One Thing, Three Ways: Fairy Duster
Don’t get me wrong, I love an opportunity to escape the cold and visit Phoenix in the winter, but at the end of the day, I prefer green to brown, flowers to cacti. So it wasn’t much of a surprise that I immediately fell for calliandra, or fairy dusters, at the Desert Botanical Garden in Phoenix. Fairy Dusters are evergreen shrubs that thrive in sun and heat. They do well in almost any soil and are drought resistant. The shrub has fluffy, one-inch flower balls that add a pop of red or pink color to the otherwise dry, sandy landscape.
What do you think? Do you have a favorite below?
Fairy Duster Photo #1. A close up of the fairy dusty flower balls.
Fairy Duster Photo #2. A bee is busy at work in a fairy duster flower.
Fairy Duster Photo #3. Another view of a fairy duster flower, this time from above.
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I love them all, but Fairy Duster #2 is my favorite. I’m always encouraged by the sight of bees. 🙂 The rich red in that one, and the lovely textures and lines of that one, too, are very appealing. Great post!
Thanks, Lemony! Sunset was rapidly approaching when I took that and the bee wasn’t holding still for me (imagine that!?!?!) so I was excited that the shot was relatively crisp.
What an interesting flower. I like them all, but I think the bee in #2 adds interest to the photo so I would have to pick that one.
Thanks for visiting my blog and “voting”! 🙂
I’m always a sucker for bees, so #2.
I love how that bee really pops against the deep red of the fairy duster!
Love the middle one.
This time I like them all – I don’t think I can pick one!
Oops I didn’t mean it to sound like you post photos I don’t like…I just meant all 3 are great!
LOL!
I agree with you. I prefer green to brown and flowers to cacti. I’ve lived in Phoenix 25 years but still miss the green of Indiana and Kentucky.
If it helps, there’s nothing green about the Midwest yet in 2013. Brown is better than grey and snow! 🙂
This is the first time I will ever say this, but the one with the bee is my favorite! WHAT?! Yes it’s true, I actually think it’s pretty cool looking 🙂 LOL