It’s been exciting for weeks now, the garden has been busy. Here’s a selection since last world bee day, and previous years’ posts 🐝
And two bee related post of an awesome little Blue Mason bee and the Blue Mason bee rescue.
World Bee Day 2024
bees
World Bee Day 2023
Another year of bees, which only seem to have just got started this year. But this last week has seen some activity at the hotel, and the geraniums are providing some brightness and pollen for them. No Calendula so far yet this year, the slugs keep getting all the new seedling popping up!
But there’s been a few so far in the last few weeks… (and previous years)
(c) K Wicks
August 22 nature
(c) K Wicks
Bees are busy
There are lots of bees at the moment, the buddleia is full of them. Here’s some I have been lucky enough to get a shot of recently.
(c) K Wicks
Busy at the bee Hotel
This year’s bees are well underway at the hotel, we added another which is slowly getting attention. But the old one is filling up with little mud plugs. Here are a few where they are facing me or starting to make their way back out. Or they start like that in the morning until it warms up. Very cool to watch.
(c) K Wicks
April in the garden 2022
It’s super warm today and lots of things are out and about. It’s lovely. Star spot of the day was the angleshade moth, haven’t seen one of those for ages. Plenty of the caterpillars, but not the next stage.
(c) K Wicks
Buddleia, bees and butterflies
It has taken a while, but finally the buddleia bush is blooming. Not so much on the purple this year, the white has decided to shine through on this tri coloured variety. Although up until now, it’s only been purple last year, purple and white this year, so not sure where the third colour has gone. The birds kept nipping off the little buds when they appeared in spring, so maybe that did something to affect it. But since it has gone for it, and the weather has warmed again, it has been inundated with bees and butterflies. Red admirals, honey bees, tortoiseshells and bumble bees. Also had a small white yesterday as well. I have finally got the right flowers!
(c) K Wicks
Charlock mustard
There has been lots of bug activity since the weather warmed, less on the honey bee front. Now a few of the tubes in the bee Hotel are blocked up there doesn’t seem to be as many visitors. I’m new to watching Bees so this might be their normal seasonal routine (although there have been a number of them the last few days on the lavendar).
For bumble bees and hoverflies, there have been tons. Seems that the charlock mustard is a big favourite. Many different types of hovefly and buff tailed bumblebees amongst others. Daily activity on this, so much so I can’t bring myself to scale it back until it stops flowering, it’s not a small plant. Then I guess it will go to seed and I may just pick them and see what I can do with them.
(c) K Wicks
Nature in the garden – 29.05.21
Well, this was a top notch day for nature. Other than the activity at the bee Hotel, there was much occurring elsewhere in the patches and undergrowth.
Started with another bee because they are awesome and all over the bigroot geranium at the moment.
We had a fly stop for an extended shoot, perfectly landing in the sun and waiting for me to get my shot. He landed on the shed too so will get his own post soon.
This was small, not the tiniest I saw making a web, but has some growing to do before it gets to average size.
I know they aren’t bugs, but still daily visitors to the garden. Enjoying the little bench we put up for them.
These little guys were still around and after I put a geranium flower near one, it crawled right on! Have to say, very happy with this photo.
I haven’t actually seen one of these before so was a new find.
I rescued this little weevil from the bird bath, he was floating and trying to hold onto a small bit of something.
I don’t actually know what this one is, it seems to be a type of small parasitic wasp, but was tiny and didn’t stay still so my shots aren’t really good enough for a conclusive ID.
This beautiful red ladybird was just wandering through one of the beds. Hopefully there will be more.
There were a couple of things I couldn’t identify or get a good enough picture of. Baby spiders being very difficult, but this tiny orb weaver is already on it building a web. I’ll keep you updated on garden progress.
(c) K Wicks
Bee Hotel #1
So, I got a little bee Hotel a few weeks ago in the hope of helping the Bees a bit more. There are flowers, a water source with a little bird bath and now a little house for them. I’m trying to make my garden as insect and animal friendly as I can.
I didn’t think much had been going on in there, I work from home but am at the desk most of the day, most days at the moment. I caught a couple of Bees a few days ago squabbling over the same ‘tube’ but not much else. Turns out I wasn’t looking long enough.
So I was super excited yesterday to spend lots of time in the garden. There was buzzing around it fairly regularly, and to my delight, it was check in and out day at the hotel! Well, seems like that everyday I think.
What I did notice too was that one of the four bottom bamboo tubes was now ‘bricked up’ with mud. I had to check my first pic of when i put it up to be sure, but something is in there…
Turns out we have another visitor as well, scrunched into the side possibly waiting to hatch some little uns.
There was loads in the garden yesterday, I’ll do a post shortly to show yesterdays creatures, its looking like another warm day so who knows what we’ll see today 😁
(c) K Wicks
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