My bottlebrush tree came from a cutting from my grandfather’s bottlebrush tree many years ago. It has traveled with me through 5 different moves, but now is happily growing in the ground. If I ever move again I’ll take a cutting with me.
I most often hear the “singing” of musically-challenged birds like scrub jays, magpies and crows around here, so when someone who can actually carry a tune drops in, I take notice. This little guy was singing his heart out the other day. It was a nice break from the battle cry of the jays as they dive into the yard, so I hope he comes back again.
It was tough to get a photo of this speedy little bee, and she’s a bit blurry here. She tried out various tubes all afternoon in between trips to gather more pollen, but unfortunately I haven’t seen her since. I don’t know if she laid any eggs before she disappeared.
Not really, he’s a carpenter bee. A mountain or foothill carpenter bee – either name applies. I live in the valley, and I usually see valley carpenter bees in my yard. The valley bees are much bigger, but this guy will bonk right into them. He chases the hummingbird too.
My dad made this sweet house for the mason bees out of a wine box.
I am ridiculously excited that this bottlebrush plant is starting to bloom. This isn’t the best photo, but it does show the process of the stamen unfurling from the petals of the flower. It’s fascinating how they’re packed so tightly into a little knot within the flower bud, then eventually totally straighten out.
This daisy is so obnoxiously vivid, your eye can’t help but be drawn to it when viewing the garden. It’s actually more orange than it looks here, but I took the photo at dusk, and the light was getting dim.
One of the mason bee hatchlings came by for a visit yesterday. I had to fish the little guy out of a water dish! I’ve added pebbles to it, so he’ll have something to climb onto if he should fall in again. I think he was here looking for a girl bee, but they are all still sleeping in their cocoons – hopefully they’ll come out soon!
A break from the garden photos! 🙂
I wish I would have added something for size reference here. This snail was teeny – the shell was about the same size as the nail on my pinkie finger.
