Today’s guest picture comes from the camera of Mrs Tootlepedal. She bicycled off after church to help with some archaeological surveying at a Roman camp near the town and noticed this painted lady butterfly on the way.
I was in a rather creaky state when I woke up and after breakfast I resolved to see if some vigorous activity would be beneficial in easing things off so I scarified and then mowed the middle lawn.
Although I was quite able to do this without any trouble, it didn’t have any lasting effect and I resolved to spend the rest of the day at rest. I did have a quick walk round the garden first though.
Some flowers are useful as well as decorative and these are beans and potatoes in the veg patch.
Mrs Tootlepedal has planted out a lot of Sweet Williams and they are just beginning to make a show in various beds round the garden.
There is plenty of white to set off the other colours in the garden and here are clematis round the back door, cosmos planted out by the front door and pinks beside the pond.
For the first time this year, there was quite a lot of buzzing to be heard all round the garden today which was good news. I watched one bee visiting a foxglove.
Mrs Tootlepedal has planted up the chimney pot beside the bird feeder….
…and it wasn’t long before I was inside and looking out at the feeder. I was pleased to see a blue tit, quite a rare visitor this year.
As I had sitting down in mind as my chief occupation for the afternoon, it was very fortunate that the television kindly provided me with the exciting final stage of the Criterium du Dauphine followed by both the men’s and women’s world cup triathlon events from Leeds. This kept me fully entertained until Mrs Tootlepedal returned. She had had a busy time moving measuring ropes to mark out a grid for the magnetometer operator to follow for the survey of the fort site.
She is going back tomorrow to have more fun.
It was quite hard work and she followed my example and did a little sofa surfing while I made her a cup of tea.
The day had stayed dry and cloudy and it was pleasantly warm so I decided to stir my stumps and stretch my joints with a little walk over the Jubilee Bridge.
There were plenty of birds to be seen as I walked along the Esk from the suspension bridge.
There were more to be seen on the Ewes Water at the Kilngreen but as they were wagtails and the light was fading, they were hard to catch. There were both pied and grey wagtails and they didn’t stop long when I got near. This is a grey wagtail.
The sheep on the Castleholm were more placid.
I saw knapweed beside the river and ornamental red horse chestnut flowers beside the cricket pitch.
We are pretty well at peak green now. Indeed, it is hard to see how things could get any greener….
…although there is a lot of yellow about too.
I didn’t dawdle too long as there were some threatening clouds about and I crossed the bridge and headed home. The nuthatches seem to have gone but there were plenty of other things to look at, some beside the path round the school playing field…
….some in the minister’s garden as I passed…
..and a Philadelphus perfuming the evening air as I approached our gate.
Once again, I was able to take the exercise without any trouble but it didn’t stop the creaking when I went to sit down afterwards. A good night’s sleep should sort it all out.
The flying bird of the day is a sparrow slipping past the feeder pole.
Tootlepedal's Blog 
Lovely pastoral scene of sheep in the buttercups. Hope you will get a good night rest.
I did.
I hope you feel better tomorrow. I liked the flying sparrow and the green photo, the knapweed and the Minister’s Euphorbia.
The minister’s euphorbia is certainly very showy and I looked at it with some envy.
Hope you feel less tired soon. I’ve known that feeling all too well. Perhaps a good scone, or two, and a cup of coffee in the morning will help.
The photos are lovely, but I would expect nothing less of the Scottish countryside and your camera. Your thistle blooms are out ahead of ours, although it won’t be long now. I especially like the Sweet William flower photo, and the footpath through fields of green and gold.
Buzzing bees are a welcome sound and sight. Appears to be fewer of them here as well right now, which is of concern. At least the fruit trees were busy this spring. I’ll have a better idea when the mint patches bloom. That seems to attract them like nothing else. I have not kept bees myself since we had taken on Rick’s mother. She passed on last December, and I didn’t have the energy this spring to establish a new hive and take proper care of them. If I can get enough dry season blooming plants established this year, I will try keeping them again next spring.
I hope that you can because the more people that keep bees the better for all the rest of us.
Two of our espalier apples have got fruit on them but the other missed out entirely and has hardly any fruit.
I do like the shot of the blue tit – it looks as though it’s bowing at something!
It is considering the unkindness of people who put seeds that are too big for blue tits to swallow in the bird feeders.
I didn’t know that Mrs. T. was a photographer too but it would be foolish to be surprised.
I have a lot of thyme in the back lawn and I stay away from it when it blooms because bees are usually swarming all over it.
I like the potato blossoms. They look much like the bittersweet nightshade blossoms I had in my latest post.
By a gate is the perfect spot for such a fragrant shrub as mock orange (Philadelphus.)
She doesn’t take many pictures as she correctly feels that there are far too many about here without her pitching some more in.
We have plenty of bee magnets in the garden but they are not working at the moment.
I’m glad your bees are starting to show up. I hope the creakiness goes.
I was very happy about the bees.
Despite a slightly creaky day, you managed to find so much beauty in and outside your age. I hope you will feel better tomorrow.
I did, thank you.
Glad about the bees and hope you are less creaky tomorrow.
Sorry to hear that you’re not feeling up to snuff, but then you turn around and post so many beautiful flowers and a wide variety of birds that it’s hard to tell that you weren’t at your best. I hope that a good night’s sleep does cure the creakiness though.
It did.
I agree your photographic prowess completely masquerades your aches and pains. I hope the images provide a healing power to you as they certainly improve my spirits. The flowers are wonderful, I particularly like the pinks. And for being a rare visitor that Blue Tit came out beautifully.
I like the pinks too though they are one of the flowers that look very tatty as soon as they are over.