blue eyed mary | Beautiful Flower Pictures Blog

New Photo: Blue-Eyed Mary

by hankinslawrenceimages | Jan 14, 2012 | Flowers, Plantaginaceae Family, Wildflowers

I’ve recently added a new photo – Blue-Eyed Mary – to my Beautifulflowerpictures.com website.

When I first saw these wonderful little blue and white wildflowers – I had not clue what they were. Fortunately for me – there was a small sign that identified them as Blue-Eyed Mary (collinsia verna). It blooms only for a few days in the spring in Tennessee – but when it does bloom it’s amazing. I’ve seen patches of Blue-Eyed Mary that cover large areas under trees. So even though each individual flower is quite small – they create an unforgettable display in the spring.

This photograph is available as either at 10 X 10″ or 20 X 20″ gallery-wrapped canvas. You can order Blue-Eyed Mary from my website.

Blue-Eyed Mary – Collinsia Verna

by hankinslawrenceimages | Aug 8, 2010 | Flowers, Wildflowers

On my first visit to Reflection Riding Arboretum in Chattanooga, Tennessee, I discovered a wonderful blue and white wildflower – Blue-Eyed Mary (Collinsea Verna). I’d never seen it before. Fortunately for me, one of the trustees at Reflection Riding stopped to talk with me – and he not only identified the plant as Blue-Eyed Mary, but let me know I was very lucky to be seeing it. It only blooms for a short time in Tennessee, and when I returned to Reflection Riding ten days later, I didn’t see any Blue-Eyed Mary. This was a case of being in the right place at the right time to discover a new wildflower.

Blue-Eyed Mary is a member of the Scrophulariaceae or Figwort family. It is native to North America, found in New York, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Virginia, Michigan, Illinois, Indiana, Ohis, Kentucky, Tennessee, Wisconsin, Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, Oklahoma and Kansas in the United States. It is also found in Ontario Canada. It is listed as an endangered plant in Tennessee and New York. The genus collinsia are named after Zaccheus Collins (1764-1831), a botanist and Vice President of the Philadelphia Academy of Natural Sciences. The species name verna comes from the Latin for spring.

Blue-Eyed Mary’s grow on a single stalk to about 18″ tall. The flowers are blue and white – with 2 white upper lobes and 3 lower lobes (2 blue, 1 white). The flowers are less than an inch wide. They are one of the few truly blue wildflowers I’ve seen.

Blue-Eyed Mary grows best in dappled sunlight to light shade. It frequently grows in low woods and along streambanks. Depending on where you find it, Blue-Eyed Mary blooms from April through June.

Blue-Eyed Mary is a wonderful spring wildflower. I’m really glad I had a chance to see and photograph it on my visit to Reflection Riding Arboretum

For more information about Blue-Eyed Mary, here are some sites with additional info

USDA Plant Profiles

Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center

Tennessee Wildflowers I

by hankinslawrenceimages | Apr 20, 2010 | Flowers, Photo Locations, Wildflowers

I’m having a fantastic time photographing wildflowers here in Tennessee. I’ve been posting some of my photos an album on my Facebook Fan Page for my flower photography and wanted to share some of them with people who read my blog.

I took this set of wildflower photos at Reflection Riding Arboretum in Chattanooga – which is an absolutely amazing place to see spring wildflowers. This was my first visit – it definitely won’t be my last. I’m already trying to figure out how to get back there for another visit on this trip.

Blue Eyed Mary – Collinsia verna Nutt.

Shooting Stars – Dodecatheon meadia

An orange and yellow azalea bush – don’t know the variety but it is certainly spectacular!

Spring Beauty – Claytonia caroliniana

Blue Phlox – Phlox divaricata

Wild Columbine – Aquilegia canadensis

I’ve had a few wonderful days photographing the spring wildflowers. Next up is the Spring Wildflower Pilgrimage where I’ll be selling my photographs at the Exhibit Hall in the Mills Conference Center. Followed by several more days of wildflower photography before I head home.

I’ll continue posting photos to the album on Facebook and will try to get another blog post or two up while I’m on the road. If you’re on Facebook and would like to see my photos as I post them, I’d like to invite you to become a fan of my flower photography on Facebook.