Dear Readers, the Painted Lady bonanza continues – whenever I look out of the office window I see at least one or two on the Buddleia, which is fast going over, sadly. I cannot get over how fast and agile these butterflies are, with sometimes a couple circling one another at speed. They also think nothing of  shooing a bumblebee off of a particularly attractive flower. In the past few days they’ve been joined by Red Admirals, Commas, Small and Large Whites and Peacocks. It really feels like a bumper year. It’s even been rumoured that Clouded Yellows are present in large numbers along the South Coast, so I’m keeping an eye open. If you see a bright yellow butterfly at this time of year it’s almost certainly one of these migratory beauties (though beware, there are also Brimstone moths around, which are quite different).

Clouded Yellow ( Colia croceus) Photo By Charles J. Sharp – Own work, from Sharp Photography, sharpphotography, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=51144488

It’s a spectacular year for those plants that can survive it – the rowan trees on the County Roads are laden with berries, which the birds will be glad of later in the year I’m sure…

And there are lots of elderberries about too, these from Cherry Tree Wood…

Plus the Crape Myrtles are doing very well…

I am  trying to plant up plenty of drought-resistant  species in the south-facing front garden, so there’s something for the pollinators once the Buddleia has finished. I’m giving Rudbeckia a go, it seems to attract a lot of bees which is always a good thing. I’m also trying the Verbena cultivar which is less leggy than the typical Bodnante variety.

I’ve stuffed the windowboxes with Mediterranean herbs  – there’s marjoram, oregano and some nepeta. Historically, as soon as I’ve planted cat mint some cat has planted themselves on top of it, but hopefully the precarious nature of the windowsill will deter them a smidge.

Is anybody else re-thinking their garden in view of this year’s drought and hosepipe bans? I’m aware that not everybody has had the kind of summer that we have, but all bets are off for the future, I suspect. I was thinking about getting rid of the buddleia, but definitely not now, regardless of what the RHS say. I’d happily plant more natives, but how many are drought-tolerant enough to survive these conditions? Let me know what you think, and how you’re dealing with the challenges that you face – I’m curious not just about the UK, but I know I have readers in other parts of the world who are also facing climate changes of different kinds. Let’s learn from one another!

And in the meantime, a few more Painted Ladies, because you can never have too many…