watercolour – Page 6 – Pencil and Leaf

Bombus hortorum and the Cornflower

By Val Littlewood February 9, 2010 January 22, 2020 Uncategorized

We are back from an unexpectedly eventful break, mainly because we, the non sports aware Brits had managed to arrange a night in Miami on Friday, not realising it was Super Bowl weekend.

So South Beach was one big party and our visit to Jungle Island was completely fascinating as we had Jeff with us, who designed the whole ecosystem there. But it’s back to bees now, and number one for the proposed show.

The Garden Bumble Bee, Bombus hortorum.

I have written about this bee before, when I first started the bee project back in October. This is the Bumble Bee with the long face and the longest tongue.

Their tongues may be 12 mm long, almost the length of their entire body, but can reach just over 2 cm when at full stretch. These long tongues help them to access the nectar from flowers with long tubular structures as in red clover, cowslips, foxglove, vetches and lavender. If you can watch these bees you will see them unfurling their tongues as they approach the flower

Here from Shutterstock is a wonderful photograph by Niels van Gijn which shows what I am sure must be B hortorum about to make contact with a tall delphinium.

This passage below explains a little about how they achieve pollination of such tall flower spikes and comes from Val Bourne’s excellent UK Gardening, site here.

“If you watch bumble bees visiting a foxglove, or any other flower spike, they always start at the bottom and work upwards. These lower flowers are rich in nectar and as the bumble bee diligently works up the spike, it eventually reaches flowers without any but which are pollen rich. Liberally dusted the bee goes in search of more nectar – so transferring pollen from the upper flowers of the first spike to the lower petals of the next it visits. Thus cross pollination takes place and seed is set.”

She has more information about bumble bees and bumble bee plants too which I shall be returning to in a future post.

The Cornflower

All bumble bees like flowers from the Knapweed family (Centaurea), which includes one of my very favourite “wild” flowers, the Cornflower, Centaurea cyanus.

In its truly wild form it is a rare thing and I can’t remember when I last saw it actually growing wild.
At Plantlife, the UK charity working to protect Britain’s wild plants, you can adopt one and help prevent them from becoming extinct, however I am not sure how the wild species differ from the garden variety, which I would always include in annual sowings.

Image by David Koloechter from Shutterstock.com

it’s a fascinating flower with its beautiful blue colour, anthocyanin, a pigment which is responsible for the red, purple, and blue colors of many plants.

The blue dye obtained from the petals is edible, as are the flowers, which you can use to pretty-up a salad. And, surprising to me, they are included in Twinning’s Lady Grey tea which is favourite of mine… especially with toast and honey:)

The Painting

The main focus for this set of paintings is, again, on the bees.
But this time I planned them to contain more than the studies I made for Deborah. So most will have a simple pencil addition of some sort. I dithered for almost a day about this, how big, how small, how much, what position?

I am not fulfilling a strictly scientific brief here and never really could or would want to. My aim is rather to portray something of the essence and character of the bees and add something that relates to them.

In the end I made a bigger gap between the flower and the bee than I had originally planned on my tiny thumbnail sketch. I prefer the separation and therefore, (following in my hero Mark Catesby’s footsteps) don’t have to worry too much about relative scale.

I may add more later but will live with this for now. This is really a development of the first hortorum I painted but a slightly altered pose and more refined (and correct) detail.

The Garden Bumble Bee, Bombus hortorum, with Cornflower, Centaurea cyanus.

Watercolour and pencil on Arches HP. 6 x 7 inches

The Red Mason bee, Osmia rufa, first studies.

By Val Littlewood February 3, 2010 January 25, 2020 Uncategorized

I have started my next series, “20 British Bees” with this little bee,The Red Mason bee, Osmia rufa.

I painted a couple of heads a few days ago here. This is the one whose female of the species, along with O corniforns and O cornuta, has little horns on her face which she uses to mould the mud when making her nest cells.

These bees are really delightful and not as destructive as people think. They rarely make new holes in your walls but rather use existing holes. This is an orangey-red haired bee, and very similar to O cornuta but as far as I can make out, rufa’s last two abdominal segments are darker and rufa is the most common Osmia species in Britain.

