The Daily Bucket is a place where we post and exchange our observations about what is happening in the natural world in our neighborhood. Birds, blooms, bugs & more - each note is a record that we can refer to in the future as we try to understand the patterns that are quietly unwinding around us.
September 2012
Not much to say about these photos of sunflowers. They are exceptionally striking out in the garden. They grow big, they flower big. For those of you that had a rough year gardening and those of you who simply enjoy colorful flowers, feast your eyes on these.
Many more below plus birds and bees. Garden is in Macedon NY - near Palmyra and next to Egypt. I kid you not on the town names.
Looking up at a tall mess of blooms.
A confusion of sunflowers bending down from the weight.
Cut one head and a half dozen more are ready to go.
Sunflowers come in different colors too. We had one that was all dark but those have come and gone while I was down south
and a paler version, nowhere near as tall as the others.
Many bees are visiting. Classic photo of a bee's shadow as it approaches.
Bumblebee from the side
Showing the loaded pollen sacs. Sunflowers are sticky to the touch.
Love this pic and it let me get quite close with camera as it was so engrossed.
a pair - more than enough room on these big flowers
and one more with big saddlebags of pollen
These giant sunflowers were actually planted. Most of the others across the garden are volunteers which seem to grow better as they seem to know when to sprout. Either way, a month or 2 ago all these were just small seedlings to less than a foot as I weeded around them.
A giant seed head. These sell for 4 bucks each at the market, smaller ones for a dollar or quarter. Set out front on the ground they make for great conversation and a good draw for parents and kids.
Here's one that fell over in the wind the other day. After pulling it up the rest of the way and knocking the soil off, I'd estimate 40 lbs. It was 12' long and the base was 2" diameter.
Birds visit often. Here's a female goldfinch grooming its feathers.
last photo - find the male goldfinch in this mass of yellow. For some reason it does not have a black cap so maybe it's a juvenile.
Yeah it is perched center left. Maybe one of you birders can explain the goldfinch and missing black cap. As always, please post your local observations of the natural world around you. Thanks for visiting our garden of sunflowers.