A New Orchid

One of my new orchids is out. This one was given to me & I was told to hang it to a branch in a tree. The only "tree" as such in my yard is a frangipanni tree. Of course there a gum trees in the neighbours yard & bottlebrush trees on the nature strip, but I deemed these unsuitable. I was a bit worried about it being placed in the frangipanni tree as it not only faces  west & gets the full force the afternoon sun, it currently has no leaves on it to shelter this little orchid. However, it has been there since July, has produced two new shoots and about a dozen buds, three of which have finally opened. So I guess it likes where it is for now. Time will tell as the weather  heats up over summer, though hopefully by then it will have some shade from the leaves of the frangipanni that are just starting to come.

For the Senses

Today I had reason to visit my local library. When I got out of the car I noticed the perfume, nothing bad of course, but strong enough to notice. I had a quick look around as to what was in flower but noticed nothing out of the ordinary. It wasn't until I returned to my car that I saw the tree under which I had parked. Note, I had looked around but not up!

The tree under which I had parked was smothered with these yellow flowers and emitting a very strong perfume. I didn't stay long enough to examine it, just long enough to take a quick pic, &  now I am wondering what it is. I have searched Google for pics of similar flowers but have found nothing. My guess it is in the frangipanni family somewhere, but that is just a guess. It is the shape of the leaves & the perfume that makes me think this way, as well as the fact that I know that frngipannis come in a few different varieties.

I have parked under this tree many times before & have never really noticed it except for it's shade. Next time I will have a closer look.

Colours of Spring 8

  

Imagine this colour lining the highways of our nation in spring.

Colours of Spring 7

Colours Of Spring 6

Little balls of yellow fluff , just one of our many wattles

Colours of Spring 5

Not sure what these are, some kind of succulent I think.

Colours of Spring 4

A banksia just before it booms.

Colours of Spring 3

Just one of our many banksias.

Colours of Spring 2

So bright & vibrant, these look fabulous on mass.

Colours of Spring 1

Gazinias come in all colours.

Colours of Spring 1

On a recent trip away all I could notice was the colour spread over our Nation in the form of spring. Forgetting the fact that it gives me allergies in a bad way, sit back & enjoy the colour.

The Beginnings of Spring

Taken nearly two months ago in the middle of winter, this pic shows the wattles blooming along the side of the Pacific Highway in the North Coast region of NSW. Sorry for the quality, it was taken through the car window. What a spectacular sight they made, and a forerunner of the spring the come.

My Winter Jonquils

It is mid winter in Sydney, though with the weather today we could be fooled into thinking is spring. In my garden the jonquils are flowering, masses of them and the perfume is wonderful.

The Calm Before The Storm

Two days ago I spotted this little fellow sunning himself on a leaf. He must have known something was up, getting all the warmth he could before the big freeze. The Southerlies have arrived from the Arctic, bringing snow to the ranges not too far from here. Winter has arrived early & with a vengeance. Brrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr...........................

Geranium

My Mum's geranium is still surviving.

Blue Dragon Fly

We often get these little blue dragon flies in the garden. They are so hard to take pics of. This is the best one I have got so far.

Galahs Pt 2

There were actually two galahs that came visiting, obviously having breakfast on the bark. Once again the quality is poor due to zooming & cropping.

Galah

We only get visits from the galahs occasionally so when we do I try to capture them with the camera. I could hear them squawking but it took me a while to find them hiding in the gum tree down the back. I apologise for the quality, I had to zoom & crop.

Buds A Plenty

Back in March we had quite a bit of rain, consequences of which my climbing rose is just covered in buds just like this one. Maybe in about a week it will be covered in pink blooms. Here's hoping.

Native Violets

After all the rain, look what is flowering a plenty.

Seed Pods

Seed pods can be so interesting if we really look. All I can see here is the head if a stick insect, but in fact it is just a seed pod currently in my garden.

Opened!

After rescuing my orchid from the snails & slugs last week, it has rewarded me with these beautiful blooms. There are five altogether, scattered along one spike. The spike is running horizontal, a sign perhaps that I should have given it some support. Though by the time I found it last week it may have been too late, & if I had of tried to bend it, it may well have snapped.


This is a closer view of one of the blooms, and looking closely we can see where the snails have had their dinner. I'll be more diligent next year.

A Surprise

Yesterday I was out in the garden looking for parsley to add to my cooking & look what I found! This orchid was given to me two years ago by a little old lady ( she is in her 90's & still going strong!) . I have been watching & waiting patiently for that length of time to be rewarded with this spike containing 5 buds. The down side is the ***** snails found them before me & have chewed holes into three of them. About a month ago I saw a new shoot coming & watched with eager anticipation, only to believe it was just that, a new shoot. Now it has been rescued from the snails & I will wait with more eager anticipation for them to open. Hopefully they will look like this.

Company

We have had over 4" of rain over the last few days so today while the sun was shining & the breeze cooling I thought I would remove some weeds & do a little pruning while the soil was still soft. Look who I found also out enjoying the sun on my climbing rose. Not sure if he is good or bad but he sure is bright.

Dividing Perannials

Something that I must do for my shasta dasies.