Vine Maple Flower

I didn't have to go far to find this, as we have a vine maple in our backyard. I was tempted by the just-opening blossoms on our dwarf apple tree, but thought this western North America native might be of more interest.

Vine maple most commonly grows as a large shrub (5-7 metres / 16-26 feet tall) in the forest understory below much larger trees. Ours is about 12 feet tall, and we like its open shape and hardiness, as well as the pretty flowers, seen here, with a dark red calyx and five short, greenish- yellow petals.

This blip for Flower Friday was a rehearsal for me being away from my iMac, using my iPad instead on which to download photos (taken with my trusty little Olympus XZ-1 today) and post this journal entry. We're going to Seattle on Monday to stay at a hotel near the airport, as we're leaving just after 8 a.m. on Tuesday for North Carolina to visit my cousin L and her husband B. It will be great to see them again, and to be in a different part of this big country -- three time zones ahead of us -- and see what spring looks like there.

I'm likely to be back-blipping, and there won't be much time for commenting, but I'll catch up with you when we return.

P.S. If you'd like to see where we had supper this evening, Phil's posted a lovely photo here. It's not every day you see canoes in a pub!