It’s been a lovely start to the week, with warm and sunny weather, although cool in the shade.
While sitting at that table this afternoon we saw this handsome bug…
Any ideas what it is?
A real highlight of the week is my Clematis tangutica “Orange Peel”. It finally flowered!
I had difficulties finding this specific one, so I’m so glad it has got established after such a difficult start weatherwise. (It was planted this spring).
Have you ever grown a tangutica group Clematis? They are wonderful climbers.
Have a lovely week everyone!
Words and Herbs 
I can see the light and colours are changing in the garden shot
and the clematis is a delight – I think I used to have a blue one, but my memory ain’t what it should be 🙂
I used to have a very similar yellow one in my first garden…. it concealed a very ugly (and prickly) Berberis that couldn’t be removed and I fell in love with it! Thanks for commenting Claire!
I think it’s a bronze shield bug nymph.
http://johncullenphotography.blogspot.co.uk/2011/08/shieldbug-nymphs.html
Thank you Susan! 😀 Lovely to hear from you! I have now looked up Shield Bugs and seen how many different ones there are… http://www.britishbugs.org.uk/gallery/heteroptera/Pentatomoidea/pentatomoidea.html We get quite a few bugs like these, and last week I saw a green/blue shimmery one.
I could look at this picture all day long and wallow in the grass my friend. XOXO – Bacon
Hi Bacon – if you like wallowing you would love our compost heap! 😉
Snorts – baby steps my friend. Baby steps. XOXO – Bacon
How lovely to see a cool, green oasis! I would be quite comfortable in that beautiful garden. I can see the subtle changes taking place. And it must be lovely to have your clematis finally blooming. We are at that point in the year when summer’s flowers are fading and going to seed, but nothing is really stepping up to take their place–not yet! It’s such a nice idea to keep the weekly photos to really mark the seasons and the changes that occur. I’m glad Sue provided information on the little bug nymph! I know I’ve never seen one. 🙂
Hi Debra – yes, cool and green, but still warm enough to sit outside in the daytime. Perfect! 😀 It’s also an in-between time here, which means too early for the autumn gardening jobs so I can relax and dream a little. (And order bulbs for autumn planting!) 😉
I hadn’t noticed the table among the trees before, it must be a lovely place to sit and enjoy the afternoon. And that bug is just amazing – it looks like someone has designed and painted the pattern on it’s back!
I am so happy you didn’t notice the table because that is exactly the effect we wanted when we bought this dark green furniture…. it should blend in! 😀 I have since looked up “Shield Bugs” and found a wonderful website should you ever wish to identify anything: http://www.britishbugs.org.uk/
That’s wonderful that your clematis is blooming! It’s so pretty and I love the cultivar name. 🙂
The name certainly describes the way the petals curl upwards as the flower opens, but the colour is distinctly yellow and not orange! Not sure I’d want an orange one anyway, as I have so many orange Physalis in autumn. 😀
I like your clematis very much for its unusual color. It’s nice to have one starting to bloom at this time of year. Glad it did well.
It was supposed to start blooming in August, but seemed a little stunted from the hot summer. It looks strong and healthy now though. Thanks for stopping by Susie!
Hi Cathy, this is another site of bugs and larvae.www.natur-in-nrw.de/IMG/Tiere/Insekten/Wanzen/W-Uebersicht/wanzen-fotos.html If you scroll down to the bottom and again 37 species up, there is Zicrona caerulea. Looks also like yours. I guess there exist some more species with similar larvae. 🙂
Some more warm days in Southern and Northern Germany 🙂 Uta
http://www.natur-in-nrw.de/IMG/Tiere/Insekten/Wanzen/W-Uebersicht/wanzen-fotos.html
Thank you Uta! I was hoping you’d also have an idea. The NRW databank is a great reference, so I shall bookmark that. Hope your weather is as gorgeous as ours! 😉
Yes, a day later, the sun has opened a blue sky :). We´ ll have a afternoon break outside at the pond.
Similar weather here Cathy though recent mornings have been cloudy. A beautiful beastie but no idea as to what it is. I grew clematis tangutica ‘Bill Mackenzie’ many moons ago but gave up on it as the flowers were so sparse. I thought that I was doing something wrong but we had a talk from a clematis expert at our last garden club meeting who said that Bill was well known for not being a good doer. Hope that your ‘Orange Peel’ is more prolific.
I have had one before in our previous garden and it was rampant, but no idea what type of tangutica it was. They are not popular here for some reason, so I had to order this online and was worried that was why it didn’t start off so well. Seems okay now though… let’s see if it survives the winter!
Hi Cathy! I do find it relaxing to look out on your view at 2! That bug is AMAZING! I’ll show it to Adam tonight, he’ll love it! I have an spring/early summer clematis at my front door and I love it. I didn’t prune it in time last year though for one reason or another and it started growing very early in some mild weather we had, so it flowered early but while we were in France it really suffered and hasn’t flowered since. I’m looking forward to giving it a good prune back this winter and that will rejuvenate it for next year. I’d love more clematis plants though, I find all of them very beautiful.
If you like bugs, take a look at this website: http://www.britishbugs.org.uk/
I always have to look up when to prune my clematis, but seem to remember not pruning the tangutica I had in my first garden until spring as the seed heads look so good through the winter. I agree, clematis are beautiful. I have never seen one I don’t like, except the wild ones that occasionally invade the garden from the nearby woods… now they are really strong and hardy, and almost impossible to remove! Thanks for your comment Anna!
Hey Cathy. Looks like a friendly bug, it almost seems to be smiling. 😉 Where has the summer gone my friend? The calender tells me it’s still here but I don’t know if I agree. Your garden looks as beautiful as ever.
I do believe he’s actually winking too! 😉 Yes, summer has been and gone. It’s been a good one, although a little too hot at times. Right now it’s perfect with blue skies and fluffy white marshmallow clouds…. 😀
A lovely week to you too!!!
😀
I love the little yellow clematis. I grew mine which is called “Helios” from seed. It looks very similar and has lovely seed heads too. My only complaint is that it gets tangled and untidy but I suppose that is my fault for not being more attentive.
That’s one of the things I like about this one! LOL! It would be lovely growing up into a tree where it could spread out.
Intrigued by both the bug and the clematis – haven’t seen either before but they’re both wonderful!
The tangutica clematis has a prime position where I can enjoy it from all over the garden and from indoors too, so hope it gets bigger next year… Thanks for your comment Andrea!
Haven’t come across this bug before, looks pretty. Clematis tangutica is also a delight and watch out for the seed heads, such beauties.
The seed heads are one of the reasons I wanted one again! I often find seeds just as attractive if not more so than the flowers… 😉
What a beautiful plant!!
It’s looking prettier by the day, with the maple behind it just staring to change colour… 😀