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Saturday, December 4, 2010

Purple Ragwort (Senecio arenarius)








I am painting the last of the purple ragwort flowers of the season! Because I water my garden twice a week some of them survived a bit longer than they would in the field.

Ragwort make a wonderful display in springtime, colouring the fields around us to a purple landscape. The flowers are pretty but poisonous to humans and livestock as it is said to affect the liver. Yet my beloved voles, which I painted a few months ago, are vegetarians and find ragwort such a treat. It is just too cute to see the flowers in those little hand-like paws! I have found that if you move past a window or stir a curtain the voles are gone! They are extremely sensitive. Maybe the early morning sun blinded them a little this morning, so I stood behind the glass and got the photos I have been yearning for. I hope to invest in a telephoto lens for my camera, to catch some better shots in future. In the meantime I present Mr and Mrs Vole eating their purple ragwort breakfast.

I also paint these purple flowers to celebrate my brand-new purple blogspot : French Belles by Marie Theron. (http://frenchbelles.blogspot.com/) Be sure to visit this blog and see me having fun with small paintings and fashion!

10 comments:

  1. Very nice post. I love your little story and all your illustrations. I don't think we have this flower. I first thought it was asters, but it isn't. I can see you have help keeping your plants pruned!

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  2. Such lovely flowers, and those little voles are so cute! It must be spectacular when the fields have turned this wonderful violet.
    Sometimes I think that I have two, maybe three sides to my artist personality. I'm glad I'm not the only one! I love the style and theme of your new blog and I will take a closer look when I have more time. You and I are alike...city girl and country girl all in one:-)

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  3. Susan, I thought as first: but wow, I do my own trimming! Then I realized what you meant and had such a giggle! Before I saw this, I wondered about the picked flowers lying around the paving some mornings!

    Thank you Catherine! I have also commented on your work which is often in my thoughts. I sense something conceptual behind your scenes. And about the double life, you are so right! I find that I work across more than one style of art as well!

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  4. Hi Marie, So nice. I like the variation of colors you used and your composition is so interesting. I just love purple flowers and it must be such a treat to see them blooming everywhere.

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  5. What pretty flowers, and your sweet little voles have such good taste! Mine like to nibble on my ripe tomatoes in the summer...

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  6. It is always gratifying to grow flowers and still more satisfying to paint them... spirited job Marie!

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  7. Ragwort IS a horrible name for such a pretty flower. (: Another lovely post, Marie! Keep 'em coming.

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  8. Hi Barbara, thank you for commenting on my painting. For the background I crushed down mixed greens with crumpled paper....those things we do when painting the foliage is a daunting task!

    Thank you Claire, we are not supposed to feed wildlife, but now that I have read your comment, I make "accidentally" put a few tomato seeds in the soil for them! What a lovely salad the'll have: purple ragwort and tiny red tomatoes!

    You are right, padmaja! Maybe I should give more attention to flowers!

    Cathyann, yes, I love critters that do not try to enter the house like these shy ones!

    Diane and Cathyann, about that name!!! To me 'ragwort'sounds like those old-fashioned herbs and poisons. The name ragwort fits well with belladonna, arsenic, etc!!!

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  9. NOW I recognise the plant, have some in my garden, but it doesn't flower as well as yours at all Marie! Great shots of the little Voles, they are beautiful!

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