The first rose in my yard in 2019 is the miniature rose ‘Child’s Play.’ This rose often has perfect form and overall general health. Other roses are about to bloom, but this one made it first.
Miniature Rose ‘Child’s Play’
Pets
These images are from last year. I never got them posted. This seemed like as good a time as any… All the pets belong to the Prices. Many of you will recognize Spunk. But first is a parrot, who can come out with some pretty funny things when he is listening to people in another room. He is rather shy in person, but one day let me make a few images. He is quite handsome.
Spunk, the perfect photographer’s model: handsome, loves to pose when he is in the mood.
Here, Spunk the model:
Spunk
“OK, that’s enough. I’m bored now…”
Spunk
Spring seems to have really arrived, and everything seems about to bloom. Enjoy what promises to be a beautiful weekend.
On this weekend of many different celebrations, religious observances, and good weather, is there a better time to celebrate spring blooms? Probably any time flowers are blooming is a good time to celebrate them. I photographed these in my yard this weekend.
Here in the high desert roses are beginning to have buds. However, they will not bloom for a few more weeks. Therefore I have planted flowers that bloom earlier – and later – than roses.
‘Nelly Moser’ is a well-known clematis that grows up one of favorite roses, ‘Mermaid.’ The rose provides good support for the clematis. In addition, it provides shade for the roots. The two coexist quite happily.
Clematis ‘Nelly Moser’
Earlier this year I showed some blooms of the dwarf peach, ‘Bonanza.’ The peaches are now forming. You can see how many tiny peaches are packed onto the branches. If I want good-sized peaches and healthy branches, I must thin these out this week. Otherwise, the peaches would be very small, and so many could weigh down the branches.
Baby Peaches that Need to be Thinned
Pansies are remarkable flowers. They grow well all through autumn, go dormant in the colder parts of winter, and joyously burst forth in spring. They come in so many different colors. Each bloom seems to have its own expression.
Wake-Up-Bright PansiesMagenta Pansies
The weekend has been beautiful in Albuquerque. Wishing you a beautiful week wherever you are.
This phalaenopsis orchid came from Costco two and a half years ago. I did not know what to expect from it, it just looked like fun. This is the third bloom for this plant, and I know next to nothing about orchids – except that this one makes me smile. 🙂 It isn’t particularly attractive. I picked it for the unusual color. In the time that I have had it, I have become particularly fond of “the orchid angel” of each bloom. This is actually made up of three parts, the column (the part that looks like a head), the throat (the part that looks like the arms), and the lip (the part that looks like the body).
A stormy sunrise had accurately been predicted by the Weather Service for several days. The prediction was correct. Although the sun was trying to peek out between the clouds and mountains, the clouds soon won out. As predicted, we had showers later in the morning. The sun broke through in the afternoon. Now, however, a light rain is falling again. Those of us who live here are happy for the rain!
The neighbors behind me have two friendly, wonderful dogs, Sampson and Inoki. They always greet me when I’m out. Inoki is a born model, and I have posted images of him before. Sampson is a little camera-shy. This image is not sharp, but it is the only one I have. Sampson brightened a stormy sunrise!
Sampson, My Neighbors’ Friendly Dog. He and his brother, Inoki, always greet me when I am out.
Crocus, early blooming bulbs, are a welcome sign of approaching Spring. January and February weren’t particularly bad, except for three little storms that left a lot of ice. But, the temperatures have warmed somewhat now. Of course, the usual sign of Spring here in Desert Southwest,the wind, is here in full force. Sunday we return to Daylight Savings Time.
Some of those signs of Spring bring mixed reactions.
But who cannot help but smile at the sight of bright little crocus appearing almost overnight out of the earth to welcome the coming season of rebirth here in the Northern Hemisphere?
New Mexico Roses: a change is definitely coming to the High Southwest Desert this weekend. The first cold front of the season is arriving in New Mexico, with unseasonably low temperatures and snow in some areas. This is a little early. The cold will not last long. But if the temperatures drop low enough, most of the roses will be close to the end for 2018. In this time of change, I offer a look back at some of the roses growing in New Mexico gardens, some mine and some of friends. All of these were photographed out of doors, as growing, in natural light. I groomed some of those in my garden. I did not groom roses growing elsewhere. You would not find those entered in a rose show. “It’s not what you look at, it’s what you see.” I saw beauty in all of these.
From My Garden
David Clemons’ Miniflora Foolish Pleasure. One of David’s Earlier Creations, It Does Extremely Well in the High Desert.Gemini Macro. Note the Unfolding SpiralRoute 66, a Shrub Rose. The White Eye and Colorful Stamens Are Striking.Spray of the Shrub Rose, Route 66Othello, a David Austin Shrub RoseAnother Incognito Image That Does Not Fit Rose Show Guidelines, But Which I Use for CardsIncognito. I Could Not Enter This in a Rose Show Because of the Bud Form and “Detracting” Rain Drops. The Word Most Often Used by Non-Rosarians Is “Sensual”Mermaid MacroMermaid, Hanging Down a WallSombreuilPhotographed in the Garden, but Edited Later. I Also Use This for Cards.Chihuly. Photographed in the Garden, but Edited Later to Highlight the Relevance of the Name
From the Garden of Friends
I Loved the Stamens on this Single RoseR foetida bicolor: “Don’t play what’s there, play what’s not there” ~ Miles DavisA David Austin rose in friends’ garden
Change is on its way. I hope you have enjoyed a stroll through some New Mexico gardens with their roses. I have certainly enjoyed sharing them with you.
