I just felt like revisiting and sharing this scene, from a camping trip we took last August to the Dungeness Recreation Area near Sequim (pronounced skwim) on the Olympic Peninsula in Washington. This area gets much, much more sunshine than the surrounding areas including Seattle, let alone the rainforest. There is a simple trail along the bluff over the water that is astoundingly scenic. The water is Puget Sound, the Strait of Juan de Fuca, I believe, with Canada a short bit across the water to the right. I hope you enjoy this vista. I like it so much I’m calling it my Best Post of the Week.

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There’s a garden meme called Garden Bloggers’ Bloom Day, and each month on the fifteenth people post what’s blooming in their garden that day. It’s quite a show. Some posts give me such spring-weather envy I cannot tell you. We are having serious warm-weather delay in Seattle, with the coldest April on record and heading that way for May, too. But occasionally there are dry spells, and if it hits 60 degrees F we are so happy!

This large Blushing Lady tulip didn’t bloom at all last year and I thought she was dead, but she sent up two (out of 6 bulbs) flowers after taking the year off and I do love this tulip. I’ve learned that you mustn’t plant things that need watering over them for the summer, because it causes the bulbs to rot. So much for that garden plan. I’ll have to find a spot that I don’t want to plant in the summer for next year, and plant new tulips there.

Behind the tulip are rust-colored wallflowers and to the left are red rhododendrons.

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If you’re ever in the Portland, Oregon area in the springtime, this place is a must-see. Enormous, magnificent, and brilliantly conceived and tended, it just knocked my socks off. Rain or shine, a scenic wonderland. Please see Free Photos “next door” (link below the header above) for more from that locale. You can search there for Japanese garden if that series is no longer at the top.

I love this photo and have called it my Best Post of the Week.

Visit Pink Saturday, Shadow Shot Sunday, Scenic Sunday, Today’s Flowers, Outdoor Wednesday, SOOC Sunday (straight out of the camera), Ruby Tuesday, Weekend Reflections, and Watery Wednesday for more intriguing photos. Browse around here first, perhaps by visiting the category for “Weekend Reflections”? Remember, always see the latest photos here by clicking on the Sara’s Fave Photos banner.

A recent visit to Seattle’s hidden gem, Volunteer Park Conservatory (which by the way is trying to raise serious money to finish a much-needed renovation—learn more at Critical Moment on their site), in pretty afternoon light, showcasing the magnificent outdoor tulips. I love the color combo. Their gardeners are just world class.

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Sometimes photographic errors turn out kind of well. I didn’t expose this properly, but I love the deep, dramatic effect it gives that sky. The cityscape becomes quite unimportant, which in this case it is, because I admit it was those clouds that made me point that camera.

Visit Skywatch Friday, Blue Monday, Outdoor Wednesday, and Scenic Sunday if you’d like to see more photos with themes. Memes are great and I find them quite inspiring. Do post something yourself and join the fun. And try something like the “cloudscape” tag (lower right) here before you go.

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This Spring is late, late, late. I checked my garden photo archives and this sweet mini-bouquet was taken last year, two weeks before this date, and we are not up to several of these flowers quite yet. I did see a few lilies of the valley out there, yes on the violets, and the forget-me-nots definitely, but not yet for the blue bachelor buttons or lavender scabiosa. I don’t know what that magenta one is; maybe a kind of geranium. Soon all will bloom. We are waiting!

Visit Watery Wednesday (the water in the vase counts, doesn’t it?) and Wordless Wednesday for more photo fun. Also check out Today’s Flowers, Macro Friday, Blue Monday, Color Carnival and Macro Monday. After browsing around here, of course. If you see only one photo below, click on Sara’s Fave Photos for more, and possibly more recent photos.

One of my favorite things about belonging to a local garden club is that every 3 months they all get together and bring flowers to show (“hort” as it’s known, or horticulture). I don’t care about the ribbons they award, but this particular venue has a skylight over the display tables and the effect on a sunny day can be dazzling. I think this kind of peony is called a single form, but I am no expert. I only wish I had grown it in my own garden, but at least I can take a photo—and share it with you!

Today, I have the honor of being Guest Friend on Today’s Flowers and you might hie on over there to see some magnolia photos I took last week in my backyard. Plus many other lovely blooms from around the world, with a new thumbnail linky!

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This was taken exactly one year ago, around the block from my house. Sunsets have an eternal quality, although they are so brief in reality. I do love this time of day with its soft, pink light, and hope you like this view of a peaceful moment.

Visit Blue Monday, Watery Wednesday, Outdoor Wednesday, Wordless Wednesday, Skywatch Friday, Pink Saturday, Weekend Reflections and Scenic Sunday. Thanks for browsing around here first. And you can always click on the banner above, Sara’s Fave Photos, to see all the photos here.

You can’t go wrong with a huge field of tulips and a barn in the distance. Scenigasm! Just a tiny bit of sunshine peeked through the very cloudy skies to give these red tulips a little happy boost. It’s been so cold this year that I bet there are still quite a few blooming in Skagit Tulip Festival near Mt. Vernon,WA. If you’re nearby and it’s a nice day as is predicted for tomorrow, do go and see.

Visit Ruby Tuesday, Outdoor Wednesday, Wordless Wednesday, Scenic Sunday, Color Carnival and Today’s Flowers for a great photo browse. Before you do, maybe try a new tag or category here? To see the full blog, click on the Sara’s Fave Photos banner at the top.

Meadow rue is a great perennial plant in the flower garden. I believe that its flowers come in yellow and lavender at least; this one is a lavender. The leaves actually look very much like columbine, but this plant gets much taller, maybe 4 or 5 feet (1.5 meters). It’s getting ready to have puffy, hairy sort of flowers, kind of like ageratum. Doesn’t sound pretty, but it is. I’ll show a photo when it’s blooming, which should be in a week or two. I like tall flowering plants as they just feel so abundant, plus of course the flowers are closer to my eye level.

Visit Shadow Shot Sunday, Macro Monday, Outdoor Wednesday and SOOC Sunday (straight out of the camera) for more neat photos with a theme. If you see only one photo below, click on Sara’s Fave Photos for more, and possibly more recent photos.