Hidden Gem
by Bruce Bley
Title
Hidden Gem
Artist
Bruce Bley
Medium
Photograph - Photography
Description
I found this little gem of a Gerbera Daisy nestled among many others. I have a fascination with detail and lighting when I photograph flowers I like to capture some of the most intricate detail of flowers. Often times we are not aware of the little things that make up an object or in this case a flower.
Gerbera is a genus of ornamental plants from the sunflower family (Asteraceae). It was named in honour of the German botanist and naturalist Traugott Gerber (1743) who travelled extensively in Russia and was a friend of Carolus Linnaeus.
It has approximately 30 species in the wild, extending to South America, Africa and tropical Asia. The first scientific description of a Gerbera was made by J.D. Hooker in Curtis's Botanical Magazine in 1889 when he described Gerbera jamesonii, a South African species also known as Transvaal daisy or Barberton Daisy. Gerbera is also commonly known as the African Daisy.
Gerbera species bear a large capitulum with striking, two-lipped ray florets in yellow, orange, white, pink or red colours. The capitulum, which has the appearance of a single flower, is actually composed of hundreds of individual flowers. The morphology of the flowers varies depending on their position in the capitulum. The flower heads can be as small as 7 cm (Gerbera mini 'Harley') in diameter or up to 12 cm (Gerbera Golden Serena).
Gerbera is very popular and widely used as a decorative garden plant or as cut flowers. The domesticated cultivars are mostly a result of a cross between Gerbera jamesonii and another South African species Gerbera viridifolia. The cross is known as Gerbera hybrida. Thousands of cultivars exist. They vary greatly in shape and size. Colours include white, yellow, orange, red, and pink. The center of the flower is sometimes black. Often the same flower can have petals of several different colours.
Gerbera is also important commercially. It is the fifth most used cut flower in the world (after rose, carnation, chrysanthemum, and tulip). It is also used as a model organism in studying flower formation. Gerbera contains naturally occurring coumarin derivatives. Gerbera is a tender perennial plant. It is attractive to bees, butterflies and/or birds, but resistant to deer. Their soil should be kept moist but not soaked.
I hope you have enjoyed this photograph and will share it with others. You can see more of my work on my homepage in the various galleries, I have created. Thank you for visiting and please come back
Uploaded
August 9th, 2016
Statistics
Viewed 323 Times - Last Visitor from New York, NY on 03/21/2024 at 6:08 AM
Embed
Share
Sales Sheet
Comments (13)
Rainbow Artist Orlando L
Wow this is a splendid and outstanding macro capture of this gerbera daisy Bruce!! the fineness of details paired with that heavenly light created a picture that made me speechless and took my breath away!! absolutely sharing!! L/F/FB
Bruce Bley
Dan. I want to thank you for the feature in the group "Premium FAA Artists". I truly appreciate the honor and your support.
Bruce Bley
Jasna, I want to thank you for the feature in the group "Global Flowers Photography". I sincerely appreciate it.
Bruce Bley
Jenn, I am very grateful for the feature in the group "Bath and Spa Prints". I appreciate the honor and your support.
Alana Thrower
Wonderful details and colors! Amazing depth of field! Very nice! l/f/g+
Bruce Bley replied:
Thank you for the kind and gracious comment, Alana. I sincerely appreciate it and thank you for the promotion.
Bruce Bley
Nader, I am very grateful for the feature in the group "Fine Arts Professionals". Thank you for the honor.
Jean OKeeffe Macro Abundance Art
Congratulations for the feature of your artwork on the Greeting Cards For All Occasions homepage, voted!
Bruce Bley replied:
Jean, I am very grateful for the feature in the group "Greeting Cards For All Occasions". Thank you for the honor.
Randy Rosenberger
Love the beauty of this piece and the quality and care that went into its composition! It is my pleasure to PROMOTE this piece of beauty on our FEATURED ARTWORK section of the Wisconsin Flowers and Scenery group. Thanks for sharing! Liked & faved Randy B. Rosenberger (admin of WFS group)
Bruce Bley replied:
Randy, Thank you so much for the feature in the group "Wisconsin Flowers and Scenery". I sincerely appreciate the honor.