I have done some gardening in the sunshine in the last few days. I mowed the front lawn but settled for weeding the back lawn. I took up quite a few Dandelions, each with its own little colony of Pollen Beetles (Meligethes aeneus).
The other insects in the garden were mainly very small flies and the much larger Bluebottles (Calliphora vomitaria). The latter were mostly sun-bathing on brightly reflective surfaces like this one on a yellow tulip.
This delightful plant in the boggy part of my ponds goes by the unfortunate name of American Skunk Cabbage (Lysichiton camtschatcensis), a member of the arum family. It is said to have a foul odour but I haven’t experienced that – a combination of a poor sense of smell and the fact that I would have to get rather damp to sniff it.
Hidden away (perhaps too much) in one corner of the garden I have a Sambucus “Black Lace”. A form of Elder, it has beautiful black lacy foliage as its name suggests. It is rather hard to photograph (and appreciate) in its present position and I may well move it in a year or two.
The Viburnum that we inherited is absolutely covered in emerging flowerbuds. It obviously benefited from the drastic pruning that I gave it last Autumn. I love exploring its foliage for insects and today was rewarded with a Two-spot Ladybird (Adalia 2-punctata).
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