TEA ROOM # 112

Good morning everyone..The sun is shining beautifully this morning.
Yesterday was lovely after a very cold start.
I did more one handed weeding and moved a couple of small pot plants.
Today I am going to start on the repotting of the brugs. They are ready for nice fresh mix.
Some are going into the ground and I am planning an avenue ( a small one ) of brugs.
Its really just a path between the house and the greenhouses but GHA already lives there so others will be joining him.
It will smell so yummy when they all flower.
Hubby has been recruited for the heavy stuff.

Some of my orchids are getting large flower stems. I just wish all the others would do the same. Stubborn things.

The garden is alight with yellow and cream at the moment. Daffiues everywhere. .
Lots of liliums up Anthony. I hope all yours are doing well too. You have to win even more prizes for them later.

Al, I would love to try all that seafood ttoo. I am a lover of crayfish but it is always way too expensive these days and I am a bit disgusted at the small size they sell.
We would never take such small ones from the sea when we used to catch them years ago.
Tells of mans greed . If all the small ones are taken, what is left to breed later ?

Charleen, Charley is a darling. Isnt he smart , getting up on his trailer.
He was here for cookies this morning and I am sure I saw Abigail with him..

Teresa, Those two adorable spottys are so pretty. I like the arrangement of Coppers spots..

Karen, nice to see you getting out & about. Your pics are lovely. I do like horses.

Colleen, the lovely red allicum is still blooming beautifully. They do last for quite a while once out.

Dianne, I hope the sun is shining on you today too.
Sit and enjoy your lovely garden.

Moon , I have made carrot cake plenty of times using other things with the carrots such as pineapple and also grated zucchini.
I used to make cakes for the cafe in Bright when I lived there and they loved the carrot cakes.

Lots to do so hello to anyone I have missed . I had better see whats for morning tea.


Here we are...Raspberry and Coconut Loaf..

Enjoy your day.
Happy gardening
Jean.

Good morning all. Jean, that carrot cake with pineapple sounds much like the hummingbird cake but without the coconut. Sounds yummy. Great you are getting the sunshine now. We could really do with some rain here, I am shocked at how fast things are drying out.

Charleen, funny little man, and that Charlie is such a character. You've sent my mind back 60 years when I used to adore growing that red star cypress vine. I've looked for it in more recent years, but the stupid government dept that controls plants in Aus. has decided it is a pest and banned its growth or import. The only reason is that it sets seed, and those seeds may grow. Seems anything that sets seed now is labelled a pest. Our sad loss, as this delicate sweetie is so pretty and I believe now comes in other colours as well.

Moon, I believe that alpaca is overdue for a good shearing, but maybe they are waiting for the weather to warm up a bit more? I've never seen one with so much growth. It was almost unrecognizable.

Anthony, enjoy the high while you are still up there. Not often anyone gets to feel the surge at being a winner!

Dianne, those are 2 different horses. The dappled grey looked to be an older horse, but I am not sure. It was close to the fence, resting in the shade. The other was taken with a zoom lense as he was quite some distance away, but yes, I can imagine him groomed and his magnificent long mane and tail dancing the the breeze. I've seen pics of this type of horse well groomed and they are so magnificent.

Hello to everyone else. Al, where are you now?
Take care.
Karen

Good morning everyone. Yes Jean the Winter Hippy does flower for ages but mine was gone long ago. I've repotted mine and split it up so I hope it goes okay. The weather is absolutely beautiful, three days in a row. The boys helped me do a bit of gardening and I've sprayed the Bl---. creeper from next door that keeps coming UNDER the fence. Because I haven't kept on top of it it has come over a metre in places. Wont last long with the round-up. Clean up day today. The neighbour will still come and give me a hand. She's a god-send. Well must go and get the washing out. Have a great day. Colleen

Found some absolute beauty here in Nova Scotia. Area is very stark indeed, but full of history. Lighthouse is south of Yarmouth. Rosehips are grown wild everywhere, the fruit picked as a valuable source of Vitamin C to prevent scurvy amoung ancient sailers.
Lobsters are farmed in these traps, Ellen and I are eating a couple for dinner tonight. A calm sunset to the west cove.

