Late Summer Flowers (photo series)

[Dane Bramage]

Quite a bit flowing here in and about the wetlands.  The mimosa is still producing majorly and all "abuzz" with honeybees.  The purple loosestrife is coming on strong as well.  Looks as though all this late summer nectar will save me from an otherwise bust season.

I've been attempting to create a substantial image log of all the forage I can.  I'll update this thread with a series of images I've just been capturing.  As always, right-click & "view image" for full size samples.  

Today was oregano, jasmine, basil and purple loosestrife.

Here's the oregano:



















There's quite a bit of nectar competition this season; bumblebees are out in the most numbers I've yet seen, sweat bees, small black bees (unknown ID) and loads of these little butterflies that I don't recall seeing in past seasons:




Jasmine's next up.  

Cheers,
Dane

[asprince]

Nice pictures.

Steve

[jimmy]

Great captures .

[kathyp]

you are right about the competition.  i noticed the same thing.  what are those little black things?  they really like the oregano!

pull your supers yet?

i pulled  mine today.  2 had 0 honey.  2 were less that half full.  be lucky to get 10 or 15 pounds out of it.  even so, it's better than i expected.  that little rain helped.  did not bother supering the smaller hives or the new swarms.  just not enough flow this year

great pics....as always...thanks.

[poka-bee]

Beautiful pictures! I noticed the same here also, tons of bumbles and other wild fuzzy bees, little bees and butterflies. One day saw fuzzy black bee looking things with BRIGHT green stripe on their butts!!  I kid you not, saw 2! I used to catch those little brown butterflies all the time when I was a kid.  Made Lincoln log houses & stuffed em in...never could understand why they didn't stay!
Jody

[irekkin]

very nice pics, i always enjoy your posts. the butterflies in the pics are "alfalfa butterflies", i think.was also wondering what type camera you use?

[Dane Bramage]

Thanks asprince, jimmy, kathyp, poka-bee & irekkin.   

kathy ~> I believe the small black bees are some sort of Andrena.  We have a lot of them here, both in # & variety.  They nest in the most interesting places too (any tiny hole entrance will work it seems).   They do work a lot of the same nectar sources but I also see them on less popular plants.  Right now they are on the cilantro and dandelion while the honeybees, etc., prefer the purple loosestrife, mimosa, jasmine, etc.,.  Yes, the honeybees do seem to like the oregano too, though not near as much as those others I just listed.

I haven't pulled the supers yet.  I'm actually in the peak of my last (August) flow.  Per last check, I'll end up with a couple of supers from some, one from most the rest and nada from others.  I truly do have three distinct flows here... I just don't know what happened with the June (wildflower, maple, willow, apple, cherry, pear, plum, blueberry, etc.,)  nor July (Blackberry) this year.   

poka-bee ~> Kathy & you both noticed the same (increased nectar collection competition) this year eh?  It's been crazy!  The bumblers were especially "off the hook" earlier and have seemed to calm down a bit now.  I believe you on the green bee.  Likely some sort of Halictidae (have those here as well).  Those little butterflies are pretty easy to catch - really docile.

irekkin ~> I read that alfalfa butterfly larvae feed on legumes as well.  We have a lot of birdsfoot trefoil around here, so that may explain it.  My current digi-cam is an Olympus E-20N.  Pretty ancient in tech time but I'm still happy with it (even if it's just 5Mpix).

Cheers,
Dane

[Dane Bramage]

Here is the jasmine.  I have several very large jasmine bushes around and they seem to be very productive; very popular with the honeybees & bumblers for a fairly decent time (3-4 weeks?).  Smell lovely as well.











The honeybees have to "dive" right in to the jasmine flowers to reach their nectar



So I try to capture images of them just starting or finishing their collection.  Otherwise all you'd see is a little bee butt sticking out of the flower. 







Purple & green basil are next.

Cheers,
Dane

[Dane Bramage]

Basils.

[Dane Bramage]

Thought I'd bump this with a few more photos (taken earlier this evening).

Purple Loosestrife:





& here's a few of two Nubian doelings (9 weeks) enjoying the wetland's blackberries:











 

[poka-bee]

Dane as always your pictures are beautiful. Love the goats.  They do love those blackberries. I remember my horse and goat both pushing me away & grabbing them before I could pick em!
Jody

[Dane Bramage]

Thanks Jody

There's still plenty of blackberries available for us humans, lol.. though the rains & premature Winter-like weather seems to have had a bad effect.

[Cindi]

Oh Dane, again, your pictures are something to behold, you have brought so many beautiful, beautiful pictures of the flowers and the bees, a fine photographer you are.  I wish that I had Jasmine bushes here, nothing can compare to the beautiful scent of the Jasmines.  Lovely.  Have a most awesomely great and wonderful day, health.  Cindi

[Dane Bramage]

Thanks Cindi!

