Hints of Autumn: Higanbana

Posted by GJC (Kyoto (京都), Japan) on 28 September 2009 in Plant & Nature.

The blooming of the spider lily (or "higanbana"; 彼岸花) alongside the rice fields is always a sure sign that autumn is soon on the way. According to custom, however, these beautiful flowers must not be cut and brought inside, for they will invite fire.

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Comments (15)

Japanalia from Yokohama, Japan

I did not know the story of the higanbana.....and how nice to find them by the rice fields! I like the rich colours here and the company of gold, green and red!

28 Sep 2009 9:52am

Eric Cousineau from Sherwood Park, Canada

Beautiful contrasting colours in this shot! Well seen and captured. ;-)

28 Sep 2009 11:21am

Barbara Kile from Ft. Worth, United States

I love the contrasts here. I would like to see you get in closer! The reds against the neutral tones are very nice.

28 Sep 2009 11:21am

Ajay from Pune, India

Amazing how beautiful flower don't discriminate and will grow anywhere.

28 Sep 2009 2:30pm

Veronique from Sarrouilles, France

very strong red on the gold

28 Sep 2009 2:35pm

Kurt from San Francisco, United States

Great shot -- and again, I love the story behind the image.

28 Sep 2009 2:58pm

Howard F. from South Pasadena, Calif., United States

That's smart farming technique right there. Beautiful colors.

28 Sep 2009 6:07pm

Batkoï from Salon de Provence, France

nice composition and colors

28 Sep 2009 7:56pm

daina from New York, United States

Lovely and decorative and wonderfully contained within the square format. The square format always grounds an image I think, and in this case it balances the yellow/green with the red and neither one is overwhelmed by the other.

28 Sep 2009 9:49pm

Steve Rice from Olympia, United States

They are quite fiery right where they are. This is a gorgeous composition.

29 Sep 2009 2:55am

Helly from Sydney, Australia

Very interesting, and they do look like they'll invite fire :P

29 Sep 2009 10:58am

cat from Tel Aviv, Israel

They do look fiery! How striking they must look against the green of the rice fields. It's nice to see nature's signs of the changing seasons. And is that the rice, those little grain like things on the grass-like stalks?

29 Sep 2009 3:29pm