I’ll have a booth at the Green Spring Gardens Fall Fest on Saturday, September 13, 9 am – 4:30 pm. Stop by and see my botanical images. Below are just some of the many colorful greeting cards I’ll be selling.
http://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/parks/greenspring/
I photographed several varieties of Creeping Phlox at Green Spring Gardens this afternoon. The rock garden in front of the Horticulture Center is ablaze in the colors of spring. The pink and white striped flowers are a Creeping Phlox called ‘Candy Stripe’ and were mixed in with white and solid pink blooms to create this pretty gradated effect.
© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.
The ‘Lady Jane’ Tulips are in bloom in my front yard garden. This lovely blossom has a pink underside on each petal.
© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.
© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.
© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.
© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.
These are some of the images I’ve chosen to create pendant necklaces (1″ silverplated, copper or brass bezels with acrylic or glass domes and dogtag, silver snake chains or cotton and satin cords). I’ve launched a shop on etsy (Garden Muse Studio) to sell prints (loose, matted, framed), photo notecards (regular botanical photos and my older line of Polaroid transfer reproductions) and crafts such as jewelry, linoleum cut prints (my next endeavor) and small acrylic paintings (landscapes, botanicals and mixed media). There’s nothing in the store yet, but I’m working on it! The two kitten faces are for my friend Karen and her daughters, FYI.
© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.
Whew…that was a lot of work! On Monday I had the help with the installation from some very dear friends. Mega thanks to Tom and Holly for loading up their van with nearly all of the pieces (we only had three boxes that wouldn’t fit), taking them over to Green Spring Gardens and unloading all of them before we even got there! Thanks to Cam for flying all the way up from Florida to help art direct, plan and help me get ready. Heartfelt thanks to her, Karen W. and Michael for their work hanging images, cleaning frames, lifting, aligning, cajoling, editing and all-around constant support of whatever adventure I insert myself into. I couldn’t have gotten it all done on Monday without the help of these five amazing people! And thanks to friend and fellow photographer, Jeff Evans, who I often declare is, “solely responsible for both encouraging me to pursue the exhibit as well as my current financial deficit as a result of said exhibit.”
The first four comments in my guest book were written by Cam, Karen, Michael and Jeff on Monday after the installation was complete. The fifth entry was made by Doug and Kay from Alexandria and it really made my day on Tuesday afternoon when Michael and I drove over to do a bit more tweaking to the exhibit. They wrote:
Does it get any better than that? I think not. And a note to my sister Kelley—Barbara wrote in her comment yesterday that she was tickled by the names of the images. Thank you for helping me name them!
What Cam and I love about the venue is that when you enter the Horticulture Center my exhibit is the first thing that catches your eye (see photo #1 in the collage below). And the way the spotlights are aimed on the ramp, you can see the exhibit as you approach the building before you even open the door! I have my 20×30 gallery wrap canvas images hanging on both side of the trellis panels that span the divider wall before you go down the ramp located behind the wall (photo #2). Everything you see through that divider wall is eye level, but when you ’round the corner (photo #3), you see many more images that are actually near eye level from that vantage point, making it a multi-level presentation. Cam was so instrumental in keeping order within each panel so that even though there are 74 total (yes, we counted!) images on display, there is a sense of order throughout the entire exhibit that keeps it streamlined, believe it or not. The last photo in the collage below shows Cam surveying her art directing handiwork.
On the ramp I have a show poster above the planter pots that contain business cards (photo #5). There are also complimentary postcards, a guest book and a portfolio with a bio, collages of images shot exclusively at Green Spring Gardens, and a section with non-gardening images such as portraits, weddings and magazine covers and features (photo #4). I’ll be adding a visual price index to the back of the book early next week. Although it doesn’t show in the photos below, I now have medium-sized signs placed below each panel with a visual reference to each image within that section (as well as the print name, common flower name, Latin name and price). Since the venue doesn’t allow for anything to be attached directly to the wall, I had to improvise with my pricing labels.
