Beyond the balcony: Magnolias & Flowering Quince (Chaenomeles)

A few of the many, many photos I shot this weekend. The Magnolia liliiflora (top photo) is blooming in our condominium's garden. I'm not sure about the other magnolia's identity (second photo). The remaining photos are of several different flowering quince (Chaenomeles) shrubs all growing in private gardens.

Beyond the balcony: Westie Walk photos

One photo from each l-o-n-g walk with Piper during the past two weeks. Sweet, patient, very bored Piper -- I took many more than one photo per walk.

Photos, top to bottom:

Magnolia (March 13th)
Euphorbia (March 15th)
Cherry blossoms (March 17th)
Magnolia, Magnolia stellata (March 18th)
Cherry plum, Prunus cerasifera (March 19th)
Cherry blossoms (March 21st)
Cherry blossoms (March 23rd)
Bleeding heart, Dicentra spectabilis 'Alba' (March 24th)
Magnolia (March 25th)
Magnolia (March 26th)

Blossoms

If a picture's worth a thousand words, then my camera's been very talkative these past few weeks, speaking flowery language, morning, afternoon & evening.

      

Though on second thought, I'm not sure the adage applies here. None of the photos I've taken replace one hundred, let alone one thousand words. Short phrases, like "sunny, yellow forsythia", "delicate, pink sakura", and "frilly, white magnolias" describe the subjects.  And only a few more words are needed for  other details such as setting (e.g., street-side garden, balcony), lighting (e.g., overcast skies, morning sun) or mood (e.g., exuberant, contemplative).

For now, if my pictures can stand in for a few captivating nouns, vivid adjectives, and lyrical verbs, I'll be satisfied. With time & lots of practice, I hope to be able to tell a complete story.  I still have so far to go, but this approach may help me develop & express photographic vision.

I'm beginning to ramble so I'll return to the topic -- blossoms -- stop the words & link to the images:

Sakura (cherry blossoms)

Japanese Apricot (Prunus mume)

A Whiter Shade of Pale

Tulipomania

If you're interested, you can view slideshows. Just click on the first photo in each gallery.

Quince Crush

Chaenomeles speciosa (unknown cultivar) on a busy street corner near my home.

Yes, it must be a botanical crush. How else to explain why this flowering quince  has been my 365 project photo three times (days 21, 48 & 54) since January 1st. I admit I'm strongly attracted to the salmon-pink blossoms and have romantic notions of making quince jelly. Though I can't grow this shrub on the balcony, I wonder if I could recommend it to my mom for her garden (& thereby secure a source of fruit for jelly-making.)

So this evening, I decided to begin my research. Here are a few notable finds:

Botanical, horticultural & culinary links --

• Wikipedia's entry for Chaenomeles

• Flowering Quince: Cinderella of the Early Spring Garden

•  Kwantlen Polytechnic University, School of Horticulture plant database, Chaenomeles speciosa

• University of Conneticut's plant database, Chaenomeles speciosa

• Chaenomeles japonica

• Quince jelly

• How to use the fruit of the flowering quince

Weather forecast

Morning skies overcast with pink, 
Scattered forsythia flurries in late afternoon,

Followed by clumps of snowdrops.

One hundred percent probability of spring throughout the day.