Red Admiral on the Ivy (gouache style)

The red admiral is a large, strong-flying butterfly with velvety black wings crossed by bright red bands and dotted with white near the tips. Underneath, the hindwings are mottled brown and well camouflaged. Many red admirals fly in from the continent each spring, though more now overwinter in the south of England. The caterpillars feed on stinging nettles, folding a leaf into a little tent and hiding inside while they eat.

Ivy flowers from September into November, when little else is open, so it's a vital late source of nectar for red admirals, wasps, hoverflies and late bees. Only mature ivy flowers, usually once it's climbed to the top of a wall, fence or tree, so let a stretch grow up. Its black berries then feed birds through winter. Avoid cutting it in the nesting season, March to August, and leave a few windfall apples on the ground, as red admirals feed on the juice.

The red admiral is shown on ivy flowers in autumn sunshine, the season when this butterfly and this plant meet most often. In the sunshine, the red and black of the wings stand out against the ivy. It's a late moment in the gardening year, chosen because it shows how much is still going on after the borders have faded.