It’s true that I slipped on the ice walking on the Thumb Butte Trail (http://www.fs.usda.gov/recarea/prescott/recreation/hiking/recarea/?recid=67469&actid=50) yesterday, but mostly the weather has been mild here in central Arizona. I have had to retrieve my hiking hat from my suitcase and I am going to dig out the sunscreen.  On our hikes–more like little walks–I have been working on desert plant and geologic formation identification, However, it has come to my attention that our family and friends in the East and Midwest are freezing. Here are some flowers for January, with love:

spring, Charlottesville, Virginia

clematis, H.F. Young, Charlottesville

spring flowers, Denver Botanic Gardens

iris

peony

roses

water lily, Scenic Lake, Michigan

Rocky Mountain summer

coneflowers

morning glory, Denver Botanic Garden

Denver Botanic Gardens, 5.12.12

asters with bee

dragonflies

marigolds, Denver Botanic Gardens