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posted: April 30th, 2014 |
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This page begins with April 17th, and Kazuya's 2nd trip by himself to the Takamizu 3 Mountains Area to check on the Viola x taradakensis var. eizalacea - it was at its peak! Then we jump to April 19th and a trip to the Kawaguchi Lake area on a Violets hunting expedition. Click on any thumbnail to begin.
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| Begin April 17th |
We showed you the first photo of Viola x taradakensis var. eizalacea back on Page 2, Row 9 - taken on April 12th. Then on the 13th Kazuya returned to its location and we showed you a few more photos of it on Page 2 in Rows 14 & 15. Now, on April 17th Kazuya returned to its location once again and it was at its peak of blooming, as you will see in the first 5 rows of this page. Sorry that there are so many photos, we hope that you can appreciate all of them with the knowledge that these are possibly the best photos you will ever see of this Viola x taradakensis var. eizalacea. In all of the years we've been coming to its location we have never seen it at such a peak of flowering. It does not even have flowers every year, we have come here in more than one year and found no flowers at all. So, anyway, enjoy!
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 Apr17th_Takamizu3Mts023_ ViolaXTaradakensisVarEizalaceaRC |
 Apr17th_Takamizu3Mts010_Viola XTaradakensisVarEizalaceaCropRC |
 Apr17th_Takamizu3Mts029_ ViolaXTaradakensisVarEizalaceaRC |
Here are 3 more of the best shots of Viola x taradakensis var. eizalacea.
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 Apr17th_Takamizu3Mts031_ ViolaXTaradakensisVarEizalaceaRC |
 Apr17th_Takamizu3Mts032_ ViolaXTaradakensisVarEizalaceaRC |
 Apr17th_Takamizu3Mts041_ ViolaXTaradakensisVarEizalaceaCropRC |
And here are 3 additional shots of Viola x taradakensis var. eizalacea. The first photo has part of it "radial blurred" to prevent people from being able to see more of the background and possibly identify this location as more than merely the "Takamizu 3 Mountains Area". Notice all of the acorns in the photos for scale.
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 Apr17th_Takamizu3Mts048_ ViolaXTaradakensisVarEizalaceaRC |
 Apr17th_Takamizu3Mts060_ ViolaXTaradakensisVarEizalaceaRC |
 Apr17th_Takamizu3Mts067_ ViolaXTaradakensisVarEizalaceaRC |
Two more shots of Viola x taradakensis var. eizalacea, the first one again partially "radial blurred" for the same reason as above.
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 Apr17th_Takamizu3Mts069_Viola XTaradakensisVarEizalacea_CropRC |
 Apr17th_Takamizu3Mts093_ ViolaXTaradakensisVarEizalaceaRC |
Here are the final 2 shots of Viola x taradakensis var. eizalacea. The first shot is amazing. The 2nd image shows 2 separate flower photos which show that the flowers on one of the plants have hairy centers and the flowers on one of the other plants does not have hairy centers. These 2 plants are just a few centimeters apart.
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 Apr17th_Takamizu3Mts098_ ViolaXTaradakensisVarEizalaceaRC |
 TN_Apr17th_Takamizu3Mts010_081_ ViolaXTaradakensisVarEizalaceaRC.JPG |
On this date Kazuya also returned to the spot where we found the Viola x pseudo-makinoi f. concolor which we showed you on Page 2 in Rows 11 & 12. You can see that even more flowers are open now than there were back on April 12th.
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 Apr17th_Takamizu3Mts159_Viola XPseudo-makinoiFConcolorRC |
 Apr17th_Takamizu3Mts162_Viola XPseudo-makinoiFConcolorRC |
| End April 17th, Begin April 19th |
On April 19th we took a day trip all the way to Kawaguchi Lake and then took an hour long bus ride to the "Boundary Bus Stop" (the boundary between Yamanashi and Shizuoka Prefectures. We were specifically in search of Viola x savatieri - The Okutama Violet. We found it here back in 2012, but it was past its peak of flowering that year, so we came earlier this year with high hopes. As you can see in this row, we found Viola orientalis - a yellow violet. This is easy to find here in one specific annually burned-over field.
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 Apr19_03_BoundaryBus Stop_Viola_orientalisRC |
 Apr19th_AsagiriKougen 001_ViolaOrientalisRC |
 Apr19th_AsagiriKougen 005_ViolaOrientalisRC |
Here are 2 more shots of Viola orientalis and a shot of the highway to show you what the weather was like. Rather foggy, but no rain, at least not yet!
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 Apr19_10_BoundaryBus Stop_Viola_orientalisRC |
 Apr19th_AsagiriKougen 018_ViolaOrientalisRC |
 Apr19th_Asagiri Kougen036RC |
The first shot here shows Kazuya actively hunting for violets. The 2nd shot shows the field we are searching. The 3rd shot shows a Viola tokubuchiana var. takedana f. variegata.
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 Apr19_20_BoundaryBusStop _Viola_orientalis_AreaRC |
 Apr19_21_BoundaryBusStop _Viola_orientalis_AreaRC |
 Apr19_22_BoundaryBusStop_Viola_ tokubuchiana_var_takedana_f_variegataRC |
The first shot in this row is also a Viola tokubuchiana var. takedana f. variegata. After that are 2 shots of what we came here in search of - Viola x savatieri - The Okutama Violet. And, the flowers are perfect, unlike back in 2012 when they were past their peak.
