Summer solstice

We've had several days of mist, so I was delighted yesterday (Saturday) when the sun shone in the afternoon.  I was hoping it would last into the evening sunset as it was the Summer Solstice and thankfully it did.  Photo above was taken at 10.30.  It was still fairly light at midnight, though the clouds reappeared and this morning it was raining.  But we had a beautiful day for the solstice....

Button and I had spent the afternoon in the garden.  The damp misty days have made everything grow wonderfully, particularly the weeds - well ok they are wildflowers in the wrong place but they are choking some of my perennials so some rescue work was needed.  Button supervised as usual....

This weigelia is flowering well this year - yes that's cow parsley growing through it.  That's ok.  Once it has flowered I will cut the cow parsley back.  But the bees love it...

This is one of the borders - panoramic shot so a bit distorted....

I love the evening light on these poppies....

There have been lots of fledglings about, starlings, sparrows, wrens, and blackbirds.... this is a juvenile blackbird (I think).

And my pride and joy - an orchid growing in the middle of my "lawn". Oh this fair makes my heart sing.  This summer my garden has been blessed by wonderful bugs and bees, birds and now this.

I mentioned misty and cloud last week....

But there were still a couple of lovely evenings....

Sun setting before the cloud bank moved in...

Hope you were able to enjoy the solstice wherever you are in the world.  Stay safe in these strange times..

Sunset.....

June is my favourite month.  In Orkney it barely gets dark at night (blackout blinds help sleep!).  And the sunsets are amazing.  So here are some photos from the other night..... (Sunrise today was 4am and sunset will be 22.28, but as I say it barely gets dark).

It had been a lovely day and I'd taken a drive round the island (didn't take long ha!)

And then it went all pink and purple, just beautiful!

And then the next day.... mist..... for two days.... someone stole my landscape.....

Though it did look very picturesque when it cleared a bit...before returning again.....

But the garden has enjoyed the added moisture form the mist, we've not had that much rain (shhhh) and at least it saved me watering!!

A wander to the old quarry

We had some beautiful, warm, sunny weather earlier last week and I took a drive up to the old quarry.  In Scotland we are allowed to drive 5 miles or so for exercise etc.  Well as Graemsay is only about 1.5 x 2 miles it is easy to stay within the limit. Haha!  So here are some photos from a lovey time spent listening to the curlews, skylarks, gulls, oystercatchers, bees, and watching the pond skaters zooming across the quarry water.  I saw one damselfly but not long enough to identify.  Above - Hoy High lighthouse, Sandside, and across the water Orphir on the Orkney Mainland.

Old crof houses, the farm of Fillets on the hill

The Hamnavoe ferry sailing out of Stromness on the way to the Scottish Mainland.

Heading out of Hoy Sound....

The croft of Dean

The old Manse....

Looking over towards Stromness.....

A coastguard helicopter.....

And some of the lovely wild flowers at the quarry.

Orchids!

Bird's foot trefoil

Ladie's smock

Dwarf willow setting seed.

A hairy silage bale!

Curious holes.... maybe mining bees or some other insect....

A virtual garden bioblitz....

No it's not a chemical annihilation, but a wildlife survey organised by the Orkney Field Club.  I&T explains it better in his blog.  I'm just going to show pretty pictures. Haha! The day dawned fair, and warmed up nicely too.  I have to say, motivation is sadly lacking for me during "lockdown" but as the weather was so glorious and I wanted to do some gardening I though, why not take my camera anyway and see what I see.  Well I fairly cheered up after few successes of actually being able to take some photos of flying insects!

As part of the Bioblitz we could upload photos to a Facebook page for help with ID.  Um, is this a hoverfly I ask.....  nooooo!  It's a wonderful creature (well so are hover flies but...) it's a Mason Wasp, to be precise it is (apparently according to the experts) an ancistrocerus scoticus.  A 3 banded Mason wasp is the best I will remember.  They are amazing and it's possible it lives in the sandstone walls around the garden.  It makes little cement cups to lay eggs in.  It's a solitary wasp, and doesn't seem to be as aggressive as some of the wasp family.

And then, when I was actually taking a photo of lichen, there was another mason wasp.... but..... a different species!!  This is a 5-banded mason wasp (Ancistrocerus oviventris).  I know!! Exciting...

And then..... there was THIS.... a Great Yellow Bumblebee  (bombus distinguendus)

one of the rarest in the UK.  This is a geranium and is covered with bees most days.

It was like winning the jackpot!  But with less money.....  there were other delights around too including these lovely carder bees, (bombus pascuorum) also part of the bumblebee family but more widespread across the UK.  They love the perennial cornflowers

And the more usual bumblebees, that I call "buff tailed" bumblebees.  Obviously loving the allium!

And there were lichens aplenty on the old garden dyke (wall).

And this one, known as Sea Ivory (Ramalina siliquosa)

So I was fairly chuffed with all my "finds" (once the experts explained what they were - ahem...well I knew the regular bumblebees...).  And it's fired me up to go out looking for more creatures.  It also delighted me that there were so many bees in the garden.  When I first moved into the house the old garden was a wilderness of ancient grass and an old elderflower tree.  My gardening style is pretty feral which obviously pleases the bees!

I was working on this border after the bioblitz.  It's mostly trees and perennials.  It faces North so does struggle a bit and tends to be very green early in the Spring/Summer before getting a little more colour.  But it's one of my favourite borders....

And you are never alone when you have hens..... (having a bit of a sunbathe here!)

Invertebrates you say you want - let me help you find them... sigh!

Button of course has to get some attention too.  Sunbathing.  No wonder I struggle to get something to grow here... it's her favourite spot...

And then of course she gets too warm and seeks the shade of the trees!

So all in all it was a lovely magical day.  And thanks to the Orkney Field Club Virtual Bioblitz for opening my eyes to the wonders in my garden!