thorny.
spiny.
ouch!
barbed.
nature's prickly backyard things.
BUT FIRST...
a month or so ago, i tried to make reservations at ANY north florida state park campground...
for thanksgiving weekend. but no luck. no availability.
so i took the FIRST weekend we could get...at ANY park.
and that turned out to be THIS weekend...at Paynes Prairie State Park...
our hometown park! ha!
well, it's one step up from camping in our own backyard, like we did last weekend!
Paynes Prairie is cool though. LOTS of trails...a lake...maybe 'gator, wild horses and bison sightings!
the weather is perfect for hiking & sleeping...
30's to 40's at night, and up into the 70's during the day!
so, i thought i'd finally get around to some of the more prickly things in nature..
since my next post will be pictures from this weekend.
so...stand back! please don't touch!
some of these are BARBED...like mini arrows...they go in easily...but a bitch to pull out!
"It's a magical world, Hobbes, Ol' Buddy...let's go exploring!"
Calvin's last words,12/31/95 (Calvin & Hobbes)
a good start would be the prickly pear cactus.
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| prickly pear cactus |
which gets a beautiful yellow flower
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| dried cherokee rose vine |
such a pretty flower...has such mean thorns.
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| cherokee rose |
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| fresh cherokee vine |
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| a canopy of dried wild blackberry vines |
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| blackberry vine |
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| bromeliad leaf |
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| bromeliad...before the flower opens |
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| a bromeliad flower |
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| the arrowhead spider... |
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| crown of thorns |
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| 'crown of thorns' flowers |
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| american holly |
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| another cactus |
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| beggarticks |
these little weed flowers are called beggarticks because they just BEG for a ride.
they stick to your shoes...clothes...pets...and therefore hitch a ride to new locations.
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| beggartick flowers |
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| kumquat thorns |
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| the little kumquats. yum! |
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| agave |
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| a crab spider |
i'm not sure what kind of tree this is. it's a small spindly one...with MAJOR thorns!
for some unknown reason when i look at these thorns...
poison darts come to mind.
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| thistle |
the thistle grows along the sides of the road...in fields...and is VERY hairy & prickly!!
sand spurs are a BIG OUCH! once on your shoes...clothes...you just about need pliers to pull them off.
they're 'barbed', and if you try to pull them off with your fingers...
well, expect to get them stuck on your finger tips!
sam...having spent a good part of his life in southern florida...knows all too well
the misery of running barefoot through the grass...or sand dunes...
and all of a sudden finding yourself on a patch of these little suckers!
sand dunes. the beach. the water's edge. you can find this there...
i know...i know...this is supposed to be BACKYARD prickly things.
but i picked up this dead horseshoe crab a few years ago...
from the small coastal town 'Horseshoe Beach'. what a fitting name.
i guess i could go on and on...
but i have to run to the store to pick up some supplies for this weekend.
i also have a massage appointment late this morning.
sam's getting off work early so we can pack up...
and head across town...(ha!) with milo...the camping cat!
so my LAST prickly picture is BARBED WIRE!
when sam first moved here...
he would unfortunately find some of this rusty old wire while mowing.
we have a pile of it...along with all our other JUNK...
like parts of old mowers, wood, brick, pvc, old leaky hoses, fence wire, roof stuff, tires...
and an exercise bike that HAS TO BE the first (electric!) one ever made!!
that is the BIGGEST seat i've ever seen...
i can't help but sing Queen's "Fat Bottomed Girls"...
yeah! Get on your bike and ride!
adjustment slide from 100 to 300 pounds
oOo
hopefully i'll get some nice pic's this weekend.
YOU have a good one. a safe one.
hopefully monday i can catch up on some of my reading!
the world is mud-luscious and puddle-wonderful.
~e.e. cummings
laura
(i have tried & tried to get this yin-yang on my sidebar! but it won't animate. so here it is!)
(signing off at 8:47am and the temp is still 45 degrees F)
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| pine cone |
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| an unknown caterpillar with stinging hairs |
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| sand spurs |
they're 'barbed', and if you try to pull them off with your fingers...
well, expect to get them stuck on your finger tips!
sam...having spent a good part of his life in southern florida...knows all too well
the misery of running barefoot through the grass...or sand dunes...
and all of a sudden finding yourself on a patch of these little suckers!
sand dunes. the beach. the water's edge. you can find this there...
 |
| horseshoe crab |
but i picked up this dead horseshoe crab a few years ago...
from the small coastal town 'Horseshoe Beach'. what a fitting name.
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| the pointy leaves of the yucca plant |
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| this florida wild flower plant is called 'tread softly'...with it's stinging little hairs |
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| a vine of unknown origin |
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| another small cactus. i really like succulents! |
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| the palmetto. very pointy. very sharp. |
i guess i could go on and on...
but i have to run to the store to pick up some supplies for this weekend.
i also have a massage appointment late this morning.
sam's getting off work early so we can pack up...
and head across town...(ha!) with milo...the camping cat!
so my LAST prickly picture is BARBED WIRE!
when sam first moved here...
he would unfortunately find some of this rusty old wire while mowing.
we have a pile of it...along with all our other JUNK...
like parts of old mowers, wood, brick, pvc, old leaky hoses, fence wire, roof stuff, tires...
and an exercise bike that HAS TO BE the first (electric!) one ever made!!
that is the BIGGEST seat i've ever seen...
i can't help but sing Queen's "Fat Bottomed Girls"...
yeah! Get on your bike and ride!
oOo
hopefully i'll get some nice pic's this weekend.
