Lavender and Butterflies

With all this sun, and a distinct lack of rain, the lavender is flowering fantastically.

We bought 4 different types at a lavender farm. One plant died however, the others are magnificent, as are the ones we bought cheap at the end of the summer. We just had a lack of choice of colours and now have quite a few pale lavender bushes, which to my mind are not as glorious as the darker ones such as Hidcote.

However, the butterflies do not seem to care and so I popped out to take some pics. These are both small tortoiseshell. I do not know what a 'large' tortoiseshell looks like. Maybe something to research later.

Anyway the lavender blue and purple contrast so well with the orange of the butterflies.

Yesterday evening I noticed this golden orb in the rapidly ripening barley.
I think it is a spiders web with eggs or spiderlings in.

 

Cherries

Early in the spring there was the most beautiful white blossom on the cherry trees along the churchyard. I enjoyed seeing it so much that I took a photo of it.

Now isn't that enough to make your heart sing?



Yesterday while thinking about a fruit salad for dessert, bananas, apricots and peaches, I saw the cherries in the trees and decided that they would make a lovely addition to the salad. 
So picked the ones that I could reach. 
They were indeed just what the fruit salad needed. 
Yum diddly dumptious.

It will not be long before the blackbirds find them and within a couple of hours the whole lot will be gone.

Oh and I should mention that yesterday was HOT. The hottest day of the year.

Corfe Castle

Here are some pics of Corfe Castle.
We visited on a beautiful sunny day.

Look at the right edge of the pic and you can see a large metal ring on a tall stand, this is one of the 'beacons' that are occasionally lit all across the country. They used to be used as a warning and means of letting people far away know of invaders. They stand on prominent hills and when filed with fire the light can be seen for miles.

  As you can see it is quite a climb to get to the castle remains.

Not all the areas are completely safe, but, you get the message.

Do not adjust your monitor, 

these walls really are at this angle!!

A feather

While outside in the garden a feather, probably from a pigeon, gently began to dance on the breeze. 
It was just like the feather at the beginning of 'Forrest Gump'.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W7voy1vit6Y

This pretty white feather was gently blowing on the wind, literally going up and down as little eddies of wind caught it. Twirling and swirling, bobbing up and down the little feather almost seemed to have a life of its own and was enjoying the dance.

It really was fascinating and magical.

I started humming the Forrest Gump opening music as the feather twisted and twirled, swaying and dancing, even rising as well as falling.

Then,

out of the sky 
swooped and swallow, grabbed the feather and flew off at speed with it!

Talk about breaking the spell.

With the little feather in its mouth the swallow flew off, then realised its mistake and dropped the feather, it began to dance again, but, the swallow was not convinced and grabbed it again, another spitting out and the feather slowly twirled to the ground out over the field.

'And that's all I have to say about that'.

Sea Side

We went to the beach.....


and there was a LOT of it.................

The car park was pretty full, but with this much beach it is easy for people to find their own space.

Roses

The general view from everyone here is that the roses here are ''having a good year'.     They seem wonderful to me and are always fantastic.
Here is a rose bush smothered in roses, the phone camera did not do a good job of capturing them.

I also cut some buds to dry. 

Do not worry, there are still masses on the bushes. What a wonderful 'crop' to harvest.

Bees'll buzz, kids'll blow dandelion fuzz

Bees'll buzz, kids'll blow dandelion fuzz........

In Summer

When life gets rough I like to hold onto my dreams
Of relaxing in the summer sun, just letting off steam
Oh, the sky will be blue, and you guys'll be there too
When I finally do what frozen things do
In summer
In summer!

(From Frozen)