These nice hardworking little bees will do for the British orchard what BOB Blue Orchard Bee Osmia lignaria will do for the USA’s fruit crops. If osmia lignaria is BOB then osmia rufa should really be ROB 🙂 Research has found that:

“One female Osmia rufa does the pollination work of between 120 and 160 honeybees. Another advantage is that even in orchards which already have honeybee hives, when these are augmented with mason bees, there is a demonstrable improvement in yield, fruit quality and shape. The same is true when Osmia is the sole or major pollinator. And importantly, mason bees are not susceptible to the Varroa mite. The Red Mason Bee is docile and safe with children and pets. No specialist training is required in their use and they are never a nuisance to neighbours. They are also fun to watch and, by providing them with nest sites, their conservation is encouraged.”quoted from Cropfosters from Chris O’Toole, Bee Systematics and Biology Unit, Oxford University Museum of Natural History.

Just as there are commercially available nests for osmia bees in the USA there are also many companies in the UK who can supply nests, and I think cocoons. These bees will not be active for very long, just from April to June.

These photos below are from “Bees of the World” by Christopher O’Toole and Anthony Raw, where there is an excellent section on the Red Mason bee. The top photo shows some artificial homes, with mud seals put in place by the female when the nest is complete.

In these bottom photographs rufa is collecting mud and carrying it home in her powerful jaws.

“She uses mud to partition and seal the cells Several nesting females may find the same area of mud and their activities can create a distinctive hollow or “quarry”. She uses the horns to tamp mud into position when closing a cell.”

So look out for quarrying bees come April! Like other members of the Megachile family she carries pollen, not on her legs, but in the scopa of stiff hairs under her abdomen, see also Anna’s Megachile “Leafcutter Bee” here.

Interestingly,the above author, Christopher O’Toole, retired from Oxford University and set up the Oxford Bee Company whose products include bee homes and books about the Red Mason bee.
These products are readily available in the UK, and, if designed and approved by him, should be good!

The Paintings

IF all goes according to plan, the “20 Bee Paintings” and some accompanying flower paintings will be on exhibition in June. Things are still not decided yet but it means I have to get a move on. I am still deciding on format and size for the series, so this is a trial piece. Some sketches and trials..

Colour study, plus I have given her a nice nest hole in a wall with a handsome moustachioed mate.

And then I added some ivy as well, which I have just sketched in for now. I will paint a final version, once I have really decided on the layout size etc

This bee project will be three months of work.. I do hope you won’t be too bored! …but I do promise some flowers and other things as well!

Biodiversity and More Bee Flower Notes: Flowers 10 to 20

By Val Littlewood January 31, 2010 January 25, 2020 Uncategorized

It’s the last day of January and next week I have to seriously start my work for the “20 British Bees”.

For this next project I will be making some simple paintings of plants/flowers too and writing about them as I go.

They really do go hand in hand. The pencil and colour drawing of lovely “Lili” was a try-out for the bee series, as I will aim for a bit more of a sense of place to these next paintings.

Five a Day for Bees.

So here are some more flowers which bees like. I am learning that some they use for nectar and some for pollen and how important it is to keep a supply of bee friendly flowers as mixed as possible and spread throughout the seasons.

Earlier this month there were some interesting findings from French researchers showing that, just like us needing our 5 fruit and veg, bees are healthier if they have a mixed diet of five different pollens.

For a bee, foraging on just one crop is rather like us being fed exclusively on big Macs devoid even of the token bits of green stuff. It’s a very interesting read..here from the BBC. David Aston, who chairs the British Beekeepers’ Association technical committee says this:

“If you think about the amount of habitat destruction, the loss of biodiversity, that sort of thing, and the expansion of crops like oilseed rape, you’ve now got large areas of monoculture; and that’s been a fairly major change in what pollinating insects can forage for.

As a consequence, bees often do better in urban areas than in the countryside, because city parks and gardens contain a higher diversity of plant life. “

Go.. City Gardeners.. go!!.. my balcony is important. Elaine Hughes, expert gardener for the London Wildlife Trust says this!

