Today I spotted my first Monarch by the side of the path.
Then she flew off and landed on the common milkweed in the meadow. She flew off again, maybe to your garden, so look for tiny caterpillars on your milkweed.
On Friday our beekeeper came to inspect the hives.
The main job was to do a sugar shake to check for mites. You just need to take out a half cup of bees,
which are added to this jar with the sugar. The bees are coated with the sugar, and then the sugar is tapped out into the pan to see if there are any mites in the sugar. Unfortunately there were enough mites to warrant a treatment, which will be done this week.
The sugar-coated bees are returned to the hive, where the others welcome them as a treat.
This is a cicada, which tells you it is a very hot day, with its constant "song".
There have been red admirals laying eggs on the nettles which grow on the edge of the wetland.
Do not know what this insect is, but that pointed appendage looks lethal.
Was aiming to take this red wasp on the dill, and to my surprise there were three other little insects in the photo.
Starting at Perimeter Road on the "B" side, this is the first bed.
This is the second bed on the "B" side.
And the third bed on the "B" side.
Again starting at Perimeter Road, this is the first bed on the "H" side.
The second bed on the "H" side.
The third bed on the "H" side.
The corner bed on the "H" side.
About a week ago I attended a seminar on the Monarch butterfly, which included a stroll through the beautiful gardens.
There were several of these great spangled fritillaries, which are always a treat.
Tiger swallowtails nectaring on the bottlebrush buckeye.
Finally this very small Monarch caterpillar on milkweed.
And also a black swallowtail caterpillar. The easiest way to tell them apart, is, if it is on your milkweed, it is a monarch. If it is eating your parsley it is a black swallowtail.
Near the ponds I spied some dragonflies. A black widow.
And a blue dasher.
Always a wonderful place to visit, and a very good seminar on the Monarchs.
Four days ago there appeared near the Wetland the most amazing group of white mushrooms. I called this group papa, mama, and baby.
Later in the evening I saw them again.
By the next day they had gotten a bit fatter.
Some were really big and white.
By the 3rd day they are getting flat and becoming big disks.
And yet another view.
This one today appeared to be about eight inches in diameter!
Does anyone know what they are? No one remembers seeing them at Foulkeways before.
This is a bad year for Japanese beetles. They are everywhere, even on this lovely magnolia blossom.
They seem to eat everything.
This started out as a bad year for the frogs, but not any more. Here is a tadpole in the wetland pond.
A frog nearby. Enjoy the frog chorus at the wetland.
The red-winged blackbird has also had a good year with several pair nesting in the wetland.
There are just as many deer around.
There seem to be fewer of the larger butterflies, and if the red admirals persist in landing on Perimeter Road there won't be many of them left.
I have now seen the silver spotted skipper in the meadow.
Here is a beautiful fresh tiger swallowtail.
The big bold cicada-killer, but have you heard the cicadas yet?
A lovely native rose blooming. And the red-top grass is just beautiful in the meadow.
