Sunflowers - again

Two of the smallest Sunflowers are now in full bloom and one of the larger variety is beginning to open. These photos were taken of the small ones. Total height of the stems is only up to knee height and the flowers are about 3in (75mm) diameter.



Here is a close up photo of one of them - uncropped.



Close up taken with The Canon EOS M5 fitted with 18-150mm zoom lens and the Raynox DCR-150 Macro / Close-up conversion lens.

Nearly There

What a difference a few days make. The Sunflower taken this morning in a short lull between strong gusts of wind:



Taken with the Nikon Coolpix S9050, on camera flash used to help darken the background. Frame added using the Mac App FX Photo Studio Pro.

Late Sunflowers

While I was topping up the bird feeders I had a close look at the Sunflower plants growing from seeds dropped by the birds. Most are tightly shut but one was beginning to show yellow petals.



If the night temperature doesn't get too low and the strong cold winds stay away for a few days more maybe it will bloom.

The bud on the largest plant was tight shut ...



... but at least a Ladybird was finding it a useful place to shelter.

Five Heads Better Than One?

 

A Mixed Bag

 A few evenings ago I tried several times to photograph the Sunbeams poking out above some dark clouds. They weren't very bright so this is best I managed.

 

Lovely Sunny day here. A cooling breeze from the coast is helping to keep the temperature down to reasonable levels. This was the NOAA 18 weather satellite picture from just before midday local time. 

 

The red Sunflower is facing away from the Sun so it looked really spectacular with the Sunlight glowing through its petals

  

Finally the Hibiscus is in flower and attracting lots of bees 

 

The Sunflower is attracting bumble bees but, unusually, they are too shy to be photographed.

Smaller Than Expected

The Sunflower bud I showed a couple of Mondays ago has finally opened.

I had expected a 'giant Sunflower' to have a giant flower but no. This one is about 5 inches (130mm) across. On the plus side I do like the red colour and there are another six buds on the plant. I wonder what colour the other large one next to it will turn out to be.

What a Whopper

I must go around with my eyes shut on our daily perambulations. Yesterday was the first time I had noticed a Sunflower growing next to the cricket field. It's not as though it is a miniature. Far from it.

It is probably the tallest I have actually seen with my own eyes:

I usually grow a few myself though they never grow to that sort of height.

Last Spring I forgot all about stealing a few seeds from the birds' supply.

Grow Your Own Seed + Itsy Bitsy Spider

Sunflowers growing from seed missed by the birds:



Grand-daddy of them all. Has about 15 flower heads. The large flower which has nearly finished now was where I took most of the macro shots and video.



Spot the spider - close up taken with the Nikon:




To help here is a close crop of that photo:



Must be one of the smallest spiders I have ever seen. About 5mm including the legs. It was only the tiny blob of moving pale green which caught my attention while I was fighting a losing battle with the weeds in the front garden. It is probably a Green Orb Spider - araneus.

Friday at the Flicks - 2nd Bees on Sunflower

The previous post has a macro video taken with the Nikon Coolpix S9050. I had been looking around to see if there were any dedicated macro video camcorders when I thought - try the 50D now it is loaded with Magic Lantern which allows it to take video, even if only silent:



I fitted the Sigma 28-80mm macro lens and kept Magic Lantern to shooting 4:3 format. The first part of the video was taken as close as I could get. I still want to be able to get closer so will keep experimenting and looking. At the moment I am investigating the Raynox DCR-150 add on macro lens which seems to have good reviews. There are quite a few ideas for investigation on the UntamedScience website.

Friday at the Flicks - Busy Bee

Plenty of bee visitors to the Sunflowers which have been 'planted' by careless birds visiting the feeders:



I was fascinated by the way this bee was methodical as it worked its way round the Sunflower flower. Two clips played in reverse order.

Of Sunflowers and Goldfinches

While I was still on auto-pilot early yesterday morning I glanced at two small Sunflowers and thought - what has happened to the centre of each? As the brain cleared I could make out that each Sunflower had its own visitor - a Small Tortoiseshell Butterfly busily topping up with nectar.





Fortunately they stayed long enough for me to grab the camera and creep outside to get a closer look.

When I filled up the new larger Niger / Thistle seed feeder I bought on Thursday I moved the old one. The next morning there were no Goldfinches in sight! Later in the day I put the old one back in its regular spot and hung the new one next to it. At one stage this morning there were four Goldfinches on the old feeder and one brave bird on the new feeder. I think the Goldies have got so used to the landing pad on the old feeder. They like to stand on that and reach to pick out the seeds. Also over the past couple of days some of the Chaffinches have been landing on that pad. They never take seeds from the slots in the feeder but pick up any seeds which have fallen out or been dropped by the Goldfinches.

I wonder what is in that ugly looking yellow thing?


It is most unusual, here anyway, to see a Goldfinch on the ground but this youngster was spotted rummaging in the grass I laughingly call a lawn.

I wish his nibs would get the mower out!

Bits and Bobs

Just a few bits and pieces today. Yesterday I took the old Canon with me as it is lighter to use one handed whilst hanging on to Bobby's lead with the other. It was hot and Sunny with a gusty wind. In the end I came back with one photo worth looking at. All the birds were sheltering from the heat and the butterflies and dragonflies were being blown all over the place except for one little blue job which did pose for a short while.

I am fairly sure it is a female Holly Blue resting on a nettle leaf.



Back home a spider was embalming a hoverfly with their reflections showing in the double glazing.



The Sunflower seeds I planted some time ago have finally reached flowering size. These turned out to be a small variety with stems about 3 feet high and flowers about 3 inches across.



The first large Sunflower to flower has now produced seed some of which have already vanished. Whether a bird or a mouse has helped itself I know not. I had hoped to be able to film or photo whatever fancied free Sunflower seeds but as fate would have it the darned thing faced North, away from the kitchen window, once it had been pollinated. In fact this one never did follow the Sun across the sky.



In the front garden I have two Hibiscus bushes. One is a mass of flowers and buds. The other is a wizened stick about nine inches high. I have never managed to work out why one grew well and the other failed. Both were planted at the same time and they are in the same area of the garden.

Hibiscus by night. As well as attracting some butterflies and many bumble bees by day it attracts moths by night.





At the edge of the pond is a lovely pink flower belonging to one of the marginal plants. A Schizostylis coccinea cultivar.



Today I had put out a small pile of black Sunflower seeds and it didn't take long for two Coal Tits to start collecting them. During one period I saw one kept disappearing under the tall Leylandii in the corner of the garden. I decided to have a scout around to see if I could see signs of a store or activity. The ground under the Leylandii is covered with a layer of old leaves but in three places there were bald spots which were probably too small to have been made by Bobby when he is sniffing around. In one of these patches was a solitary black sunflower seed. Coincidence? Possibly, but the bird was flying very low in to that area.



Finally next door's Elder is in full berry which means they will be dropping on my side turning everything a deep purple if the birds don't make off with them soon.