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In the Garden

In 2012, I created a garden, including a small greenhouse, in the tiny space adjacent to the trailer in which I live. A priority for me was to include plants attractive to bumblebees and other flying insects. I had noticed on previous photographic excursions that lupine were particularly attractive to bumblebees. Unfortunately, I found that the lupine was also a preferred habitat for predatory spiders—who waited, almost invisible among the lupine blossoms, to ambush the bumblebees.

As the season progressed, and as I worked around the small garden, I was constantly amazed by the variety of insect life in the garden. Some beautiful flying insects were too quick for me to capture them with my camera. These included some beautiful dragonflies and, once, a swallowtail butterfly. Fortunately, some of the dragonflies rested on the bamboo stakes I used around the garden and I was able to capture them when they did. I became very fond of one particular spider that lived in the greenhouse. Each time I entered the green house, I looked for the spider and was glad to see it still alive and well.

I hope you enjoy this collection of images. As for me, I look forward to seeing and photographing the garden visitors again in 2013.