Thursday, July 24, 2008

Teasel


I like teasel, though I probably should not.
Its spiny stem and tall spiked heads stand in our field year ‘round—turning woody and brown as summer fades.
Rising head and shoulders above all others, its form, a constant and easily recognized silhouette.

Brought here from Europe in the 1700s, teasel is now considered invasive in North America, often displacing the other native field flowers and growing in large, dense stands.
But the wildlife it draws to its unusual character I love—from the nectaring butterflies of summer to the seed-eating birds of fall and winter.



A band of tiny light purple flowers opens around the center of each spiked oval head, then spreads in a wave outward, as new flowers open toward the top and bottom, creating 2 rings.
They paint a lavender haze over the rising green tips of goldenrod.
And catch the heavy heads of Queen Anne.




Yes, I like teasel quite a lot.
It seems I'm not the only one.


See more Skywatch here.

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46 comments:

Kathi said...

Invasive or not, I like teasel, too.

~Kathi

SandyCarlson said...

Teasel takes a fine photo! Beautiful.

Anonymous said...

Love that moth!

KGMom said...

Nina--that first photo is absolutely breathtaking.
I confess to not knowing the name teasel--but as soon as I saw it, I recognized the plant.
How frustrating that something so lovely is so invasive.

bobbie said...

No, you are not the only one, human or otherwise. Lovely pictures.

me ann my camera said...

I don't think I'm familiar with Teasel but I love their silhouettes against the blue sky! Very nice.
ann at varying seasons

Julie said...

I very much like the silhouette of teasel in that first photo. A good entry for this week ...

Pat - Arkansas said...

Lovely, lovely! All.

Louise said...

You're NOT the only one. I love it, too. I like to collect it for fall bouquets. (When I live near it, which is not now.)

Beautiful pictures!

EG CameraGirl said...

I like teasels too. The shot against the sunset shows their shape up beautifully.

Michele said...

Mmm... you have done a fantastic job of silhouetting it against that beautiful sky... awesome!
Mountain Retreat Photos and
Fishing Fiesta

Petunia said...

Lovely shots! I really like all of them:)

Petunia's SWF

Tom said...

Teasels are excellent for wildlife... the seed heads were used in the mills to tease the cloth...

Cath said...

Fantastic shots. The first one is really stunning and that last one with the butterfly (or did some one say it is a moth? either way, flying thing!) The way you have caught it coming in to the teasle... brilliant.

DrowseyMonkey-Photos said...

Oh, they're all great but I really like that first one. :)

Snap Catch said...

Happy weekend! Perfect one for SWF! We all live under the same sky, but we don't all have the same horizon.... Mine's up too hope you can drop by...

Anonymous said...

Beautiful Pictures

Jeannelle said...

Your photographs are stunningly beaufiful!! I like your header and verse, too.

Anonymous said...

I like the looks of teasel, even as I regret its invasion. I hadn't seen them in bloom before.

Lisa at Greenbow said...

Teasel is interesting scupturally. My FIL made a group of creatures from dried teasel. They are charming little things.

Anonymous said...

How I wish thistle also grows here! That's a pretty shot you have there, especially the first one.

Hope you can hop by my SWF post HERE. Happy weekends!

Anonymous said...

I love your pictures.

Rose said...

These are all lovely! I love your first one best though!

Becky said...

Beautiful shots of the Teasel. I like them to make dried arrangements. Your colors are just great.
Happy SWF.

Rambling Woods said...

Nina..I have been reading your posts...I think we may have been sisters in a past life. I have the same quote on my site, and I had not seen your site before...strange...

But your feelings of joy and sorrow are so well described..of eating and being eaten..life and death. Really well done...

Whitney said...

I have never heard of teasel but that first photo is gorgeous! It is a great sky shot!

Carletta said...

Lovely silhouette and words to go with it!

Lilli & Nevada said...

beautiful shots my favorite is the first one

Aisha said...

Hi Nina, those are really beautiful shots. The sky and that bug flying away from the flower, you captured them perfectly!

Anne-Berit said...

Wonderful pictures,love them all!

Anonymous said...

Pretty shot nice captured...Happy SWF!

imac said...

Beautiful and great photos.

Andrea said...

Beautiful shots.

Anonymous said...

Oh, lovely!

What a beautiful blog you have. I'm snagging your rss feed so I don't miss any of it.

Larry D said...

Wonderful photos! My favorite was the last. Happy SWF!

Larry D said...

Wonderful photos! My favorite was the last. Happy SWF!

Jerez Sherry said...

Nice photos, Teasel, I hadn't heard it's name, now I know what it is. Nice to see butterflies, we have few here, small white ones mostly, I guess low sunlight keeps them away.

Catherine said...

Beautiful sky~watch & Teasel captures!! I like teasel's too..they are fun to photograph!
Happy sky~watching!
Cat

Indrani said...

I have not seen a teasel before, I learned a lot about it today. Great shots too especially of the butterfly, they are hard to capture on lens, I know.

Anonymous said...

Hi Nina,

I just wanted to say I love your blog and your banner message really struck a note with me. Great blog! I look forward to your next posts.

Kind regards,



Andy.

Anonymous said...

Beautiful shots and text. Nice insect.

Texas Travelers said...

Wonderful photographs and a terrific post.

The last photo of the Bumblebee Moth or Snowberry Clearwing coming in for a sip of nectar is great.

Thanks for the visit,
Troy and Martha

Unknown said...

Its so pretty! And um lowes sells them in the garden center... ;)

Marie said...

Beautiful photos!

Q said...

I love it too. Your clearwing and tiger seem to like it!
Sherry

Kerri Farley said...

I Like it too!!