Love, Joy and Peas: bee close up

Showing posts with label bee close up. Show all posts

Wednesday, July 20, 2016

Sunflowers and Bees at McKee Beshers Wildlife Management Area

Happy wild Wednesday! I hope you enjoy my bee and sunflower photos from McKee Beshers Wildlife Management Area. Today was my second ever visit but I hope to return again.

I thought this bee in flight over the sunflower field was neat.

Some people bring ladders, chairs and stools but I just did the best I could with what God gave me.

It really is amazing to see so many sunflowers with bees buzzing about happily.

I feel blessed to have been able to enjoy such a beautiful experience. God is good!

Thank you for visiting! May God bless and keep you!

Related posts:
Battling bees and sunflowers: http://lovejoyandpeas.blogspot.com/2013/08/bees-fighting-over-sunflower-photo.html
Teddy bear sunflower: http://lovejoyandpeas.blogspot.com/2014/07/teddy-bear-sunflower-black-eyed-susan.html
Sunflower and more: http://lovejoyandpeas.blogspot.com/2015/06/sunflower-day-lilies-vinca-and-mystery.html

Wednesday, October 7, 2015

Bees and Butterflies on Butterfly Bushes

Happy wild Wednesday! Butterfly bushes really do attract butterflies (and bees too).

The butterflies and bees don't seem to be picky about the flower color.

Or whether the flowers are in sun or shade.

But they do seem to have a preference for the newer blooms.

Maybe the nectar is sweeter on the younger flowers? I don't know. But I love seeing the bushes filled with bees and butterflies. There was also a monarch butterfly on the bushes but it was too fast and skittish for me to capture with my camera.

Thank you for visiting! May God bless you and our dwindling bee and butterfly populations!

Related posts:
Cute critters on flowers: http://lovejoyandpeas.blogspot.com/2015/06/cute-critters-on-flowers.html
Brookside butterflies: http://lovejoyandpeas.blogspot.com/2015/08/brookside-gardens-wings-of-fancy.html
Butterfly blessings: http://lovejoyandpeas.blogspot.com/2014/01/happy-new-year-blessings-butterflies.html

Wednesday, September 9, 2015

Butterflies, Honeybees and Moths Love Agastache Flowers

Happy wild Wednesday! I'm really thrilled with the way the agastache (also known as hyssop) flowers are attracting a nice range of insect wildlife. We put in five plants this spring and I suspect we'll add more next year.

I'm especially happy to see honeybees on the agastache. We get lots of bees but honeybees seem to be in the minority.

If you look closely you can see at least three skipper moths on this hyssop plant.

While not technically a good picture, I like that the moth is coming in for a landing while a honeybee is enjoying another flower. These insects know how to share.

Thank you for visiting. May God bless you!

Related posts:
Big bees: http://lovejoyandpeas.blogspot.com/2014/08/busy-bees-on-beautiful-blooms-zinnia.html
Dogs and bees: http://lovejoyandpeas.blogspot.com/2014/10/dogs-and-bees-at-us-national-arboretum.html
Bees and flowers: http://lovejoyandpeas.blogspot.com/2014/10/neat-flowers-bees-and-sun-effects.html

Wednesday, October 15, 2014

Dogs and Bees at the U.S. National Arboretum

Happy wild Wednesday! Earlier this month I enjoyed a walk in the U.S. National Arboretum and saw these cute bees and dogs. I hope the photos make you smile.

I wanted to pet this cute little dog and ask its human what breed he was but they walked in the other direction before I got the chance (I used my zoom to get the photo).

This bee was parked on top of two pretty, mostly red, bicolor marigolds.

And this adorable dog was keeping watch while her humans slept. I love how she's got one ear up.

These bees were really fun to photograph so I had to include one more image.

That's all for this week's wild Wednesday feature. Which was your favorite photo from today's post? Do you have a favorite dog or bee memory to share? I'd love to hear it! May God bless you!

