On Tue, 29 Aug 2006 10:18:46 -0400, madgardener
wrote:

Ook wrote:
I have hundreds of bumblebees in my garden, and they are gentle like honey
bees and love my sunflowers and squash. Good polinators. I have noticed that
in the evenings, a lot of them find a nice cozy leaf or flower and curl up
and spend the night there. In the morning, I have a bunch of sleeping bumble
bees all over the garden. According to wiki they have colonies, but I'm
guessing they do not always spend the night there? Anyone else ever see
this?



I've taken many digital pictures, and PETTED very very carefully,
sleeping bumble bees in the early hours of the day as they slept on
flowers. I love how they turn their leg backwards as if they're some
reluctant teenager who just can't wake up for school...........I
carefully stroke the fuzzy back and guess they're not warmed up yet.
I've done this for years, after noticing it myself once I moved into
this house and have so much nature around me.
madgardener up on the ridge, back in Fairy Holler, overlooking English
Mountain in Eastern Tennessee, zone 7, Sunset zone 36 where I found
three sleeping bumblies on my willow leaf rudbeckia's this morning after
the intense thunderstorms and rains of last night

No need to wait for them to be sleeping. Bumbles are pretty docile.
You can pet them as they work, just do not squeeze.

I have shown my grandchildren how to do it, when my stepdaughter is
not looking. She would be horrified.

I want them to learn that 'bees' are not necessarily something bad
even though Mom goes screaming across the yard at the sight of
anything that might have a stinger. That includes dragonflies for
cripes sake.

John

JoeSpareBedroom wrote:
"John Bachman" wrote in message
...
On Tue, 29 Aug 2006 10:18:46 -0400, madgardener
wrote:

No need to wait for them to be sleeping. Bumbles are pretty docile.
You can pet them as they work, just do not squeeze.

I have shown my grandchildren how to do it, when my stepdaughter is
not looking. She would be horrified.

I want them to learn that 'bees' are not necessarily something bad
even though Mom goes screaming across the yard at the sight of
anything that might have a stinger. That includes dragonflies for
cripes sake.

John

She would've needed sedation if she saw what went on in my boat this past
weekend. I was fishing and a dragonfly landed on my shoulder and just sat
there for almost 5 minutes. If I'd seen it before my friend, it would've
been a shock, but I was warned beforehand. Very cool creature.



I think that's so neat! Yesterday as I snipped the spent white
butterfly bush blossoms to make room for the emerging two on either side
of that one, I sweated enough to attract a particularly needy Artillery
butterfly who didn't need nectar, she needed my minerals and salts. She
kept lighting on my shoulder, my arm, my hand, my fingertips. I got some
really neat pictures of her in most of the places. She was a bit camera
shy at first but was so intent on my salts that she allowed me to get
REALLY close. love that stuff. I'm not quite as patient for the wasps
to land on me, like my dad once said he'd allow to be done when he was
young. Not quite secure in myself to do THAT. I don't run from them,
but I DO run from those HUGE hornets that are as large as my THUMB. I
know they're aggressive and apt to sting for no provocation.
maddie

"madgardener" wrote in message
...
JoeSpareBedroom wrote:
"John Bachman" wrote in message
...
On Tue, 29 Aug 2006 10:18:46 -0400, madgardener
wrote:

No need to wait for them to be sleeping. Bumbles are pretty docile.
You can pet them as they work, just do not squeeze.

I have shown my grandchildren how to do it, when my stepdaughter is
not looking. She would be horrified.

I want them to learn that 'bees' are not necessarily something bad
even though Mom goes screaming across the yard at the sight of
anything that might have a stinger. That includes dragonflies for
cripes sake.

John

She would've needed sedation if she saw what went on in my boat this past
weekend. I was fishing and a dragonfly landed on my shoulder and just sat
there for almost 5 minutes. If I'd seen it before my friend, it would've
been a shock, but I was warned beforehand. Very cool creature.

I think that's so neat! Yesterday as I snipped the spent white butterfly
bush blossoms to make room for the emerging two on either side of that
one, I sweated enough to attract a particularly needy Artillery butterfly
who didn't need nectar, she needed my minerals and salts. She kept
lighting on my shoulder, my arm, my hand, my fingertips. I got some really
neat pictures of her in most of the places. She was a bit camera shy at
first but was so intent on my salts that she allowed me to get REALLY
close. love that stuff. I'm not quite as patient for the wasps to land on
me, like my dad once said he'd allow to be done when he was young. Not
quite secure in myself to do THAT. I don't run from them, but I DO run
from those HUGE hornets that are as large as my THUMB. I know they're
aggressive and apt to sting for no provocation.
maddie

Actually, the whole boat was covered with bugs. The air was around 50
degrees, but the boat seats were warm from the sun. When the bugs first
arrived (by the hundreds), I thought "Aw sumbitch - I don't want to put on
repellent", but they weren't there for an attack. They were just warming up.

On Tue, 29 Aug 2006 20:59:51 GMT, "JoeSpareBedroom"
wrote:


"John Bachman" wrote in message
.. .
On Tue, 29 Aug 2006 10:18:46 -0400, madgardener
wrote:

Ook wrote:
I have hundreds of bumblebees in my garden, and they are gentle like
honey
bees and love my sunflowers and squash. Good polinators. I have noticed
that
in the evenings, a lot of them find a nice cozy leaf or flower and curl
up
and spend the night there. In the morning, I have a bunch of sleeping
bumble
bees all over the garden. According to wiki they have colonies, but I'm
guessing they do not always spend the night there? Anyone else ever see
this?



