Tag Archives: spring flowers

The Color Is Purple

Posted on May 4, 2025 | 2 comments

I had a fellow artist remark not long ago about how I use purple in my paintings. He did not approve. Hummm? It may not be his choice but it is mine. I happen to see purple…of various shades. Pale, reddish, bluish, dark, light, vibrant.

The wisteria bloomed for the first time this year. Well, it was caught by a late freeze last year. Such a beautiful flowering vine, but somewhat unpredictable. Invasive in trees and on buildings.

Not quite purple but a delicate reddish violet. These redbud trees are an understory tree native to this part of the Midwest. The delicate flowers appear along the stems and branches of the tree early in spring. It makes lovely heart-shaped leaves. Later, it retreats into anonymity among the understory trees for the rest of the year. These redbuds trees were free seedlings given out by the state.

I love these delicate Virginia Bluebells. The flower buds appear pink and then turn the most delicate shade of sky blue trumpets when they open up. These are so easy to grow. I’ve transplanted them everywhere and have given away many starts. The most amazing thing is, that after they bloom, they disappear completely until next year.

Spring seems to be a time of purple, to me. Delicate flowers in bloom, field and woods. Some pale, some vibrant. The soft haze of purple over the budding trees. The deep purple of stormy skies rolling in late in the afternoon.

Another patch of irises, this time light purple. And a healthy vine of poison ivy growing up the tree in the background.

Purple is said to be a royal color. The highest. But I find it to be calming, delicate. It appears everywhere if I look for it. It does not have to be loud or garish. It can be soothing and comforting.

This sprig of purple lilac scents the entire kitchen. Just outside, grows the full bush.

I love the overpowering perfume of the lilacs. I bring them into the house and then my eyes almost water at their presence. But the beautiful lilacs are only around for a few weeks a year, heralds of spring.

The violets of many colors. Deep purple, light purple, violet, variegated, even creamy white. Many consider them weeds but I don’t see how. Such beautiful little flowers.

The deer find this blue phlox a tasty treat. But when found in the woods, they make a lovely carpet of bluish purple.

Viper’s Bugloss and Jacob’s Ladder. I never planted these flowers but they just pop up where they may in the middle spring.

The Jacob’s Ladder and Viper’s Bugloss that only appear this time of year. Near the front porch or just about anywhere. I love these surprises. They’re aren’t planned but I allow them to pop up wherever they may.

I have several patches of irises around the property. Some deep bluish purple, some lighter. Then there are the multi-colored ones, and the striking white ones. The scent of the irises invite one to get up close and inhale deeply. There is no other flower perfume quite like it.

So what my artist friend thought to be a slight snub or negative comment did not affect me that way. I’m not quite sure how to interpret it. As an insult? Well, no. I guess he just doesn’t like the color purple. And that’s okay.

I do.

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Posted in country living

Tagged gardening, kit miracle, purple, spring flowers

Cicadas and more, spring 2021

Posted on May 16, 2021 | Comments Off

I love perennials. Nothing much to do except enjoy their beauty year after year. Azalea and irises.

All is not art. Spring on the ninety acres has arrived and so has the work.

This beautiful red/pink rhododendron is right outside our kitchen breakfast nook.

The past several weeks have been devoted to getting my big show up and running. Framing and delivering, shipping, some marketing, some public events. Exciting but exhausting.

Now, to tackle my three page list of things to do this spring. Yes, I still make extensive lists for almost everything. It just relieves my brain from having to remember everything.

We’ve had beautiful, rain-free weather this past week. A little on the chilly side but make hay, etc. etc. Weeding the flowerbeds. Seems as if we are beset by bedstraw this year. Or as I like one of its other common names sticky willie. Grrrrrrrrrrr. I hate this stuff.

A few of several pots of plants on the patio. Full sun. My favorite Provence memory.

Flowers waiting to be transplanted to pots. A couple of perennials, too.

Bringing out all my pots, mixing large batches of soil – potting soil, manure, peat. Planting about thirty of them for sun, shade, large, small. Oh, my back but I just divide the job up to smaller pieces.

Then a big push on to get the main garden planted. It’s a serious garden of about 25 x 40 feet. The sweet corn was planted a few weeks ago and is making a good showing. The peas finally came up in the spring garden (a whole different garden area), and we have been eating fresh lettuce for several weeks. The asparagus patch is nearly done for the year.

Just a small part of the garden. I planted fifteen various tomato plants and about the same number of peppers. Many varieties. PLUS….we have more in the small spring garden. I remember one year planting 64 tomato plants! Last time I did that.

Yesterday meant planting tomatoes, peppers, beans, eggplant, herbs, more corn, and lots of flowers for cutting. It’s not very interesting at this point but in a few weeks, it should really start growing.

So, let’s talk about cicadas. It’s the widely touted seventeen year emergence. And they’re HERE! At least emerging. They do not have mouths or stingers so they’re harmless to handle. They feel kinda creepy as they crawl on you with their little claws.

A cicada emerging. I’m finding these in the grass, the flowerbeds, just about everywhere outside.

Slightly creepy feeling, this is what the cicadas look like when they first shed their brown shells. It will attach itself to something – twig, trees, side of house – while it pumps up it’s wings, then takes off to find a mate for a day. No mouths or stingers.

A cicada hanging on its discarded shell which it attached to a plant. After it pumps up its wings, it changes color and then flies off.

Holes in the ground from the emerging brood. I’ve actually observed a flicker listening and diving for the emerging beasties.

I remember the last time they were here, the air was a cacophony of a high pitched sound, like something you might hear on an old sci-fi movie. I guess we’ll deal with it or stay inside. And remember, the birds and especially our chickens love these things and go after them like candy.

I’ll pass.

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Posted in country living, garden, landscape

Tagged cicadas, flower pots, garden, spring flowers

Yearning for Spring

Posted on March 10, 2019 | 2 comments

Yearning for Spring, framed, 16 x 20, acrylic on canvas, Kit Miracle, contemporary impressionist

I am just so ready for spring. Living here in southern Indiana, the winters are usually rather mild, at least compared to my years in Michigan. We will often get a little snow but not much to worry about. I think winter here is really like a long fall.

However, this year Mother Nature seems to have taken a fit. Warm one week just enough to tease the early bulbs out of the ground. Then the next week, temperatures diving for the bottom of the thermometer. Last week we saw lows of 10 degrees which meant our wood furnace (The Beast) was doing its best to keep up. Yesterday we saw a high of 62 with some 70s predicted for next week. Last evening the peepers could be heard in chorus in the bottoms. Did I mention that I am really ready for spring?

I felt an irresistible urge to paint some spring flowers. With few early flowers out yet except a couple of bedraggled crocuses and some hardy daffodils, I turned to my photos of some spring bouquets. And to step outside my usual style. Same old, same old, gets boring in my opinion.

Yearning for Spring, acrylic on canvas, 16 x 20, contemporary impressionist, Kit Miracle

The first bouquet consists of forsythia, double fancy daffodils and some branches of flowering quince. I like the subtle colors here and aimed at coordinating the background to the flowers but to subjugate it to the foreground.

Dancing Tulips, acrylic on canvas, 16 x 20, contemporary impressionist, Kit Miracle

The second flower painting took me in a different direction. I aimed for bold colors and lively strokes. This painting certainly accomplished that. It almost looks as if the tulips are dancing. To see the step by step for this painting, click here or go the Artworks tab and click on Dancing Tulips.

With the warming temps coming this week, my real tulips might be blooming. They’re already up several inches and it will just need old Sol to entice them out. I’m ready!

Of course, both paintings are for sale at my Etsy shop.

Thanks for stopping by.