With the weather slightly cooler yesterday, I took a long afternoon walk through Kilburn and Queen's Park over to Kensal Rise and then home. I just set off with no agenda and let my feet go where they pleased. I don't know why I don't walk like that more often -- aimlessly. It felt good to get out and see things and listen to music and move.
Not that I was inactive in the morning. I got the surprise of my life in the garden when I probed this clump of dried grass and moss with my sandaled toes and about 20 bees flew out! I ran like the wind and miraculously did not get stung, but now I'm wondering what's going on in there. It must be a nest of some kind. Whether it contains a queen and is used for raising little bees, or is just a sort of daytime "rest stop," I'm not sure. (You can see a bee in flight in the upper right of the photo, between the long crocosmia leaves.)
I've seen that clump of grass for a while now but I thought it was just something left over from mowing. (And maybe it originally was.) I'd never have disturbed it if I knew bees were living in it. Oh well -- now I do, and we'll leave it and give it a wide berth.
You know, knock on wood, I don't think I have ever been stung by a bee. In my entire life. Is that possible? I was stung by wasps as a kid, and that was no fun, but bees usually leave me alone.
I think this is about all we're going to get from our seven-year-old pink lobelia this year. This plant got big and dense enough that I separated it into two pots a couple of years ago, and then this spring, the slug onslaught destroyed both of them. One pot died entirely and in this one, just enough of the plant survived that it didn't vanish completely. Which goes to show I am not making up the extreme aggression of this year's slugs and snails.
Today is my last day of summer freedom. Work begins tomorrow! In some ways I'm looking forward to it -- particularly walking back and forth to school. I gotta get more exercise.
I think bees die after stinging so tend not to unless provoked and a bee sting really hurts!
ReplyDeleteYeah, I've always heard they die after stinging, though I think it might depend on the type of bee.
DeleteBees do die after stinging. However, wasps do not. I’ve been stung by both. Felt guilty for killing two bees. The wasps nearly killed me.
DeleteI hope that Olga will stay away from the bees!
ReplyDeleteThe nest is in a place that she doesn't go, but I will probably put some stakes around it just to be sure.
DeleteWas that a bumblebee? They can nest underground sometimes I believe
ReplyDeleteI don't think they're bumblebees. I'm not a bee expert but they look more like honeybees. They love the persicaria flowers that tower over that grass clump.
DeletePerhaps bees don't like the smell of you. I'm just sayin'!
ReplyDeleteApparently! I guess I don't smell like a flower.
DeleteI've never been stung by a bee or a wasp. Yesterday I sat outside on public seating to drink my coffee with bees buzzing around a lavender bush just a few inches away. I've done the same in England.
ReplyDeleteNormally a bee won't bother you unless you bother them. They're pretty oblivious otherwise.
DeleteI love that tree shadow.
ReplyDeleteIt caught my eye right away!
DeleteI've been stung by both. Neither one is pleasant. Good luck on your return to work. All of my teacher friends went back on Monday, with the students beginning on the 19th.
ReplyDeleteI've always thought wasps are worse than bees, but as I said, I'm not sure I've experienced a bee sting. So I may be wrong!
DeleteI've been stung once by a bee; not at all pleasant.
ReplyDeleteI love a good meandering walk, no destination in mind.
Feels like your summer flew by ... to me anyway.
To me too!
DeleteMost people don't realize this but about 70% of all bee species live in underground hives. Most likely what you saw were bumblebees and unlike their honeybee cousins, they do not die after stinging. They can continue to sting you until they feel you are no longer a threat.
ReplyDeleteI discovered a hive of them in a berm of dirt near my garage that kept getting aggressive to visitors who accidentally came too close to their home so I had to go out early one morning while they were all at home and seal their entrance up with a plug of clay. Fortunately I haven't found any new homes in the years since.
I didn't know bumblebees stung at all. These were not bumblebees -- they were almost identical to honeybees, so slimmer than a bumblebee.
Deletebumblebees? that's my guess. bumblebees nest in the ground.
ReplyDeleteI understand the desire to move. after more than two months of forced inactivity, dealing with the tree debris notwithstanding, I can really tell the difference. I still have another week to go before I can start my yoga routines up again.
Yeah, sitting around gets old after a while. I really have to be more conscientious about exercise now that the dog isn't walking as far!
DeleteBees nesting in the ground take me by surprise. Our typical nest is a football shape sphere hanging from a tree branch. As a middle school student, my son loved using the John Deere lawn tractor to mow the the lawns and woodland paths. One day while mowing a path, lots of bees flew out of a hole in the ground and stung him. His body started to swell and off to the ER we went. Thankfully, I've not seen subsequent nests in the ground. Definitely staking your ground nest off is a good idea as the bees get angry when disturbed.
