Silversword in Bloom

JonaBeth Russell

Atop the summit of Haleakala, our 10,000+ft volcano in the backyard, grows a plant named 'Silversword', its type endemic to that one summit. There are other types of Silversword around the globe, but none are the same...they're all endemic to their areas, as I've learned. (If someone here has info otherwise, feel free to share, I'm open to continued learning).

These plants live anywhere form 7 to about 90 years, and bloom only once in their lifetimes. When my wife and I hopped outta the car the other day to see one in bloom, you can bet I was quick on the draw to grab a camera and have at it. Shot these with a Sony a7Riii + GM 100-400.

Enjoy!

denisegoldberg

That is awesome! My favorite shot is the 3rd photo but I was glad to see the full set.

Lord Vetinari

Lovely stuff - how tall does the plant get ?

Brian V.

black mamba

Great work, JBR. Interesting info as well.

JonaBeth Russell

@black mamba said:
Great work, JBR. Interesting info as well.

Thank you!

@Lord Vetinari said:
Lovely stuff - how tall does the plant get ?

Brian V.

That's a great question...I've personally seen them about 10-12ft tall at the most, and I cannot find anything online that tells me an average height. I'm guessing there's limited data because there aren't too many of them and they live for a long time, propagating only once in a life span.