My cacti had a bloom this morning, but it will be gone by tomorrow, especially as we have had a little rain.
Flowers today
A close up
Aristolochia elegans, or 'Dutchmans pipe'
my first fruit salad frangipani bloom, (2 years waiting for this one) Taken from a cutting.
I has yellow cannas and red cannas, and now I have red/orange/yellow cannas! Promiscuous little plants!
love the yellow!
Now, I didn't kneel down to take these, they really are that high! They must be in a good wet fertile spot!
front of house with Angels trumpets on right corner and some hydrangeas in the middle.
More lovely pics!! