August = Bugs

Whether it's a Monarch in the Rosemary, a bumblebee getting covered in pollen in a Canna, or a spider trying to hide in the Nicotiana, "bugs" are everywhere. And, I hasten to add, they are very welcome in my garden. Even the grasshoppers that eat as if there were no tomorrow. Well, I guess their "tomorrows" are pretty limited as we approach the end of summer.

The Bugs Have Arrived

For several days already, the Japanese beetles ("June bugs") have been in evidence in my garden. I've seen two Black Widow spiders so far, grasshoppers are everywhere, as are the little gray snails that are finding too many tasty plants to feast on, and this morning I saw this butterfly napping under a leaf of one of my Hyacinth bean vines.

Well, it's June, almost July, and we are in Georgia; what can I say . . .?

The Swallowtails are everywhere

Along with increasing numbers of hummingbirds, the ubiquitous bumblebees and the occasional honeybee, the swallowtail butterflies are now in evidence in my garden on a daily basis and - what else? - they LOVE those Buddleias.