Anne Elliott's photos with the keyword: dying

A brief update on the Facebook issue: the photographer responsible for the posting has now deleted the post and all the angry, accusing comments left by people who changed the subject from road safety to people going out to photograph owls far too often, taking too many photos, etc., etc.. Thank goodness, I can now try and forget the whole thing, though it really doesn't make me look forward to going anywhere to take photos. This is what I wrote on a previously posted photo taken of the same flower: "Today, 1 October 2018, we are under a Special Weather Statement. A heavy snowfall is likely for parts of western Alberta this week. This morning, it is -2C (windchill -6C) with freezing drizzle in the morning with a few flurries this afternoon. I think the normal temperature for 1 October is around 15C, so we are well below average. Snow tonight, which means I am getting my snow tires put on (tomorrow) one day too late. "The start of October will look more like the middle of winter across much of southern Alberta this week, as cold air and snow feature prominently in the forecast. After what have already been record-breaking amounts so far this year, more snowfall is on the way for parts of the Prairies, as Arctic air pours down from the north and Pacific moisture creeps over the Rockies. We're looking at the risk for some significant totals this week." From the Weather Network. My rough plans for 29 September 2018 changed when I saw the weather forecast. I ended up visiting the Reader Rock Garden instead of driving to a different garden. As usual when I go there, it was a bit windy, which always makes photographing flowers, especially ones on long stems, more difficult. It was also overcast and I was hoping that it wouldn't rain. Instead, I found myself standing at the highest point of the garden, with very light snow falling for just a few minutes."

My daughter and I had a such a great day on 5 September 2017. She had a free day, so we decided to drive north-east of the city and visit the Pioneer Acres Museum. The day started off with seeing three perched Swainson's Hawks, which were a bonus. We had passed the colourful old truck and tractor displayed on tall posts, to indicate Pioneer Acres, on various occasions and this time, we actually went to the museum. What an amazing collection of old farming equipment, some standing outdoors and many others in large sheds. Have to say that I am always attracted to old, rusty things, and there was no shortage of these, either. "Pioneer Acres is operated by a team of volunteer members who, in many cases, have extended their golden years of retirement, performing the duties necessary to meet the club's objectives. These include work to collect, restore, maintain and demonstrate the artifacts which were used by the pioneers of early Alberta. The end result is that present and future generations have the opportunity to glimpse into our pioneering past through the artifacts on display and demonstrated. Younger members of the club also learn the care, maintenance and operation of these living artifacts." From link below. www.pioneeracres.ab.ca/member.aspx While we were walking round the grounds, visiting each massive shed in turn, my daughter spotted a Plains Garter Snake, and waved me over to see it. She also saw several birds running round behind one of the sheds, and when I went to check, I found there were four Gray Partridge running off in the distance. A distant Jackrabbit completed our wildlife sightings, first noticed when it was standing tall and upright on its back legs in 'freeze mode'. My mind wandered to Alice in Wonderland : ) Though we did not do a tour of the inside of the "Long" House, we found it an impressive building, complete with a few Sunflowers, Hollyhock and other flowers in the garden, and a tall, metal windmill. "The "Long" House was built in 1914 by John Thomas on a farm just northwest of Irricana, Alberta. It has been lived in by three generations of the Long Family since 1914. The house was donated to Pioneer Acres, moved to our location, and restored to 1929 status." From the Pioneer Acres website. There is also an old schoolhouse on the Museum site. "The Crown School, built in 1905, was located west of Three Hills on Highway 583. It closed in 1953 and was bought by the district of Allingham for use as a community league. In 1996, the building was relocated to Pioneer Aces of Alberta Museum." From the Alberta Teachers' Association website. After spending a long time walking round the grounds, we decided to drive through Irricana itself in order to get back to the highway. I had seen photos on the Internet of three murals there - sunflowers, crayons, and a view of the old grain elevators that had once stood nearby - and I wanted to go and see them. All near each other, as this town only has a few streets. I had never been to Irricana before and I was impressed with what a delightful place it is, full of brightly coloured murals, and well kept. One of the outer roads had many flower beds along the edge, watered with well water, looking most attractive. I had asked my daughter if she was interested in calling in at the Silver Springs Botanical Gardens in NW Calgary, if there was time after our drive east. I had planned the drive ahead of time, partly because I had also seen a photo somewhere on the Internet of a rather nice old barn that I really wanted to see. We were not disappointed, though it was a shame to see that the cupola had fallen from the roof since that photo was taken. I had never driven through the town of Airdrie before, but did the "drive" on Google Earth the night before and it looked straightforward enough. Returning to the city via Cochrane, my daughter told me how to get to Silver Springs. I had never driven there before, but I had been there with a friend last year, I think on 1 October, and thoroughly enjoyed these meticulously kept gardens. We were just too hot and tired to see every inch of the garden, but finished off with photographing sunflowers and enjoying the American Goldfinches that were feeding on them, before we continued on our way. A great day, despite the heat and smoke from the B.C. and Alberta wildfires (distant low visibility, too). Thanks so much, Rachel - hope you enjoyed it as much as I did. We drove 256 km (used about half a tank of gas, or less). I was absolutely tired out from the heat and driving unfamiliar roads.

