'Joseph's Coat' Rose:
Clematis:
Swamp daisy / swamp sunflower (still not sure exactly what it is):
Double red Knock Out rose:
Double pink Knock Out rose:
Indian blanket:
Marigolds:
Pink shrub rose (unknown):
The next two photos aren't in perfect focus, but they were the best I could do.
Two gulf fritillary butterflies happened to be visiting the shabby passionflower vine at the same time when I walked past. See the tiny yellow-orange dots on the leaves? Each one is a butterfly egg.
This butterfly just laid another egg, which you can see there on the tip of that withered bit of vine:
I've been keeping an eye on the Conferate rose buds. I'd begun to hope that we might still get some flowers, but today I found more fallen buds-- and I saw tiny caterpillars on at least a couple of the ones still on the bush. It's infuriating! The buds stay on for a long time, slowly ripening. Then just when you think it might bloom, they drop to the ground.
I'm trying to gather buds as they fall (to throw them away and maybe break the life cycle of this pest), but I'm still not sure what these caterpillars are and what's the best way to treat them. Even if I manage to find the right pesticide and start administering it, I wonder if it might already be too late for all of this year's flowers. SO frustrating! It discourages me for the future, too. I'm seriously considering moving this shrub elsewhere. I'll definitely keep it somewhere (assuming it survives transplanting)-- just maybe not in this particular spot. It'll wait until later, though. I want to take cuttings in case the transplanting is not successful.
Here's a photo of one of the culprits:
I don't want to close a post with a photo of a pest, so here are some roses instead. ;o)
(Sometimes it helps to have a reminder that something is going right...)