ReplyDeleteI imagine mowing over a bee nest really fired them up!
DeleteI just learned a lot about bees! I can't believe your summer's over already. Ours has months yet, with weather, anyway. Schools open after Labor Day, early September.
ReplyDeleteWell, meteorologically, our summer will also last another month or so!
DeleteMy grandsons start school tomorrow, too! Hope you have a great year, Steve!
ReplyDeleteSummer sure did fly by!
DeleteI'm glad you avoided bee stings. Best wishes for the coming school year.
ReplyDeleteYeah, I got lucky. I've read that some ground-nesting bees don't sting. Maybe I got lucky by encountering a non-stinging nest!
DeleteWe call those "ground bees" which makes perfect sense and they can be nigh on deadly. They are vicious when disturbed and will chase you down to make sure you get the message that their home is not to be messed with. Or at least, this has been my experience.
ReplyDeleteI cannot believe it's already time for you to go back to work. A new year! I hope it's a very good one.
Well some ground bees are actually yellowjackets, which are really a wasp (as I understand it). Yellowjackets are known to be fierce!
DeleteI don't think I've ever heard of a bee swarm on the ground before. I wouldn't have expected that either. I'm glad the bees didn't come after you.
ReplyDeleteI am so in need of a good long walk. I can't wait for this intense heat to ease up. I did buy tickets yesterday to fly to Chicago later in September. I'll get some walking in on that trip.
Chicago will feel better, I'm sure, though maybe not exactly cool! Do you have a gym membership? Maybe this is the time of year to find an air-conditioned treadmill.
DeleteSeems funny that you're returning to school at this time. We always started after Sept 1.
ReplyDeleteSchools everywhere start earlier than they used to, sadly!
DeleteI've been stung several times and it hurts more than I told my kids it did. I can't walk aimlessly because I have a terrible sense of direction and would get lost. I have to walk in a grid. There's something nice about getting back into a set routine.
ReplyDeleteThis is where the iPhone "maps" app comes in handy! Whenever I'm in doubt I just pull that up and reorient myself. (I do have a pretty good sense of direction overall, though, thankfully.)
DeleteI know yellow jackets live in the ground, but the honey bees around here don't. When they're swarming, it's usually in a tree, a soffit on a house, or the like. (We have several beehives) I think I've been stung (or bitten) by everything that can do so. The deer flies are especially bad now.
ReplyDeleteUgh! Deer flies! Don't remind me!
DeleteI gotta get more exercise. What are you TALKING about? You take miles-long walks throughout and around London! Sit down and relax! But watch out for the bees.
ReplyDeleteHa! But that's just it -- I really DON'T take those long walks as often as I used to. Now and then, yes, but I used to walk a lot more than I have been lately.
DeleteWe usually try to eradicate any bees in the ground because they're yellow jackets around here. And I totally agree with Bruce up there - you get more exercise before lunch than I do in a week. Ha!
ReplyDeleteYeah, yellowjackets are bad news. I get less exercise than I used to, and it's starting to show, if you know what I mean!
DeleteGreat shot of the bee in flight, looks like he's coming right at you.
ReplyDeleteHe kind of was!
DeleteRunning from bees strikes me as quite a good workout....
ReplyDeleteHa! Plus the associated adrenalin rush surely burns a few extra calories...
DeleteWe were going to walk a little on the Appalachian trail, and a guy walked into the parking lot at the trail head and told us a bear had disturbed a ground nest and the bees were really pissed off. We did not go, I hate getting stung.
ReplyDeleteYeah, that sounds like a good time to steer clear. I wonder if the bear got stung. Can bees sting through fur?
DeleteI used to like wandering just anywhere my feet took me. I have been stung by bees twice in one day. I walked outside with bare feet and there were bees on the ground under the grapevine and I stepped on one which stung me. I went inside, eased the pain and went back out. Stepped on another bee with my other foot! Years later I got stung by a native wasp while I was slashing down a jasmine creeper and disturbed their nest, got me right in the spot between nose and upper lip. That hurt for hours!
ReplyDeleteYeah, as I've heard it, wasps are worse than bees -- though I suppose it depends on the species in both cases!
DeleteI'm so glad you didn't get stung out there! Not fun, and with a bunch it could have been ugly!
ReplyDeleteI'm amazed, frankly, given that my toes were exposed!
Delete