If you’re in the D.C./Northern Virginia area, the show will up for viewing from now until April 29. The reception is Sunday, April 15 from 1-3 p.m. There will be yummy appetizers and refreshments served (with wonderful tablescaping in the works!) and other pieces with be available for purchase during that time. I’ll have matted images (ready to frame), framed images and notecards for sale as well. For more information about the show, visit my show website below:
http://www.gardenmuseshow.com/
I’m putting together a slide show set to music to share on youtube.com and my blog for all of you who are interested in seeing the entire portfolio but can’t make it to the show. Stay tuned! I will also be compiling a list of the great resources (prints, canvas printing, frames, framing accessories, greeting cards, posters, polybags, etc.) and tips that I’ve learned about while preparing for this exhibit.
Mark your calendar! My first exhibit in umpteen years will run from Tuesday, February 28 until Sunday, April 29, 2012. The show will be on the ramp in the Horticulture Center at Green Spring Gardens in Alexandria, Virginia. I’ll be hanging the show on the morning of February 27 but I’m making the official start date as February 28. The show will be dismantled on the morning of April 30, so my end date is April 29.
The show reception will be held from 1:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m. on Sunday, April 15, 2012 in the Horticulture Center. Appetizers and beverages will be prepared by Barbara Kelley of Kelley Hospitality (also known as the Sneeze Guard Heiress).
Artwork will be available for purchase (both matted and framed as well as matted and ready to frame by you!).
I’ll be re-posting this announcement regularly as a reminder to mark your calendars and will include updates and additional information leading up to the big event. If you can’t join me for the reception, you have two months (that’s a lot of days!) to get over to Green Spring Gardens to see the show.
For those of you who don’t live nearby and can’t make it, I’ll be preparing an online “virtual gallery” so you can experience the show from afar, so stay tuned. Thank you to everyone for your support!
Native to South Africa, the Bell Agapanthus (Agapanthus campanulatus) is commonly known as Lily of the Nile, although it is not a lily. This herbaceous perennial blooms in summer and is hardy from zones 8 to 10. Several cultivars and hybrids are winter hardy to zone 7. I photographed this emerging bloom yesterday at Green Spring Gardens.
© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.
Since I didn’t get the photographic bounty I usually do at Kenilworth, I thought I’d repost images I’ve created in past years. Enjoy!
© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.
I think this might be the ‘Egyptian Rose’ cultivar, although the label at Green Spring Gardens didn’t identify it as such. Because it is closely related to the Scabiosa, it has been called Macedonian Scabious or Scarlet Pincushion Flower. This herbaceous perennial wildflower begins blooming in late spring and if deadheaded regularly, it can bloom until frost. Knautia prefers full sun but will bloom in light shade and may self-seed and naturalize.
© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.
© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.
Perennial bulb, drought tolerant, attracts hummingbirds, thrives in full sun, grows 36″ tall
© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.
Allium Bulgaricum (Nectaroscordum siculum), photographed at Meadowlark Botanical Gardens in Vienna, VA. This ornamental allium is easy to grow, deer-resistant, and hardy to zone 4. They thrive in sunlight and bloom in May and June. Also known as Mediterranean Bells, Sicilian Honey Lily, Ornamental Onion and Sicilian Garlic; native to the Mediterranean.
© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.
Rose Campion (Lychnis coronaria) is a hardy and drought-tolerant perennial with silver-gray leaves on 2- to 3-foot tall stalks. Vividly intense magenta flowers bloom late spring to mid-summer and frequent deadheading keeps them blooming longer. A common flower in cottage gardens, they seed everywhere and are suitable for xeriscaping. Partial shade to full sun, zones 3-9, colors: pale pink, pink, fuchsia and white/near white (And yes, they are this intensely colored!)
© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.
Herbaceous perennial Anchusa azurea ‘Loddon Royalist’, from the Boraginaceae family; common names: Italian Bugloss and Italian Alkanet. It is called “agoglossos” in Crete, where the locals eat the tender stems boiled, steamed or fried. Blue flowers resembling forget-me-nots bloom from May through June on three foot stalks in zones 3-8. This plant prefers full sun, although it’s in partial shade in my front yard garden and is still blooming profusely!
© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.
This is one of the most prolific self-seeding plants I have ever grown and one of my favorites because it is happy to grow when and where it wants! I have this pink and white variety as well as the intensely-colored deep pink blooms (which are actually harder to photograph because the color is so intense!). It self-seeds in the front garden sidewalk cracks, sprouts out of the stone wall border around our garden, and even shows up halfway across the garden (where I certainly didn’t plant it!). This disease-resistant perennial is very easy to grow. Deadheading spent flowers ensures blooms through the entire summer! The velvety texture and silvery gray-green leaves and stems remind me of Dusty Miller and Lamb’s Ears. Rose Campion (Lychnis coronaria), also called Mullein pink, prefers sunny, well-drained soil (but I’ve had it grow in partial shade, too, when it self-seeded!). It can be propagated by seed or divided by basal cuttings in early spring. One inch flowers bloom profusely atop stems that reach 18-24″.
© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.
New England Aster (Symphyotrichum novae-angliae), a hardy perennial native to the northeastern U.S.
© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.
Spiderwort (Tradescantia), photographed at Meadowlark Botanical Gardens in Vienna, VA
© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.
Ornithogalum Magnum is a perennial plant native to southern Europe and southern Africa. Belonging to the family Hyacinthaceae, it is a member of the ‘Star of Bethlehem’ family. Grown from bulbs, they bloom in late spring into June. The stalks can reach 24″ high with dozens of perfectly spaced white flowers that open as they circle from the bottom of the stem up to the crown. Photographed at Meadowlark Botanical Gardens in Vienna, VA
© Cindy Dyer. All right reserved.
© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.
I photographed this Salvia microphylla ‘Wild Watermelon’ at Green Spring Gardens. Couldn’t have picked a better name for this flower myself!
© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.
Earlier this month I photographed this plant just as it was beginning to bloom, which is a far cry from the “visually busy” bloom I photographed today. Check out this plant in early bud stage on my previous post here. Aided by my macro lens today, I could see scores of tiny bugs navigating the interior stems—making it a veritable insect superhighway!
Star of Persia (Allium Christophe) plants grow 18-24 inches tall and sport a globe-shaped flower approximately 10 inches in diameter with clusters of amethyst-hued star-shaped blooms. The bulbs are hardy in zone 4 to 9 and after the blooms are spent, the ‘dead heads’ make a great architectural element in the garden. The bulbs are planted in the fall and bloom in late spring to early summer.
Photographed at Green Spring Gardens in Alexandria, Virginia
© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.
Broom (Cytisus pseudoprocumbens; C. diffusus; native to Europe). Brooms can be either evergreen or semi-evergreen and are deciduous shrubs that tolerate (and even thrive in) poor soils and growing conditions and need little care (how many plants can you say that about?!). They are native to Europe, north Africa and southeast Asia. I photographed these buds against a backdrop of deep purple Siberian Irises at Green Spring Gardens.
© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.
Vivid pink Clematis flower photographed against a backdrop of purple Columbine blooms at Green Spring Gardens in Alexandria, Virginia
© Cindy Dyer. All right reserved.
I think this is the Tradescantia x andersoniana ‘Innocence’ cultivar.
Photographed at Green Spring Gardens in Alexandria, Virginia
© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.
Milk Thistle or Blessed Thistle (Silybum marianum) is flowering plant in the daisy family (Asteraceae), although the blooms bear no resemblance whatsoever to daisies! The name is derived from the leaves, which are mottled with white splashes and contain a milky sap. The leaves of this particular species are variegated, so it is also known as Variegated Thistle. The plant has medicinal properties, health benefit claims, and has been used for food. Learn more about this plant here.
Photographed at Green Spring Gardens in Alexandria, Virginia
© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.
Siberian Iris (Iris sibirica) ‘Butter and Sugar’—don’t you just love that name? Makes me hungry for sugared toast! Photographed at Green Spring Gardens in Alexandria, Virginia
© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.
Japanese Bleeding Heart (Dicentra spectabilis) is a perennial that prefers partial sun to full shade. A good plant for naturalizing, it works well in woodland settings and should be divided every three years. Photographed at Green Spring Gardens in Alexandria, Virginia
© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.