As always, you are much, much too generous with your praise.  Tell me more!    hehe 

The jasmines are nice!  Believe it or not, they still have a quite a few flowers.  I think the nectar is done however... &, if not, tonight is forecast for 28°F so  that'll surely finish them off.  That being said, surprising day today in that the bees were out (only ~ 50°F but sunny).  I caught a couple of images of them bringing in pollen.  Will post it over in general forum.

Cheers,
Dane

Ps. The hens were enjoying themselves as well today:

[Cindi]

Oooh Dane, is that a Copper Black Maran roo? Very nice.  I will compliment you again and again and again.  Your pictures are some of the most wonderful and clearly shot, you must sport a pretty nice camera with a pretty nice macro.  My macro takes pretty good pictures, but nothing compares, nothing compares to you...Nice job.  Jasmine was still blooming, wow!!!  Doubt though, like you said, it had any nectars to provide to the bees.  We had sunshine too today, after probably a month of pretty much non-stop rain, ich.

I loved in particular that picture of the purple basil that you took.  The goats, well, cute as dickens.  I looked at all the pictures in your thread again, because, well, because, well, because (trying to think of some good words here), I love to look at your pictures, smiling.  Keep those up Dane, never stop taking pictures, you have an excellent photographer and I love each and every one that you post, have that beautiful, most awesome day, life, health.  Cindi

[Dane Bramage]

Hi Cindi

The copper-looking one is actually also a hen, "Emma".  She's a Black Star (NH Red x Barred Rock).  Next to her is a barred rock and in the background is a Australorp.  Emma is the sweetest one of them... prettiest too. 

My digi-cam is pretty old, only 5Mpix, but is a nice SLR model (Olympus E-20N).

I'm happy you like the photos.  I enjoy taking them quite a bit.  I need to spend more time doing so.  It's quite the therapeutic break from work!

Cheers,
Dane

[Sparky]

Fantastic pictures!!!! I was reading how you wanted to take time for more and had to laugh when I think about how my wife thought it was funny to watch me from the deck, chasing insects around the plants to get pictures. It was worth the effort. Can anyone tell me what this one is ? It appears to be in the moth family and looked like a hummingbird the way it moved around the butterfly bush.

[Cindi]

Dane, hi  , been a long time.  With that camera, you have brought to us pictures that look like they were taken with a professional camera with a professional cameraman, well, Dane....guess that be you, smiling.  You have done right with all the beautiful pictures that you have brought forward for us to view, you know, I have told you time and time again of this beauty, I still revel in those memories.

Sparky.....not sure what that would be, but I love white flowers, particularly the white Buddlehia (butterfly bush), white is pure, white is something that will stand out on a summers evening twilight, I love white.  I once upon a time, many years ago, followed around a moth-like/hummingbird like (had a long proboscis, as does the hummingbird) bug.  Best that I can describe it.  This little dude didn't even know that I was following it, video camera in hand, it was loving to drink the nectar from the extremely fragrant Sweet William blossoms, I followed it for a very long time that afternoon. For some reason, Sphinx moth comes to mind, but I cannot be sure.  I think the picture that you have brought to us to see is somewhat different than my memory serves of the insect that I followed, but still has quite a similarity.  This moth that I followed for so long was large, probably about the size of a mid-sized hummingbird.  This was mid day, not typical of the moths, which prefer to meander their worlds at night. 

Once upon a time, I grew the blue cascading petunias that adorned my porch a few years ago, these were extremely fragrant too. I would sit during the later evening hours, wallowing in the fragrance of these blue petunias (actually the colour of purple, but purple is called blue in "gardeners'" terms), along with the extremely intoxicating fragrance of the Night Scented Stock (Matthiola Bicornis).  A moth(s) would come to visit these flowers, I could hear them in that waning light, I could not see them, but they were abundant, they know the nectars that are there for the taking for the night pollinators, it holds beautiful memories, in my mind's eye.  Ramblin', I love to ramble, when there is something nice to ramble about, I be that ramblin' gal.  Beautiful days, filled with happiness and love, to share, with great health.  Cindi

[Sparky]

Cindi. I do not know what type of (assuming) moth that it was but it was moving from flower to flower with its wings just humming like a hummingbird and was of the size of one also. I was fascinated to watch when it stopped and you could see the wings were almost transparent except around the edges. Fascinating creature it was. Here is some pics. from my wife's other butterfly bush that blooms in multiple colors. Hope you enjoy them as much as me.

[Cindi]

Oh Sparky, what beautiful flowers, I  love the beautiful clusters of the flowers of these types of bush, beautiful, thank you for sharing, they were enjoyed as much as you enjoy them, lovely.  Have that great and most wonderful day, with that great health.  Cindi