狐薊(キツネアザミ) Hemisteptia lyrata / false thistle

　花がアザミに似ていますが、アザミではないことから、キツネアザミの名がついたようです。植物学者の牧野富太郎博士曰く、「アザミに似るがよく見るとそうでなくて狐に騙されたように感じる」
　随分昔のことですが、私は牧野記念庭園の直ぐそばに住んでいたので、記念庭園には時々見学に行きました。現在はどうなっているのか知りませんが、草むらのような庭だったのを覚えています。

　Foxes are said to be deceiving people in Japan.
　Although this flower resembles a thistle, it is not actually a thistle, which is why in Japanese it is called a fox disguising as a thistle. Botanist Dr. Makino Tomitaro wrote, "It looks like a thistle, but on closer inspection, it's not, and I feel like I've been tricked by a fox."
　A long time ago, I lived very close to the Makino Memorial Garden, and I visited there occasionally. I am not sure what it looks like currently, but I recall it was an area covered in overgrown grass.

雄藪虱 (オヤブジラミ) Torilis scabra

　花は小さく直径2mmに満たない大きさです。花は白色で、縁は淡い赤味を帯びています。赤い毛の生えたものは、蕾ではなく果実です。小さく見逃しやすい植物ですが、草むらのあちらこちらで元気に育っています。

　The flowers are small, less than 2mm in diameter. The white flowers have a pale reddish edge. The red hairy things are fruit, not buds. It's a small plant that's not easily noticed, but it's thriving here and there in the grassy bush.

桑(クワ) mulberry

　クワの実が生り始めました。実は、緑から次第に赤くなり熟すと黒くなります。熟した実は甘くて美味しいですが、地面に落ちるのでうっかりすると靴の底を汚します。

　A mulberry is beginning to produce fruits. The fruits change color gradually from green to red and then black when ripe. The ripe fruit is sweet and delicious, but if you're not watchful, it could get your shoes dirty as it falls to the ground.

金宝樹(ブラシノキ) bottlebrush

　ブラシノキの花は枝の先に咲くものと思っていました。ところが枝の途中で咲く花があるのを見つけました。枝の途中のブラシではボトルの洗浄はできないので困りますね。
　剪定方法を間違えた結果でしょうか。

　My belief was that bottlebrush flowers bloomed at the ends of the branches. However, I found a tree with flowers blooming halfway between its branches. There's an issue because the brush in the middle of the twig can't wash the bottle, isn't it?
　Is this a result of pruning incorrectly?

芍薬(シャクヤク) Chinese peony

 　今年は、ボタンを見る機会をのを逃しましが、花の形がよく似ているシャクヤクを、どなたが植えたのか、道端で見ることができました。

　I missed the opportunity to see tree peonies this year, but I was able to see Chinese peonies with similar flower shapes on the side of a road, although I don't know who planted them.

昼顔(ヒルガオ) false bindweed

　アサガオに似たこの花は、昼間に咲くことから、ヒルガオと今では呼ばれています。ところが、大昔には美しい花という意味で、容花(カオバナ)という名前で、万葉集に登場しています。
　遣唐使が、中国からアサガオを持ち帰ると、同じ顔をした昼間に咲くカオバナを、その対比として、ヒルガオと呼ぶようになったと言われています。
 

　ついでながら、アサガオの咲く時間についてもふれておきます。アサガオは夜になり暗くなってから約９時間後に開花します。つまり、朝に咲く花でなく、朝には咲いている花なのです。

　False bindweed in Japan is called "daytime face" and morning glory is called "morning face."
　This flower, called "daytime face" now,  but appeared in the Manyoshu long ago under the name "kaobana," which meant beautiful flower. The Manyoshu is the oldest collection of Japanese poetry, compiled during the Nara period.
　It is said that when Japanese envoys to the Tang Dynasty brought back morning glories ("morning face") from China, the "kaobana," or a similar flower that blooms during the day, came to be called "daytime face"  in contrast to "morning face."
 

　Also, let me mention the time when morning glories bloom. Morning glories bloom about nine hours after it gets dark at night. In other words, it is not a flower that blooms in the morning, but a flower that is in bloom in the morning.

夕化粧(ユウゲショウ) rose evening primrose

　名前から夕方に咲くと思われがちですが、実際に開花するのは明け方で、夕方にはしぼんでしまう、一日花です。

　The name implies it blooms in the evening, but it actually blooms at dawn and wilts in the evening; it's a single-day flower.