Al

Hi guys Ive just started a face book page need some pics and friends.....see if any interest.....ill send out some more invites to get it going
http://www.facebook.com/HippeastrumAmaryllisDownUnder

I thought the dogs were very quiet out side this morning & when I looked out could see them play fighting.
Copper was enjoying his frolic until he saw me & pretended to be too old for all that nonsense.
Funny boy :)

Karen, both my dogs have brown spots (which we call liver)
I laughed when I saw Sugar was liver spotted as I was thinking it was time I had a black spotted girl as my previous girl was liver too.

Jean, going by the weekend enquiries, looks like im going to have ''a billion'' people coming to buy lilies.!!![best import some more seed] -quickly.,.,I must say, Im feeling very ordinary today[must be something I ate]-Anthony

can any one help me out with what type of growing media worsleya procera would profer i have to pot it on but not sure what it requires ?????
Thanks guys

I dont even know the man,[worsleya procera] so I cant help!!

This message was edited Sep 4, 2012 11:57 AM

Hi Shaun. Chrissy has one of those growing so she may be able to help. Did you buy yours and from where? Colleen

i bought mine from QLD Ebay while i was buying other bulbs from the same place
Thank you very much Colleen

http://www.strangewonderfulthings.com/tips184.htm
see your d mail Shaun ...

Hi everyone, hey Anthony Congrats mate !
I hope all our friends over the pond are enjoying their Labor day Holiday ...ours is in October.
Is everyone getting ready to greet Spring ?
Exciting isn't it. ^_^

chrissy

Good morning everyone.
The sun is shining. It should be a beautiful day as was yesterday.
I was able to get a lot done even if I am paying for it now.
I planted out several small brugs into the ground near the irises.
I also moved some out of the shadehouse . Lots more to do, but slowly.
I was feeling okay while I worked and hubby did the carrying and lifting, but last night I was feeling the effects.

I have a lovely variegated iris to plant. Have been wanting one for awhile and finally bought one.
It will look very nice among the plain green leaved ones.

My salvias are all still flowering. They have been lovely through winter.
I have several new ones to plant out once all the tree branches are cleared after hubbys attack of the chainsaw.

Hello Chrissy. nice to see you popping in..

Anthony, it may be something you drank XXXX.....lol
Probably all the excitement of your wins at the daff show.

Teresa, I saw your battered Christchurch this morning on TV. It looks like things are slowly coming together there
.It does take a long time to replace and fix buildings.
Love the spotty ones whatever color they are. Sugar will be quite the model as she learns to behave like a lady.

Al. you are certainly seeing some beautiful country up there.
Be careful how far north you travel. You may meet a polar bear coming south.

Dianne, how are things in your garden. There must be lots of color now that Spring has arrived.
Lovely that you have public gardens close by .
I must talk hubby into going for another drive so I can see the brugs at Portland again.

Moon , hope Isaac has left you some rain and no damage. It would be lovely if the farmers got the rain too without all the rest.

Charleen, Charley bought his mates here this morning, I gave them carrots. I hope you were not searching for them.
I have a feeling Abigail is letting them out so she can get a ride on Charleys back. ....lol


Hello Sue, Karen and everybody else popping in.

I will leave something yummy out for morning tea....Hazelnut Torte

Happy day and enjoy the sun if you have it.
Jean.

Jean I hope your V.Iris survives, mine died after a freeze a few years back, pretty little thing it was too, I think I bought it at a school fete, they are great places to pick up old fashioned treasures.

Hello to everyone ...it's quite warm outside today, Spring has truly Sprung by the looks of things, the blossoms are finally starting up.

I bet it is looking beautiful over the pond, I love Autumn leaves.Hello to our new friends (loving the tomatoes).