“Would-be urban gardeners without a front or back lawn need not despair. Gardening in areas as small as windowsills or balconies is essential in that it creates sheltering areas and provides stop off points for insects and birds as they weave their way through neighbourhoods.” from the Ecologist, on creating a Wildlife Garden here

I have a feeling that bees are something of a “fashionable” cause at the moment.

I just hope the eco luvvies will not move onto something else too soon, because I don’t think reversing the decline in bee species will be a quick fix.

Someone said to me the other day. “Oh.. I thought bees were ok now”.

I don’t think they are quite yet.

Ten more Flowers

I did not sketch these flowers in any particular order or category, just as I read about them. I should have been a bit more organised, but it will be nice to fill up the sketchbook, only ten more pages to go.

For flowers 1 to 10 see here.

Clarkia/Godetia and Borage Borago officinalis

Harebells Campanula rotundifolia and Purple Cone Flower Echinacea purpurea

Cotoneaster and Hawthorn, Crataegus oxyacantha

Kidney Vetch Anthyllis vulneraria and Sea Holly Eringium maritimum

Wallflower Cheiranthus /Erysimum and Cranesbill Geranium

Also, I have just received a wonderful pack of seeds from Hometown Seeds, with enough vegetables for more than half an acre and planting guides etc.

I am looking at the 6ft by 3 ft balcony and wondering where to start :).

Signs of Spring: American Robins

By Val Littlewood January 30, 2010 January 25, 2020 Uncategorized

I have been tidying up my work room today and found some sketches that I made last week.
I had been to Leu and sketched these birds, then had got sidetracked by bee stuff and forgot all about them.

Also I had no idea what they were. It was a nice sunny day after all the cold weather and I heard the birds before I saw them. Flocks, of what seemed like hundreds, were wheeling round and round, screeching and chattering, something that I haven’t seen here at the Gardens before.

The action appeared to be centered around the huge camphor trees which line one of the walkways and as I came closer I could see the birds were busy eating the little black berries.
They then flew off to the nearby path to drink from a puddle of water and then rushed back to the tree again for more berries.
You can hardly see the Robin sitting on the branch, but you can see all the camphor berries!

The ones on the ground were quite distracted while drinking so I was able to do a few sketches and could see they had reddish breasts and a white ring around the eye…

I know that my USA readers will probably be aghast at my ignorance, but please don’t forget that I am a Brit, so the word “Robin” to me means a little chirpy little bird that comes and sits on your wheel barrow in the garden.
These American Robins are big! …and I now know they are members of the Thrush family

Gathering for migration

But what is most interesting to me is that I realise now I was probably seeing these nice little birds getting ready for a northerly migration, stocking up and getting fit and fat, although some do seem to stay in their own neigbourhood over the winter.
While I was researching I found this website: American Robin,Journey North where you can track the Robins’ journey north and participate in recording their progress.

So, three little Heralds of Spring especially for my northerly, ice and snow bound, blog readers. I want you to know that the Florida Robins are looking well and will soon be on their way!!

Death by Jewelry? : Abrus precatorius

By Val Littlewood January 27, 2010 January 25, 2020 Uncategorized

These pods with their innocent looking, pretty red and black seeds have been sitting on my desk for a couple of weeks now.
I had noticed the brilliant red dots shining out from the tangled remains of a decaying creeper which was twining over the chain link fence of the dog park opposite our apartment block.
I had no idea what it was and was astonished to find that, insinuating itself amongst the benign ivies and maypops, is one of the most deadly plants in the world!

Abrus precatorius Flowers and leaves at Gulfstream Park, Florida. September 24, 2009 photo”Forest & Kim Starr” from Plants of Hawaii

The pretty leguminous vine Abrus precatorius (from the Latin precari to pray), has many names: Jequirity, Rosary Pea, ‘John Crow’ Bead, Precatory bean, Indian Licorice, Saga Tree, Lucky Bean, Giddee Giddee or Jumbie Bead, locally here they are called Crab’s Eyes.

