WiseAcre Gardens

Now there’s a load in your ‘pants’. I can’t begin to identify this bee-fly that’s been working so hard. At first glance it looked like a fly of some sort with that green body. A second then third look reveled what looks like a bee-hind. But I still can’t get over the ‘pantaloons’ with that huge load of pollen.

I’d be guessing what variety of Purple coneflower this is. I was hoping I had it marked in the catalog that I have yet to discard. But my record keeping doesn’t amount to even a scribble. It is an Echinacea, it survived the winter, it grew well and the flowers are great. Now I need to keep going back to the nursery until I can identify more to bring home.

And next time I’m going to make sure I remember it’s name.

Hopefully someone can identify this colorful worker. Each photo links to a 1024 x 768 image for a closer look.

If you like - Right Click the large photo and chose to make it your Desktop Wallpaper. If you would like one re-sized to your computer resolution - make a comment and say what size. I’ll post a link in my reply to the requested sized image.

I’m used to things disappearing in the gardens. The weeds get nasty and hide my tools, the deer help themselves to whatever they want and the wife mows down my ‘wildflowers’. I’ve even had a wheelbarrow vanish. (proving other dimensions do exist) But how do you lose goldfish? And where did all the frogs that were in the pond go? Goldfish and frogs don’t vanish overnight. In fact it only takes a few minutes in the afternoon when you have an unexpected visitor looking for a free lunch.

The pets are great helpers. They knew something was up right away when I headed toward the pond. But that’s as close as any of them were going to get. Pookie always barks up the wrong tree and Kitty Kay realized that was no chicken dinner.

That was a Great Blue Heron snacking on my fish and frogs.

Not too many people can say they have to go to a bait shop to buy food for their bird feeders. But it might be more fun to go to WalMart. ‘I’m looking for something to refill my bird feeder. Where’s the fish and frog mix packed in water?”

Join Green Thumb Sundays

I was caught by surprise when I went to check on a planting yesterday. I found a Sedum I was trying out had flowered. It wasn’t the fact that it was in bloom that surprised me but that the flowers were a pink / purple.

Sedum spurium

‘Summer Glory’

I usually read the plant tags but when it comes to Sedums I just grab and buy.  This one was no different and I chose it because of it’s low dense spreading growth without thinking about bloom color. I just assumed it would be another yellow flowering sedum.

Sedums are easy to propagate. Break off a stem, stick it in the ground and then forget about it.  Well maybe not that easy but close. In hot dry weather it helps to water the cuttings and keep the soil a little moist.

They thrive in dry sunny conditions as long as the soil is well drained.  They don’t like wet feet and will do poorly if the soil gets saturated for prolonged periods. Cold doesn’t bother most of the Sedums found at garden centers either. They also shrug off the cold winters of the north country of NY. where temps can drop to -40 F.