Well back to it ...I hope all of you with injuries and worries will be feeling better very soon, nothing like Spring blossoms to lift your spirits is there (don't look at the weeds :).
Have a lovely Arvo ^_^

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chrissy

That new variegated iris will not dare to die. I forbid it...
Irises love it here and it should do well.
I was lucky to be sent enough to make 4 plants so I have it all around.

I have to laugh at my irises.
I thinned them all out and tossed the leftovers in empty spots around trees & shrubs along the border of the iris area.
I was too lazy to take them all the way down the back where I usually toss bits.
Now they are all growing and looking as healthy as the others I kept.
Irises are so resilient.
I will have patches of color everywhere.

Been a lovely day and I am going to stop and rest now , with a cuppa.

Enjoy the sun if you have it.
Jean.

Yesterday we went to the Geelong gardens as usual and after our walk we went to the cafe to have scones and jam and cream, we sat outside, because Tilly was with us....I'd just put the jam on the scones when a visitor arrived and promptly stuck his long tongue in one of the jam pots.

It was a Wattlebird, the cheeky devil hopped all around the table, trying to get the other jam pot...thank goodness he didn't want the cream....I promptly put all of it on our scones so he couldn't touch it..

He wasn't a bit shy, that's what I like about Wattlebirds, they are the clowns of the bird population...
When you think about it, jam is just like the nectar that you put in bird feeders only fruit flavoured...

Love that lighthouse, Al, Moon showed us a lovely timber one from her state...

Losing coastline must have been going on for hundreds of years, moon...often on UK tv shows that I watch they refer to where the coastline was just a few years ago....it makes you wonder what things will be gone in a thousand years...I suppose it's somewhere on the internet, but I don't need to know..
Dianne.

We don't seem to have the wattle birds do that kind of thing here, Kookaburras yes, they will mug you for a chippy at the sports ovals. Once we had a hamburger robbery by an Ibis at Taronga Zoo, very aggressive birds there. They seem much more timid here. Maggies will attack unless they know you. Did you see the pictures of the Sea Gulls stealing the baby duck (rescued by mum). Hope you enjoyed your jam and scones anyway.
Yes Jean I had a whole lot of Iris that I lost in the freeze and the constant rain. I had them growing in total neglect in one of my very early gardens, I recall they were sitting in a few inches of sandy soil with big rocks that baked them all Summer, they were perfect there in those conditions (no frost in that garden ). The rhizomes sat exposed to the sun. Good luck with the new Iris baby, I know it is in very good hands. ^_^

Here is another kind of Lighthouse ...Edison Lighthouse.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b9XyhFQeob0


chrissy

we had a lovely sunny day...
then it clouded over & got very dark.
Around 6pm the lightning started, very dramatic!
A little later Baz called me to listen out side, it sounded like a train coming but was the sound of hail on the way.
When it hit the noise was phenomenal & the hail stones were the size of marbles.
Nice way to mark the 2nd anniversary of the September 7.1 earthquake.

Oh Hail !!! I hope there was not too much damage done. Gosh you keep copping it.
sorry to hear it.

chrissy

I brought along a sample platter for everyone to try from the Lunenburg NS shipping pier. Nice amount of fried seafood, haddock, shrimp, scallops, and seasoned potato fries.

Al

I'm having an awful time bumping up these photos, I seem to lose the thread before they all load properly.

Al

Good morning everyone.
After a lovely day yesterday, the wind came up and was blowing a gale all night. It has dropped a little now but looks like rain.
I moved a few more pot plants and planted a few more little brugs . Lots of bromeliads to pot up after taking them away from their Mums.
Most I can do in the greenhouse so I wont get wet if it does rain.

Al, I wish I had that plate of seafood right here.
It looks so delicious.
I love the waterfront. The building colors are stunning.

Teresa, I hope that wild weather you had has disappeared now. Not very nice to have hail after everything else Mother Nature has tossed at you.
Hope the furry ones are not too nervous after it all.

Dianne, you can keep your wattle birds. We have them here too and they are just big bullies.
They chase the small New Holland honeyeaters around the garden until the poor little things are so tired..
The wattle birds are also guilty of breaking the stems of smaller plants with their weight, as they try to get the nectar.