YOU have a good one. a safe one.
hopefully monday i can catch up on some of my reading!
the world is mud-luscious and puddle-wonderful.
~e.e. cummings
laura
(i have tried & tried to get this yin-yang on my sidebar! but it won't animate. so here it is!)
(signing off at 8:47am and the temp is still 45 degrees F)
I am hoping the crab spider doesn't get loose and make his way into my computer! Scary, but cute too...funny how they can be so darn pretty isn't it?! All your photos again just the best tour of any ...almost like really being there, that's so cool! But oh my goodness the wild blackberry vines, those would be horrible to fall into! Oh my...and I have to say the bromeliad was it, that flower looks like it could be related to the Bird of Paradise flower.....I am a big fan of camping myself, but we have a long time before we can do that again....I am not a fan of winter camping around here...not at all! Hope your weekend camping or not camping is wonderful!
ReplyDeleteMan! You have the creepiest spiders!! I was fascinated by all the things with spines, thorns, stickers, points, daggers, and sharp parts. I forget the time when I get lost in one of your posts!
ReplyDeleteHave a really great time. Be sure and get some pictures of Milo the camping cat, too, please. ;)
I get the point !!!..great photos as ever ......have a smooth weekends camping ...xx
ReplyDeleteyou live in a dangerous world there! we have the prickly pear and a few of those thorny things that invate the trees. love your cherokee roses! so pretty!
ReplyDeleteouch oh and -3 here last night brrrrr. happy camping!
ReplyDeleteSuch an interesting post. I have a number of the same plants in my garden. That old exercise bike might be worth something. Or, you could use itas a garden feature. Enjoy your weekend away from home.
ReplyDeleteyou've captured some wonderful shots here Laura
ReplyDeletenot a fan of spiders, but the arrowhead and crab ones are quite pretty, look like little xmas candies
enjoy your weekend at the state park
Now you kow I loved EVERYTHING until I got to those darn spiders!!! In fact, when the Prez brought my Crown of Thorns from VA, the tippy top got frost bite in the truck against the roof. It's been snipped and seems to be happy in it's new home! Have fun camping...oh and bundle up...just in case...:)JP
ReplyDeleteYou have some crazy looking spiders. I've never seen anything like either of the ones you pictured. The cherokee rose has some evil looking thorns, but the flowers sure are pretty1
ReplyDeleteWow, so many different kinds of thorns. I love the flowers, they are all gorgeous. The spiders are cool but new to me. Wonderful post and i enjoyed all the photos. I hope you have a wonderful camping trip. Looking forward to those post and pic's too. Have a great weekend!
ReplyDeleteA prickly post for sure! But you have the prettiest wildflowers and succulents ever. Imagine the Bromeliad in the wild! We have to buy them around here, and they only bloom once I'm told. I've been given them before, and in captivity of a 'dusty' house, they don't bloom again. I have raised 'mother-in-law' tongue outdoors and it did quite well. I guess I could try bromeliad outdoors and take it in during winter months.
ReplyDeleteEven tho I'm not a spider fan, you've found some cool ones. They're so colorful! 'Arrowhead spider'...it is cool looking!
So glad to see you, I'm busy with print projects...Christmas cards, membership flyers for mom's herb club, yadda yadda! Hope you're camping trip yields a fun haul. Take Care Laura!
Love those spiders! The ones you show here are particular showy - wow! I do think there are "prickly things" that grow everywhere, if one really looks, but your part of the world seems to have an abundance of the BIG, fearsome-looking ones. The tree you weren't sure of, by the leaves looks to be of the locust family (maybe honeylocust??). Camping in our part of the country (W. WA.) has become a challenge, too,& we need to plan well ahead to get a spot... in some cases, a whole year! I do think some of this is the economy, with people choosing less-expensive, closer to home places. Hope your weekend was restful, reviving, and recreational, to boot!
ReplyDeleteThanks everyone! glad you could stop by...but even gladder (i don't think that's a word...well, it is now!) that you didn't get pricked by any of the thorns!!
ReplyDeletehad a great weekend camping...next post...pic's. got too much (blog) reading to catch up on...see you in your part of the world later today! :)lk
that is a lot of prickly things! wow
ReplyDeleteand those two spiders are trippy to see. fun to see your world through your lens and heart.
Who would've thought that thorns could not only be interesting, but photograph so well! But those spiders are awesomest! I have never seen ones like that... Thanks for bringing them into my life!
ReplyDeleteYeah, but those big seats were so comfortable!
ReplyDeleteLoved this post! Of course, I am out here where everything is like that.
Hey...how about a request for fuzzy things, like Wooly Lambs Ear [Stachys byzantina] and stuff like that!
I don't get anything fuzzy out here other than the rabbits and they won't stay still!
xx
Things that poke! I'm all TOO familiar with them here. ;-)
ReplyDeletenice collection of shots.
thanks for stopping by & leaving a note...Tammie, meggs/calling ravens, Nadya, Erika Jean! thank goodness no one got poked...no emergencies in the prickly forest!!
ReplyDeletemeggs! i'll keep my eyes open for FUzzY things!! BUT...there may not be too many fuzzies until after the cooler weather has moved on to spring...
THANK YOU!! :)