Who Came To Visit Us? - 2003
The buzz of the bumble bee is a very relaxing summer sound, and it means that they are busy pollinating the flowers in the garden.
They look a little bit like a bee, but they don't sting. Their larvae (sort of like caterpillars) are great for eating aphids.
A Strange Green Beetle Type Thing
There were a number of these that came to visit us. And their reason for doing so? I'm not sure yet...
Before I came to visit the garden, before Mr. S. took over the garden, perhaps even before the last resident was there, the Mini-Garden Hippo has lived in the garden, often in the undiscovered parts, covered by trees and bushes. Now they have gone, he is quite happy to come out and let us know he is there, whilst keeping an eye on us that we treat his garden well.
The Buddlia, known to all as the butterfly plant, certainly lived up to its name. It was always packed full of activity from butterflies and many other insects, jostling for its nectar.
We didn't count this year how many different species of butterfly came to visit, but this was one of the most common types. The Buddlia was full of them!
This was another type of butterfly that liked to visit us. Look at the incredibly delicate colouring on its wings.
A Munch of Large White Caterpillars
I really have no idea what a large group of caterpillars are called when they are together, but a munch is about the best description for them.There were hundreds of them, and they stripped a cabbage type plant bare within a day, and made a good job of finishing off these Nasturtiums. (Mr. S. was hoping that they would do a great job and finish them off, but luckily they didn't. Nasturtiums grow very quickly when they want to). A few weeks later, they had turned into Large White butterflies, flying and dancing around the Buddlia bush.
