@Karmajingpa @IPEdmonton I felt the same about #ArtAdventCalendar! I hadn't participated in anything like it before and, not only did I enjoy it, I really miss it now that it's over.

Portulaca pilosa (a member of the purslane family) is a succulent native to the Americas. It is a diminutive plant you could easily miss, particularly when it isn’t flowering.

#januaryjoy #flowers #flower #flowerphotography #artadventcalendar #Nature #photography #gardening #nativeplants

Southerners may recognize this plant and all it portends. Gelsemium sempervirens (Carolina Jasmine) is a sure sign that Spring is just around the bend. This is the first bud I’ve seen, but soon woodsy spots all over the South will be lit up with their bright yellow blossoms.

#januaryjoy #flowers #flower #flowerphotography #artadventcalendar #Nature #photography #gardening #wildflowers #nativeplants #spring

The skeletal remains of a daylily gone to seed, holding all the promise of Spring in a humble unassuming package.

#januaryjoy #flowers #flower #flowerphotography #artadventcalendar #Nature #photography #gardening

Been thinking this was a dandelion… apparently that assumption is so common it’s called “false dandelion.”It’s actually Pyrrhopappus carolinianus, or Carolina Desert Chicory, but I read that it is edible like its more famous doppelgänger. I will try to sample some young leaves this Spring.
#januaryjoy #flowers #flower #flowerphotography #artadventcalendar #Nature #photography #gardening #wildflowers #nativeplants

A bearded iris from April of last year, another transplant from my dad’s yard. I’m hopeful it will bloom again this year. With perennials, Spring is like one big long Christmas morning… filled with anticipation and surprise.

#januaryjoy #flowers #flower #flowerphotography #artadventcalendar #Nature #photography #gardening

This morning glory (Ipomoea lacunosa - less common purple form) is a volunteer plant that shows up in one of our flower beds every year like clockwork. I like all the big showy pretties we can get from nurseries, but I also like to let native plants do their thing. Besides adding visual interest, making space for native plants is important for our environment and its inhabitants.
#januaryjoy #flowers #flower #flowerphotography #artadventcalendar #Nature #photography #gardening #environment

Daylilies are magnificent performers, with bloom after bloom day after day, asking precious little in return. I’m hoping to bring more into my garden this year.
#januaryjoy #flowers #flower #flowerphotography #artadventcalendar #Nature #photography #gardening

These lovely daisies were supposed to be perennial. Alas, they never returned. Quite beautiful while they lasted, though.

#januaryjoy #flowers #flower #flowerphotography #artadventcalendar #Nature #photography #gardening

This is from a tiny strip of dirt in front of my local library in October. The zinnias they planted attracted many gulf fritillaries. Within a week, we had our first frost. I assume the fritillaries had already migrated farther south by then. And the choice of a librarian to plant some seeds in a little bit of dirt in late summer may have made all the difference in their journey. #januaryjoy #flowers #flower #flowerphotography #artadventcalendar #Nature #photography #gardening #butterflies

Gardening is a meditative hobby. You plant things in the ground and hope they grow and become beautiful, maybe even nourish you. But no matter what effort you devote, sometimes nature doesn’t cooperate. Other times, you get busy and forget about that perennial you planted and find it blooming in spite of (maybe even because of) your neglect. Ultimately, it’s a practice in radical acceptance.

#januaryjoy #flowers #flower #flowerphotography #artadventcalendar #Nature #photography #gardening

I transplanted these daylilies and various other plants from my grandmother’s and father’s garden to my own a couple of years ago. Though they have both passed on and the house they owned was sold, the plants they spent time planting and nurturing live on, bringing joy years later.

#januaryjoy #flowers #flower #flowerphotography #artadventcalendar #Nature #photography

I purchased this orchid in 2016 or 2017. After I brought it home and its flowers faded, it didn’t bloom again. In 2019, a few months after my dad died (I was his sole family caregiver in hospice), it bloomed. It hasn’t bloomed since. I’m not one for magical thinking, but ya know. #januaryjoy #flowers #flower #flowerphotography #artadventcalendar #Nature #photography #grief

@lisatrombitas Glad to see this, Lisa. Participating in #artadventcalendar really boosted my creativity! Welcome, and enjoy! I look forward to seeing your pics.

Ok fedi friends, I’m going to try and be creative in 2023. I’m creating (?) #art365 for myself, feel free to like/engage/join in/ boost. I intend to add an image a day for the whole year, things I’ve captured and like. There may be themes, or not- I’m going with the flow. I’m starting with one of the best received images form the #ArtAdventCalendar - sea glass in Fife. #art #photography #fife #beach #seaglass

Wild blueberries and wildflowers gathered by my then wee ones and myself all the way back in 2015. Rural life is rich with beauty. #januaryjoy #flowers #flower #flowerphotography #artadventcalendar #Nature #photography

It's day 31 and the last day of the year. For my final #ArtAdventCalendar extra, I have one of my all time favorite #acrylic pours:
"Dragon Drop" on 40x40cm canvas.

Permalink: https://kittenme.ws/art/gallery/134

I wish you all who celebrate the best new year!

My #ArtAdventCalendar extra for day 30. One more door for me to open.

For this one, I have an older acrylic pour of mine, on 40x30cm canvas:
"The Badlands" and I don't recommending flying through them!

Permalink: https://kittenme.ws/art/gallery/70

Now that ##ArtAdventCalendar is over can anyone recommend #'s to follow for more daily beauty?

For day 29 of #ArtAdventCalendar extra time I have a brand new #art to share:

"Blue Feather Plant", an acrylic glaze on an acrylic pour on 50x20cm canvas.

Permalink: https://kittenme.ws/art/gallery/207