Hemp Agrimony (Eupatorium cannabinum) and Meadowsweet (Filipendula ulmaria), both plants of damp meadows.

 The flowers of Persicaria amplexicaulis ' Firetail ' burn brightly from mid-July into September. It's a tough shrub that seems to cope with most soils and summers, be it drought or downpour. The leaves drop in autumn and the stems die back over winter then start to push through again in late spring. Late enough in fact to plant the area with the earlier spring flowering bulbs like Snowdrops and Corydalis.

 The triffid-like Echium in the front garden was covered in thousands of flowers at its peak in May/June [see entry dated 11th. May]. A neighbour described it as "pulsating with bees". I noted a few weeks ago [7th. July] that the flowers were still quite plentiful. It has largely gone to seed but even now there are hundreds of flowers providing a plentiful source of nectar. And what a colossal amount of seed it will yield!

 It's a moot point whether Globe Artichokes (Cynara scolymus) should be eaten or left to flower. Depending on your preference they can be grown as an edible or a striking architectural plant. I didn't get round to picking the ones on the allotment. Never mind, the top knot of bright purple flowers is extraordinary.

 The first Runner Beans on the allotment are starting to form.

 A rainy day today but this frog was out and about enjoying the weather.

 Buddleja davidii is known in as the Butterfly Bush because it attracts so many species of butterfly. It also attracts bumblebees. Native to China and Japan B. davidii is one of those introduced species that has run rampant and in doing so does great service to our pollinators.