Below:  A photo take a few years ago with multiple blooms

Enjoy!

~Sharon

Enjoy!

~Sharon

You don’t have to take a trip to see nature because it is always around us even in our own backyards.  You can plant certain flowers that will attract butterflies ( Monarchs like the milkweed plant ), others will attract hummingbirds and so on.  Today a few photos from my backyard as I was  outside enjoying the sun and puttering in the garden for a few hours.

Above:  Butterfly gathering nectar from a Joe Pye plant      Below:  A House Wren chattering on the garden fence.

Below:  A few photos of bees gathering pollen

Below:  Not sure if this is a wasp or bee but if was flying around with a large piece of plant leaf and then landed.  A leaf-cutter of sorts.

Below:  This is a domestic garden plant that was tagged “Love in the Mist” when I bought one a few years back.  It seeds itself every year and produces these beautiful delicate flowers in blue and purple tones.

Enjoy!

~Sharon

The Winnipeg River (above) meanders through the Whiteshell creating lakes throughout. Above are some rapids where Pelicans sit to catch their fish. The photos below show terrain typically found in the Whiteshell.  Roads have been “cut through” the rocky terrain and the forest is full of lush undergrowth, tall stands of Boreal Forest trees and many different kinds of mosses and lichens.   I personally find the mosses and lichens both beautiful and interesting ( check out a previous blog under Mosses and Lichens for photos). Fox, deer, black bears and beavers are common sights here as well as a variety of  forest dwelling birds, owls, herons and other waterfowl.

Below:  rocks line the highway edges.

Below is the sign welcoming visitors to the Whiteshell.  Note the “turtle” on the sign.  The Petroforms (a sacred site to Aboriginal Peoples) are located in the Whiteshell.  One of the Petroforms is a turtle symbol representing “Turtle Island” which is another name for North America. According to First Nations teachings, the Turtle represents the teaching of Truth. You can find a “Gallery” dedicated to the Petroforms which inlcudes contact information on the right hand side of this page.

In addition to the lakes, beavers in the park have created numerous marshes which in turn provides habitat for birds, turtles and waterfowl to name a few.  Many of these marshes are filled with beautiful pond lillies. Below is a photo of a marsh filled with Water Calla Lillies.

The Whiteshell is less than 2 hours from Winnipeg and is a very popular cottage area. There are a number of hiking trails in the Whiteshell for persons with varying skill levels.

Enjoy!

~Sharon

When the snow melts and the weather warms our early wildflowers start to bloom. These photos were taken in the Whiteshell at the Petroforms site area.  Above is Blue-eyed Grass which is so elegant and is one of my favourites. These were growing in open, rock and sand terrain.    Below, a Starflower which I found in shaded moist areas.

Below: Hoary Puccoon – these were growing abundantly along roadsides and forest edges.  A deep yellow/orange flower that stands out in the still brown grasses of late May.

Enjoy!

Sharon

Keeping up with the  Manitoba Wildflowers is proving a challenge.   More today from within Winnipeg city limits.  This delicate little blue wildflower is called “Blue Bur”.  This is one of my favourites – I just love the shade of blue!  It is a small plant but very showy.

Another view of Blue Bur showing more of the foliage and plant.

Below are two plants I am sure everyone has growing around their property and if you are fortunate enough to be weed free it is still likely you have seen these.  They are very common and invasive.  The photo below is a “Pineapple Weed” – aptly named if you take a close look at the plant.  Sometimes I let the “weeds” grow in my garden as I know they will produce a lovely flower but for the Pineapple Weed and Common Peppergrass this is not the case.

Below are two views of “Common Peppergrass”, one view showing the white flower of the plant which is very tiny and plain.

Enjoy!

~Sharon

NEW . . . Manitoba Wildflowers gallery is now on-line.  It is sorted by colour and when your cursor is placed over the thumbnail the name of the flower/plant will appear.

You  can find the page at the menu to the right in the “GALLERIES”  section. Sometimes the differences from one flower/plant to another are very subtle and I have made every effort to correctly identify each plant. So, if you are browsing through and feel that a plant is wrongly named, please do contact me – after all, we do want to get this right.  Hopefully you will find this listing of Manitoba Wildflowers useful in helping you identify plants you come across in your travels.  I have thoroughly enjoyed photographing and going through the research process to identify them.  It has been quite an educational experience for me. By the way, still gathering photos so the collection will continue to expand.

I have used a variety of sources including books, emailing “persons in the know” and three or four different websites.  The links below are for two websites that I have found to be excellent resources  in the identification process.

Photos of Prairie Wildflowers

Connecticut Wildflowers

SHOWY MILKWEED – Varying stages of the Showy Milkweed blooms are featured in today’s blog.  They are beautiful sturdy plants with thick rounded leaves and are about 2 feet tall.  When in full bloom the flower clusters are about the size of a baseball.  Really a lovely wildflower.  The first photo is a flower cluster in full bloom. The photos that follow take the flower back progressively to early budding stage.

Enjoy!

~Sharon

Photos of Prairie Wildflowers
A Canadian Website (Regina, Saskatchewan) with an excellent collection from the prairies, forests and bogs.

Connecticut Wildflowers

You can find the page at the menu to the right in the “GALLERIES” section.

Since the Wildflowers are all blooming we might as well look at more while they are in season.
Once again, photos from Oak Hammock Marsh and Lockport area.

Below: Two views of a Curly Cup Gumweed

Below: Two Grooved Milk Vetch

Enjoy!
~Sharon