pollinators – Fine for Friday

6 Great Pollinator Plants 22 Aug 2025

Today is Day 1 of the Great Southeast Pollinator Census. It’s a simple task. You spend 15 minutes counting the pollinators seen of a particular pollinator. In my case, I was watching a zinnia and lantana combination. You use the dedicated website to upload your observations. This can be repeated as often as you like. This was originally a project in the adjoining state of Georgia but this year my state of Alabama is included. The website is https://gsepc.org

I submitted my observations but took 6 photos at the same time for today’s blog. Of course, it is zinnia and lantana. It is a departure from the norm, but I know you will appreciate the photos.

I will be posting them on the Six on Saturday blog tomorrow. https://gardenruminations.co.uk . Look for the group on that site hosted by Jim Stephens.

My zinnias have been magnificent this year and here is a swallowtail enjoying them.

Next, is a ‘fuzzy butt’ bumblebee on a small white zinnia.

This gulf fritillary is on the ‘Miss Huff’ lantana.

The cloudless sulphur is on another simple zinnia with wonderful color.

The ‘shiny hiney’ carpenter bee is on a chaste tree ‘Vitex agnus-castus’

Hope you have as many pollinators in your gardens as I have in mine this year.

Happy gardening!

Summer Doldrums 18 July 2025

The heat is consistently stifling everyday now. It is energy sapping. Some days have breezes that provide relief but that is the exception. It will be this way until mid September so I have to buckle up and bear it.

The main jobs now are deadheading and removing the occasional plant which has succumbed. The sawflies are under control so the roses are happy.

The garden is still madly blooming. All the stored up rain is driving it. The mainstays of rudbeckia, echinacea and Shasta daisies are magnificent. It did rain some this afternoon so there is hint of cooling in the air.

As usual, I will be posting my blog with the SOS group tomorrow. Come take a look at beautiful gardens with 6 photos each. Here is the site. https://gardenruminations.co.uk The rules are there. Perhaps, you would like to post 6 of your own.

The Purple Heart loves the heat. It is a Tradescantia hybrid if you are unfamiliar. Others in this group are know as spiderworts.

The Indian Summer is a rudbeckia that I have grown for 3 years now. Some survive the winter and others are a reseed I think. The large bloom is spectacular and the foliage is hairy so it tolerates the heat well.

The coneflowers are butterfly magnets. Here I am featuring the Pipevine Swallowtail which is new to my yard. I planted its host 2 years ago and I am very pleased to see this butterfly.

The Mexican hat is one that I grew from seed this winter. It is a prairie coneflower Ratibida columnifera. It has a cousin which has abundant larger yellow blooms. I like this one which is much smaller but with a distinctive bloom.

This prostrate lantana is really coming into its own the last 2 weeks. I was gifted six small plants this spring and I am very pleased with the growth habit.

Finally, I have a swamp milkweed, Asclepius incarnata, to show you. I bought it 4 years ago and I thought it was a no show. I think I had been it out thinking it was goldenrod. It has survived despite my misdeeds. I am grateful.

Happy gardening! I hope the rain and the sun are meeting the needs of your garden.

Fall Week One 27 Sept 2024

The news today is focused on Hurricane Helene and the devastation in north Florida, Georgia and the Carolinas. It is a very sad day there for so many. Reports this morning indicated that 3.5 million were without power. Some would be without power for several days. Flooding was reported in north Georgia and the Carolinas.

My location is about 100 miles from the eye of the storm as it passed to the east of us. We have some breezy conditions today but the sun has come out and it is beautiful.

The fall garden is beautiful. The milder temps are bringing much needed relief. It is showing up with a fall outburst of bloomers. The pollinators are out in force.

I will be joining the #SixonSaturday crowd tomorrow. If you would like to join us, take 6 photos and post them on a blog or file. All you need to know is found on this link hosted by Jim Stephens. https://gardenruminations.co.uk

The goldenrod is a signature of the fall and it is just beginning this week.

