Wednesday 23 July 2008

Butterflies......

YesterdayI walked with butterflies........it has been a long wait for them this year......
They came in small numbers but were in and out of the garden all day.....
Their fragility and charm always captivates..........
Buterflies to not live for long, so I make the most of each one that visits......
I have made a secure site for the bees.......I am now going to work with butterflies.....
I shall start to put plans in progress now........
So hopefully like the bees they will increase in numbers......
and I will have the endless pleasure of watching them on the flowers......
They are so pretty and so fragile...........Quote: People garden in order to make something grow; to interact with nature; to share, to find sanctuary, to heal, to honour the earth, to leave a mark. Through gardening, we feel whole, as we make our personal work of art upon our land......

32 comments:

Dawny P said...

I love butterflies Cheryl - and the colours you captured in these pictures are just fantastic xxxx

Cheryl said...

Hi Dawny...thank you, they are lovely, aren't they....

Mark said...

Hi Cheryl,

I'm glad to report that I'm still here, just been taking a bit of a break as I feel totaly wiped out with all of the effort that has gone into the green space.
I'm off dragon hunting in a bit , for the first time this year at one of my favourite places.
Nice selection of butterflies, still a bit sparse up in these parts but starting to see more of the later ones.

Cheers Mark

PS also enjoying my bike and scraping the bugs off afterwards, hows Mr Praticals scooter?

Rose said...

I love butterflies, Cheryl, and that is one factor I had in mind when I started planning a garden. My garden may not smell nice, but the butterflies love it:)
The butterflies have just started coming here, too; usually I see more of them in late summer and early autumn.They love the coneflowers, by the way.

The last butterfly is beautiful; I'll check back later to see if Sherry identifies it!

Leanne said...

beautiful butterflies cheryl :-)

Leanne x

Naturegirl said...

Cheryl how I love to see these winged
wonders of nature! I posted my coneflower today but sadly have yet to capture the butterflies visits. :(
This year we don't seem to have an abundance of butterflies or hummingbirds..but as I type this I remember our subdivision was sprayed from above with some pesticide to kill off
an infestation of some bug I cannot remember at the moment that was threatening our local woodlands!!

Oh dear I do hope that is not the reason my winged friends have been
so few and far between.

This post feeds my soul! The quote is right on!
Enjoy your butterflies and bees!
hugs aNNa xo

CIELO said...

What a beautiful blog... wish I could have find it earlier... I'm a nature lover my self, and love every single picture I see here...

Nice meeting you

cielo

Baker Watson said...

Great photo's on the butterflies. Such a varied collection you have there.

Are you planning to build/install a butterfly house? I've often seen them in stores and catalogs but I've never talked to anyone who owned one so I don't know if they are particularly effective. I'm curious about whether or not they are worthwhile. At least they are attractive.

And thanks for the visit and comment. I'm sure GG will be thrilled to see the comments on her very first blog post.

Libbys Blog said...

I feel cruel sometimes reading your blog, theres you doing so much for the birds, bees and butterflies and theres me who does nothing really!:o(

Cheryl said...

Look forward to seeing your dragons Mark...you know how I love your photographs....

Mr P is just getting ready to go for a spin around the country lanes....he is having such a fun time on it....like a kid in a sweet shop....

Enjoy the bike....

Cheryl said...

Hi Rose....the last butterfly is a comma....I didn't put the names underneath as I really don't like being technical about things, its just me and my funny ways again....sorry I should be more informative really....I am just a lazy blogger doing her own thing...

They havn't visited the coneflowers yet....they seem more interested in verbena bonariensis at the moment.....give them time ....

Cheryl said...

Hi Naturegirl....I just hate it when you don't know what the sprays to.....they often kill off the good bugs to...so very sad...

I am grateful that I live amongst livestock farmers....no chance of sprays while they are around....

Cheryl said...

Hi Cielo and thank you for your lovely comments and for adding me to your blog list....

Cheryl said...

Hi Baker....I have tried butterfly houses and they are generally unsuccessful....I find the spiders use them more than anything, which is fine..
I am going more along the lines of planting trees that have peeling bark, for winter hibernation. Also planting host plants and I have already started leaving nettles and the like to grow in certain areas. These are the host for butterflys such as the peacock, comma and read admiral. It will be a slow process but lots of good ideas that I will put into pratice....

Cheryl said...

Hi Libby I am sure with your garden you do plenty without even realising it. The beautiful blooms you grow, will I am sure, attract night flying moths which in turn will feed bats.

I only garden the way that I do, because I prefer nature to the plants that I grow....without the life in my garden, for me, the space would be empty.....

At the end of the day its how we see things as individuals, isn't it??
And you are not cruel.....

Mary said...

First, your header is very pretty.

Your butterflies are lovely. Spend your precious short time with them. I try, also.

Cheryl said...

Hi Mary....the time is so short, is it not? I will spend as much time as I can with the butterflies....

beckie said...

Cheryl, your butterflies will love you even more! I can't imagine the patience it took to get all those wonderful pictures. They are delicate and one wonders how they survive in the winds and rains. One of he little garnddaughters calls them flutterbys.

Zvrk said...

Beautiful photos!
Our garden is full of white butterlies.

Cheryl said...

Hi Beckie...they are so beautiful, aren't they.....

I really like that flutterbys......very appropriate...

Hope you are not too stressed, have been thinking about you and all your rushing around....take care.

Cheryl said...

Hi Zvrk....don't you just love white butterflies....they always look so heavenly......

Q said...

Dear Cheryl,
These are very, very pretty butterflies. I think gardening for the butterflies is a grand pursuit!
My butterfly gardens fill me with joy. Habitat for the bees and butterflies and birds and critters of all sorts is what we do.
I love seeing your butterflies!
Sherry

ChrisND said...

I'm happy to see some of your butterfly pictures...I'm also excited that just yesterday I spotted a couple in my garden (they looked like some of yours)...so there's hope!

I have recently started some research into what to expect and plan locally for butterflies...

Lisa at Greenbow said...

I think these butterflies are new for me Cheryl. Do you know what kind they are? Beautiful.

Graceanne Grateful said...

What can I say?! AWESOME ! Just awesome !!! Your flowers and butterflies are absolutely beautiful, and your photos of them are marvelous and sure show your love for these wonderful things in nature.

Cheryl said...

Dear Sherry.....yes you are right this is what we do and what pleasure it gives us....The comma is my favourite amongst the photographs...almost looks like a piece of jigsaw!!

Cheryl said...

That is wonderful and brings joy to my heart....I look forward to seeing your lovely photographs....

Cheryl said...

Hi Lisa.....as far as I am aware they are the comma (the one with irregular patterns on the wing)....the meadow brown....and the lovely cabbage white....

Cheryl said...

Hi Graceanne.....natures truly inspires me, without it life wopuld be less.....tku for your welcome comments.....

Wendy said...

That quote is so true. I am glad you have a plan for attracting butterflies to your garden. They are so pretty. Thanks for the pics.

Jackie said...

Beautiful series on bees and butterflies! I am always amazed by how insects that love flowers get so focused on what they are eating/collecting, they don't seem to notice the camera directly above.

Cheryl said...

Hi Zhakee and Wendy....tks for the comments....butterflies certainly add another dimension to the garden.....