Tuesday, June 24, 2008

Hummingbirds and Honeysuckle



Gardenhelper says

Honeysuckle (Lonicera) vines are easy to grow, vigorous, heat-tolerant, and nearly indestructible. The flashy and fragrant flowers will attract hummingbirds and butterflies all summer long. The resulting fruit of the Honeysuckle flower will provide a fall treat for your local songbirds as well.

Our back arbor is full of honeysuckle blooms now. The photo on the right was taken on June 21, Summer Solstice. This delightful blog from kviltstina in Sweden shows the author in her backyard at 1:30 AM (scroll down about halfway on the June 22 posting to see her on her deck with needlework).

And yesterday, I happened to snap a photo of this butterfly (below) that was among the blooms.

Is it a monarch?

Why, yes, I believe it is, according to Science Daily. It is on its 3000 mile journey from Mexico. Maybe it will decide to settle here in our Colorado backyard. Too bad my hapless gardener husband cut down our butterfly bush a few years ago in his zeal for cleaning up debris (he thought it was dead).

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