Texture, Color, Spines, and Prickles

This is from my archives. Longwood Gardens is famous for its collection of waterlilies which are exhibited in an outdoor display in a small courtyard within the main conservatory. Especially eye-catching are the gigantic Victoria water-platters, a type of waterlily, with leaf pads typically reaching six feet across or larger. A Victoria water-platter may have as many as ten of these huge leaf pads at one time, spread over a large expanse of water. The leaves emerge as prickly shells, but as they open they spread out on the water's surface, revealing their smooth upper surface. I was visiting Longwood Gardens at the end of the season, as staff were removing the water-platters and other waterlilies for the winter. This large water-platter leaf was upside down on the pavement and I was struck by the many textures, patterns, and colors on the underside of this amazing leaf. Longwood Gardens, Kennett Square, Pennsylvania.

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