TIME IN THE GARDEN WITH MR. HCB

As usual, Mr. HCB was out in the garden early, whilst I got up slowly and ate my breakfast in splendid isolation - this works for us and I enjoy my time alone first thing in the morning.

As he was out in the garden, I thought that I should perhaps lend a hand with some dead-heading, and thought I could take some photographs for a Blip at the same time and make a collage of the various flowers, so I spent a good hour out there with him.

I saw this little hoverfly on one of our beautiful pink poppies - which is not actually in the flowerbed, but is growing in the gravel path behind.  Mr. HCB says he will collect the seed and sow some into the large flowerbed, so we should have a good display next year.

Going clockwise, the next shot is a little bee, which is enjoying the pollen on one of our hollyhocks - and of course, bees love them because they can get right down into the pollen.  In this shot, it doesn’t have that much pollen but when I went back a few minutes later, it looked as if it had died - it was so still - but I stood and watched it and it soon started moving.  You can see by the next shot that it had collected so much pollen that it could hardly move.  

I don’t know much about bees collecting pollen, so of course, I asked Mr. Google, who said:

“As bees move from flower to flower, pollen grains stick to the hairs on their bodies.  They use their legs to comb the pollen off their bodies and pack it into the pollen baskets, called corbiculae, which are flattened, concave structures with long curved hairs that help hold the pollen in place.  One the pollen baskets are full, they return to the hive and worker bees then remove the pollen pellets from their legs.  The pollen is then stored in cells within the honeycomb, often being mixed with honey and enzymes to preserve it.  These pollen stores are a vital food source for the colony, especially during brood rearing.  As honey bees collect pollen and nectar as food for the entire colony, they pollinate plants.”  

That’s one reason we don’t mow our grass from May until September, so that many other plants can be pollinated by the bees and other insects, so we feel we are doing a good job - although when speaking to others, they often say they couldn’t have a “messy lawn” like ours.

The last shot is a fuchsia Mr. HCB bought last year - he thought he had lost it, but with some of his TLC, it has come on a treat and is looking good.

Most of you know that my favourite colours are pinks and purples, so you won’t be surprised to see the colours in my collage today.  The large flower collage that I intended for today will be for another day, possibly Friday, when I wander around the garden - but the shots will definitely be taken ON the day. 

I spent sometime out in the garden and have probably distributed thousands of seeds from our Ox-eye Daisies all over the grass.  I started off by snipping the heads off, but then decided it was quicker to just pull  off the dead heads.  I didn’t “plough any fields” but I definitely “scattered the good seed on the land!”  I just hope now that it will be “fed and watered by God’s almighty hand”!

The sun has now come out, just before midday, although it was quite dull and much cooler this morning.  We are still praying for rain though, because our vegetables are wilting - and despite Mr. HCB watering them, with rainwater from our butts, there is nothing quite like a proper rain shower.  Perhaps later! 

PS Out for coffee to friends this afternoon and then Worship Group this evening - so a busy day!