by George Dixon, I hadn't been out to look till yesterday late afternoon. There were a number of clumps of these beautiful flowers, almost all were closed and they looked rather washed out and the worse for wear. Think I only saw two flowers that were actually open like this. Flowers open during the day but close at night. The wind was dreadful - had to be careful not to stand near the edge of the "cliff". Barely getting on to Flickr the last couple of days! Winter is over (we hope) and so all my botany and birding days are finally here and life turns into one endless, insane period for the next seven or so months. Took myself off to the Zoo for a short while this afternoon, needing to do a bit of walking before a day's walk tomorrow, out of town. Not sure if I'll be able to manage the whole thing (wretched pain!), but I'm really hoping I won't have to miss any of it! Oh, if anyone happens to read this, we discovered that the Creatures of the Night area at the Zoo, in the Australia House, has closed down (permanently). I am so thankful that I was in there very recently and managed to get my shots of the absolutely beautiful little Red Eyed Tree Frog. Now they are to be seen no more. Phil, that must be so disappointing to you - I know if our positions were reversed, I would have been really disappointed. Who knows, though, maybe they can find some dark little corner to put their very small aquarium? Certainly worth asking about. Good to see you and Jen there : )

It's always so good when the wild Prairie Crocuses start to bloom after a long, cold winter. I love the centres of these flowers, with their bright yellow anthers. The petals act as reflectors, aiming the sun's rays towards the flower centre. Found this one growing at Sandy Beach four days ago. It was so windy, I could barely keep my footing on the steep hillside. Please don't dig up Prairie Crocuses to put in your garden - they don't transplant well, as they have a deep root system. Leave them where they are supposed to be - and that way, everyone else can enjoy them, too : )

A macro shot of a beautiful Prairie Crocus that was growing at Sandy Beach on 26th April. These wildflowers were so late in blooming this year, after such a cold April. Jim (Garnite) - the sight and smell of spring is being wafted your way, from me to you, hoping that you are feeling just a tiny bit better today. Stay strong!

I thought this clump of Prairie Crocuses (growing at Sandy Beach recently) might serve as a reminder of just how lucky we are to have endless beauty around us, in different forms for each of the seasons of every year. Human beings seem to have a talent for "messing up" the balance of nature in so many ways and mistreating our earth. May we be blessed with enough wisdom to look around around us, to actually SEE how fortunate we are, and to not just know that we need to take much greater care of our planet, but to also do everything we can, before it's too late, to ensure that future generations get the chance to enjoy nature's wonders. Will add Ambre's link up here - thanks, Ambre! Question: How many petals does each flower have? ANSWER: there are NO petals - the purple parts are SEPALS! Sorry, it was a trick question : ) I spent all morning this Earth Day, walking along the Bow River with friends. Straight afterwards, I drove over to the Zoo for a while, mainly to visit the amazing butterflies : ) An hour and a half or two hours of roasting and sweating in tropical humidity and warmth is far from enjoyable, but oh, SO worth it!

This was one of many Prairie Crocus flowers in bloom along the Bow River, between 194th Ave SE and highway 22X bridge about a week ago. "As soon as the snow melts, you will want to start looking for this "harbinger of spring"! The prairie crocus has pale blue or purple flowers arising from the woody rootstock that appear very early in spring. The whole plant is covered with woolly-white hairs. Flowers: The flowers are about 4 cm (1 1/2 in.) in diameter, each with five to seven petal-like sepals, and many pistils and bright yellow stamens. (Like all anemones, prairie crocus does not have true petals. The blue or purple-coloured parts that look like petals are actually modified sepals.) When folded, the outer surface of the sepals appear covered in white woolly hairs. The flowers are open during the day but close at night." plantwatch.fanweb.ca/plant-information/prairie-crocus