garden pictures, more seed tick misery

8.23.24 ~ North Carolina Botanical Garden
old man’s beard (?)
ironweed
2004 NC Wildflower of the Year
American goldfinch
awned meadow-beauty
rattlesnake master
2016 NC Wildflower of the Year
pink turtlehead
sunset muskmallow
small-headed sunflower
garden phlox
white prairie goldenrod (solidago ptarmicoides) (endangered)
aka prairie aster, sneezewort aster, upland white aster, upland white goldenrod

94° feels like 104°

8.1.24 ~ spicebush swallowtail

The botanical garden was deserted during our 13th heat advisory day of the summer. Except for butterflies, who seemed to be thriving under the hot sun. The only reason I was there was to take a picture for Karma’s “same location for all 4 seasons” photo hunt. Tim circled the parking lot in the air conditioned car and picked me up when I was done.

buggy, but pleasant

7.2.24 ~ North Carolina Botanical Garden
eastern tiger swallowtail

Yesterday was a great weather day! We took advantage of rare low humidity and temperature and scooted over to the botanical garden. There were many bugs out and about, doing their summer thing. I’m suffering from another batch of spider bites on my legs and I have no idea how they’re getting there. (I now know they’re spider bites because my reaction rash is so bad it drove me to a dermatologist. She was mystified and had a biopsy done on the rash to see what was causing it. I hope I won’t need another round of steroids!)

pennyroyal
smooth purple coneflower
eastern cicada killer wasp on lamb’s ear leaves
bee on lamb’s ear flowers
ant on cutleaf coneflower
oakleaf hydrangea
pitcher plant in the summer sunlight
zipper spider
ironweed
fly on rattlesnake master
pond cypress (?)
bee on lanceleaf arrowhead
some kind of bug under the phlox
phlox
more phlox
still more phlox
bugs in the woolly rose mallow
New England aster

I hope you enjoyed the glimpse into the buggy summer botanical garden. Creepy crawlies go hand in hand with pretty flowers. I’m biding my time until autumn arrives!