I think something must be up with Flickr today - note to self. With most of our autumn colour gone, it feels good to be able to look back to photos from 1 October 2016. Today, 24 October 2016, it is heavily overcast, gloomy as can be, with a temperature of 1°C. Fortunately, the last two days (a weekend) were beautiful, sunny days, as I spent Saturday birding with a group of friends east of the city, and yesterday, Sunday, I was with friends birding west of the city. Two very enjoyable days that were not great for photos, but the company was excellent. Many thanks, Andrew and Howard, for leading these days! On 1 October 2016, I finally had my very first visit to the Silver Springs Botanical Gardens, thanks to friend, Sandy. I first heard about this beautiful place from my daughter, but I had never been, because it is way out of my city driving comfort zone. In the morning, it was raining, at least in my part of the city, and I wondered if going would turn out to be a big mistake. However, the rain stopped and stayed away while we were there and, though the sky was overcast, I was still able to photograph to my heart's content. I was surprised at how many flowers were still in bloom on the first day of October and I was extremely impressed with how meticulously these gardens are kept - every inch of them. So many different kinds of trees and plants, and it was very obvious that each area had been planted with so much thought and care. Amazing that dedicated volunteers have been, and continue to be, the ones to thank for these gardens. Thanks so much, Sandy, for giving me the chance to spend an afternoon in such beauty and peace! We all knew that snow wasn't far away and about a week after this visit, Calgary had its first snowfall of the season, for the whole of the Thanksgiving weekend. At least I now have some bright, colourful photos that I will be able to post in between all the coming white, snowy images that will be taken during the seven, long months of winter. "The Botanical Gardens of Silver Springs is without doubt one of the Seven Wonders of Calgary, Alberta. It boasts 1350 square meters (14 600 square feet) of gardens which includes a spectacular Wall Garden that runs an uninterrupted 1300 feet. In the gardens you will find an endless variety of annuals and perennials ranging from artemisias to zinnias. Here indeed is a place to stop and smell the roses and the peonies and the delphiniums and the chrysanthemums and the … What makes these gardens so very special is that they were created and continue to be maintained by a band of green-thumbed enthusiastic volunteers. These hale and hearty diggers, planters, seeders, weeders, mowers, waterers, pruners and community builders work two to three mornings a week to keep the gardens in primrose shape and their efforts are truly appreciated by the many walkers, joggers, and cyclists. On any given day, hundreds of people walk the wall garden with their families, friends and out-of-town visitors. It has become a treasured destination site for many. For anyone who has spent time in the gardens, it is hard to believe that they have only been here since 2006 when a humble ornamental garden (400 square feet) was developed within the existing BirthPlace Forest tree beds. The BPF, by the way, saw 7000 trees planted in the area. The project was accomplished through a partnership of BP Energy, Calgary Parks, Regional Health and Golden Acres." From the gardens' website. www.botanicalgardensofsilversprings.ca/

On 19 September 2015, I went to an Open House at the home of our main leader for both birding and botany. This was to mark the end of the botany season, which is always sad. We went on one last walk, around the neighbourhood, stopping to look at various plants in people's gardens, and then went back for tea and coffee and yummy snacks. This dying flower, along with many others, was in our leader's garden. I think the flower centre still looks beautiful and the dry petals almost look slightly coppery. Today, 29 March 2016, the sun is shining with a few clouds in the sky and a temperature of 6C so far. This coming week, temperatures are forecast for between 11C and 19C! Crazy when you think that winter only ended just over a week ago. Makes me wonder what kind of heat we might have to deal with this summer.

This photo was taken in the gardens at the Calgary Zoo on 21 September 2015. The ENMAX Conservatory butterfly house display was coming to an end and the beautiful tropical plants were beginning to fade, so I really wanted to get over there while I could. This Poppy was really on its last legs and I usually don't see Poppies quite at this stage. There was just something about it that I liked. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Poppy It was a good visit and I was happy as can be to finally get a decent photo of the glorious Himalayan Monal (a type of pheasant), and a few Water Lily shots. Today, 25 November 2015, the sun is shining, but it's -12C (windchill -17C). Brrr ..... It snowed a bit last night.

