Hot and Dry

Well, we didn't really have winter this year, but spring came early and it sure is summer.  Things are growing quickly, animal and plant alike, but are also thirsty and seeking shade during the daytime.  The evenings are pretty glorious as the baking eases and the bats come out to gobble mosquitoes.  This is our favorite time of day to work in the garden and be outside.

A bird about to go for its bath:

I think this is a juvenile hummingbird, perhaps one that hatched down in the nest we found in our woods:

You can see the colors are brighter on the mature birds.  Also, the little one above was clearly still learning about the feeder and its very territorial rufous neighbors:

Figs a' ripening!

And plums:

Kitty is loud:

The mantis chowing a fly:

Craig found an almost completely undamaged dead butterfly.  I put it on the flower for display:

The mantis we were keeping as a temporary pet ate so well it shed its skin!  You can see the old exoskeleton below it on Craig's hand.  It's hard to tell, but the before and after size change is remarkable; how did that huge insect come from that tiny exoskeleton!?

Bald eagle overhead!

Drinking in the butterfly garden after it was watered:

Peeps!

These hens love the dirt on the edge of the buttefly garden:

So they told their friends and rooster and now that whole flock pays visit to the butterfly garden every evening:

Plums!

Got pollen?  The photo doesn't show it well, but this bumbler is covered in dust:

I was impressed by the camouflage of this caterpillar, perfectly suited to time with cottonwood blooming:

Hello hopper.  This one seemed to be missing his back legs, and doing just fine:

Evening time at the flower bed dust baths:

Skyward figs:

Munching:

So many bees.  They just love the blazing star.  One flower would often have more than a dozen bees on it at once:

Craig moving big heavy pots of dirt:

Watering in the garden:

The beds are growing well, but the barrels are growing superbly:

Looking forward to produce:

Another garden shot:

And one of our first harvests!  Some chard, zucchini, and a strawberry:

Another tasty evening's picking:

We grew these butterflies from caterpillars and then released them.  All 5 seemed to do well:

Summer sunset: