Luna in the back yard:
When we were out with the dogs earlier in the afternoon, the blanket flowers and Mexican purple sage were positively abuzz with activity in the form of bumblebees, honeybees, and a small variety of butterflies (buckeyes, skippers, and lots of Gulf fritillaries). By the time I came out with the camera, the butterflies had packed it in for the day, and the bumbles were settling down for another night on cozy flowers.
(Unrelated: The pink shrub roses with the clusters of small flowers are blooming again.)
There were still a handful of honeybees on the Mexican purple sage, though. I have only very rarely seen honeybees in our yard this summer (and I haven't really looked, in previous years). Plenty of bumblebees, but not many honeybees. The number I saw today was by far the biggest gathering of them I've noticed in our yard (except for one time, years ago, when a swarm of them temporarily collected on a tree along the back fence).
They seemed to really like this plant, and I can't say I blame them. It has become a favorite of mine, too, this year. It's a large, sprawling thing that doesn't do much until late summer, but once the blooms start, it earns its keep.
That rich color (red-violet?) is especially pretty next to the bluer purple of the lavender, I think. And some of its own foliage has a yellow-green tint that complements the flowers nicely.
Yes, it's a keeper (if Old Man Winter allows).
