• spring,  woodland

    Spring Sprint

    Magnolia kobus var. borealis There is still a little snow behind my house, but even so: Spring has arrived! Taloni takana on vielä hiukan lunta, mutta siitä huolimatta: Kevät on täällä! Det finns ännu en aning snö bakom mitt hus, men trots det kan man säga att: Våren är här! Narcissus triandrus ‘Katie Heath’ Erythronium ‘Pagoda’ Plagiorhegma dubium – varjonäkki – presidentsippa Sanguinaria canadensis ‘Multiplex’ I got both the Sanguinaria canadensis ‘Multiplex’ and the Plagiorhegma dubium from a sweet old lady who was also an expert gardener back in 2004. She passed on a few years later and her garden has since been lost. I always remember her fondly when “her”…

  • travel

    The Imperial Flower

    Peonies have been cultivated in China for at least 1500 years, so it’s not surprising that the Chinese can show them off in spectacular ways. Peonies are featured in art, in everyday life and in spectacular plantings. They are probably best celebrated in Luoyang where I visited the famous Peony Festival. The Festival is not one event, but fabulous plantings in several parks with a lot of commercial (I’ve never before seen so much so overt capitalism as in China) activities surrounding them. Even the hospital is peony themed – Sairaalakin on pioniteeman mukainen – T.o.m. sjukhuset följer piontemat Pioneja on kasvatettu Kiinassa ainakin 1500 vuotta, joten ei ole mikään…

  • events,  travel

    Plenty of Peonies

    My two days at the peony festival in Luoyang are now behind me. The weather was splendid and the peonies were flowering their hearts out. The festival is a big deal for the Chinese, but there were not a lot of Westerners besides our group. This meant that we were asked to pose in plenty of pictures with the Chinese; overall the Chinese were very interested in taking pictures of each other and occasionally less of the flowers themselves. I, and my friends on the other hand have by now amassed around a thousand pictures each, and most of them are of peonies.. So, these are just a few I picked…

  • travel

    Greetings from the Wall

    I’ve been in China for a few days now and I’ve seen touristy stuff such as the Great Wall. The wild peaches flowered everywhere. On the ride to Xi’an Paulownia tomentosa, the Empress tree started to make a show and now that I’m in Luoyang it’s going to be peonies all around. I’ll get back to them and a lot else. Terveisiä Kiinasta, jossa olen viettänyt muutaman päivän. Olen toistaiseksi käynyt aika turistikohteissa, kuten Kiinan muurilla. Siellä villit persikkapuut kukkivat valtoimenaan. Matkalla Xi’aniin keisarinpuu, Paulownia tomentosa, pisti shown päälle ja nyt kun olen Luoyangissa pionit ovat vuorossa. Kirjoittelen myöhemmin niistä ja monista muista jutuista. Hälsningar från Kina där jag varit…

  • greenhouse,  indoor,  Kitchen garden,  media

    The Final Fair Pictures

    I took some pictures in the mornings before the fair opened; my 50mm lens gave some interesting shots. I’m new to the lens, but I’m beginning to see the point of it. I still have a lot to learn, since I can see what isn’t quite right in several pictures.. Otin jonkin verran valokuvia Kevätpuutarhamessuilta aamuisin ennen kuin ne varsinaisesti avattiin, sain mielestäni ihan jänniä kuvia 50mm objektiivillani. Se on suhteellisen uusi hankinta ja alan vähitellen oppimaan sen etuja, mutta näen myös selvästi mitkä asiat eivät aivan täsmää näissä kuvissa.. Jag tog en del foton på vår avdelning på mässan på morgnarna före den öppnades, jag tyckte att en del…