Comments on: Vacationing in the Kootenays

By: Katie Parker

Katie Parker — Wed, 18 Apr 2012 03:23:27 +0000

You have beautiful shots of flowers! I’m already getting excited with the Spring and Summer season. I love roses and I bet this summer they will look at their best. Great post!

By: Zoa

Zoa — Sat, 17 Mar 2012 13:32:04 +0000

Just came across your blog. It’s wonderful! I’m a fellow Alberta gardener, and that’s a female flower crab spider.

Here are some supermacro pictures of her from my Edmonton garden: http://www.flickr.com/photos/theairyway/sets/72157623891393668/
[img]http://www.albertahomegardening.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/crab.jpg[/img]

By: Chris Pollard

Chris Pollard — Tue, 13 Mar 2012 03:15:13 +0000

That spider, if you haven’t found out yet, is a fairly common crab spider. They actually will colour change depending on the flower they’re on. They hide inside flowers and ambush insects that get too close. Nothing too worrisome for humans though. I find them quite fascinating. They will usually stay pretty still and allow some great photos. Just discovered your website tonight, and am really enjoying it. Great stuff! Planning on trying the hoop greenhouse this spring – not just for the added growing season, but to keep the deer off my plants!! There’s an urban herd in our area that is the bane of every gardener in the area. They’re pretty and all, but a menace!

By: Jacqui MacNeill (Escents Aromatherapy Essential Oils)

Jacqui MacNeill (Escents Aromatherapy Essential Oils) — Fri, 06 Jan 2012 00:29:04 +0000

Gorgeous flower photos! Makes me look forward to spring blooms.

By: tess

tess — Sat, 06 Aug 2011 15:33:48 +0000

The pretty orange flower at top, Orange Hawkweed is one I recently noticed in places north of Edmonton and since found its on the Alberta prohibited noxious weeds list. Pretty yet considered a bad introduced species, sigh!
I photographed the same type of pretty little spider on our peonies and other flowers this spring, and always on the lip of a pedal, they must sit and wait for a meal to buzz past for pollen. Nature is amazing.

By: Karen

Karen — Fri, 15 Jul 2011 02:41:55 +0000

We live about 30 miles south of where you were. The weeds are truly gorgeous around here! Another benefit to these so-called invasive weeds is the wonderful honey that our bees make from them! Delicious!

By: MikeH

MikeH — Fri, 15 Jul 2011 01:27:10 +0000

That lily looks a bit like Lilium canadense and a lot like Lilium superbum. They’re both native to eastern North America so it probably isn’t.

If you’d like, I’ll harvest some seeds from a Lilium canadense in the wild part of our property.
[img]http://www.albertahomegardening.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/P1070129.JPG[/img]
[img]http://www.albertahomegardening.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/P1070130.JPG[/img]

By: Clayton

Clayton — Fri, 15 Jul 2011 00:22:03 +0000

Great stuff. I would love to have seeds of that lily. Very nice.

Clayton