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 Apr19th_AsagiriKougen063_Viola TokubuchianaVarTakedanaFVariegataRC |
 Apr19th_AsagiriKougen 068_ViolaXSavatieriRC |
 Apr19_34_BoundaryBus Stop_Viola_x_savatieriRC |
Here are 3 more shots of Viola x savatieri - The Okutama Violet. Seeing as this is the violet we came here in search of, you should expect to see several more photos of it. Note the photo numbers - the 3rd shot is already Kazuya's 90th photo of the day (90th one which he kept).
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 Apr19th_AsagiriKougen 070_ViolaXSavatieriRC |
 Apr19th_AsagiriKougen 083_ViolaXSavatieriRC |
 Apr19th_AsagiriKougen 090_ViolaXSavatieriRC |
And 3 more shots of Viola x savatieri - The Okutama Violet. The first one is an overview shot. The center shot has been rather tightly cropped.
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 Apr19th_AsagiriKougen 101_ViolaXSavatieriRC |
 Apr19th_AsagiriKougen 107_ViolaXSavatieriRC |
 Apr19th_AsagiriKougen 113_ViolaXSavatieriRC |
Here are an additional 3 shots and again the center one has been rather tightly cropped.
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 Apr19th_AsagiriKougen 119_ViolaXSavatieriRC |
 Apr19th_AsagiriKougen 120_ViolaXSavatieriRC |
 Apr19_44_BoundaryBus Stop_Viola_x_savatieriRC |
And 3 more shots of Viola x savatieri - The Okutama Violet.
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 Apr19_52_BoundaryBus Stop_Viola_x_savatieriRC |
 Apr19_50_BoundaryBus Stop_Viola_x_savatieriRC |
 Apr19_55_BoundaryBus Stop_Viola_x_savatieriRC |
Here are the final 2 shots of Viola x savatieri - The Okutama Violet for this year, and possibly for a couple more years as we don't make it out here every year. The 3rd shot was a new find for us. We had never seen this violet before - Viola tokaiensis. Kazuya is quite sure that he has seen the leaves of it before, but never with flowers. And, by the way, it's now raining on us, but only lightly.
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 Apr19th_AsagiriKougen 179_ViolaXSavatieriRC |
 Apr19th_Asagiri Kougen231RC |
 Apr19th_AsagiriKougen 193_ViolaTokaiensisRC |
Seeing as this Viola tokaiensis is a new addition to our Violets "Life List" you should also expect to see several photos if it. We only found a very few plants of it. This area is so incredibly diverse ecologically - there are oak trees, chestnut trees, magnolia trees, cedar trees, spruce trees, true fir trees and more in this area of Mt. Fuji Lava fields. This is quite an interesting area for its ecological diversity. We should visit here in mid-summer at some point to see it.
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 Apr19_58_BoundaryBus Stop_Viola_tokaiensisRC |
 Apr19th_AsagiriKougen 194_ViolaTokaiensisRC |
 Apr19th_AsagiriKougen 202_ViolaTokaiensisRC |
We were amazed at how tiny this Viola tokaiensis is. In these 3 photos we have given you common objects which you can use for scale. In the 1st and 3rd photos is a common toothpick and in the center photo is a ¥1 coin, which is 20.3 mm (0.8 inches) in diameter. This photo is so cute because it shows that the entire plant is about the size of a ¥1 coin!
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 Apr19_62_BoundaryBus Stop_Viola_tokaiensisRC |
 Apr19th_AsagiriKougen 206_ViolaTokaiensisRC |
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Here is another photo with a toothpick for scale and a different plant with a ¥1 coin for scale. In the 3rd photo you must use the forest litter for scale.
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 Apr19_64_BoundaryBus Stop_Viola_tokaiensisRC |
 Apr19th_AsagiriKougen 211_ViolaTokaiensisRC |
 Apr19_67_68_69_BoundaryBus Stop_Viola_tokaiensis_TMDERC |
Here are 3 more images, but 4 photos of Viola tokaiensis. "Huh?" you ask? Well, the center image is a 3 shot Tone-mapped image (Photomatix Pro - Details Enhancer Option) and the 3rd photo (#75) is one of the photos which was used to create the center image.
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 Apr19th_AsagiriKougen 223_ViolaTokaiensisRC |
 Apr19_73_74_75_BoundaryBus Stop_Viola_tokaiensis_TMDERC1 |
 Apr19_75_BoundaryBus Stop_Viola_tokaiensisRC |
The first image in this row is the same as the center image of the previous row, but it has an addition. The center image is only the flower of Viola tokaiensis - full size from the photo. Of course this is not the actual size of the flower - you already saw a photo with a common toothpick for scale, so you know that you are being given a rare chance to see this flower here in MUCH bigger than life-size. The 3rd shot is another with a toothpick for scale. We hope that you enjoyed this adventure as much as we did. Despite the not so nice weather we enjoyed ourselves because we were able to find both what we were searching for - and at its peak of blooming - plus a new addition to our life list! The first photo of the day was taken at 10:34 AM and the final one at 1:20 PM. The center photo in Row 15 was actually the final one of the day. We were able to get to the bus stop in time to catch the 1:59 PM bus and we were able to get a train at Kawaguchi Lake Station at 4:00 PM bound for home. We finally arrived home at about 7:00 PM. |
 Apr19_73_74_75_BoundaryBus Stop_Viola_tokaiensis_TMDERCRC |
 Apr19_73_74_75_BoundaryBusStop_Viola _tokaiensis_TMDE_FlowerOnlyRCRC |
 Apr19_78_BoundaryBus Stop_Viola_tokaiensisRC |
| End April 19th, End Page 3 |
| Thanks so much for taking the time to look at this page. Please continue on to page 4 for the conclusion of this month's adventures and photos! |
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