One morning last week when I was in the city, I was early for an appointment in the West Village so looked around for something to keep me busy for 20 minutes or so. I was about to go and poke around in a store when I noticed a tree with the marvelous looking seed pods, which reminded me of the pop beads I used to play with as a child. So out came my camera, and I had fun walking up and down the block photographing plants in their urban setting. After some research, I discovered that the tree is a Japanese Pagoda tree, Sophora japonica.
I enjoyed seeing the relationships between the organic greenery and the geometry of architecture, here with a vine spilling from the confines of an iron fence.
A much more delicate vine draws its lines simply, a curve across a curved-top barred window.
Cool green ivy reaches for a blue-topped post.
Fingers of bamboo(?) dance in front of the geometries of window and wall.
Some leaves seem tropical in their size and color, as these, reaching toward the sidewalk.
An elaborate fence surrounds a small garden with flowers still in bloom, its heavy curves contrasting with the pointed leaves behind.
It's so surprising to see this exotic brilliance on a city street....
....and the flowers emerge from these gorgeous leaves. Small gardens, in their contrast with the built environment around them, can provide as much pleasure as a large country garden.
Later that day I strolled through Manhattan's magical hanging garden, the High Line, feeling suspended between street and sky.
I love the High Line. there is just something magical about it.
ReplyDeleteI agree, Sarah; there's something about being above the street that seems far beyond the ordinary.
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