Red Cars

Still waiting for flowers but in the meantime some red Detroit stuff from one of Grimsby's Cruise Nights.

While Waiting For Spring- Some Blue Detroit Flowers

Spring is being postponed again here. There is more snow in the forecast but this will come down as slop - neither rain nor snow - just messy. So in the meantime, here are some Detroit flowers: old cars lovingly restored and/or customized from a cruise night last summer here in Grimsby.

The first five are of Fords. The last two are of a Durant.

And the theme within the theme today is "blue".

Still Waiting for Spring - Back to the Greenhouses

Not surprisingly, we had rain and snow yesterday, so spring has been delayed again. Instead of going out and about, I looked back over our visit to the greenhouses of the Niagara Parks Commission and found some more plants I liked.

The first is one of the junction points where greenhouse sections link.

The second is an orchid but in a desert area. The branches seemed more like those of a rubber tree plant than what I expected of orchids.

The third is a Bird of Paradise flower.

The fourth was labeled as some type of "Pea" plant, albeit not unlike any I am familiar with.

The last one is simply a view into a cluster of large, tropical leaves.

Enjoy, while we wait for nice weather.

Spring Has Finally Arrived - Sort Of!- Eranthis In Bloom

Yesterday, on Easter Sunday, the first sign of spring made its appearance in our garden. The first flower to pop out of the ground is Eranthis, sometimes called Winter Aconite (although it is not related to aconites and is not poisonous). This is actually a late arrival this year. Most winters we have a week-long thaw in the third week of February and it is then the Eranthis appears. This year the heavy, unbroken snowfall and cold weather has delayed the usual early blooming of these flowers.

The bright, buttercup yellow flowers are about 2 cm (3/4 inch for our American friends) across and will force themselves out through frozen soil and light snow (yes that is snow in the images) in sheltered areas. That is the case with the ones shown here. They are growing in a well sheltered southern exposure and are located in the first place they appear in the garden. Over the next two weeks the entire area will bloom and we will have a carpet of yellow in patches over the entire yard.

Eranthis are the first to bloom and also the first to disappear. By mid to late May there will be no sign of them as they will have gone to seed, dried up and disappeared again, until next year.

Our Eranthis were started from clumps in my parents yard in Niagara-on-the Lake. I remember these flowers well from my childhood there as they appeared in many of the older, established gardens there.

Why I am looking Forward to Spring - Part 2: Ice Formations

At the mouth of The Forty, the winds off Lake Ontario blow spray onto shore. As it hits the shore and any trees, shrubs, or anything else, it deposits a coating that builds up over time in directions determined by the then prevailing winds, leaving a surreal environment.

In the first image, the gulls are sitting on about one meter (3 feet for our American friends) of ice on a pier located near the old pump house at the mouth of The Forty.

The next three show how ice forms on the branches of shrubs on the lake shore. The effect is like teeth at times and the weight can be great enough to break branches.

The next two show ice formed on the North side of a tree trunk facing Lake Ontario. My wife decided the formation resembled a white witch guarding the entrance to the creek mouth.

The next one is icicles hanging from a low hanging branch reaching out over the water.

The second-last image is a branch hanging out over the lake with the typical teeth-like icicle formations.

The last image is the remnants of the ice on The Forty.

As beautiful as the winter can be, it has been a long cold, snowy one and I, for one, am ready for Spring.

Why I am Looking Forward to Spring - Part 1: The Awd Goose

Here in Grimsby, we live in an old town, at least by Canadian standards. Grimsby was settled about 250 years ago. Once the town was established, it's original name was “The Forty” which, for those of you unfamiliar with the history and geography of the area, may seem odd.

When Europeans moved into the area, travel was by boat on Lake Ontario. Landmarks used by the sailors were the mouths of streams feeding into Lake Ontario. The naming convention they adopted on the south shore was based on the distance in miles from the mouth of the Niagara River. If you look at a map of Ontario you can still find streams/rivers with these distance-based names. In Grimsby, the town name became that of a town in England but the stream that runs through Grimsby into Lake Ontario is still called “The Forty”.

My wife and I, encouraged by our dog, took one of our regular walks down to the mouth of The Forty to see how the snow and ice were melting. Much is gone but with the long, cold, snowy winter, there is still a large amount of snow and ice in that area. And of course there are seagulls, ducks and geese.

The First image is of a confused Canada Goose who seemed to think the block of ice with a stick frozen in it, was in actual fact a rival goose posing a challenge, This made for an amusing few minutes of entertainment for us.

The second image is of a group of seagulls trying to keep warm.

The last three images are interesting because of the goose with the white “cheeks” and orange legs. This appears to be a cross between a Canada Goose and some variety of domestic goose. This goose has been around for some time it seems. According to a gentleman we met there, he has seen it regularly for many years. In fact he has posted some information on the goose at his website http://marvejohn.ca/Nature/awdgoose/ so you may want to look at that if you are curious.

Orchids At The Niagara Parks Commission Greenhouses

Today, a few more flower shots. All of these are various types of orchids growing, as the title says, at the Niagara Parks Commission greenhouses in Niagara Falls, Ontario.

The one I found particularly intriguing is the fourth one. It is almost spider-like.

One thing I find difficult to understand is why so few people visit the greenhouses, or are even aware of them. The are only a pleasant walk up from the Falls and access is free with only a small parking fee if you bring your car. This weekend the Easter display starts a three week run and should be very good. After that, a series of themed exhibits runs there each running several weeks so repeat visits would be worthwhile. And the best time to visit, I find, is in a snow storm. The contrast between the cold outside and the heat and humidity inside is incredible.

Day 2 of Flowers at Niagara Falls

Following on from yesterday's post, here are some more flowers from our Sunday visit to the Niagara Parks Commission greenhouses in Niagara Falls, Ontario.


The first and third images appear to be of varieties of Azaleas.

The second appears to be a variety of Hibiscus.

The last two are orchids. These were a bit difficult to photograph since they were in a dark area and no flash was used. The image stabalization of the FZ30 can only do so much, unfortunately.