Cusp

In a spirit of optimism, I took the bees not only their comedy beeswax in a frame, but also a whole new (full!) box. July is their big chance to gather significant nectar - the only chance this colony will get until next April. Once July becomes August, the game is up, and we will start to look at winter preparations. With my beekeepers association hat on, I have already been collecting quotes for bulk purchases of sugar syrup and early-Autumn Varroa treatment

I climbed the gate out of the mini-apiary into the adjacent field. Walking east along the south side of the hedge, it is overgrown by blackberries for about 100m. The further I got from the hive, the less shaded it becomes, and the more advanced the flowering. A nice sequence for them to exploit as the days advance, if the weather holds. It was clear that not all the foragers are coming here though. I have a suspicion that the farmer's nearby, large, well-tended garden may have some lavender, broad beans or other attractions. I'll keep my optimism going and hope for a jar or two of complex, multi-floral summer honey

Bramble flowers are such a commonplace that we overlook them. It can be a benefit of (even my happily amateur) photography that we do actually stop and appreciate, even familiar things

I spent a long time trying to get the phone to focus on the flowering heads of the grasses growing outside the kitchen door (extra). It would have been so simple with my 1970s OM10! Timothy is one of my favourite grasses - and one of the last to flower, so another sign that the year is turning. It is drought-resistant, digestible, rich in palatable sugars and has long been considered an essential component of traditional hay meadows. 

I'm glad I persevered and got a picture clear enough to show the twin 'awns' (spikes) on the 'lemma' (casing) of each flower within the head - one of the key identifying features of the species. I learned that, also in the 1970s, from a lovely, gentle teacher who had seen active service in the fleet air arm - one of the most dangerous roles in the fight against fascism. I wonder what he would make now of the democratic politics Europe and America have evolved since his victory