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Back in the garden

I am now back in my garden after being on holiday. I have to say here in Scotland, as in the rest of the UK, July’s weather has been as equally disappointing as June’s – rain again! I was a lovely day yesterday but I was unable to find the time to get my camera out to take photos for July’s Garden Bloom Day post. Guess what – it’s raining again today! Perhaps this evening will be dry and I’ll get some photos then. I have to say that I find posting photos of what is in flower every month a wonderful record of my garden and it is great to see what is in flower in other gardens in other parts of the world too.

Holiday pics – well I may be seen as sad here! Despite the weather we still got out and about and I decided that seeing as I didn’t have my own garden to watch I would look out for wild flowers for a change. I do have a few in my garden but it is never the same as seeing them completely in the wild. So armed with my camera I found myself scanning the verges and cracks in walls for plants I didn’t recognise – coming across others I remembered collecting for my Mum in posies as a child. Now, of course, wild plants are protected here so I collected photos instead!

It was very windy as well as wet in North Wales so my photos aren’t as clear as they could be – but I thoroughly enjoyed the exercise. I could have taken many more photos but it was our family holiday! Although we are back now I would like to continue looking out for wild flowers when I am out and about. I will post on my photos after I have caught up on my own garden.

What is this in the photo above? Well I was surprised to come across this when I upload my photos to my PC. I don’t actually remember taking it! I can locate it though by the photos which come before and after it. I was taken close to Llanberis in North Wales along the shores of Lake Penllyn – we took a trip along it on a little team train. There was a stop at one end and I was able to take a few photos! What a lovely little trip it was – we passed so many areas of wild flowers en route too. I will come back to the rest of these photos again. The picture below shows the scale of the insect in the original photo – the top picture is cropped and enlarged from it.

So, what is this insect? I must be honest and say that I have absolutely no idea but I do know a man that may be able to help me. Peter, at When to Watch Wildlife, has an excellent site with a diary of what to look out month by month. I will mail him later today and ask him what I captured in my photo. The picture below shows the scale of the insect in the original photo – the top picture is cropped and enlarged from it.

I have to recommend a read through Peter’s site especially to those with school children off on holiday – what a great place the outdoors is and there is so much we can see out there if we only take time to look that bit closer!

Update on insect identification: Peter has suggested it could be a Soldier Beetle – thank-you Peter. I have looked up one of my two photographic links for birds and found a photo there that suggests that it looks just like it. To see a much clearer photo, by Steven Round, plus many others of birds too look here.

2 thoughts on “Back in the garden

  1. Glad you had a lovely holiday, shirl, in spite of all the rain we’ve been having these past two months.

    I don’t know the name of your insect…looks a bit like a lily beetle, but the body’s longer.

    I’ve not been blogging as often recently…too much to do in the garden, in between the showers!

  2. Hi again Wildlife Gardener,

    Thanks, I now have ID for the insect which appears to be a soldier beetle – you were on the right lines well done. I had no idea.

    Yes, I too need to get out in the garden and sort out weeds, blown down plants, prune and de-head etc. I also need to complete my GBBD post too. It’s the school hols too so I’ll get done what I can – I often blog late on in the evening.

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