End of the Line

[click on photo for larger version]

I am recently returned after having been away, but cannot resist adding my two caterpillar's worth to the wonderful series of photos already entered into Gardening Gone Wild's current Picture This Photo Contest for November.

The theme for this month is "The End of the Line" and the thoughtful responses sent in so far are well worth your time spent visiting the blogs represented.

As is typical after being away from hearth and garden, I have a long (LONG!) list of chores demanding my attention, so I hope you will forgive my lack of an accompanying post this go-round. I am optimistic the photograph will provide its own context.

In the meantime I am hopeful you are enjoying the wonderful November light. I find this one of the most beautiful times of year here in Central Texas and with that said, out I go to enjoy more of it.

Pardon my saying so but....

The above is my entry for the October Picture This! contest. It is an arrangement from our mid-June '08 CSA share from the wonderful folks at Tecolote Farms.

This month's theme for the Gardening Gone Wild Picture This photo contest is "Abundant Harvest".

According to the judge for the contest, Saxon Holt, his friend and fellow gardener, Rosalind Creasy along with photographer David Cavagnaro invented the style - that of a basket spilling seemingly artlessly arranged produce.

I am not one to argue with judges as a rule, but I'll offer the suggestion that "abundant harvest style" is just as likely one previously planted in all our subconscious image storage bins seeded by years of viewing Thanksgiving Cornucopia arrangements.

No matter. Rosalind Creasy is a longstanding heroine of mine so I'll stop my quibbling. At the least it could easily be said Creasy and Cavagnaro perfected the Abundant Harvest look, OK? Onward.

While the artlessly-spilling-from-the-basket format was precisely where I began with photographs of our CSA baskets from Tecolote Farms last year, (the following shot from March '08) what I ended up with after playing with the photogenic produce a bit, gave me what I think of more as a still life style.

And maybe that was the intended takeaway - that artless look - which means I've missed the point of the assignment. D'oh! I decided not to overthink this - the contest is supposed to be fun despite picayune nattering from entrants like me.

Whether or not you are contest minded, do be sure to check out the Gardening Gone Wild website itself along with the typically stunning contest entries. There is a wealth of information and an embarrassment of photography riches there all ripe for your picking. Reading there is a ton more fun than weeding, and potentially just as beneficial.

One final reminder, click on any photo in the post to get a larger view and enjoy the details.

Picture This Photo Contest for July

The folks at Gardening Gone Wild have designated Flowering Trees as the subject of the July Picture This Photo Contest.

I really appreciate flowering trees and had a hard time settling on a shot to submit. I eventually chose this favorite from a couple of seasons ago, when Central Texas spent the first two weeks of a new year with daily high temperatures in the 70's. This was followed by a vicious three day cold front bringing battering rains that turned into what became an epic ice storm around the 15th of the month.

[click on the photo for a larger version]

The Redbud trees had apparently been tricked into early blooms, which appeared along branches then cruelly coated and weighted down with ice.

The ice caused quite a bit of damage and I had concerns we would lose this tree, one of our favorite Redbuds (Cercis canadensis var. texensis) out front. Even two years later it is still too soon to know if it will recover fully, especially now it is being treated to a second year of drought and extreme heat. So far so good however, and when I look out at our yard currently cooking in the heat of July, and then compare that view to my photos of the same areas coated with ice, I can only shake my head at how resolute the force of life is in these plants that share our spaces with us.

The photos submitted for the Picture This contests are often quite breathtaking. I have found cruising through the entry links one of the most pleasant ways ever to make the acquaintance of a lot of new gardeners with blogs who share my tendency to take photos of everything they are doing. Hope you'll drop in and see for yourself. Better yet, find your own favorite photo of a flowering tree and send in an entry. Don't dilly dally, the deadline for July submissions is Wednesday the 22nd at midnight.