I've taken many digital pictures, and PETTED very very carefully,
sleeping bumble bees in the early hours of the day as they slept on
flowers. I love how they turn their leg backwards as if they're some
reluctant teenager who just can't wake up for school...........I
carefully stroke the fuzzy back and guess they're not warmed up yet.
I've done this for years, after noticing it myself once I moved into
this house and have so much nature around me.
madgardener up on the ridge, back in Fairy Holler, overlooking English
Mountain in Eastern Tennessee, zone 7, Sunset zone 36 where I found
three sleeping bumblies on my willow leaf rudbeckia's this morning after
the intense thunderstorms and rains of last night

No need to wait for them to be sleeping. Bumbles are pretty docile.
You can pet them as they work, just do not squeeze.

I have shown my grandchildren how to do it, when my stepdaughter is
not looking. She would be horrified.

I want them to learn that 'bees' are not necessarily something bad
even though Mom goes screaming across the yard at the sight of
anything that might have a stinger. That includes dragonflies for
cripes sake.

John

She would've needed sedation if she saw what went on in my boat this past
weekend. I was fishing and a dragonfly landed on my shoulder and just sat
there for almost 5 minutes. If I'd seen it before my friend, it would've
been a shock, but I was warned beforehand. Very cool creature.

Ahh the dragonflies, my favorites alongside the bumbles. They land on
me all the time. If I sit on my deck with my feet up (usually bare,
you can take the boy out of WV but you cannot take WV out of the boy)
they will land on my toes.

Watch what they do after the land. I do not know why but they all do
this. They "ratchet down" their wings three times. Land, pause,
wings down click, pause, down click, pause, down click and then rest.
Every time the same.

My grandchildren know all about them, to Mom's horror.

John

madgardener wrote:

JoeSpareBedroom wrote:

"John Bachman" wrote in message
...

On Tue, 29 Aug 2006 10:18:46 -0400, madgardener
wrote:


No need to wait for them to be sleeping. Bumbles are pretty docile.
You can pet them as they work, just do not squeeze.

I have shown my grandchildren how to do it, when my stepdaughter is
not looking. She would be horrified.

I want them to learn that 'bees' are not necessarily something bad
even though Mom goes screaming across the yard at the sight of
anything that might have a stinger. That includes dragonflies for
cripes sake.

John


She would've needed sedation if she saw what went on in my boat this
past weekend. I was fishing and a dragonfly landed on my shoulder and
just sat there for almost 5 minutes. If I'd seen it before my friend,
it would've been a shock, but I was warned beforehand. Very cool
creature.


I think that's so neat! Yesterday as I snipped the spent white
butterfly bush blossoms to make room for the emerging two on either side
of that one, I sweated enough to attract a particularly needy Artillery
butterfly who didn't need nectar, she needed my minerals and salts. She
kept lighting on my shoulder, my arm, my hand, my fingertips. I got some
really neat pictures of her in most of the places. She was a bit camera
shy at first but was so intent on my salts that she allowed me to get
REALLY close. love that stuff. I'm not quite as patient for the wasps
to land on me, like my dad once said he'd allow to be done when he was
young. Not quite secure in myself to do THAT. I don't run from them,
but I DO run from those HUGE hornets that are as large as my THUMB. I
know they're aggressive and apt to sting for no provocation.
maddie

You MAY be seeing Cicada Killers. The females are huge, but usually just
intent on putting cicadas in their burrows. They can sting, but likely
would need rough handling to do so. The males are smaller and, while
they can be territorial and 'aggressive' have no stinger. Very cool
creatures actually and since they eat bugs that eat plants, probably
desireable. Of course, you be seeing actual hornets and if they ARE the
size of you thumb....well, glad I don't have those around here!

http://ww2.lafayette.edu/~hollidac/c...illerhome.html

Carl


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Carl 1 Lucky Texan wrote:
madgardener wrote:


You MAY be seeing Cicada Killers. The females are huge, but usually just
intent on putting cicadas in their burrows. They can sting, but likely
would need rough handling to do so. The males are smaller and, while
they can be territorial and 'aggressive' have no stinger. Very cool
creatures actually and since they eat bugs that eat plants, probably
desireable. Of course, you be seeing actual hornets and if they ARE the
size of you thumb....well, glad I don't have those around here!

http://ww2.lafayette.edu/~hollidac/c...illerhome.html

Carl

thank you for that awesome link. I DO have cicada killers! LOTS of them.

they also seem to love the
nourishment that they derive from the assorted varieties of flowers that
I have growing. I went outside after reading this and checked and sure
enough......thanks Carl for the identity!
maddie

madgardener wrote:

Carl 1 Lucky Texan wrote:

madgardener wrote:


You MAY be seeing Cicada Killers. The females are huge, but usually
just intent on putting cicadas in their burrows. They can sting, but
likely would need rough handling to do so. The males are smaller and,
while they can be territorial and 'aggressive' have no stinger. Very
cool creatures actually and since they eat bugs that eat plants,
probably desireable. Of course, you be seeing actual hornets and if
they ARE the size of you thumb....well, glad I don't have those around
here!

http://ww2.lafayette.edu/~hollidac/c...illerhome.html

Carl

thank you for that awesome link. I DO have cicada killers! LOTS of
them.


they also seem to love the
nourishment that they derive from the assorted varieties of flowers that
I have growing. I went outside after reading this and checked and sure
enough......thanks Carl for the identity!
maddie

You can find other info - but I thought that site was awesome!

Carl


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