Butterflies that Flutter by in Frugaldom

As Proud as Peacocks

 

 

Digital cameras are great inventions, aren't they? Frugal to a fault because we can snap willy-nilly without a care in the world when it comes to developing spools or waiting ten days to see what we managed to capture in our shots.

 

A lunchtime stroll down to the poly tunnel to check on the cucumbers soon became a frenzied run to the house to grab my camera when I spotted all the butterflies fluttering around the Buddleia. These are my favourite butterflies as they are so colourful.

 

 

 

It's the first year I've had this particular plant in the garden. so I didn't know what colour it was going to be. As you can see, it's a white one. I was secretly hoping it would be purple when I was give it, but frugal gifts are frugal gifts - it's now growing like wildfire after just a year in the ground and working its magic with the colourful butterflies!

 

 

 

There were about a dozen Peacocks fluttering around, three on this flower alone when I ran to grab my camera. They were wheeling around, landing on the ground, on the wall, on the hedge, in the borders and on the Buddleia, making for a beautiful display. This one danced in circles around its chosen flower for ages, while the one on the wall nearby was content to sun itself long enough for me to photograph it.

 

 

Such a beautiful display of colour and it's all here in the back garden waiting to be discovered and then captured in digital format to be enjoyed by anyone who cares to look. I got some super close-up shots that I am going to save, print and turn into artwork for my bedroom makeover project.

 

The following are a few photos from previous sightings when one of us has been able to grab a camera quickly enough to capture them on screen.

 

 

 

The small blue, which I still think is quite big, is a gorgeous specimen, with its furry body and silvery trimmed wings.

 

This Red Admiral was spotted on the purple Buddleia that appeared growing out of the wall along the side of the patio at the back door.

 

 

Wall Browns are abundant about here but they seem to prefer the duller grasses and open areas to the hedgerow and bright flowers.

 

 

One of the commonest of all about our garden is the small tortoiseshell. These seem to get in everywhere, including the house, shed and outbuilding.

This is the female 'Orange Tip', not to be confused with the big 'cabbage' white butterflies, the larvae of which have just completely demolished the leaves on my cauliflowers and ruined any chance of my growing cabbages this year. The male counterparts of these, as you may have guessed, have orange wing tips in place of the grey. The males have, so far, eluded being caught. (Story of my life!)

 

Perhaps not much to do with money saving and a shoestring household budget but these are the types of frugal occasions that provide inspiration for budget makeovers and artwork plus they make time spent in the garden much more worthwhile when trying to create a wild garden. Butterflies and bees prove that something, somewhere, is working out right.

 

Feel free to share your own garden wildlife photos at www.frugalforums.co.uk where we have a full section dedicated to frugal fun, hobbies and even permaculture.