Hello Chrissy, hope your weather is behaving up there.

Anthony, have you recovered from your exciting time at the daff show yet ?
You will have to prepare yourself for another round of prizes with the liliums.

Hello Karen and Sue. Hope all is well at your places.

Moon , are you safe and sound there now ?
Hope you are enjoying a nice bit of rain and not too much bad weather still.

Charleen, Are you doing okay where you are too ?
I bet Charley was keeping his head down during the bad weather.
I love your little fat man. Is he a Buddha ?
You can rub his tummy for luck.

I am going out to clean up all the sticks & twigs. I should not complain though as it is only a minor thing compared with what some have to clean up.

I will leave a tasty nibble for you all.
Al dont eat all that seafood, I may pop in for a bite ....lol

Heres your morning tea nibble. ....Raisin Cookies

Happy day
Jean.

Oh yummy seafood ...huge lot of it too. Not much of a meat eater myself but I do love seafood, Calamari and Prawns, fresh fish,
mmmmmm. ^_^

Jean we are in for some rough weather a bit later, but right now it is stunning ...crisp enough at night to enjoy your sleep but Sunny enough to feel like Summer by lunchtime ...beautiful. Pretty dry though.

I hope everyone is enjoying themselves where ever you are.

chrissy

Al, that looks 'good',.,..,I've recovered Jean..and now its time to move along to the real thing-LILIUMS

ha ha ha ...you are as bad as me with my Brugs Anthony ...I understand you completely.
I might have to give in and give Liliums a go when I move into my smaller garden, will they do ok in pots ?
I did grow out some lovely smelly ones once but they died or were eaten (I can't remember). The scent was divine almost as delicious as my Brugs. They were large white ones with scarlet blotches in the throat.

chrissy

Delicious Al, I could certainly help you eat that...that looks like a pretty town....

I have never seen so many huge ships in the bay at one time, they have all come in because of the wild weather reports and they must be rockin 'n rollin on board....the waves are getting pretty big....

All of my Liliums are in pots, Chrissy....they do very well......I think that most of Anthony's are in pots, remember his "vortex".....I think Anthony lives in the vortex now and the Liliums live in the house..lol

The rain has just started here now Jean, it's very overcast....I can't see the sea now.
Batten down the hatches everyone, it's on it's way.
Dianne.

Hi everyone. Well, I am now just dying for a BIG plate of seafood (though no calamari for me thank you). We only have one fish and chip shop around here, and it isn't that great.

Al, I hope you can figure out the photo uploading system. I have a feeling you have some great pics to share.

I am just moping around, recovering from the trip to the dentist this morning. Because the needles don't work well, he didn't mess around today, just shot me full of holes (so to speak). It worked as it was almost completely pain free dental work today. I kept tensing up, waiting for the pain, just out of habit, but it didn't happen.

Hope no one gets caught out by any wild weather. No hail here Teresa. Not even a drop of wet stuff. Dry as a bone. Its a beautiful day here, though the wind has picked up and has a chill to it.

Driving around on the weekend, I spotted this wild thing, a vine, growing in the bush. Would anyone know what it is? It reminds me of a Hoya but for the flower itself.

Take care all.
Karen

Your tooth was probably almost dead Karen ...at least it's fixed now, hope you feel better soon.
I used to grow this
http://www.waikatoregion.govt.nz/Services/Regional-services/Plant-and-animal-pests/Plant-pests/Old-Mans-Beard/
that is what the picture reminds me of. Not sure because it's a bit of a distance away in your pic.

