Thursday, November 15, 2012

Kangaroo Paw




Australia has some wonderfully unique plants and flowers, Kangaroo Paw being one of them.




There is a time difference of 11 days between the flowering photo at top (and also below) and the budding one above.







The photo above was taken this morning showing the complete plant nestled amongst the half grown Rainbow Char/Silverbeet.




Kangaroo Paw come in a variety of colours and sizes, each with the same distinctive flower form. This one above is from a much smaller Kangaroo Paw plant I bought last year which unfortunately didn't survive.




I found this beauty in a nearby garden recently. You can see why they were given their name.

If my current plant does well I think I may add more of these native plants to our garden. I've read they also make excellent cut flowers.


Sharing at Weekly Top Shot, I Heart Macro.

44 comments:

Anonymous said...

What gorgeously vibrant shots!

Marty said...

never seen such a flower which has the right name ! very beautiful colors !

Cinzia said...

This shots are magic!!!!!
Cinzia

Joop Zand said...

FANTASTIC pictures with lovely colors.

Greetings, Joop

joy said...

your macro shots were breathtaking! Beautiful!

Liz said...

Wonderful shots, Karen! I love macros of Kangaroo Paw. It's so unique

geanina said...

very beautiful colors!

Sylvia K said...

Beautiful, colorful flowers and delightful captures, Karen!! Hope you and your lovely family have a great weekend!

♥ Łucja-Maria ♥ said...

Wow!
What a beautiful plant.
Fantastic photos.
I send many greetings from distant Polish.

flowersandhome said...

Australia really is a treasure of very distinctive plants and animals. This Kangaroo's Paw is so special in shape and colour. Thank you for sharing Karen.
Bye,
Marian

Juliana said...

wow! very interesting flowers!
close-ups are the best!

xoxo, Juliana | PJ’ Happies :) | PJ’ Ecoproject

Joyful said...

I love the macros!

Giga said...

Twoje zdjęcia makro są wspaniałe, gratuluję i pozdrawiam.
Your macro shots are great, congratulations and greetings.

Dianne said...

Wonderful macro captures of this real Aussie plant.

happyone said...

I've never seen or heard of this beautiful plant before!

Gail Dixon said...

Stellar images, as usual! Enjoy so much seeing flowers from different countries that we don't have here.

Nancy said...

Thanks for sharing such beautiful photos of this native plant. It's so great to plant native plants in the landscape, they are unfortunately often under appreciated. So glad you're including such lovely flowers in your garden. Blessings!

Karen @ Pieces of Contentment said...

Thanks Nancy. I have quite a few natives in our garden, it's a bonus that most are low maintenance with low water requirements too. The birds and insects are drawn to them as well.

Anonymous said...

Wie wunderschön.
Bei uns ist es jetzt Herbst und sehr kalt.

LG Mathilda ♥

Linda said...

Greetings from Montreal, Canada. Brilliant captures!

Rosemary said...

I love the intensity of the colours in your first photo, excellent against that lime-green background. In the second to last picture the kangaroo paw looks like a delicate needlepoint :)

Dave said...

This is indeed an unusual but pretty flowering plant Karen. I haven't seen it before so thanks for showing it - Dave

outlawgardener said...

We love this plant but must grow it as an annual or keep it inside during the winter. So beautiful!

renae said...

oh my goodness, i didn't know you had music on your post, and when it came on my doggie tho't she was outside and started having stares in the air to locate the birds. 'twas lovely!!!!!!!!!!!

Nadezda said...

What a strange and nice flower! We haven't here any similar it. I love its colors and paws.

Thea said...

The colours and detail in your photos are exquisite. They are lovely plants. I had one years ago, must keep them in mind when we plant our new garden.

Seeing Each Day said...

Wonderful detail in these shots. And while I know the theme of this post is the kangaroo paw my eye has gone to what I think is a rhubarb growing? If so, I'm getting in the car right now and coming up.

Karen @ Pieces of Contentment said...

Oh, but you would be disappointed, it's rainbow silverbeet/chard/spinach. Lovely cooked as a veggie or even in a salad but it's not rhubarb....but you'd be most welcome anyway!

Unknown said...

Wow those are such amazing photos. What a beautiful plant. I just love the vibrant color.

Huge

Kateri said...

Very different flower--quite a contrast with the familar chard.

Jennifer {Studio JRU} said...

That is so interesting and so beautiful!! You have so many amazing flowers there! :)

Noushka said...

Wow! How beautiful this flower is!
I have never seen it in South Africa nor in Australia...
If we finally manage to sell our place in France and make it there, I will certainly remember your post and plant some of these in different shades!
Your photos are superb!
To answer your question about my using the flash on the Praying mantis, no I don't use a flash on insects, it was a couple of hours before sunset and the light was just right!
Cheers!


Ocean Soul said...

gooooorgeous! and yummy rainbow chard too!

Dee said...

Love love love your macro shots!

Meoww said...

Lovely shots of pretty flowers! Very unique ones too.

Jenni said...

I love your kangaroo paw photos. There seem to be so many varieties and colours these days.I am yet to be successful with any!! The rainbow char are looking so pretty and healthy.
jenni

Cecilia Artista said...

What a beautiful flower!
Lovely colors!

lorik said...

I like the intense colours and interesting textures.

Shel said...

Wow - I don't even know what to say, that's so gorgeous! Amazing plant/flower and equally amazing photography! I always look forward to seeing what you've capture.

Anonymous said...

SO lovely, you've captured such fine details and the colors are rich... Thank you for sharing on Weekly Top Shot #57!

Laura said...

exquisite series!

de wereld volgens essi said...

Amazing pictures.
Greetings from Holland,
Essi

Lori P said...

Oh, this is gorgeous! Love the little fuzzy looking red ends.

Doug Hickok said...

I love your flower close-ups... simply amazing in their beauty!

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