Here are a few of those things that I saw recently in my yard.
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| After taking a break during the heat, the osteospormum are blooming again. |
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| Besides the purple, I have two other colors of them. |
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| This sedum came from a small volunteer that was in the middle of some lily of the valley a friend gave me. I planted it and the sedum has established itself and started to bloom. |
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| And speaking of volunteers, this dill plant came seemingly out of nowhere. I'm hoping to collect the seeds and have several plants next year. |
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| As far as herbs go, the basil is doing very well. You can see the variegated plant is pretty tall and the globe one is growing well, also. (I trimmed all of the blossoms off of it after I took this picture.) Some of the other herbs are just barely surviving. I think it's all due to location, location, location. I'll have some better ideas where to plant them next year. Note: The blue yard stick is approximately 1 meter long. |
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| While cleaning out one of the beds, I uncovered some day lilies enough for one of them to bloom. |
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| The purple sage has started to bloom again and the skipper butterflies are enjoying them. Notice the butterfly's proboscis arching out of its head into the flower for a drink of nectar. |
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| And in this picture you can see actually where it's coming out in the front. |
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| I find it interesting that bumble bee's proboscis is shaped very differently from the butterfly's. It has a shorter, stouter one that can not get into as many flowers. However, it has somewhat made up for this by having a triangular shaped head that will go further into the blossoms. You may remember this picture from another Second Look. In that one, I noted the yellow pollen baskets on the bee's back legs. |
Thank you, I have enjoyed your gorgeous pictures. Did you get a new camera? You got a very good shot of that bumblebee! I can't believe your basil is so... bushy! Mine grow tall but not that bushy at all. It's reseeded itself everywhere this year, though, so I have quite a bit of it, which should keep all the pollinators quite happy.
ReplyDeleteI didn't get a new camera, but my old one still takes good pictures outside in good light. However, I can't see anything on the screen when it's bright out, it takes a long time to be ready for the next picture, and on all but one or two settings, it goes into movie or burst mode and takes way more pictures or movies than I want. And overall, the quality of pictures has decreased. I still would like a new camera, but the lightning damage expenses put it on the back burner for a little while.
DeleteThe basil plants were from my sister. I have never tried these varieties before and the variegated one is more bitter than the traditional one I've grown before. The first batch of pesto I made from it was too strong. I think I'll try cutting it with spinach on the next batch.
How pretty! We don't have many opportunities in my yard to have a lot of "wild" things except frogs, lizards, chipmunks and random bit of poison ivy. Not much fun photographing that!
ReplyDeleteI know you really don't like your chipmunks, but I've had fun watching them and trying to take pictures. One day, I watched one fill it's cheeks with seeds then go off to deposit them somewhere and then come back for more. I didn't have many frogs, but I did have plenty of toads around our old house. They were usually hiding in some place dark and hard to see, but I took pictures of those, too. We don't have many lizards here, so I don't have any pictures of those, but Nathalie gets some pretty interesting ones. And since Nathalie is not sure what poison ivy looks like, I have been occasionally including pictures of that for her. I guess all this means that it doesn't have to be pretty for me to take a picture of it. All it has to be is outside in my yard.
DeleteHowever, so far in this yard, I haven't seen a chipmunk, some but not herds of deer, no toads, or frogs, and only a few squirrels. There are definitely some pluses to this since all of those things can be pests, but it can be boring, too.
I want to see pictures of what you find when you do all of your mother's yard chores. :)
Your osteosporum (which I am unfamiliar with!) are gorgeous!
ReplyDeleteWe end up with a lot of dill volunteers, too. We sent some home with my in-laws when they visited a month ago so they could make pickles, as their dill petered out.
I can imagine it's quite a change for you to no longer have deer. We mostly get bunnies, squirrels, moles, voles, and our neighbor's cat ... although, come to think of it, fewer moles and voles appear these days, possibly due to Mr. Stanley the cat. :)
Have a great holiday weekend!
I had never noticed osteospermum until this year when I saw it in a nursery. The plants had outgrown their containers, but I bought it anyway because I liked the blooms. Some say it comes back, but I'm not sure if that will happen in our climate. However, I do intend to save some seeds like I plan to for the dill. I know that dill seeds easily, but I'm not exactly sure where these plants came from. We have none in our yard and neither do our neighbors. Maybe the bunnies or birds helped plant it.
DeleteWe will be going to visit my mother this weekend and take advantage of having Monday off. I'm looking forward to the visit but it always takes a toll as I deal with the emotions of a fading parent.
Hope you are having a last hurrah before school starts. I see it is a big year with your son entering high school and your daughter is entering middle school. Good luck to them and their parents.
I feel for you with your visit to your mom--I struggled with that with my father. It's emotionally exhausting.
DeleteWe are having a quiet weekend (sort of). My niece and nephew are throwing a surprise birthday party today for my brother and SIL as both turn 60 this year. Monday I am working .... hoping to have a little time to myself mid-week while the kids are in school and when I have a couple of days off.
We are dealing with the kid's anxiety here--my son is cranky (which is not his usual temperament) and my daughter has been struggling with anxiety interrupting her sleep cycles. I took both of them on a long and challenging hike yesterday to give them a change of scenery and tire them out. :) Once they settle into their new schools, I think the pieces will fall into place, but, as you say, it's a lot of change .... I will miss having a child in elementary school, but time marches on.
A hike was a great idea. Nothing like a little nature and exercise to help just about everything that ails you.
DeleteYep, time marches on and that's a little upsetting sometimes. However, it's not something I can change, so I try to appreciate what is good about now.
That is interesting about the bee versus the butterfly and their head shapes. And the photos are stunning as usual, so clear and vibrant.
ReplyDeleteI found the comparison particularly interesting between the two and to be able to see it in person is what keeps me doing Second Looks.
DeleteIncredible colors and blooms! You have a wonderful eye. I hope you'll enjoy some of your visit though it is difficult when parents are fading whether from old age or illness. Best to you.
ReplyDeleteThanks, e. We did the long drive to my mother's today and were lucky that it didn't rain the whole way as predicted. My mother looks better than she did during the last visit, so I'm happy.
DeleteYour second looks are always so interesting! Love seeing your garden; everything looks so nice and green! I've never seen the yellow and purple osteospermum flowers before. I have the white and the purple.
ReplyDeleteWe have had rain and cooler temperatures recently, so most plants are happy and growing well. With your hot, dry days, I bet things do look greener here.
DeleteThe purple osteospormum are real eye catchers, aren't they? I love the vibrant color! That furry thing is a butterfly? Gee, if I had seen it then I would have called it a moth. :) I love autumn blooms and would love to get some mums for the front porch, maybe a small pumpkin to sit near them, too. Fall is my favorite season and spring is my second favorite. Thanks for sharing your lovely garden walk!
ReplyDeleteI'm certainly no expert, but moths are often fuzzy while butterflies are not as you implied, however there are exceptions. Another difference is that butterflies have balls on the ends of its antennae and moths have all kinds of shapes and forms. You'll see the balls in the pictures.
DeleteI saw a very good price on mums the other day, but didn't buy them because I wasn't ready for them. They'll probably be gone when I go back. Oh, well. You snooze, you lose.