Hope you will be ok Dianne, the hot wind is starting to bash things here too.No rain just heat.

chrissy

after the hail it was very chilly but by this afternoon it was 16C, sunny & nice.
I am glad my lilies are only just poking through the soil, I threw some sawdust over their area a week or so ago & hopefully that protected them.
The rest of the garden took a battering & the deck & pavers are covered in shredded foliage & twigs.
Actually the footpaths all the way into town are covered with the same mess.
There are heavy rain & gale warnings for the rest of the South Island, looks like Tasmania will cop it thanks to the same weather pattern.
Keep warm & dry Anthony :)

cheers - Teresa

Brrrrrrrr what a difference to the past few days. I just heard on the news update that Adelaide is really copping it with 100 kph winds. I do hope that they don't get that bad here. Rain and thunder and lightening even hail doesn't worry me but I don't like the wind. How is everyone today? I went to Tai Chi yesterday to see if they can do me some good with getting me to relax all my muscles . I go back again for another try next Monday. My Grand-daughter and Great Grand son are coming for a visit on Friday for the weekend. It will be lovely to see them again. Seafood Al, I love seafood. Not all glamoured up with sauces though just plain with lemon and maybe a bit of lettuce and tomato. I hope that you get the hang of putting up your photos of your trip. They should be spectaclular. We had a lovely lamb chop stew tonight. Great for a cold night. The boys are just having their showers and getting in their PJ's and then quiet. Ahhh.Hope you all stay out of harm's way with this wind. Have a great night. Colleen

We dont want it getting too hot here, but 22 was a bit high for spring.,too much heat now, can ruin summer flowering bulbs[they get a pigmented leaf discolouration , break in the growing pattern type sickness][always a show that you will see in early risers in the asiatic section],.,.It can blow its backside off[as it has been] no stems to break,.,.but we really need good rain and a bit of coolness,.yes Dianne, i must admit, Ive spent a lot of time in the 2 vortexes[but theres no room to curl up and snooze- and I do so much love my bed]-Anthony

If your plant isn't Clematis vitalba, then it may be Clematis ternifolia (C paniculata) Virginbower

http://www.whiteflowerfarm.com/26630-product.html#

Hope you all have a lovely day...stay dry and safe.

Congrats to Anthony and all on their fine spring showings, they all look so beautiful. We are nearing fall now with a decided chill in the air. Leaves will soon be turning autumn colors.

Had a rainy day in Halifax so went to local museums instead. This was one of the closest ports to the tragic Titanic accident, many of the survivors were brought here, along with several who were buried here as well. Interesting air and naval action during WWII here also.

Al

This message was edited Sep 5, 2012 1:01 PM

This message was edited Sep 5, 2012 3:01 PM

I already have my little fat man sold so made another. Just couldn't capture the grin as on the first one. I was looking at a laughing Buddha. Cute little fella. Makes me smile to see it. See , he is not grinning so big. Also made an Elf. Taking a bath. Gave him a towel and a ducky to hide his Modesty.
then last night I did a Mermaid. I think I am getting a little better but not "life-like" yet.
Charley loves to poke his head the tea room to mooch for stale treasures and Abigail wants the crumbs too.
Spring is right around the corner for you and we will be having winter. YUCK!!!
Take it easy everyone....
Hugs and nuzzles....

Good morning everyone.
Very windy here again all night , but it has eased a bit this morning.
We have a huge dead pine tree in the back of the yard and the top came down last year. This time one of the large branches which has just been hanging by a thread, came down. We cannot have it all taken down a sit is way too expensive. Luckily it is out of the way and does no damage.

If it stays dry today. I will get out in the greenhouse . Lots of seeds need to be planted.
The wind didnt damage any of the brugs either.

Al, That would be a very interesting museum to visit.. I love seeing all the Fall color you have over there. Our native trees are very plain. The only color seen is from planted trees from US and Europe.

Charleen, you are getting very good with your figures. I like the elf hiding behind his towel..
Pat Charley & th efurry ones for me.

Anthony, I can picture you laying back in the Vortex talking to the liliums . You may need an extra few XXXX down there once the summer gets here.
Give them lots of encouragement to grow. We want to see lots of winners for you at the shows later.

Dianne, hope you were not affected by any of the wild weather. How are your brugs coping ?

Colleen, did any of the wild weather reach up to you ?
It seems to have been all over the place. We didnt get a lot of rain but some quite heavy.

