Posts Tagged: Gaillardia

Golden Hour, Golden Bee on Gaillardia

Photographers call the first hour after dawn and the last hour before dusk "The Golden Hour." That's when the sunlight is softer and warmer. It's also called "The Magic Hour." Compare that to high noon, when the sun casts such strong highlights and...

A honey bee foraging on Gaillardia during The Golden Hour in a Vacaville garden. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A honey bee foraging on Gaillardia during The Golden Hour in a Vacaville garden. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Svastra: the Sunflower Bee

It's nicknamed "the sunflower bee" for good reason. It forages on sunflowers. We recently spotted a longhorned bee,  Svastra obliqua, also called "the sunflower bee," on Gaillardia, aka blanket flower, a member of the sunflower...

Svastra obliqua, "the sunflower bee," foraging on a blanketflower, Gaillardia. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Svastra obliqua, "the sunflower bee," foraging on a blanketflower, Gaillardia. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Meet a Male Mantis in a Patch of Blanket Flowers

So there he is, a praying mantis in a patch of blanket flowers, Gaillardia, in a Vacaville garden. He's a male Mantis religiosa, as slim as a string bean, and scanning his environment. We're accustomed to seeing see the native...

The male Mantis religiosa, investigates his surroundings. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

The male Mantis religiosa, investigates his surroundings. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Oh, I think I'll go this way. The male praying mantis changes directions. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Oh, I think I'll go this way. The male praying mantis changes directions. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

The male mantis does an Olympic-style stretch. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

The male mantis does an Olympic-style stretch. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Lawn-pocalypse! Surviving Drought

Ah, summer! The season of sunburns, pool parties, and… lawn droughts. If your once lush, green carpet now looks like a crunchy brown doormat, you're not alone. Let's dive into why your yard is staging a dramatic death scene and what you can do to...

Bermuda grass and weeds overtaking drought stressed turf grass.

A patch of former lawn, mostly dead, with a few green weeds and Bermudagrass

The Art of the Bee

Thought for the day... Every time we see a honey bee "posing perfectly" on a Gaillardia, commonly known as blanket flower, we think of a quote by internationally known honey bee geneticist, Robert E. Page Jr., a UC Davis doctoral alumnus and professor...

A honey bee on a blanketflower, Gaillardia, in a Vacaville garden. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A honey bee on a blanketflower, Gaillardia, in a Vacaville garden. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

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