29/07/2019 The rain seems to have brought out the butterflies

Maximum temperature today 27C, minimum 11C.  Dry.  16km/h North-westerly winds with gusts up to 35 km/h.  We had 20mm of rain over the weekend, it helped cool things down, but we need a lot more for the gardens and farms.

The return of the Scarce Swallowtail (Iphiclides podalirius) on the lavender....

As above...

As above... 

As above...

Small White (Pieris rapae).

Common blue butterfly (Polyommatus icarus) male...

As above female...

As above...

Now I am not sure as these next two look so similar but different!!  I think they are both Gatekeepers (Pyronia tithonus), but I would be happy for someone to correct me if I am wrong.

see above.

Crab spider with what I believe to be a Meadow Brown,

As above, yummy dinner!

Bee in a hurry...

As above,

Hummingbird hawk-moth (Macroglossum stellatarum).

Stargazer Lily, the sun has sadly burnt all the other Lilies!

A few veggies from the garden. Potatoes, tomato, carrots and courgette.

See also my Bird blog 

and My life In the Charente

26/06/2019 In the garden

Maximum temperature today 38C, minimum 19C.  Dry.  13km/h South-easterly winds with gusts up to 31 km/h.  

Summer has arrived!!!! 39C predicted for tomorrow and we have friends to lunch so I will be busy!

Many people have asked to see more of our garden and the house, yesterday I took some photos.  As usual too many so here is the garden and the house will appear in the next one.  No comments under photos (other than a couple) pretty self-explanatory!!

I had just cut the lawn.

Note the leaning apple tree, even the stake is leaning that we put in to hold it up after all the rain.

Potatoes, carrots on the left.

See also my Bird blog 

and My life In the Charente

06/06/18 Around the garden

Maximum temperature today 21C, minimum 15C.    Rainfall 34 mm measured since my last post; 15 km/h South Westerly winds with up to 38 km/h gusts.

Total rainfall since 1st January; 606 mm and more rain today!

Too dark to paint today so here is another catch-up post.  Photos taken over several days when there was a glimmer of sun between rain!

I managed to cut the lawn at the weekend but it was quite wet...

as above.

Love in the mist, and with what I believe to be a fly or bee of some kind covered in pollen

Rosebud with an Oxythyrea funesta chomping away on the petals! Note the small fly on the top of the petal on the right.

Bee Beetle (Trichius fasciatus)  on the cotoneaster...

as above.

Carnation growing in amongst the rosemary!

Day Lilies.

Cotoneaster with an unknown beetle.  I only saw the beetle when I looked at the photo which was taken of the flowers!

Fungus on the wood pile. Possibly Trametes versicolor, often called the "turkey tail.

Granny Smith apples.

Potato plants.

N.B. My bird blog is updated  HERE 

Part 12 of the birds I saw last year in Africa.

05/05/2018 In the garden today.

Maximum temperature today 23C, minimum 9C.    Dry; 9km/h North Easterly winds with up to 24 km/h gusts.

Our bush has been killed off by chafer larvae eating the roots, the only branch that has survived is this small one with two snowball flowers on it!

The last of the apple blossom.

Bumblebee in the rosemary.

Common lizard,

Medlar (nèfle) blossom. (Mespilus germanica)

Rosemary beetles in love.

Californian poppy.

Cetonia cuprea or aurata.  Not certain which.

Oxythyrea funesta plus ant. The beetles are all munching away on the flowers of the Red Robin.

Trichodes alvearius.

Dog rose.

Irises.

Peony.

Thirty-eight potatoes planted, more to go when we get the other bed ready.

N.B. My new bird blog is updated  HERE 

Part 7 of the birds I saw last year in Africa.