Teresa, are things easing off for you there now. It seems we sent the bad weather to you as well,.

Moon, hope all is well over your way. Things will be quietening down after Isaac.

Karen, not nice having tooth problems, Hope all is well now.

Hello Chrissy. Seems you are getting a taste of early summer there. Keep cool.
Sue , hope all is well with you. Your chooks will be missing you.

I am going out to pick up all the twigs & branches from the wind. Gum trees seem to be always shedding.

Heres your morning tea treat....Pink Lamingtons
Keep safe and dry
Jean

I was waiting for my boat to come in, but which one had the lobster catch on it? This is the rural area near Cape Shelborn.

I think I might have my camera problem worked out. Yahoo!

Al

Did somebody say lobster ? ...Al that is cruel ^_^ yummy ! I like it plain with a good squeeze of lemon OMG and all I have had today has been a banana, too busy to eat, it 's Spring !!!!!!! What lovely pictures Al.

Darned hot out there and windy ...you know the kind that whispers fire.

Jean if you have the room plant a great vine or creeper over your fallen Pine, it will add to the scenery.

Dianne thanks for the info re growing them in pots, mine were in the ground ...perhaps that is why they disappeared.

If it was not for my garden I would gladly swap seasons with you Charleen, not a heat lover, I burn very easily and feel crook in the heat. Love your cute little creations.

Hi Moon ...yes they are both lovely ...usually the C paniculata flowers in Autumn here in Australia and is not as hardy or rampant.
Great link thankyou. Hope your weather is kind over the pond too.

Anthony we had 30C here yesterday ...hot wind.

I hope everyone with aches and pains are feeling better in the warmer weather, at least it is good for sore bits.

Teresa I hope that is the end of your woes for a while, gosh you have had your fair share, hopefully brighter days ahead.

Have a great arvo everyone looking in, I know everyone is very busy ...so much to do.

chrissy

This message was edited Sep 6, 2012 11:58 AM

Hi everyone.

Chrissy, I think you've nailed that vine, the Old Man's Beard vine. It looked as though it could take over a tree with its vigorous growth. Thank you. Moon, I really don't think it was the clematis one as it looked like a wild vine. I was just amazed at the masses of flowers it had over it. Heaven help that stretch of land if even one tenth of the seeds take hold.

Teresa, glad the hail didn't do severe damage. Amazing though the mess the wind makes, isn't it. We have had a bit of wind here too, and the yard is covered with sticks and leaves again.

Jean, you are right about the gum trees in the wind. Tooth is going good. Old fillings falling out after 50 odd years. Lucky I didn't have to lose it. Going back next fortnight for impressions to get a splint made to try to stop me grinding my teeth at night. Don't know how I'll go wearing it, but worth a try. I've even broken a crown from grinding so hard.

Colleen and Anthony, I was actually surprised by the unexpected warmth I woke up to today. It's been a bit of a chilly wind the last few days, so this warm wind is nice.

Al, I am so pleased you are getting those photos up. That one of the group of boats is really great. And wouldn't I love to live in that place in the 4th pic! Looks like a nice area, not overcrowded.

Charleen, I like the buddha face on your fat man. Give Charley and company a hug each for me. And one for you too.

Hello to anyone else popping in.
Karen

Karen we have the C.aristata climbing trees everywhere here at the moment, it grows very easily along the coastal bush area....very pretty when it's in flower...masses of them.
http://www.anbg.gov.au/gnp/gnp9/clematis-aristata.html
I remembered Chrissy...lol

No damage Jean, just lots of leaves everywhere...the twins were ok.....I'll be glad when they grow up and move out....
The twins are twin Brugmansia pods to non Brug fanciers...

Glad that you fixed your camera probs, Al....lovely photos...
Colleen, I can smell that stew...yum
Edited to come back for a lamington, Jean.
Dianne.


This message was edited Sep 6, 2012 5:06 PM

Back to the 'crappy' winds again[go away!]