Just one opened first, a beautiful dark purple poppy to give the Bees something extra.
The next day, loads bloomed and by the next day or two mostly gone. But they’re staggered and keep coming so hopefully a bit of brightness for longer.
(c) K Wicks
I decided to let everything just grow this year and be very minimal with weeding. Nature needs all the help it can get. It’s also making me more interested in what everything is and I’m learning about each plant as it grows and flowers. Willowherb seems to cater for many insects and has super pretty little pink/purple flowers. Also the leafcutter bees have favoured this plant for cutting small holes in the leaves – making me think that’s the reason I haven’t seen a leafcutter bee before, because I kept getting rid of their favourite plant!
(c) K Wicks
Another first and a very exciting one. I had just found my pink strawberry plant was flowering, hidden among other strawberries and the loganberries. With a fuchsia plant and wildflowers too. As I was trying to get enough sunlight in for a shot, a bee came and landed on the willowherb, cut a section of leaf and left again. I was really surprised. I waited and it came back, took another section and left again, disappearing into the budleia and loganberry bush.
It took a few seconds and once it left again I could see that bee had been a bee had visited a number of times. I haven’t ever noticed holes like that before and realise I have previously pulled these up as weeds before they got to be this pretty and useful! Letting everything grow this year has made a big difference.
(c) K Wicks
One white rose in the garden.
(c) K Wicks
It has been another exciting week for nature in the garden, still lots of flying things it seems. This is for the last week or so and one pic in May I forgot to post, but most all of these are my first time seeing them. I may have given them a glance before, but not that I remember, and not that I noticed. I amazed at just how much there is once you start paying attention and letting the garden grow a bit wilder and by plating a bit more.
I haven’t ever seen one of these hoverflies before, there have been a number of different ones, so of course they will get their own post at some point 🙂
A very small weird looking mayfly, checking out my new little tub pond I put together mid week. It’s a work in progress and a trial run really. We’ll see how that goes.
This is another first – a type of crane fly that looks a bit more special than the ones I see all the time. Nature is great.
A new moth for me, and more exciting because it was in my own garden. This almost looked like a leaf at first, but on second glance I noticed it had wings, and a brilliant blue trim on them. I have now seen another of these, so that’s two in a week (I know it was a second moth and not the first again, because it was smaller).
At first I thought this insect had orange eyes. He was moving quickly and didn’t settle for long. After getting a couple of pics he left. I studies the picture to see what it was having worked out it was a type of bee, and discovered the orange bits appear to be pollen. Must have been a very pollen filled flower he visited before getting to me garden.
I love these colourful little wasps. They are so quick and settle for so little time, it’s a difficult process trying to get a good pic, so this one isn’t great, but as it appeared this week again, I really wanted to get a shot.
I am seeing these almost daily now, they land often and give me plenty of time for shots, but are easily spooked. So I wait and enjoy watching them a while first usually.
Again, not a great pic as it’s another fast moving wasp. Enough to work out what it was though. They are as small and cute looking as the rub-tailed wasp.
This chap did not settle long, enjoying the fully flowering loganberry bush but there wasn’t much left for him it seems as the visit was brief. I’m trying to capture all nature at the moment, rather than wait for a perfect shot or miss it.
Hopefully I will get to see lots more this week, maybe something new, maybe not. That part of what makes nature watching so exciting.
(c) K Wicks
There are a lot of yellows around – this is in the last 10 days.
(c) K Wicks
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
Dark tones on a cloudy day and a serious face. When are you going to throw the ball?
(c) K Wicks
Even though I know there are many different insects and species, I still get really excited to see them all. A bit of warmth and sunshine gave everything the long overdue push it needed. I’ll try and showcase the abundant days.
I can’t wait for all the flowers to open and bring more and more to the garden 🌼 roll on summer.
(c) K Wicks
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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