What a blast of great weather: dry, warm and sunny for over a week now, just as all the common birds around the garden are feeding young. Great too for the pollinators, the bees and butterflies are out and about in numbers, not to mention garden enthusiasts.
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| Hardy Geranium and browsing bumble bee (c.OOS) |
The best performing plants for us right now, are the perennial or hardy geraniums and of course, Aquilegeas or Columbine, also known as granny's bonnets. They self seed around and give a show of lovely sharp, navy blue and purple flowers around the flower beds, rising up to attract bees in numbers.
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| Aquilegeas in full flower (c.OOS) |
These are all timely, for the weekend that is in it, Bloom in the Park: I always associate enormous Aliums and Aquilegeas with the show, and folk walking by with their prize purchases, though maybe this year more walk by with ice cream cones and a fizzy drink!
Interesting how the name Aquilegea is rooted in the latin for Eagle or Aquila, which is probably a reference to the curled up tips to the petals resembling an eagles wing tips.. Columbine is a reference to doves, the arrangement of petals recalling a circle of doves. Bees love to climb right in to the blooms splashing lemon colured pollen on their backs in return for a nectar drink.
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| Granny's Bonnet or Aquilegea (c.OOS) |
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