This was taken earlier this week in Seattle’s Volunteer Park at the Asian Art Museum, close by the Volunteer Park Conservatory, which loyal readers of this blog know that I love so much that I did a book on it. And by the way, since the holidays are upon us, the Flowers of Volunteer Park Conservatory: Blooming Month by Month book is on special holiday pricing! It’s a perfect gift for gardeners or anyone who loves flowers, and it’s so relaxing and soothing that health care professionals adore it for their waiting rooms. Read a full description and see sample pages on the home page here. And get a few copies today!

Please visit Ruby Tuesday, Scenic Sunday, Wordless Wednesday, Watery Wednesday, and Outdoor Wednesday for some excellent photos around this beautiful planet of ours. Perhaps you’d like to visit a new tag or category here, first? Just click on Sara’s Fave Photos to see the complete blog (so many choices!) here.

In keeping with my six-month opposite date for blog posts when it’s gray outside (see post below), here is some bleeding heart (dicentra) from my next door neighbor’s garden, taken in May. Ah, the sunshine! Since Seattle is quite north, these lovelies can do all right even with some sun, but when I gardened in Northern California, they needed to be in shade only.

Visit Ruby Tuesday, SOOC Sunday (straight out of the camera), Outdoor Wednesday, Pink Saturday, Shadow Shot Sunday, Today’s Flowers, Weekend Flowers, Macro Friday, Macro Monday, and Macro Flowers Saturday for tons of fun in photo blogs around the world. But first, see the complete and up-to-date blog here by clicking on Sara’s Fave Photos, here or on the banner above. Thanks for visiting, and I’d love to read what you think about this photo.

Sometimes when I get a real desire for photos of flowers and there’s nothing outside looking good, I find that the ones that satisfy are almost exactly six months opposite today’s date in the archives. So enjoy these rhododendron blossoms from May of this year. We’ll get there again, somehow.

Visit Ruby Tuesday, Outdoor Wednesday, Pink Saturday, Shadow Shot Sunday, Today’s Flowers, Weekend Flowers, Macro Friday, Macro Monday, and Macro Flowers Saturday for lots of photo fun. And you can always see something new here by clicking on Sara’s Fave Photos .

I learned a new word recently and I’m showing it off. Pomegranate seeds are actually arils. What a great Scrabble word! And I’m getting much better at peeling them. I no longer get everything stained red from the cut seeds. Slice off the skin at the top and the bottom, carefully score the skin along the six ridges (not that easy to see, but they’re there), peel off the skin and the insides separate beautifully. Not only that, but if you do all the separating in a big bowl of water, the white parts all float and are super easy to clean off! A great big pomegranate took only a few minutes to get gobble-ready.

Check out Ruby Tuesday, Macro Friday and Macro Monday, if you have a minute, and browse around here for lots of neat stuff too. If there’s only those red seeds below, do click on Sara’s Fave Photos for the whole enchilada.

Don’t you wish someone gave you this bunch of roses? I know I do. Let’s pretend you have them right now. “For me?” “Yes, for you!” “Why thank you!” “You are so welcome. You deserve them.” There, doesn’t that make your day?

Visit Ruby Tuesday, Shadow Shot Sunday, SOOC Sunday (straight out of the camera), Today’s Flowers, Weekend Flowers, Macro Friday, Macro Monday, and Macro Flowers Saturday, when you get a moment. While you’re here, try a new tag or category. And always find the latest post here by clicking on Sara’s Fave Photos above.

This Japanese maple leaf is from my front yard, photo taken last week. The dark leaf color is already gone, with only red ones now, but I thought I’d show you the combination of the purple it was all summer and the autumn red just beginning.

Take a look at Ruby Tuesday, Macro Friday, Macro Monday, and SOOC Sunday (straight out of the camera). And do click on the Sara’s Fave Photo banner to see the complete blog here before you go.

It rebloomed! I’ve read all kinds of complicated instructions, but they sound like way too much work to me. All I did was keep it in a sunny (south) windowsill and keep watering it with the weak liquid fertilizer in the water that I always use for houseplants (so I don’t have to remember when to do it). Like all bulbs, amaryllis must have great drainage. After the leaves died back I still kept watering it when it was very dry. And lo and behold, a serious flower stalk emerged two weeks ago and now is in full bloom! The only other thing is that they must be inside a heavy pot because they are so top heavy and can easily fall over.

Visit Scenic Sunday, Shadow Shot Sunday, Ruby Tuesday, Mellow Yellow Monday, Today’s Flowers, Weekend Flowers, Macro Friday, Macro Monday, and Macro Flowers Saturday if you have a few minutes for some photo fabulousness. Be sure to click on Sara’s Fave Photos to view the complete blog if you see only one photo below.

What can you say except wow? I think this neighbor’s Japanese laceleaf maple tree has green leaves in the summer, but I don’t really know for sure. Some late afternoon sun lighting up its glory now is just the ultimate in autumn leaves, for me. Hope you enjoy it.

This one is SOOC Sunday (straight out of the camera). Also visit Ruby Tuesday, Scenic Sunday, Shadow Shot Sunday and Outdoor Wednesday for more photo frolics. If there’s only one photo below, it means there are tons more for you if you click on Sara’s Fave Photos here or above.

We have two columnar apple trees, about six feet (two meters) tall and two feet wide at most. They bear full-size apples! With apples, you must have another tree for pollination, so you need two trees, or a neighbor with an apple tree. The trees never get much bigger, so you can have them in pots. We used to have them in big pots on our deck, but when we moved to this house we put them in the ground, and they are happy. This year my hand-pollination efforts, and the plastic sandwich bags against pests, paid off well, and we have a bumper crop. Time for apple sauce!

Take a look at Macro Friday, Macro Monday, Ruby Tuesday, Scenic Sunday, Outdoor Wednesday, and Shadow Shot Sunday if you have a minute or two. Browse around here with a new category or tag (“My Garden”?) and click on the banner above, Sara’s Fave Photos, to see all the posts here.

Finally I got to be outside in some good, sunny weather the other day. Went for a walk in the afternoon and it wasn’t hard to find some beauty for the camera. I wonder if the trees enjoy being admired, the way I sincerely believe that flowers do. At least in the fall, wearing their very best, they must. What a red!

Visit Ruby Tuesday, Scenic Sunday, Friday Fences (a new meme, to me) and Outdoor Wednesday, why don’t you? If there is only one photo below, click on Sara’s Fave Photos for the others. Thank you for visiting!