Spotlit

Overnight I found myself pondering ways in which I could rapidly improve the environment around the wild pond, and making a mental list of plants I could move from their present homes. This morning I lifted a large clump of stinking iris from the rose bed, where it was thriving but had no business to be, and replanted it by the pond, and I'm happy to report that I hadn't even firmed it in when flies and hoverflies started settling on its leaves. I was also pleased today to see a big buff-tailed bumblebee queen carefully investigating a pile of rotting logs I placed at one corner of the pond a few days ago. I'm having huge fun with this project, as you can probably tell, and I can hardly wait for my next order of plants to arrive.

I've been trying for over a week to get more than a blurry record shot of an Orange Tip, and today I finally managed it. Right at the end of the afternoon, when most of the garden was in deep shade, I happened to be down in the wild garden, and saw this female flying around quite slowly, seemingly looking for a roosting spot for the night. When I saw her drop onto this cow parsley head, spotlit by the last of the afternoon sun as it was about to drop behind the trees at the far end of the garden, I almost held my breath, approaching as slowly as I could, and eventually managing to get to within a couple of feet of her - this image is only fractionally cropped. I confess that my little photo shoot did disturb her, but after lifting off she came down again just a few yards away, on another cow parsley plant a little further under the tree canopy, and at that point I left her alone and tiptoed away.

R and I had another enjoyable Zoom meeting with the younger generation this afternoon; everyone seems well and happy.