Wow good job on the pictures, are you using a special kind of camera like a dslr, or just a point and shoot? Either way beautiful.

This one time when I was doing a fifteen mile hike in the wilderness here in Montana, I saw the biggest BEE I have ever seen. Like quarter sized and flying real slowly and loudly. He was a black bumble bee, dunno exactly what they're called but it was amazing seeing him 100 miles away from a city in the Bush.

Inspiring! Love the circle of life (:

Fantastic photos John.

Brian

I used a Nikon Coolpix S3500, set on macro mode for the closeups. If you are camera shopping, it's pocket-sized, has a great zoom, and is inexpensive but often doesn't focus the macro shots like these. It boxes the right area to focus but focuses on something wayyy off in the background. But then, we digress from citrus :>)

Love these bees, they had a ground nest right off our patio, I feed them jelly on a paper plate. I had my kumquat setting just off the patio and they started to come to that, hence the photo.

My kumquat is just now putting out it's spring leaf flush so it will be a while before I get blooms.

Citrus nectar must really be tasty. The flowers are tight but the bees really work hard to get in deep enough for a drink.

Here are two more from my lunch break. Another bumblebee and a zebra swallowtail!

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Wow John....Amazing...I never thought a pocket camera could take such a great shot, and that close without getting stung...They were to busy having fun in your flowers...

Don't you just love this time of year? I can't wait until I start seeing bees..
I love that butterfly.....They to pollinate..Lucky you!
Next you will be seeing a humming bird...

MIke

This is my rio red grapefruit back in February when I got the first growth flush and flowers galore. The fruit is now about silver dollar size.
Evan

This post was edited by evdesert on Fri, Apr 11, 14 at 9:35

I forgot to mention how awesome everyone's trees, blooms and pictures look!
Evan

Gosh! Some of you are soo far ahead of my trees! I'm just now getting nice flowers and y'all have green fruit. Mike, I saw a couple of humming birds and got excited hoping to get a photo but they didn't come around to my side of the tree. That WOULD be a cool "Kodak Moment".

Johnorange, I am in the desert southwest, we had a very mild winter this year. I think we had maybe a week where it dropped into the mid-upper 30's at night here in December and that was as cold as it got. I'm not sure what zone you're in but normally my trees bloom mid march, they were a month early due to our winter. I also talked to some friends that work at the citrus variety collection at UCR and they too said their fruit on the trees wasn't ready for harvest and the trees were starting to flower early as well. Anyways back on topic, here is a pic of a monarch I believe? That I caught on my bearss lime tree that I planted in February this year.
Evan

This post was edited by evdesert on Fri, Apr 11, 14 at 9:37