Summer dead heads

click photo to enlarge
The seasons impose a regular routine on the gardener. Three seasons of lawn cutting with a peak in mid-summer is something with which most English gardeners are familiar. The autumn tidy of vegetable plot and borders is another. And so too is the dead heading of flowers.

The casual gardener doesn't always appreciate the power and purpose of dead heading, neglects to do it, and consequently has a poorer display of blooms. What dead heading achieves is interference with the biological imperative to reproduce. The pelargoniums (also known as geraniums in England) in the photograph above produce seed from the flower heads and if they are left to do so put all their effort into that task. However, if the flower heads are removed as they fade and before they begin to produce the seed, then they will grow more flower heads in an effort to compensate for their loss. Consequently the gardener's display will be all the better for this little bit of work.

The summer months see me, bucket in hand, doing the round of the flowers, dead heading and putting my collection in the compost. But, prior to disposing of them, I often take a snap or two of the fading beauty before it enters the biological cycle.

photograph and text © Tony Boughen

Photo Title: Pelargonium and Begonia Dead Heads
Camera: Olympus E-M10
Mode: Aperture Priority
Focal Length: 25mm (50mm - 35mm equiv.)
F No: f2.8
Shutter Speed: 1/160 sec
ISO:200
Exposure Compensation: -0.3 EV
Image Stabilisation: On

Pelargoniums and arches

click photo to enlarge
Even though the weather was heavily overcast and dull, and despite the fact that the pelargoniums were only starting rather than in full flower, it was inevitable that I would take this photograph. Why? Well, we favour this flower, in red, in our garden for the great effect that it has for such a small outlay, and the fact that it flowers for a long period and can withstand dry conditions. It brightens up our garages, the garden shed, outside our greenhouse and some of the borders. My favourite colour is a red/orange that isn't easy to find, and failing that I like a deep, strong red.

These examples are in some framing arches that are each side of a fountain at Belton House, near Grantham, in Lincolnshire. The plants go well with the old, lichen-encrusted stone, and even though the terracotta pots sit slightly awkwardly in the scalloped brackets, they brightened up a drab, unseasonally cold afternoon during our visit with some of our family.

photograph and text © Tony Boughen

Photo Title: Pelargoniums and Arxches, Belton House, Lincolnshire
Camera: Olympus E-M10
Mode: Aperture Priority
Focal Length: 49mm (98mm - 35mm equiv.) crop
F No: f6.3
Shutter Speed: 1/125 sec
ISO:250
Exposure Compensation: -0.3 EV
Image Stabilisation: On

Colour combinations

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In a post in 2008 I made the point that in painting (and photography) "sometimes it's all about the colour." That is to say, the subject, composition, etc, play second fiddle (or no fiddle at all) compared with the importance of the colour.

This shot is a case in point. It shows the last few plants for sale on a rather basic dispay at a garden centre. There are some rather straggly geraniums (pelargoniums if you prefer), a cranesbill and a house leek, arranged quite haphazardly on shelves in front of the end of a shaded greenhouse (glasshouse if you prefer!) The composition isn't as I would have had it, given any choice in the matter - I'd have kept only the geraniums, and re-arranged the pots so that a few red blooms were lower down too. However that doesn't matter to me, because I do so like the colour combination of the blue of the shelves, the green of the shading, and the violent red/orange of the blooms. The green of the leaves add subtlety and detail, but any qualities that the shot has comes (to my mind) mainly from the colours themselves.

Your point of view may be different!

photograph & text (c) T. Boughen

Camera: Olympus E510
Mode: Aperture Priority
Focal Length: 19mm (38mm/35mm equiv.)
F No: f7.1
Shutter Speed: 1/100
ISO: 100
Exposure Compensation: -0.3 EV
Image Stabilisation: On

English, not Latin!

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You say Digtalis, I say Foxglove, let's call the whole thing off! To paraphrase the song just a little! I don't know about you, but I much prefer English names to Latin names for plants. How much more evocative and interesting is the English name, Snapdragon, compared with the Latin Antirrhinum? Or Bluebell rather than Hyacinthoides non-scripta? Surely a Rosa canina by its English name, Dog Rose, smells as sweet?

I won't deny that there's a botanical case to be made for adopting Latin names under the Linnaean system to be specific, to prevent confusion, and to give each plant a name recognisable in all countries. However, there seems to be no good reason for the layman to be encouraged to use the scientific name rather than a country-specific common name as some writers and organisations propose. To do so is to deny the colour and history associated with the plant, and impoverishes our lives in a small way.

Today's photograph is of a Geranium (English name Cranesbill) or is it a Pelargonium? There has been some debate over the Latin name for this plant, with the latter winning out in most parts of the world and in recent years. However, for older folk Geranium clings on. This particular plant, described as Geranium "Vancouver Centennial" on its label, came into my house recently. I recognised it as a zonal Geranium, and was impressed by its strongly figured leaves. So I nipped a few to put together this jagged image. Unfortunately it reminds me of a bit of street graffiti!

photograph & text (c) T. Boughen

Camera: Olympus E510
Mode: Aperture Priority
Focal Length: 35mm macro (70mm/35mm equiv.)
F No: f16
Shutter Speed: 0.3
ISO: 100
Exposure Compensation: -0.3 EV
Image Stabilisation: Off