Flower Fly

I learned this week about hoverflies or flower flies. I thought a photo I took was of a bee and when I posted it to facebook I learned of it's true name. Now everywhere I look in the garden I see all sorts of hoverflies (over 6000 species in the world). They mimic a bee's coloring to ward off predators and they like to eat aphids. Plus they don't sting me so it's all good.

Two examples of hoverflies, one on a poppy, the other on the coreopsis.

Bee on the sage.

Bee on lavender.

Charlie Chaplin tomatoes growing in the garden.

I tried some interesting heirloom varieties this year.

I also am using Tomato Tone and fish emulsion to feed them (man that stuff stinks).

Black raspberries are ripening.

My husband's favorite fruit and for once the groundhogs have not eaten the plants down to the ground.

Blueberries are starting to ripen as well.

An unusual black hollyhock.

Coneflowers are starting to bloom.

I have 4 different types and I want more!

Another tiny hoverfly.

Guara is so delicate and ladylike.

Another favorite starting to bloom.

I love all the different colors the hydrangea turns.

In Zoe's wildflower garden, a poppy greets us this morning.

I'm so happy I bought this beautiful peachy pink yarrow last year.

One of my customers, now friend, bought me this gorgeous daylilies for my birthday last year. It was such a wonderful surprise. The variety is Jen Ojay from Oakes Daylilies. I could get addicted to collecting daylilies but they can be so expensive.

Lovely larkspur I grew from seed! I love the pink/orange snapdragons in the background.

Bread feeds the body, indeed, but flowers feed also the soul. ~The Koran

Back in the Garden

My last several posts have been all about horses so I thought

it was safe to go back to some garden photos.

Above, my black hollyhock just started to bloom.

I pulled this radish from the garden recently and when I was washing it I discovered a butterfly!

The bees and butterflies love this knautia.

My neighbor's cat thinks our yard is his now.

Love these guys!

 Russell the box turtle in my Mom's garden.

Okay, two more photos from the Devon Horse Show.

These are the last two photos I took on the very last day of the show.

I'd love to have that rusty metal horse head and I really like  how the vendor hung flowers around it's neck.

A lovely memory from the end of a great show.

What's blooming...

Beautiful delphiniums in purple and pink.

Love in a mist or Nigella.

Knautia 'Melton Pastels'

I am in love with this penstemon 'Husker Red'.

 It is huge and the flowers are so pretty!

Made a video with some of my flower images from the last two years here.

Garden Friends and Flowers

Are you sick of my garden photos yet?

Good because it's only just begun.

I walk the garden several times a day and always manage to find something new.

This morning I found this baby bunny in my veggie garden.



Got this awesome gnome over the weekend at the new Home Goods store.

He fits right in!

Love this false indigo. I bought it half dead last year so this was the first time I got to see it looking so beautiful. There were a ton of little bugs on it.

Another blue flower on the Jacob's ladder.

After lunch I saw this damsel fly on the scotch broom.

Or maybe it's a baby dragonfly?

It was really small.

My first coreopsis to bloom.

Spiderwort with a bee hiding behind it.

You can see his leg full of pollen.

Bee collecting pollen from my meadow rue.

Red Valerian just starting to bloom.

Also called Jupiter's beard (I like that name better).

Silly Pumpkin Pie likes to be carried through the garden when it's rainy.

Hard to hold a camera and a cat.

I guess he has me well trained!

Blooming Wednesday!!

My balloon flowers burst open this morning to greet the sun.

A painted lady sips nectar from a coneflower.

Firefly waits patiently for nightfall under a delicate poppy petal.

(someone needs to write a haiku for this photo)

Hydrangea blooms remind me of summer.

Gorgeous day lily I bought on sale for $5 (reg. $28)!

A baby Jack Be Little pumpkin.

Hello Halloween:)

Hard to believe I made this garden in the spring.

A glimpse of my wildflower garden I started in spring from a seed mixture

my mom bought for me from Rohrer's Seeds.

It is jam packed with flowery goodness!