Related posts:
Cute skirted dog: http://lovejoyandpeas.blogspot.com/2012/03/cherry-blossom-dog.html
Cute bunnies: http://lovejoyandpeas.blogspot.com/2012/09/cute-yard-bunny-photos-for-wild.html
Bentley the dog: http://lovejoyandpeas.blogspot.com/2012/04/pictures-of-bentley-my-new-dog-friend.html

Friday, October 3, 2014

Neat Flowers, Bees and Sun Effects

Happy floral Friday and welcome to "this week in my Maryland garden!" While not technically the best photos I've ever taken, I thought each of this week's flower photos was neat for one reason or another. The yellow and white bicolor dahlia above has fun coloring from the afternoon sun (I took these just before sunset yesterday evening). Without the sun it almost looks like an all white dahlia.

In this photo my happy making effect was being able to see the bee's eyes so clearly. We only have a few marigolds still blooming and two are the bicolor French marigolds that I started from seed. The bee is enjoying one of those.

My wonderful husband bought me this new red echinacea (also known as coneflower). I love how bright the flowers are and while there aren't any bees on it in the photo they have been all over it since planting.

I love how the sunbeam lights up the bee's wings and furry parts in this photo of it on a burgundy dahlia flower.

And, just because I tend to put five photos in each blog post, here's a pretty petunia. It's been blooming steadily since I bought it this spring. I love the particular shade of pink on this flower as well as the white middle and chartreuse/yellow center with veining.

How are your flowers holding up now that we're officially in autumn? Are the leaves changing where you are? They've started here but just a little bit. Thank you for visiting! I hope you have a fantastic autumn! May God bless you!

Related posts:
Sparking chrysanthemums: http://lovejoyandpeas.blogspot.com/2014/09/sparkling-chrysanthemums-dahlias-zinnia.html
Autumn blessing and flowers: http://lovejoyandpeas.blogspot.com/2013/09/happy-autumn-blessing.html
National Arboretum fall foliage: http://lovejoyandpeas.blogspot.com/2013/11/fall-foliage-at-us-national-arboretum.html
Fall foliage and capitol columns: http://lovejoyandpeas.blogspot.com/2013/11/fall-foliage-and-capitol-columns-photos.html

Friday, September 26, 2014

Sparkling Chrysanthemums, Dahlias, Zinnia, Pansies and a Busy Bee

Happy floral Friday! I took these photos yesterday after a heavy rain. I love how the flowers sparkle and glisten in the sun when covered in raindrops. The yellow chrysanthemum above is starting to turn bronze on the edges and makes it feel more like autumn here in my Maryland garden.

But the buzzing bees make it feel like summer is still hanging in there. I love the curly petals at the center of this bicolor dahlia.

The bright yellow zinnias are a ray of sunshine, no matter what the sky is doing.

These funky petaled pink, yellow and white dahlias make me smile every time I see them. I love how the pinks go from pale to hot pink with other shades in between and all on one flower. This year I'm going to try digging up tubers again. Last year I didn't succeed so any tips from you would be greatly appreciated! Particularly on how to dig them up without piercing the tubers (which I found out the hard way aren't necessarily directly below the stalks), how long to let them air dry before storing them away for the winter and how to store them away.

My husband planted the wheelbarrow full of pansies and bought some more to fill out the triangular area they're now enjoying (previously occupied by a load of marigolds and a few pink zinnias). They were beaten down by the heavy rain and are showing the stress of being transplanted but should perk up in a few days if the weather cooperates. As I mentioned last week, when God smiles on our garden the pansies can bloom right through winter, into spring and sometimes even early summer.

You can see (from left to right) some of our coreopsis, zinnias, roses, perilla and lantana in the closer background and our and neighbors' trees and big shrubs in the far background.

Thank you for visiting! Every week brings new joy in my Maryland flower garden. I aim to post every Friday from spring through first frost so be sure to visit again soon for more flower photos. May God bless you!

