The hum of a still summer garden

You see it before you quite register what it is. A flicker of orange and brown low over the grass, then gone. The small tortoiseshell is often the first butterfly you’ll spot in Richmond upon Thames, emerging on warm February days or, more reliably, in March. It spent winter tucked in a shed or hollow […]

You might have spotted them already. The dragonflies have returned to Richmond’s ponds and quieter stretches of the Thames. They hover, dart, and hang suspended above the water like tiny helicopters made of stained glass. The common darter is usually the first you’ll see: rusty red, quick to settle on a warm stone. Then come […]

You leave the kitchen light on after washing up, and within minutes they arrive. Pale wings tap against the glass. Some hover, some settle, some circle in that erratic flight that looks like bad navigation but is perfect purpose. Richmond upon Thames hosts over three hundred moth species. Most never trouble your vision. They pollinate […]

You notice the roses first. The climbers at Marble Hill, the borders along Petersham Road, the pink flush in your neighbour’s front patch. Peak season means colour, yes, but also sound. Stand still for a moment and the hum arrives. Honeybees working the petals, hoverflies hovering, mining bees slipping into the earth beneath. Most of […]

You see them often enough in summer, the Peacock butterflies with their four false eyes staring from russet wings. But watching one work is different. This one hovered above an allium in a Twickenham front garden yesterday afternoon. The purple globe swayed slightly in the breeze. The butterfly landed, folded its wings, then opened them […]