Every Spring, right around Easter I start to look for the Curly Lily’s and Trilliums.
They grow wild in the Parks and woodlands around Nanaimo. They were a favorite with my mother-in-law and Tom and I would take walks to find the flowers and then take Ruth to see them. As she got older and less mobile, this got harder to do as these flowers only grow in the wilder spots, especially the Curly Lily’s – her favorites!
Last weekend we took Sophie for a walk through Neck Point Park. We found many Curly Lily’s and I took pictures of the individual flowers and the small meadow pockets. I love Neck Point. Much of it used to be private land, much of it was developed and then allowed to grow wild. The cultivated plants now grow wild and blend with the wild plants that abound. There is Periwinkle in the Bay and Grape Hyacinth on the flat above the boat landing and fruit trees throughout. It is always a wonderful walk.
Curly Lily’s are difficult to photograph as the flowers all hang down from their stem. They are very pretty and very delicate – the flower is about 3 inches across and as it ages it changes colour from white to pink. They do not bloom for very long.
The Trilliums are a little easier to find than the Curly Lily’s. They carpet the floor of the woods, standing bright and glowing white between the ferns and other undergrowth. Like Curly Lily’s they change in colour from white to pink as they age, but they do bloom for a longer period of time.
We found the Trilliums at Colliery Dam Park. This is quite an extensive park with lots of woodland and two small lakes. We walked some paths that we had never tried before and wore Sophie right out!
In the park I also saw some incredible tree fungus on a tall stump. They were all sizes and colours. There was also a wonderful mushroom glowing against the foliage all around it on the ground!
Also low to the ground, right next to the path, I saw some very small, yellow flowers, they were sort of pitcher-shaped. There were only two of them, I could not find any others, and after seeing these I was looking for more! They were very pretty, but I do not know what they are!
Sophie has been enjoying these tramps through the parks – by the end of each walk she is panting and quite happy to flop down at home and sleep for while. She loves to sleep on her back with all 4 paws in the air. I love it too as I can then knit for an hour or so without her interested gaze judging when it would be best to go after my yarn.
I have just finished turning the heel of the Palm Springs Sock. This is one pattern that has turned out far better than expected. I was originally going to add a beaded lace ruffle detail below the rib, but I now think that it would detract from the whole so there will be no ruffle!
Happy Knitting
Lynette