Maximum temperature today 20C, minimum 13C. Cloudy and damp but not enough to show in the rain gauge; 11 km/h North-westerly winds with up to 31 km/h gusts.
We have been busy with trailer loads of stone from the 'new' barn and taking them to the dump. (An old interior wall that was under the food troughs). Moving cut wood into the barn. Cutting up figs for dehydration and what seems like dozens of small jobs!
Common wood pigeon (Columba palumbus)...
as above.
Colorado potato beetle larvae (Leptinotarsa decemlineata). I have been hand picking them off the potatoes and dumping them in soapy water - I seem to be winning at the moment!
Frelon asiatique (Vespa velutina) - Asian Hornet.
Note the last two insects have been introduced to France and we really do not want them!
Now this little guy, about 1/4 the size of a normal ladybird, is in quite large numbers on my haricot vert, they do not appear to be doing any damage but maybe I am missing something! If anyone can ID it for me I would be delighted...
They are Southern green shield bug nymphs (Nezara viridula) and are important pests so now I have to find a way to get rid of them without messing up the beans for eating. They are eating all the young beans and the flowers I can now see!!
As above.
Cornflower plus ant.
Cosmos and memories of roadsides full of them in Southern Africa...
as above...
as above, note the bug.
I thought all the poppies were over but suddenly this double appeared.
Californian poppy and hoverfly
Vegetables from the garden today - tomatoes, figs, 1 parsnip, 3 yellow carrots, hazelnuts....
Haricot vert, potatoes, mealies (sweetcorn)
Yum yum. For those that might be worried, I made the zebra table mats from zebra patterned wrapping paper. The table was carved in Zambia (I think) and has the heads of the big 5 carved into the top of it. Elephant, lion, buffalo, rhino and leopard. It has glass over the carving so almost impossible to photograph. You can see part of the elephant here.
and a slightly washed out sunset.
My bird blog
