This plant is commonly known as horned rampion - no, I do not make these names up! If you were to visit the Dolomites at high elevations, you might see it tucked close to the ground - it's only 10 cm high or so.
It is a member of the Campanulaceae, or bellflower family. Plants in this family can be found in nearly every part of the world, with the exception of tropical Africa, Antarctica and northern Greenland (source).
Most of the Campanulaceae, including Phyteuma, are herbs, but there are woody plants. Unfortunately, many woody Campanulaceae are threatened or endangered. A sad statistic is that 25% of the woody Campanulaceae once native to Hawaii are now extinct (Mabberley, The Plant-Book 2nd ed., 1997).
Tomorrow, I'll begin a five-part special series on Botany Photo of the Day.
really very good pl keep it
Ooo, pretty! Is there a place on the net where you can get seeds for that?
wow! it reminds me of a forth of july firecracker.
i'm enjoying your pics daily. i love using the photos as landscaping ideas for my yard. the only problem i'm having is the fact that you mainly have close-up photos and not photos of the whole plant. you make such great photos, i just think your site would be even more helpful if we could see a photo of each(a close-up and a full view). nonetheless, keep up the good work!!!
Daniel - I am always amazed at the increased quality and beauty of the photo [or plant] when I maximize. Today is no exception. Interesting!
palmer: I try fairly often for specimen or landscape shots, but I've nowhere near the success rate in terms of achieving photographs I'm willing to keep / share - perhaps a 95% toss rate as opposed to a 30% toss rate for the macros on a subject by subject basis. Other people have commented similarly to you, and the concern is duly noted. Maybe I'll find the right combination of equipment, timing and expertise to have a higher success rate someday.
I love the close up shots. Since my climate in Austin Texas is in no way similar to that of British Columbia - I haven't been considering any of your plants for my landscape. However, some of the plant families have suitable varieties so I may use their cousins someday.
I am strictly an amateur when it comes to photography, but what camera set up are you using for these pictures?
Charles - I've a fairly simple set-up. For almost all of the macros, I use a Canon Digital Rebel with the Canon 100mm Macro USM lens, a fairly basic tripod and often a Wimberley plamp to hold the branch steady. On occasion, I also use a small reflector. Ah, I also typically have a polarizer on the macro lens, both to cut down glare and to protect the lens surface.
Daniel,
Do you every consider using macro shots by other photographers? I focus on nature photography and am a botany enthusiast-just curious. I enjoy your work; thanks!
I have fallen in love with this flower.
To the person asking if you can buy them online, I found one site where you could, were they not sold out. Might wanna keep an eye on the site. I know I will. Here's the link - http://plants.chebucto.biz/plants/P.html
Also, to the person wanting a picture of the entire plant, if you go to that site and scroll down to Phyteuma humile, they have 2 pictures - one close-up and another of the entire plant. Simply gorgeous.