wildflowers in the city

July 13, 2025 • 5 Comments

Apparently, my obsession with flowers got the best of me again. This time, it was a small wildflower garden near the Old Santa Fe Trail side of the PERA building in downtown Santa Fe. Knowing how hard it can be to grow a mix of flowers and have it appear to be a perfect, Impressionistic field, I was blown away by how well-tended and beautiful it is. Unfortunately, it is very possible most people won't notice it because the street is fairly narrow and it is in shade in the mornings. Having parked in the PERA parking lot on the corner of Old Santa Fe Trail and Paseo de Peralta, we walked by the wildflowers on our way downtown. They stopped us in our tracks! There it was in all its glory. A number of different colors of poppies, blue cornflowers, Santa Fe phlox, prairie coneflowers, gaillardia, wall flowers, and cosmos dominated one part of the area, while sunflowers are coming into their own on the other side. Since I majored in the poppy side, I may need to return to photograph the sunflowers sooner than later.

The first three photographs are made in such a way that pixelation gives a bit of an impressionistic look.

I find poppy flowers mesmerizing but the seed pods are also pure design. They seem to hug the flowers, as in the photographs directly above and below.

There are numerous cosmos in the small urban field and they are just coming into bloom.

Thanks to Victoria, Lluvia, Tim, Jean & Sam, Marilyn G., TTT, Steve, and Connie for commenting on last week's blog. It is always good to hear from people - near and far! I hope that everyone finds an eminently photographable surprise at some point during the coming week!

until next Monday,

a passion for the image©

Keywords: Blacks Crossing Photography, cornflowers, cosmos, Daryl A. Black, flowers, nature, New Mexico, photography, poppies, Santa Fe phlox, wildflowers

Comments

Connie Taylor(non-registered)

That wildflower garden is an astonishing feat. I would love to know the source of the seeds, soil prep, care, watering…..Your painterly capture was skilled genius. Thanks for a Monday delight.

Fred Barraza(non-registered)

Wow! Beautiful and beautifully captured.

Steve Immel(non-registered)

I like seeing the fields of wildflowers you found in downtown Santa Fe. What a lovely discovery. These are very painterly and, indeed, impressionistic. The variety in image one is astonishing! Image two is perfectly composed while appearing wild.

I love this grouping.

TTT(non-registered)

LUSH!!!! Extraordinary discovery!
Like your hollyhocks, fields like this have proven impossible to grow ‘round my house.
How many pounds of wild flower seeds have we spread - for the ants to carry away.

Daryl Black(non-registered)

Testing to see if this is working. Please let me know if you are unable to comment.

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