Related posts:
Wheelbarrow pansies: http://lovejoyandpeas.blogspot.com/2014/09/a-wheelbarrow-full-of-pansies-for.html
Freeloaders and flowers: http://lovejoyandpeas.blogspot.com/search?q=funky
Autumn Maryland flowers: http://lovejoyandpeas.blogspot.com/2013/10/autumn-maryland-garden-flower-photos.html

Friday, August 1, 2014

Busy Bees on Beautiful Blooms: Zinnia, Golden Sundrop & 3 Kinds of Echinacea

Happy floral Friday! Welcome to my weekly "This week in my Maryland garden" feature! While reviewing this week's photos, I noticed a theme and thought you might enjoy these close up photos of bees on the blooms. The echinacea (coneflower) seem to be particularly attractive to the bees.

But the zinnias and marigolds draw their fair share too. The zinnia in the photo above looks red but it's actually pink.

I think this is our third year having yellow echinacea. The moth is easier to see in the photo above but the bee is busy digging for pollen at the top of the middle coneflower.

Years ago we had golden sundrops and they flourished until the rabbits discovered how tasty their leaves were. This spring I planted six new ones in an area that I don't often see rabbits. Hopefully they'll remain rabbit free and we and the bees can enjoy their pretty flowers for years to come.

This magenta coneflower doesn't look much different from the regular purple echinacea (top photo in this post) but it's color is much more vivid in person and I love it.

Hope you enjoyed this week's mini photo tour of my Maryland garden! May God bless you!

Related posts:
Little bees, big flowers: http://lovejoyandpeas.blogspot.com/2014/06/little-bees-and-big-flowers-this-week.html
Fighting bees on sunflowers: http://lovejoyandpeas.blogspot.com/2013/08/bees-fighting-over-sunflower-photo.html
Heat beating flowers: http://lovejoyandpeas.blogspot.com/2012/07/heat-beating-flower-photos-this-week-in.html
Autumn bee and flowers: http://lovejoyandpeas.blogspot.com/2013/10/autumn-maryland-garden-flower-photos.html

Wednesday, July 16, 2014

Wildlife at Glendening Preserve's Butterfly Garden

Happy wild Wednesday! These photos are from my very first trip to Glendening Preserve's Butterfly Garden. It's in a picturesque setting near Jug Bay in Lothian, Maryland. The beautiful bird in the photo above greeted us when we arrived (I went with my beloved husband).

This appeared to be the only butterfly active during our visit but it hopped all over the place so quickly that there could have been more than one. There were many little moths.

The bees were very active and seemed to love the red zinnias.

Here's an overview shot of the Preserve. The butterfly garden section is in front of the barn. It's a short walk from the parking area.

My husband took this beautiful dragonfly photo elsewhere but on the same day as our visit to the Butterfly Garden so I decided to include it in today's post. I'm thankful he's so generous with sharing his photos.

Thank you for visiting. May God bless and keep you!

Related posts:
Butterflies and blessings: http://lovejoyandpeas.blogspot.com/2014/01/happy-new-year-blessings-butterflies.html
Dragonflies and butterflies: http://lovejoyandpeas.blogspot.com/2012/08/dragonfly-and-butterflies-on-flowers-at.html
Butterfly art by Denise: http://lovejoyandpeas.blogspot.com/2012/10/butterfly-art-by-denise-arvaneh.html

Friday, September 21, 2012

Flowers, Bees, Butterflies and Birds

Happy floral Friday everyone! Today's photos were taken at the U.S. National Arboretum by my husband and I (first two by me, second two by Ben). I hope you enjoy them and I'd love to hear from you. I finally figured out how to adjust the settings so anyone can comment so hopefully it will be easier to comment now.

The bird in the photo above was just looking around but I love how it looks like she's staring right into the camera. We were walking through a meadow and she was perched on these dried flowers.

This bee was hanging out on some sedum flowers.

Ben took this fantastic photo of two yellow butterflies enjoying yellow flowers (one was still on a flower and one was flying towards another flower). I thought his was the best photo of the day.

Ben also took this lovely flower photo in the National Herb Garden section of the U.S. National Arboretum.

Hope you have a wonderful Friday and weekend! May God bless you!