Spring at the Arnold Arboretum

[Lilac buds, Arnold Arboretum, Boston; 5pm, 4/27/08]

Tiny-fisted magenta buds, felted finger-puppet shoots, siren-blossoms splayed, seeds blown like kisses, blooms profuse as hippy hair, pink Afros, alien life forms, green seed-pod leis, twisted roots, mulberry gnarls, pears that are really roses, confetti grown out of the ground, a road curled on a meadow, and dogwoods and cherries admiring themselves in a glassy pond.

Photo set from yesterday afternoon at the Arnold Arboretum in Boston.

[Meadow Road, Arnold Arboretum]

Comments

[marja-leena]

Lovely descriptions, like poetry! That lilac is further on than mine, which is too much in the shade. Love your magnolia photos too, they are just like here. Interesting to compare.

[Lorianne]

Nice. Only one of my alien-life form magnolia shots turned out; the other was fuzzy (even fuzzier than a real-life magnolia bud!) I guess I needed to put my hand behind the bud while I was focusing... :-)

[leslee]

Thanks, Marja-Leena. The Arboretum is having thier 100th annual Lilac Sunday in 2 weeks, so they'd better be open!

Lorianne: Oh, too bad. I had several fuzzy close-ups of various buds, but then no photos of my hand behind a single one! I'll have to remember to do that - takes a bit of coordination. :-)

[Beth]

The photographs are wonderful, but wow -- your descriptions are out of this world.

[Lucy]

YOu've got to grab spring while you can, every single time. That lilac looks very spare and elegant, almost more like foxglove tree or something oriental like that. Lovely pics and words, yum!

[leslee]

Beth: Thank you! Glad you like them. :-)

Lucy: Yes, spring is short around here, so it must be savored. That lilac appeared to be pruned, almost bonsai-like. Very interesting, and lovely. Most of the others appeared in their usual shape. I'm looking forward to going back when they're all in bloom. The scent reminds me of my childhood, with lilac bushes outside my window...

[Jean]

That first photo is very special.

[Sara]

Lovely, lovely, lovely. Also, what Jean said. It reminds me of Chinese fabric or painting on an asian vase. The colors and the composition are both exquisite.

[leslee]

Thanks, Jean and Sara. It's from a much larger shot. When I zoomed in on it in my photo editing software, I noticed the composition and color that seemed reminiscent of something - wasn't sure what, but Sara may be onto it with the Chinese fabric/vase.