Bug Squad

A daily (M-F) blog launched Aug. 6, 2008 and about the wonderful world of insects and those who study them. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Honey bee nearly collides with a ladybug, aka ladybeetle. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A Pomegranate Kind of Day

May 17, 2012
By Kathy Keatley Garvey
It was a pomegranate kind of day. Red, bright and wonderful. The papery-thin reddish blossoms in our yard draw both beneficial and pestiferous insects. Honey bees are there for the pollen and nectar; ladybugs are there for the pesky aphids.
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Honey bee slides into a a violet trumpet vine blossom. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Sounding the Trumpet (Vine)

May 15, 2012
By Kathy Keatley Garvey
If you're looking for a good bee plant that offers a little bit of an obstacle, try the violet trumpet vine (Clytostoma calystegioides). It's one of the UC Davis Arboretum All-Stars.
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Honey bees gather around a hummingbird feeder. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Red Alert!

May 14, 2012
By Kathy Keatley Garvey
Our yard is filled with such bee friendly plants as salvia, lavender, catmint and rock purslane. Lately, however, the honey bees have taken a liking to the sugar-water mixture from our hummingbird feeder.
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This butterfly painting, in the Fine Arts and Photography Building, is the work of retired teacher Ethel Calvello of Dixon. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Nature's Poetry

May 10, 2012
By Kathy Keatley Garvey
If you head over to the 137th annual Dixon May Fair, the state's oldest continuous fair, you'll see a flurry of butterflies. The fair, located at 655 S. First St., Dixon, opened Thursday, May 10 and continues through Sunday, May 13.
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