I have posted the Autumn Joy in the last few weeks but this one is definitely at its peak.

The sasanqua camellia is early this year. It is so colorful that it overwhelmed the processor in the camera.

The pollinators were out in force this morning.

The painted lady is a newcomer to my garden and it is very welcome.

The gulf fritillary loves the lantana. They are my most visible and abundant pollinator.

The carpenter bee was motionless when I took this shot. It was waiting to warm up begin its day.

Happy Gardening!

Middle June 2024

The summer garden is well established now. The work of the spring is bearing fruit. I am especially glad that we laid a thick layer of pine bark mulch because the weeding is easily managed.

The Shasta Daisies are following the purple coneflowers. The black eyed Susans are just beginning to open buds as are the Stoke’s asters. The pollinators are out in force especially the native bees and the bumble bees. I did see a Hackberry emperor today.

As usual, I will be submitting my blog post tomorrow with the Six on Saturday group. Come look and see photos of gardens from around the world. Our host is Jim Stephens and here is the link https://gardenruminations.co.uk. Submit your own. Just follow the instructions from this site.

The chaste tree is in full bloom now. The tree or shrub really is now near full size and the purple flower panicles are magnificent.

The purple coneflower native is really attracting the pollinators. You can just see the bumble bee in the flower on the right. I will not deadhead these flowers as they really attract the gold finches in the fall. Sorry that this bloom looks moth eaten since the abundant blooms on this plant are perfect. I wanted to capture the bee.

The Rudbeckia is in full bloom. I lost about half over the winter but the survivors are really putting out. I have been able to grow these from seed.

The crocosmia is really showing out near the pond. I have been able to control it here. It tends to spread rapidly with few blooms in other locations.

The Shasta Daisies began to come out this week and they are very beautiful with that “sunny side up” look.

Two young ladies entered the garden carrying a round plastic container. When they opened it, inside was a bumble bee amongst some plastic flowers. Three weeks ago, they had found this bee on their deck and it could not fly. They decided to nurture it with small amounts of honey and came up with the idea of the container to keep it in recognizable surroundings. They take the bee to flowering gardens in the area and allow the bee to enjoy the flowers.

I forgot to ask if they named it. I’ll call her “Buzz”.

I hope you are having weather that allows you to be outdoors.

Happy Gardening!!

The Promise of Late Fall 15 Dec 2023

I have been dreading the dull, wetness of the approaching winter. In fact, this week, I thought that I might take the week off from Six on Saturday. I was better motivated today and I resolved to find some worthy snaps for the blog.

To delight, it was a sunny and pleasant day. There were plenty of photo opportunities and I am including 6 of those that inspired me.

If you are new here, we post on SixOnSaturday. I will give you the link shortly. It is hosted by Jim Stephens and there are always beautiful photos. Take the time to visit. The link is here https://gardenruminations.co.uk.

The Columbine has appeared. I think it may be A. canadensis which will be a beautiful pink. In my youth, we called it honeysuckle and we would bite off the little tips for the nectar.

The paper bush has steadily healed all summer from last December’s icy insult and is getting ready for next month’ display. It has a wonderful fragrance and an eye catching architecture.

The fig did not bear fruit last summer. This new sprout is making me hope for a crop of figs. If not for me, perhaps the birds and squirrels can enjoy some.

Camellia japonica “Prof Charles Sargent “

The japonica is showing signs of recovery from the disastrous cold of last December. This camellia has been in the garden since 1980.

The osmanthus is also slowly recovering. I have pruned it gently all summer and fall removing the twigs that are dried out. It shows evidence of new growth and I am optimistic for its future.

The hardy mum is a new transplant which I featured a few weeks ago. I am reposting it today because of its little pollinator visitor with the comical name. I came across this on iNaturalist and I am pleased to share it.

I cannot say that I will post next week but I do send you Greetings and Hope for a Joyful New Year.

Happy Gardening.