But its most fascinating “attribute” is that the hard red and black seeds, which are still used for jewelry in central America and Mexico, contain a poison which is really deadly.

So much so, that just one thoroughly chewed seed can cause fatal poisoning. The poison is “Abrin”, a relative of “Ricin” which was used in London in 1978, to dispatch Georgi Markov, in the famous umbrella killing.
Jewelry making accidents sometimes do happen when the makers prick a finger while handling the seeds, but apparently if swallowed whole the seeds are harmless..
Hmmm…
The ever useful, excellent and entertaining site Waynesword has this to say and gives more info about its deadly qualities.

“In spite of their reputation as one of the world’s most deadly seeds, precatory beans are certainly one of the most beautiful seeds on earth. They are sometimes called prayer beans or rosary beans and have been used for rosaries. Because of their remarkably uniform weight of 1/10th of a gram, seeds of Abrus precatorius were used by goldsmiths of East Asia as standard weights for weighing gold and silver. In fact, the famous Koh-i-noor diamond of India, now one of the British crown jewels, was reportedly weighed using seeds of Abrus precatorius.”

It’s another unwelcome invasive species here in Florida given category 1 status. A thorough explanation of the plant and its toxicity can be found here.

I am left wondering what being so toxic does for the plant? Of course it will repel some animals grazers, but interestingly it appears that birds are not affected by abrin and they are largely responsible for dispersing the seeds.

It is also another of those strange plants that quite likes being burnt. Seeds are readily available from seed suppliers, some of whom do not mention its deadly properties, but then as a funny article about the possibility of terrorist uses of Abrus says,

“Somehow mankind has muddled through, managing not to exterminate itself with rosary peas” ………read more from the Register here

Whatever its problems it is lovely to draw, the shiny seeds contrasting with the dark twisted pods which have a thin papery lining. I think I may do a couple more studies and find out a bit more about this interesting plant which also has some medicinal uses… apart from the fatal ones of course!

Abrus Precatorius,

The “Lucky” (for some but not others) Bean.

Watercolour on Arches HP 12 x 7 inches

Meet Nepalese Beauty, Little “Lili”, lover of the Air Potato.

By Val Littlewood January 25, 2010 January 25, 2020 Uncategorized

The Potato Vine Problem
Back in July 2008 I wrote about the Potato Vine.

I was intrigued by its little potatoes and thought it was rather elegant, with its beautiful heart shape leaves, but I do, now, have to admit that the Air Potato is a problem… this was my drawing.

It grows everywhere, dropping its little potatoes which root enthusiastically.
New and vigorous plants spring up immediately and twist creep and crawl over everything. It’s a shame because in isolation it is pretty and as a member of the Yam family was initially brought to Florida as a possible food crop.

However before you rush and and gather them up for a cheap meal it seems that the “uncultivated” ones here are poisonous. So, ‘cultivation’ must breed out the poison. (I am tempted to draw a hopeful analogy to the human race), Good Air Potato identification and info here.

What prompted this post was that on Saturday, the 8th Annual Air Potato Raid was held, in Orlando. This year their goal was to involve over 500 volunteers and collect 10,000 lbs of dreaded potatoes to try and bring the whole spreading menace under control. It must seem like a hopeless task!

However there may be hope, winging over the horizon, direct from Katmandu, in the shape of this pretty little beetle.

Lilioceris near impressa. LILIOCERIS near impressa, A Nepalese Leaf Beetle

I know about this beetle because the kind researcher who supplied me with the gorgeous Euglossa bees which I drew before Christmas, also sent me 3 beautiful little specimens of Lili.

This little beetle had been the subject of his research into the biological control of invasive weeds that threaten natural areas here in Florida, and it seems that this particular species of Lilioceris feeds only on air potatoes.

There are other Lilis who are partial to peoples lily bulbs, but they are the different, Lilioceris Lilii, very similar looking but with a red thorax. This is from Florida Invasives.org Newsletter published by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, which also has some other very interesting info about invasive species.

