Sometime during the 200-year history of this property, someone planted an herb garden. It’s a small, formal-looking space, with a geometric path centered around a stone bird bath. I love it, but have a tendency to let it go a bit wild. Instead of keeping the plants trimmed and bushy, I let them flower with abandon, go leggy, and take-over the little stone path. Why? Because the insects around here love those features. Honestly, at this time of summer, its more Insectarium than Herb Garden. And when I need a few minutes to center myself, I take my camera out there and watch the frenzy. That’s how I came to know the great black wasp. Brilliant blue iridescent wings (more butterfly, in color, than wasp) and the thin, wasp-y waist that gives me the chills. As if its looks weren’t interesting enough, great black wasps are apparently known for using tools and kleptoparasitism. What’s not to love?
I hope your Wednesday was sorta wild, too!