Yellow Wild Indigo ‘Screaming Yellow’ (Baptisia sphaerocarpa), sometimes called Horsefly-weed, is native to the south central U.S. This smooth, bushy perennial has elongated clusters of yellow pea-shaped flowers that bloom from May to September. Photographed at Green Spring Gardens in Alexandria, Virginia
© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.
© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.
© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.
At least this one is freckled! 🙂
© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.
© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.
The Columbine gets its common name from the Latin columba or dove. The genus name for the plant is Aquilegia (derived from the Latin word for eagle—aquila—named this because the shape of flower petals resemble an eagle’s claw). This herbaceous perennial is rated hardy to zone 3 and prefers partial shade and well-drained soil. It is very easy to propagate from seed and will self-sow. The seeds and roots are highly poisonous.
© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.
Oriental Poppy (Papaver orientale) is a hardy perennial that grows in zones 4-9; not frost tender; herbaceous foliage; flowers late spring to early summer (some gardeners have reported reblooming in the fall); 18-24″ height with 8-10″ spread; partial shade to full sun and average to rich, well-drained soil; all parts are poisonous. The flowers are hermaphrodite (having both male and female organs) and are self-pollinated as well as pollinated by bees.
© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.
On this same day in 2010, my White Spiderwort plants were in full bloom. They appear to be running behind this year, but I expect them to bloom sometime this month. This blog has been a great diary with which to compare what bloomed when in previous years. (P.S. I still don’t know if that was a tick or not!)
Originally posted May 13, 2010
White Spiderwort (Tradescantia x andersononia ‘Alba’). Insect identity unknown (actually, he looks suspiciously like a tick, but it could be a spider or a mite—your guess is as good as mine—this one was red with a black splotch on its back, and quite tiny). Two of them shimmied down the vertical leaf and onto the flower just as I was focusing on the stamens.
Spiderworts are very easy to grow—adapting to many types of soil (but preferring moist and well-drained) and tolerating full sun to full shade (can’t say that about many plants). I bought this plant at the annual Green Spring Gardens plant sale last year—and I plan on being there this Saturday for this year’s event!
(Update: Tomorrow is supposed to be their annual plant sale, but there is a forecast for much rain. Stay tuned!)
© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.
The Little Garden
A little garden on a bleak hillside
Where deep the heavy, dazzling mountain snow
Lies far into the spring. The sun’s pale glow
Is scarcely able to melt patches wide
About the single rose bush. All denied
Of nature’s tender ministries. But no, —
For wonder-working faith has made it blow
With flowers many hued and starry-eyed.
Here sleeps the sun long, idle summer hours;
Here butterflies and bees fare far to rove
Amid the crumpled leaves of poppy flowers;
Here four o’clocks, to the passionate night above
Fling whiffs of perfume, like pale incense showers.
A little garden, loved with a great love!
—Amy Lowell, 1874–1925
Photo © Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.
The Iceland Poppy (Papaver nudicaule), a hardy but short-lived perennial, is native to subpolar regions of North America and northern Europe. This cultivar is ‘Champagne Bubbles’ and the flowers bloom in orange, pink, scarlet, apricot, yellow or creamy white. They prefer full sun but are not hardy in hot weather. The wild Iceland Poppy species bloom in white or yellow.
© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.
Photographed at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center in Austin, Texas
© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.
This spider was extremely tiny and very quick—hence why I only had time to get a sharp shot of her backside! She was weaving a web on a Spring Snowflake bloom in my garden.
© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.
© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.
© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.
© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.
Below is a small sampling of more than 500 images in my newly-updated Zenfolio botanical gallery. Click here to visit the entire gallery. I’ll be revising the design to include galleries for portraits, stock, weddings, events, landscape, commercial and travel images as well as a bio, contact information and pricing for various services.
Photographed at Green Spring Gardens in Alexandria, Virginia
© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.
Photographed at Green Spring Gardens in Alexandria, Virginia
Check out my newly-updated Zenfolio botanical gallery here.
© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.
Photographed at Green Spring Gardens in Alexandria, Virginia
© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.
Correct identification: Large-flowered buttercup (thanks, Brian). The label near the plants reads, “Prairie Goldenrod,” which is another plant entirely!
© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.
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