“Air potato
In 2008, the host range testing of Lilioceris sp., a leaf beetle discovered in Nepal as a candidate biocontrol agent for air potato (Dioscorea bulbifera), was completed. This research, which began in 2005 by the USDA-ARS, demonstrated the beetle’s host range is exceptionally narrow. It can develop only on air potato.
This research also showed that a single beetle can consume, on average, almost three square meters of leaves during its life (almost one square meter during its larval development).
Taxonomists have been unable to give the beetle a name other than Lilioceris near
impressa, but research is underway to identify or describe the species. This beetle has just been petitioned to the USDA-APHIS (TAG) for review, the first step in obtaining permission from the USDA-APHIS for its release in Florida . “

So perhaps it will be good news for the native plants that are being strangled by the air potato. I know there is always much justifiable concern these days about introducing any alien species but I am sure that rigorous testing has been done, and maybe here it is a case of “set a thief to catch a thief. “

Lili from Katmandu

I don’t think I have ever drawn a beetle before, so needed some sketches and my best magnifying glass. Lili’s feet are incredible.
The legs end in two rounded slightly hairy pads, from the centre of which springs a long curved toe which has two tiny claws on the end.
The carapace is russet orange with a pitted surface, not really spots as such, thorax and head all black.

Thinking about the pose and leg position….

.
Almost there…..

So, this is an imaginative drawing of “Lili”, Lilioceris near impressa, on a very small Air Potato Leaf, Dioscorea bulbifera, contemplating her extensive playground and the prospect of an endless feast of Florida Air Potatoes.

Watercolour and pencil on Arches HP image 12 x 10”

** update 25th Jan .. Lili has a tentative go ahead..

The petition to release the beetle has been approved by the Technical Advisory Group for Biological Control of Weeds with the condition that it be identified or described as a new species.

The study to do this is ongoing by scientists at the Smithsonian. After the study is done, an Environmental Assessment has to be written, then publication of the proposed release, followed by a public comment period. Perhaps the release will be 2011. ….hope for the beleaguered hammocks of Florida soon.

The Curious Horn Faced Osmia Bees

By Val Littlewood January 21, 2010 January 25, 2020 Uncategorized

While making some more notes on British bees, I was interested to read more about the funny little horned, female Osmia rufa.
The Osmia family in general are a really delightful bunch, not only hard working pollinators for your fruit trees but gentle too and ideal bees to keep in the garden.

I painted Osmia lignaria, the Blue Orchard bee for Deborah but that particular species is hornless.
The “horns” in question are two small protuberances which can be seen (if you get very up close and personal with the bee) just above the mandibles.

It seems they are used for shaping the mud which this clever little bee uses to build her nests, hence the common name “mason bee”.
The male O rufa on the other hand sports a fine white “moustache” and has longer more elegant antenna than the female.

I also remembered that I had a specimen of Osmia cornifrons which Karen Strickler at Pollinator Paradise had kindly sent me along with O lignaria.

This bee also has the curious horns on the female’s face. It’s not a native USA bee but was introduced from Japan in 1977 to help with orchard pollination. With the help of a magnifying lens I was able to make this drawing of the female cornifrons’ head complete with horns.

Osmia cornifrons face

She is much hairier than her rufa relation. Then a couple of studies of the Osmia rufa… cute male head at the top and female at the bottom. .

Osmia rufa faces, male and female

The female also has huge jaws which she uses to collect mud for the nest and presumably to make the nests too. I don’t have time to write more today but will return to these nice little bees very soon with more info and more drawings….

Mischocyttarus Mexicanus Cubicola… Magnifico!

By Val Littlewood January 17, 2010 January 25, 2020 Uncategorized

The splendidly named little paper wasp, just as I saw it on the wall, turning to give me that curious unblinking stare.

They have been very busy with the arrival of warm weather but, as I am not a paper wasp aficionado, I am not entirely sure what they are doing.

There is quite a bit of jostling and shoving and lots of staring, which is what wasps seem to be particularly good at.
Close up these insects look weighty and armour plated when in reality they are airy creatures, floating delicately around the bushes like tiny leggy fairies doing good deeds in the garden.

