Oh, I love the Volunteer Park Conservatory. Is it any wonder I made a book about it? A recent visit to their unendingly beautiful and changing displays yielded this photo of orchids in a stray beam of sunlight. And just for fun, there’s a bonus photo below showing one of the unusual and creative plant combinations that delight me so. That one is SOOC Sunday (straight out of the camera), but I have tweaked the orchids slightly.

Visit Pink Saturday, Today’s Flowers, Weekend Flowers, Macro Friday, Macro Monday, Macro Flowers Saturday and Shadow Shot Sunday when you get a chance. And if you’ve arrived via a link, be sure to click on Sara’s Fave Photos to see the entire blog.

I took this photo from my bedroom window exactly a year ago. This year I found out that the horse in our neighbor’s pasture absolutely loves to eat those cosmos flowers which I planted much too near the fence. Next year I’ll plant enough for both of us.

Visit Shadow Shot Sunday, Today’s Flowers, Outdoor Wednesday, Scenic Sunday, SOOC Sunday (straight out of the camera), Pink Saturday and Weekend Flowers, if you have a minute. And if there is only one photo below, click on Sara’s Fave Photos to see a nice assortment here.

That overlook near my house means a lot to me. I love scenic photos but it’s so challenging living a regular life with buildings and telephone wires always getting in the way of the sky. This blessing of a place has yielded several peaceful images of dusk over water, and I am grateful.

For you Seattle locals, there’s going to be a Bookfest in Kirkland this weekend, and I’ll be there signing my book at booth #20 AND giving a talk and slideshow at noon on Sunday, Room 2 at the Community Center. Please come and say hello!

Do visit Blue Monday, Pink Saturday, SOOC Sunday (straight out of the camera), Outdoor Wednesday, Scenic Sunday, Skywatch Friday and Watery Wednesday. Please click on the banner above, Sara’s Fave Photos, to see the latest photos here. Thanks!

The Burien WA Farmers Market was a perfect place to visit on Thursday. Fruit and vegetables were plentiful, beautiful and cheap, and look at these flowers! The grower said he cuts back his mums not once, but twice, to get them flowering so compactly and timing them to bloom for this fall display. I wish I could have bought them all!

Visit Ruby Tuesday, SOOC Sunday (straight out of the camera), Today’s Flowers, Color Carnival, Outdoor Wednesday,  Scenic Sunday, Mellow Yellow Monday, and Weekend Flowers for more fascinating photo fun, and be sure to click on Sara’s Fave Photos to view the complete blog if you see only one photo below.

You say clemAHtis, I say CLEMatis; let’s call the whole thing off. Oh, that was a great movie. Ginger and Fred, forever! But I digress from my subject: beautiful magenta pink clematis flowers, climbing up a friend’s wall. I tried to grow them once, no luck, and now I think I’ll just visit pretty ones like these.

Visit Pink Saturday, Outdoor Wednesday, Scenic Sunday, Macro Flowers Saturday, Macro Monday, Macro Friday, Today’s Flowers, and Color Carnival, why don’t you? Do click on Sara’s Fave Photos above if you see only one photo below and it will bring up a nice dozen or so for your viewing pleasure.

Highline Botanical Garden had an event today with Ciscoe Morris giving a talk, so I had to go and check it out. They had the place all decorated, including these roses in the big fountain. Cloudy weather can be great for certain types of flower photos, can’t it? I like the moody quality of this photo and am calling it my Best Post of the Week.

Mellow Yellow Monday, Watery Wednesday, Outdoor Wednesday, Color Carnival, Pink Saturday, SOOC Sunday (straight out of the camera) Scenic Sunday, Today’s Flowers, Macro Monday, Macro Flowers Saturday and Macro Friday are all neat blogs and memes worth a visit. If there is only one photo below, please click on Sara’s Fave Photos for the others.

Time for a scenic photo. This is at little Lake Burien, south of Seattle WA, a few weeks ago. Don’t you just love, love, love those pink skies? I also thought it was nice of the person to wear that pretty red top for me to photograph.

Visit Skywatch Friday, Shadow Shot Sunday, Wordless Wednesday, Watery Wednesday, Outdoor Wednesday, Ruby Tuesday, Pink Saturday, Scenic Sunday, SOOC Sunday (straight out of the camera), and Weekend Reflections. And my Best Post of the Week! If there is only one photo below, click on Sara’s Fave Photos for the others. Thank you for visiting!

After a tough winter, most of the roses have come back well. Lots of compost, regular food and water, and frequent tidying up (so I can take photos! and also helps prevent blackspot) make a very satisfying rosebed in front of the house. The neighbors walking by sometimes admire it. It’s a pretty good walking neighborhood, for which I am very grateful. This ‘Oklahoma’ rose isn’t loaded with blooms, but the ones it has are big and fat. And that’s a lavender plant I grew from seed behind it!

Visit  Ruby Tuesday, Color Carnival, Outdoor Wednesday, Scenic Sunday, Today’s Flowers, Macro Monday, Macro Flowers Saturday and Macro Friday. If there is only one photo below, please click on Sara’s Fave Photos for the others.

This is from last year when we went camping at the Dungeness Recreation Area campground in the Olympic Peninsula in the Pacific Northwest. To me, the water and the pinkish, foggy air is even more beautiful than the big flying bird, but it was quite a moment in any case.

Visit Wordless Wednesday, Watery Wednesday, Outdoor Wednesday, Pink Saturday, Scenic Sunday, Skywatch Friday and Camera Critters for more photo fabulousness.

Last minute reminder: If you are in Seattle tomorrow on Thursday, August 4 at 6-8pm, please come to the Conservatory’s free Open House and book signing for my new book, Flowers of Volunteer Park Conservatory: Blooming Month By Month. Take a tour and meet the author (me!). You can find more info about the book on the home page here, or order at pre-launch prices with free shipping on the Book Order page. Thanks for visiting!

A warm evening in the summer is heaven anywhere, but here in the Seattle area we feel particularly blessed when we can eat dinner on the patio and take in the garden view. This was last evening’s lovely view. Hope you can enjoy it with me.

Visit Pink Saturday, Scenic Sunday, Shadow Shot Sunday, Outdoor Wednesday, SOOC Sunday (straight out of the camera), Color Carnival, Today’s Flowers, and Wordless Wednesday. Also, I think it is so cool that my new book and the launch party at Volunteer Park Conservatory on Thursday, August 4 got a mention in the Seattle PI garden blog!