Still Life with Camera

Or so says Ralph Waldo Emerson. The people who owned this house before us were not gardeners but this spring and summer, I've begun transforming the yard.  Hopefully these pictures will cheer us through the long winter. Potato Vine - I just noticed that the new leaves are edged in purple. Black-eyed Susan with friend. I don't know what the bug is - I hate to kill it just in the unlikely event that it's a "good" bug. Anybody know what it is? Purple Petunia - I was trying to focus on the pistil/stamen - whatever those parts are inside - but with the camera on automatic, it didn't quite work. Paniculata Hydrangea - they smell heavenly and are covered with bees all day long.

Within a month, my garden has overgrown it's tiny 4X8 boxes. I've trimmed back the undeterminate tomatoes twice and just pulled out a bunch of cucumber plants that were taking over everything. Obviously, I need at least twice as much garden space...Maybe next year. But we've already eaten Amish snap peas, green peppers, cucumbers, tomatoes and green and yellow beans, to say nothing of the wondeful mint, basil, parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme. I also have a bumper crop of japanese beetles eating everything in sight. I bought some systemic stuff then found out it's not for use with planters and of course it can't be used with the vegetables. I found some stuff which is safe for vegetables, however, it kills bees and everything in the garden is abloom. No way I'm going to kill off our little pollinating friends. Doesn't the fence section look like a honeycomb? I caught this guy in flight, although I need to do some post-processing so his wings are more vis...