Vegas By Night

Here are a few more highlights from my trip to Las Vegas. The first video is something I was trying to take a picture of--an asparagus tree. I don't know why this is, but I saw probably a dozen green-trunked trees that were definitely asparagus. I got really close to this one and ascertained this. Asparagus doesn't grow like this where I'm from, but it's cool to see.

 

 

This video is just some shadows of people going by. It's just a snapshot of the hustle and bustle of the Las Vegas Strip. Still looks cool.

 

 

 

And one last note on Vegas: I went out there in the first place to go to the Electric Daisy Carnival, the United States' biggest electronic music festival. They wouldn't let attendees bring cameras into the carnival, but I took a cell phone picture of an art installation I spent a lot of time resting under. These are probably 100 feet tall electric daisies with mosaics of mirrors for stems. They lit up at night, too. Most things lit up at night there. Aren't they beautiful?

 

 

Next post: the status of my plants upon my homecoming.

Landscape Services Presents...

Today I bring you a couple of recent developments around campus. Disclaimer: while I may not always love everything that Landscape Services does, I respect them greatly, love a lot of what they do, and am grateful that they make our campus the most beautiful place I've ever inhabited. I sometimes may speculate negatively about the combinations, locations, formations, or types of plants they do or do not use, but speculation is all it is. Now onto the show.

First are some shots of two container plantings I spotted on my way to class (speaking of which, today was my last day of classes!). I am not a fan of the arrangement of these particular planters: their centerpieces are small shrubs of some sort. Their foliage is reminiscent of river birches, to give you a visual. That part of the planting is rather drab. However, below that were pansies and these:

These refreshing daisy-type flowers are fantastic on their own. I really don't know why they aren't the intended centerpiece of the arrangement. Below is another interesting plant in the container, which proves that foliage can, and often does, add a lot of visual interest. Foliage plants just have to be interesting to accomplish this.

Some sweet alyssum (Lobularia maritima) graced a nearby container. I remember when these took up half a bench in one of the greenhouses at work. The smell was incredible. They're still looking good, even this late in the season.

On another side of campus, I found these flowering bushes. Their thorns would lead me to believe that they are roses, but their flowers are unlike any roses I've ever seen. They're gorgeous, though.

I've had little to report in the past few days, but I swear something big is coming this weekend. After that, though, is finals week, so I probably won't post again until I've moved, and things are settling down. Thanks for bearing with me.

Next post: the next thing I see!

Spring Begins (For Real This Time)

I have returned to campus and classes. The weather seems significantly warmer now, which is a plus. Also a plus are some flowers I've seen since returning. However, first I'd like to show you some flowers that I found at home.

These are boy flowers, or flamingo flowers. There were some hot-pink ones at the greenhouse, but my mother has this white variety. It has three blooms on it. It must be happy. The first bloom hasn't colored up completely, but the venation at this green stage is just as attractive as the white color of its more mature counterpart.

Said counterpart shown here:

Shortly after I arrived on campus, Scott gave me this daisy (?). Isn't it sweet?

Then today, as I was walking home from class, I noticed all these trees with bright orange blooms on them. They look almost tropical, but I have no idea what kind of trees these are. Do you? I wish more plants on campus were labelled.

This group of trees is a refreshing sight for tired eyes, much like orange soda is refreshing in general. At one end of these rows was this tree, a redder variety.

This is a close-up of the red variety's blooms. I saw a few people straying from the sidewalk today to get a closer look at the exotic flowers. They certainly are unusual.

Now here are some closer shots of the orange variety's flowers. I preferred this color, as did whoever landscaped this area. Pay no attention to the construction in the background!

My favorite photograph of today is a tie between this one and the daisy picture.

This is as close as I got. These flowers don't seem to have any petals to speak of. The most prominent parts are the stamens (the white stalks with brown tips--the male reproductive parts) and the ovaries (the red bulges). Or at least that's what they appear to be.

Lastly, here's a shot of the longer row of these trees. I don't ordinarily like homogenous rows of trees, but these are so fetching that I quite enjoy the arrangement.

Do you have any idea what kind of trees these are? Have you ever seen an appealing tree you wished you could identify?

Next post: tiny troubles.