I, as much as anyone, am quite nervous about wasps and, until I started drawing them, was rather repelled by
But as you study them, their intricate and beautifully designed body structure, a waist and a length of leg I would die for and their handsome beautiful marking, you just have to learn to admire them.

And that is before you even start to wonder just how they build those fragile and extraordinary nests. A couple of stages of the work;

______________________________________________________________

Viva la avispa magnifica!

Watercolour on Arches HP.. wasp size, a huge 5.5 inches. (I am really glad they are not this big in real life.)

15th FEB: Update… Thank you to Floria Mora for including this little wasp on her doctoral thesis poster. She has been studying the behavioral ecology of this wasp as a model system to discover how plastic their colonies are to the environment and social interaction.

For a larger version of this poster please see here.

More about Paper Wasps, Gangling Friends of the Gardener

By Val Littlewood January 15, 2010 January 25, 2020 Uncategorized

I have been reading more about paper wasps today and had no idea there were so many species.

When I first tried to identify mine, I was looking, mistakenly, under the Polistes genus.

It was at wonderful Bugguide.net that I eventually found my little friends in the Mischocyttarus (pronounced “Mis-k-sit-ar-us”) section.
Mine are Mischocyttarus mexicanus cubicola.

There are 2 other species, Mischocyttarus Navajo, and Mischocyttarus flavitarsis (Western Paper Wasp) which can be seen in the USA. They are tropical wasps so are confined to mainly Southern parts, but I have to say that my little colony has survived these recent Arctic temperatures very well.

The majority of paper wasps seen in the USA are Polistes genus wasps and the two are superficially very similar. The main difference is the mid section between the abdomen and the thorax (which is curiously called a petiole .. as in a leaf stem).
In the Mischocyttarus wasps this section is considerably longer and thinner. Both wasps construct the distinctive umbrella-shaped, chewed papier-mâché nests which hang by one or more stalks from man made or natural structures.

Good for the garden!!!

They are very beneficial insects to gardeners because they are natural pollinators of flowers and prey on a variety of insect pests, including caterpillars, flies, and beetle larvae. Think natural biocontrol.
The adults only feed on nectar, giving their insect prey to the developing lava.
Yes, they will sting but are not considered aggressive and will only do so if sorely tried. Even my nose to nose camera work didn’t upset them too much.

This is from a very nice supportive Paper Wasp article at Bug of the Month written by Louise Kulzer:

“Paper wasps have a special liking for umbelliferous plants. Having chewing mouthparts, they are not able to reach far for nectar, as bees can. Umbels have shallow nectaries, and make suitable fast food stops.
Dill and fennel are especially good, but parsley, parsnip or carrot gone to seed are useful too.
So do yourself a favor this fall – let some umbels flower, and be prepared for the gangling paper wasps to grace your garden.”

And there is a good piece on natural pest control from “Small Farm Permaculture and Sustainable Living” with this accompanying photo and some extra words of wisdom.

“Treat all spiders with love and care and provide rocks or logs around the garden to encourage the crawlers”

How to pose a paper wasp? ”

I have done quite a few more sketches today and have been thinking about how I want to pose this wasp for a colour study. It’s an interesting problem because the way I position it will influence how it will be perceived.
I want to show the beauty of it but perhaps not the threatening side. In the bottom drawing below, the lowered head and thorax is a predatory pose, as is the front faced stare.

so I considered more of a top view which shows off the beautiful markings and disengages that baleful look.

Here I turned the head to give a bit more movement and a nicer line and I was almost sure I was going to paint this one .. so made a few more detailed sketches.

However , my final decision was made late this morning after I had been to pay the wasps a visit. I watched a wasp land on top of the wall and turn its head to look at me.
This seemed a perfect pose , looking round rather than full on. I don’t think there can be much upward movement in the head of a paper wasp because of the hard carapace of the body, but the turned head just gives the wasp a little more personality and some, not too threatening, eye contact.

I like to see the eyes of things.
By nature they seem curious and watchful creatures and very aware of your presence.

And I did get a couple of head studies done. I am fascinated by the eye shape.