Family Genealogy, on the 100th Anniversary of My Father’s Birth
Family genealogy, if allowed, can become an all-consuming hobby. I did not go looking for it. Sometimes things just appear, and you follow your interests. I knew very little about either side of my family until I did a DNA test last December. How that all unwinds is a different story. I had many relatives in Texas; that was not a secret. A big surprise was that my direct lineal ancestors all arrived in Texas, and earlier rather than later. My son and I have been working on our family tree, first concentrating on Texas, because “it’s sorta manageable.” A great aid is the Texas State Genealogical Society, with its Heritage Certificates. Brandt, of course, has the same certificates with his name.
Yesterday, the last of the Heritage Certificates for my father’s side arrived. Although we are still working on my mother’s side, that side is more straightforward. Today is the 100th Anniversary of my father’s birth. My son and I believe we finally understand a part of my father’s line in Texas (just the line; not necessarily individual people). We also believe he and his sister left us hints along the way. One was on my father’s Death Certificate, which I had not read this until this summer. Another was a gift from my aunt when I graduated from medical school: a pair of earrings marked “Charlotte Spencer McKaughan.” I knew nothing about her, but loved the earrings so much they now need a little repair.
The Republic of Texas Days, Prior to Statehood on 19 Feb 1846
The first person in any of my direct lines to arrive in Texas:
Served as Private in Capt. J. Snively’s Mounted Rangers in Nacogdoches 1838
William Benjamin McKaughan arrived in the Republic of Texas as a 19-year-old in May of 1837. The McKaughans had immigrated from Antrim, Northern Ireland, in the 1700’s, settling at first in Pennsylvania. They soon moved westward, into Kentucky and Tennessee. William B. was born in Tennessee, and to the best of my knowledge was the first of his family to go to Texas. He immediately claimed a 640 acre Headright land grant in May of 1837. He was smart. In October of that year the grant would be halved, to 320 acres for a single man. In the summer of 1838 he served as a guard of some type for a county sheriff, for which he was paid $1.25/day. Then, he served in what were in reality very fluid militia companies guarding the frontier, which later evolved into an arm of state law enforcement. These were not the days of badges and uniforms; all able-bodied men were expected to serve, to provide their own horse, weapons and other gear, etc. When the Republic had money, these men were paid $1.25/day, nothing extra for horses and so forth. (We saw that one of our ancestors in the Battle of New Orleans was paid more for use of his horse and its upkeep than he was paid for his service.)
September 14-December 13, 1838
Private with Capt. J. Snively’s Mounted Rangers
“The Kickapoo War”
June 28-August 5, 1839
Private with Capt. Robert “Bob” Smith’s Mounted Volunteers
“The Cherokee War”
Old San Ysidro Church 150th Anniversary is being celebrated in a variety of ways throughout 2018.
2018 marks the 150th Anniversary of the Old San Ysidro Church
Those of you who visit here frequently know that I love to photograph in Corrales. As a result, I take every offered opportunity to photograph the Old Church just because I like it. However, it can present quite a challenge. I consider almost all those photographs to be practice. Several years ago I showed a very colorful one in Laguna Beach, California. One of the activities celebrating the 150th anniversary of the church is a photography show with images only of the church itself. No restrictions exist on interpretation for this show. I decided to enter only one and to do it in black and white.
San Ysidro is the Patron Saint of farmers. His feast day is May 15. This image comes from May 15, 2016. I was in Corrales for the 3rd Annual Corrales Rose Society Dr. Huey Tour. It was pure accident that San Ysidro’s feast day was being celebrated at the new church, just a stone’s throw away. In addition to the usual visual delights, we were treated with wonderful fiesta music. Certainly that added to an already magical day.
Corrales Harvest Festival and Old Church Photography Show
The Old Church Photography Show will be held the last weekend in September, in conjunction with the Corrales Harvest Festival. This is all very Corrales. Just across the Rio Grande from Albuquerque, you are in a different time and place. Parking is very limited. The Village closes the main streets to traffic, but provides free parking at the edges of the village. From there, hayrides transport you to a variety of places. The Pet Parade starting at 9:00 am Sunday is a favorite.
If you are in the area, consider a visit to Corrales and to the Old Church Photography Show the last weekend in September.
August morning: the smoke from the fires west of us was bad for two days, and it still remains. But, the skies are a little clearer and the temperatures cooler. Autumn is not quite palpable, but is just around the corner. The smoke adds color to the clouds. Most of the male hummingbirds have already left for winter homes. The females and juveniles will be here for a week or two, filling up in preparation for the long trip. This is a beautiful time in New Mexico.
Note just a hint of crepuscular rays. The smoke has cleared significantly from the prior two days, but is still producing especially colorful skies.Female rufous hummingbird eyeing breakfast of cosmos
