This morning as I was checking the rhubarb patch, Chris called me to come take a look at the weeping pussy-willow. As I approach the tree, he pointed to the actual pussy-willow catkins which are beginning to bloom; they were covered with fly-like bugs! Almost every catkin had one or more of these things on it. I assumed they were drinking nectar from the flower. But what were they, maybe baby wasps???
I am lucky to have a male pussy willow which is one of the best trees for bees because it blooms especially early in March and April when little else is in flower and available to the bees. Of course if it is too cool, the bees still won't be out and about, and I suspect this is the case right now as it is not that warm yet. Regardless, these little bugs did not appear to me to be bees. They looked more like flies of some sort. You can click on the photo to enlarge/zoom.
By the way, did you know that only the male flowers produce the yellow pollen but both sexes produce nectar. The pollen is considered to be of high quality in terms of its nutritional contribution to bees, having a crude protein content of around 25%. Amazing what you learn when you take up gardening and bee, bird and butterfly watching. So while I was blogging, I emailed the infamous Eric the Bug Guy from the USofA, to see if he could identify these critters. Well, as usual, true to his style, Eric delivered the answer. These are Solitary Bees, male ones to be exact, probably in the genus Andrena! So now I am on a mission to learn all about solitary bees, which I had never heard of before. You can find Eric's very informative bug blog at: http://bugeric.blogspot.com/
So I threw the only stick I could find (Elisabeth is meticulous when it comes to keeping her property free of "debris").
In the end, Jake had a couple of good swims and got thoroughly soaked, just in time to travel home in the back seat of my car!!
I am lucky to have a male pussy willow which is one of the best trees for bees because it blooms especially early in March and April when little else is in flower and available to the bees. Of course if it is too cool, the bees still won't be out and about, and I suspect this is the case right now as it is not that warm yet. Regardless, these little bugs did not appear to me to be bees. They looked more like flies of some sort. You can click on the photo to enlarge/zoom.
By the way, did you know that only the male flowers produce the yellow pollen but both sexes produce nectar. The pollen is considered to be of high quality in terms of its nutritional contribution to bees, having a crude protein content of around 25%. Amazing what you learn when you take up gardening and bee, bird and butterfly watching. So while I was blogging, I emailed the infamous Eric the Bug Guy from the USofA, to see if he could identify these critters. Well, as usual, true to his style, Eric delivered the answer. These are Solitary Bees, male ones to be exact, probably in the genus Andrena! So now I am on a mission to learn all about solitary bees, which I had never heard of before. You can find Eric's very informative bug blog at: http://bugeric.blogspot.com/
Tucked away in my little woodland garden you will come across this little lenten rose (helleborus). It is one of the easiest plants to grow, and one of the first to bloom in late winter and early spring. I think I will source out some other varieties this spring. Oddly enough, I just found out that this happy garden specimen is actually a member of the buttercup family. Who knew!