Why Bees?.. Old Hives and Kindhearted People.

By Val Littlewood January 6, 2010 January 25, 2020 Uncategorized

Over the past couple of weeks I have had to meet new people, in that social party way that I am not used to. “What do you do?” they ask. “Well” I say, “I am an artist and designer”. “Oooohh” they say “what are you painting?”

I can see their mental bubble.. a nice landscape, a bunch of flowers, a wide eyed child, a favourite pet or even an interesting but accessible abstract. “Bees” I say.
I then have to repeat it… “ Bees, you know, buzz buzz…!” It is a bit of a conversation stopper, but they did ask. “Oh” they say and smile.
Most wander off to find someone easier to talk to.
Some persevere.. “Why?” I do have a good answer, I can cite my kind commissioner Deborah and her 16 bees, but, even before then I had a good answer. It’s because they are important and because my parents used to keep bees.

The old hives

When I go home to the UK, gardening is my job of choice. It’s too much now for my 92 year old father and while the centre of the garden is just about under control, the peripheral ivy clad walls and weedy borders are gradually creeping inwards.

I have pictured them making slow but relentless progress, eventually insinuating themselves into the house where my poor hapless father will be found some days later, immobilized by leafy intruders.
So back in May last year I had work to do. “Can you just tidy up around the Garage?”.. “Of course”..I say. The area is a lost wilderness, overgrown with tangles of ivy, where knots of virulent nettles with their horrid trip wire roots and savage stings quietly anticipate your unprotected flesh.

There is a rampant Virginia Creeper which, if not checked, will rip stones from the centre of the beautiful old stone wall, aided by gripping ivy roots that sucker their way along everything, for yards and yards and yards.

There are tearing brambles and the most deadly Pyracantha in the world, planted long ago to deter intruders but now gone rogue. But clearing out is a satisfying job and there is always some anticipation of discovery, isn’t there?

Like Sleeping Beauty’s good prince, I cut down, chopped back and grubbed out. I found nothing more exciting than some nice old pots, a million angry spiders and the friendly garden rat, until, tucked away between the garage and the wall, listing slightly and quietly rotting back into the earth, I came across the old beehives.

The rush of memory was almost unbearable. I had almost forgotten about the bees, my mothers much loved bees. The rows of honey jars, the paraphernalia of the bee keeper, supers, smokers, spinners, wax, combs, frames, veils, hats, gloves.
The smell of honey, the stickiness of honey, the joy of runny honey in the summer and hard crystallised honey in the winter that you lay in slices on hot buttered toast and the complete and utter joy of sticking your finger in a warm honeycomb.

The mysterious gatherings of the beekeepers, ancient tweed clad countrymen and women who came to the house for tea and cakes. Who were called over to deal with the terrifying swarms, who brought clinking trays of new jars or old bee books or just bee wisdom.
My mother going out to talk to the bees, to tell them all the family news, sharing some of her life with her little golden workers, and me, timid and afraid of being stung but fascinated by humming busy boxes at the bottom of the garden.

That was many years ago, but seeing the old hives and of course reading so much about the problems of declining bee populations made me think more about bees and our relationship with them.
There is something about bees in general that enchants us. Learning about the many different species of solitary bees has in particular been a revelation to me. I have been reading Karl van Frisch’s “Animal Architecture”. Here he makes an interesting point.

“The great majority ( of bees) live alone – they are “solitary” bees, and many are not recognizable as bees at all except by experts. They vary greatly in size and appearance.
Some are tiny insects, no more than 2 millimeters long while others measuring nearly four centimeters appear giants in comparison. Some are nearly hairless others furry.
Many delight the observer by their varied patterns and attractive coloration.

Bees differ from predacious wasps in one important particular: they are strictly vegetarian, feeding themselves and their brood on pollen and nectar. This habit endears them to kindhearted people, for they do not destroy in order to live…”

A couple of sketches I did back in May of the old beehives.
They are not terribly interesting, nothing really but a pile of supers and a base. In front, leaning against the wall is an old piece of the chicken coop. The chickens and the geese were a whole other story.

Tag: watercolour