Random August Photos

Hi everyone. Happy Friday. I just realized as I wrote this post that it's the last Friday of August too. What? It can't be. I think it's always  bittersweet that (meteorological) summer is almost over.

It is raining again here today. I'm happy we had at least 5 days rain free this past week though, which is better than it has been most weeks. 😀 

August is always a busy season in my yard, so today for Nicole's Friday Face Off   and also for Gillena's  Friday Lunch Break  let me share some random garden photos, as well as a few other assorted photos from this month. There are a lot of faces in this post too.

I know some people don't like spiders, so I'll get these 2 out of the way. These arachnids were sitting on  leaves in my potted plants. I found them both when I was watering one day.

I've also had dragonflies in my yard, which is great because this year (with all the rain) there seems to be an abundance of mosquitoes. This Blue Dasher posed for me long enough to get a good photo.

This tree frog was hanging out on the outside of our sliding door one night.

And hopefully I've identified this butterfly correctly. It's an Eastern Tiger Swallowtail.

And I believe this next one is a Cabbage White.

Some of my dahlias are blooming. This photo doesn't show it, but this flower has a diameter of just about 10 inches (25 cm). It's huge!

This year I put my dahlia bulbs into some of those fabric  planting bags that are often used for planting potatoes. I did this since dahlia bulbs need to be dug in and put inside for the winter where I live. This way I can find them in October when I dig them up. This dahlia is on its second giant flower, and there's more buds too. 😀

The milkweed pods are forming.

 I also found this monarch caterpillar on one of the milkweed plants.

I've left some goldenrod growing in my gardens for the bees. At this time of year we can be in a pollen dearth.  Not only does the goldenrod attract my honey bees, but here's one of the many bumblebees  that like it too.

And here's a similar bee on a zinnia. 

This next photo just makes me smile. It's Miss Maddie at doggie daycare where she goes twice a week. She loves to go, so even though I am now retired I hate taking that away from her.  She doesn't look very comfy though, does she? Smile!

Here's an upside down photo (grin) of some cherry tomatoes in a pot on my deck.

My garden tomatoes are still mostly green.

Most of the cucumbers are still tiny, but I have picked a couple.

The second batch of kale is growing.

And the wild blackberries along my driveway are ripening. Boy these are so much better than store bought ones.

Not only do the tree frogs hang out on my sliding door, but the grasshoppers do too. 

And finally,

 I took this photo of Miss Maddie in my husband's truck. She  looks even more uncomfortable than  the other photo of her in this post. You'd think she's get a stiff neck sleeping in this position.

That's all for me. Have a great weekend!