Window frost pattern pictures - hoar-frost crystals

Welcome to Macro Flowers Saturday, dear friend!

We are all a little bit tired on the last workday of the week, that's why weekend was invented, isn't that so?

I've moved this blog to custom domain this week. All existing links are redirected by the "Giant", so you have nothing to change in your past posts.
However, your backlink has to be changed for future contributions; this is the new URL:
http://wildflowers.colormagicphotography.com/

If you have one of my buttons in your sidebar, I would appreciate if you would upload a new copy with the new URL. You can do it easily with my "Add to sidebar" button.

Now let's make our weekend recovery more pleasant by sharing some cheerful flower photos.
I have some special flowers today, just took these photos of beautiful, lacy frost crystals.

Some of these hoar-frost crystals look like feathery leaves or aquatic plants.

Other ice crystal formations are like handmade lace borders.

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Dalmatian bellflower photos-Campanula portenschlagiana

Bellflowers come in many varieties, some are tall plants with longer flower spikes while others are small, crawling pants with individual flowers.

Campanula portenschlagiana is a evergreen perennial plant that is found in woodlands and forested areas of Europe, parts of Asia, and the Americas.
Dalmatian bellflower, on its other name, blooms abundantly from June until late autumn, bearing many blue, bell-shaped flowers.
The plant is only about 10 cm high and spreads out forming a beautiful ground cover of dark green, heart-shaped leaves and blue flowers.
This species of bellflower grows very quickly being easy to grow.

Campanula portenschlagiana thrives in full sun or partial shade, in well drained sandy soil and rock gardens. Thought it grows well in many conditions and climates, it tolerates extreme cold better than tropical high temperatures.

This plant is also used as wall plant, hence its other name, Campanula muralis - wall bellflower.

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Wood-sorrel - Oxalis acetosella flower

Wood-sorrel is a member of the big Oxalis family, known throughout the world as an edible wild plant.
Common Wood-sorrel - Oxalis acetosella, is an Eurasian plant that blooms in early spring, having small white flowers with pink-purplish streaks.

Its heart-shaped leaves have three leaflets, similar to those of clovers.
Both leaves and wood-sorrel flowers contain oxalic acid and have a sour taste. Children like to chew these leaves.

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Hapy Valentive's Day!

First of all I want to wish you all

Happy Valentine's Day!

In most parts of Europe, England excepted, Valentine's Day is not celebrated to such a large extent as in the States. It is an imported holiday due to the influence of American culture, though merchants and the flower industry do everything in their power to spread it all over the world. It is more a commercial ploy than a holiday.

In traditionally Catholic countries like France, Valentine's Day is known simply as "Saint Valentin", and is celebrated in much the same way as other western countries.

What I find interesting is that Saint Valentines is not a Saint any more; according to Wikipedia:
"Saint Valentine's Day was first established by Pope Gelasius I in 496 AD, and was later deleted from the General Roman Calendar of saints in 1969 by Pope Paul VI."

In many countries Valentine's Day has various versions of regional customs.
In Romania, the traditional holiday for lovers is Dragobete, celebrated on February 24.

"Every time you smile at someone, it is an action of love, a gift to that person, a beautiful thing."

~ Mother Teresa

See last year's Valentine's rose too.

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Orange primroses-scented Primula Hortensis pictures

Primroses are among the first perennials to bloom in spring.
This orange primrose is the Primula hortensis, one of the 10 gorgeous primula cultivars I bought last year for my balcony. They kept blooming all year long, even in late autumn. The yellow and orange ones had a fabulous perfume.

I was not sure if these cultivars are perennials or annuals but I thought they should rest for awhile.
After I divided the large clumps in autumn, I gifted the split plants to my cousin and left mine on the porch for winter.

At the end of January the weather turned very cold, so I took the containers indoors and guess what: my primroses are blooming again in mid February.
They already have produced new green leaves and many, many flowers and buds in just about 10 days.
They will be in full bloom before springtime.

I still have a problem; they are all pink. I think, I gifted all these orange and yellow, scented primroses.

I love these flower, they are so rewarding with almost no care .
They develop big clumps of flowers even when growing in the wild.

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Crown Vetch-Securigera varia

Beautiful weekend to you all and welcome!

While outdoors thermometers dip well below -20C, I'm trying to warm up the environment with some sunny pictures.

This pretty, purplish-pink wildflower is the Crown Vetch, member of the big Fabaceae family, like the alfalfa, clover, peas, beans, lupines, wisteria and many others.
It is native to Asia, Europe and Africa but well known in many other parts of the world.
For its deep, tenacious roots, Crown Vetch - Securigera varia, is used for erosion control, soil rehabilitation and roadside planting, being a showy groundcover, in the same time.

It blooms from early summer to late fall, bearing small clusters of pink and white flowers on top of a fern-like foliage.

Don't let the pretty flowers fool you, pool them out if you see them in your garden. Crown Vetch is a very aggressive, spreading plant, even invasive in many places.
However, it is suitable for a colorful groundcover on a sunny bank as long as you don't have horses on you property.
This plant is toxic to horses, it can cause paralysis, or even death.

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