Stay-put bee

I think the way this bumblebee stays put pretty sums up how I’d like to be right now. She’s been clinging to this same spray of goldenrod for a couple days now. Maybe it’s cold. Maybe she’s tired. Maybe she just sees no reason to go anywhere. All she has to do is move over […]

Bugs in a golden bower

It’s not just bees in the goldenrod. Many of the black and yellow bugs are Locust borers. Not a beetle to boast about, as their larvae are in someone’s black locust tree. One thing I noticed as I was leaning in to get a better shot was the smell of the goldenrod. How did I […]

How many bumblebees do you see on the goldenrod?

I wish I could get the camera to convey the abundance of bumblebees on the goldenrod today. The sun is back and it’s found a perky stand of goldenrod in full color. Lots of bumblebees have found it too. Usually I could spot at least six or seven on it at a time. In this, […]

The usual suspects are in the goldenrod

August started early in the goldenrod. They’ve been flowering for a couple weeks and bees love it. I’ll try to catch more pics of the little bees later. For now, here’s a bumblebee, a honeybee, and a mystery wasp.

Goldenrod for a lazy bee

We went out for dim sum today, and I feel as lazy as a bee hanging on the goldenrod with a faceful of flower. This is a Carpenter bee, and you know it’s a male because of the light spot on his face. He was so sleepy, I could move the goldenrod to an easier […]

More bumbles, more goldenrod

Here it is the end of September, and the goldenrod is still flowering, and the bumblebees are still foraging, and still crowding two or three at once on the same flowers. The bumbles seem less impatient here, taking a long sip before they move on. Such happy bees!

Swaying, buzzing goldenrod

After a cool June and a wet July, August is actually August! What a concept. Hot, muggy weather. Suddenly darkening skies that tease with the promise of a thunderstorm. And goldenrod arching up from the ground and swaying under the weight of bees and other buzzers. Goldenrod is one of the best bee plants. Sometimes […]

California goldenrod

While out in my old stomping ground, I also visited the Old Mission Dam. It was built in the early 19th century by the Indians and monks of Mission San Diego de Alcala to create a steady water supply from the San Diego river. Now it’s a quiet little park. There were ducks on the […]

Goldenrod

The coneflowers have been feeding bees for weeks now. So have the veronica, the wood sorrel, the St. John’s wort, and the bladder campion. It’s starting to get boring, all that growing and flowering and growing and flowering. Even the squash blossoms are getting familar. So it’s nice to see goldenrod join the crowd, complete […]