Last fall, on 28 September 2014, was the first time I had been to the Calgary Zoo since before the Alberta Flood of the Century in June 2013. I had been photographing wild things over the summer and just never made it as far as the Zoo. The west parking lot and Zoo entrance are now being kept closed for the winter, and I dread the drive home from the north entrance, so I don't get to the Zoo very often any more. There were so many people everywhere at the Zoo that day. Normally, I wouldn’t go on a Sunday, but I thought it might be a good idea to drive the dreaded Deerfoot Trail on my way home on a slightly quieter day. I usually avoid Deerfoot at all cost, as it’s a dangerous road to be on. Couldn't resist taking a quick shot of this fading Echinacea flower, with its spiky seedhead. This is one of my favourite garden flowers, beautiful at all stages of its life. "Echinacea /ˌɛkɨˈneɪʃⁱə/ is a genus, or group of herbaceous flowering plants in the daisy family, Asteraceae. The nine species it contains are commonly called coneflowers. They are endemic to eastern and central North America, where they are found growing in moist to dry prairies and open wooded areas. They have large, showy heads of composite flowers, blooming from early to late summer. The generic name is derived from the Greek word ἐχῖνος (echino), meaning "sea urchin," due to the spiny central disk. Some species are used in herbal medicines and some are cultivated in gardens for their showy flowers. A few species are of conservation concern." From Wikipedia. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Echinacea

Just a splash of colour on this overcast, snowy day. The temperature is -10C (windchill -16C) this morning and very light snow is falling. This photo of a Blanket Flower was taken at the Calgary Zoo on 14 October 2014. Well past its prime, but still colourful.

Way back, on 13 August 2014, I had a volunteer shift and afterwards, as I sometimes do, drove to the Reader Rock Garden. Thought I'd better see what flowers were in bloom, as summer was slipping away so fast and I hadn't taken many colourful images of flowers, garden or wild. They come in so handy during the seven long months of winter, breaking the monotony of "white" photos. Some of the flowers were well past their prime. As usual when I go there, the wind was blowing the whole time, making it a real challenge to keep the flowers in the viewfinder just long enough to get a shot. "Echinacea is a genus, or group of herbaceous flowering plants in the daisy family, Asteraceae. The nine species it contains are commonly called coneflowers. They are endemic to eastern and central North America, where they are found growing in moist to dry prairies and open wooded areas. They have large, showy heads of composite flowers, blooming from early to late summer. The generic name is derived from the Greek word ἐχῖνος (echino), meaning "sea urchin," due to the spiny central disk. Some species are used in herbal medicines and some are cultivated in gardens for their showy flowers. A few species are of conservation concern." From Wikipedia. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Echinacea

A few days ago, on 13 August 2014, I had a volunteer shift and afterwards, as I sometimes do, drove to the Reader Rock Garden. Thought I'd better see what flowers were in bloom, as summer is slipping away so fast and I haven't taken all that many colourful images of flowers, garden or wild. They come in so handy during the seven long months of winter that are not all that far away now, breaking the monotony of "white" photos. Some of the flowers were well past their prime, but can still make an interesting shot. As usual when I go there, the wind was blowing the whole time, making it a real challenge to keep the flowers in the viewfinder just long enough to get a shot. Echinacea flowers are beautiful at all stages. Caught this one that was just beginning to open in pretty, late afternoon light, at the Reader Rock Garden on 14 August 2013. "Echinacea /ˌɛkɨˈneɪʃⁱə/ is a genus, or group of herbaceous flowering plants in the daisy family, Asteraceae. The nine species it contains are commonly called coneflowers. They are endemic to eastern and central North America, where they are found growing in moist to dry prairies and open wooded areas. They have large, showy heads of composite flowers, blooming from early to late summer. The generic name is derived from the Greek word ἐχῖνος (echino), meaning "sea urchin," due to the spiny central disk. Some species are used in herbal medicines and some are cultivated in gardens for their showy flowers. A few species are of conservation concern." From Wikipedia. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Echinacea

Echinacea are one of my favourite flowers, no matter what stage they are at. The flower centre is so spectacular. This one was photographed (macro) at Reader Rock Garden on 10 September 2013.

Photographed at the Reader Rock Garden on 26 September 2012. Darryl, you might just like this one : )

Posted at an unearthly hour this morning, as I have to be part way across the city by 6:50 a.m. for the Cochrane Wildlife Reserve Bird Count. Will finish when I get back.

A dying Echinacea flower, tangled in spider web, seen at the Calgary Zoo on 25 September 2012.

A couple of the leaves of my Venus Flytrap plant have died, but I thought this leaf tip (about half an inch long) was still a fascinating shape, even if dark brown and not bright green. Just imagine being an insect and having those spikes snap shut around you, so that you could be devoured by the plant : ) en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Venus_Flytrap