The Northwest certainly isn't the only part of the world in which rhododendrons grow (the middle stretch of the Appalachians, I understand, has some particularly nice groves), but they do seem to disproportionately common in gardens here. Presumably this is because our climate mirrors that of the Himalayan foothills where the greatest diversity of wild species occurs; whatever the reason, rhododendron blooms are perhaps the most spectacular symbol of spring in this part of the world (a fact that Washington has recognized by declaring a native species, Rhododendron macrophyllum, the state flower). On the premise that there are few better subjects out there on which to test my "new" camera's macro function, I spent an hour or so today in the gardens at Eugene's Hendricks Park photographing rhododendrons. The result is the slideshow below (which also includes shots from my trip to Seattle a couple of weeks ago); I'm no Ansel Adams, but if you've had a hard time believing that spring has actually arrived, I hope these photos do their part to get you in the spirit.
2 comments:
Gorgeous. No music?
P.S. I'm going to OSU this fall. We're set to be rivals!
hello from a completely random person out in the world of the internet
i'm looking into what type of place it is in eugene oregon and somehow i've stumbled upon your various blogs. firstly, nice blogs; interesting cross-section of ideas. i haven't read much about paleontology since labelling dinosaur models at a kid's toy store, but it's nice to know some of those kids grow up and retain their interest.
secondly, since you appear to be familiar and pleased with the pacific northwest, if you feel up to expounding further upon the various aspects of life around eugene i'd appreciate hearing them as i'm toying with the idea of applying for a job that is on the opposite end of the continent and in a different country, which would be a large move without a somewhat educated view.
should you have any pro/con type stuff in your brain let me know.
cheers,
kate
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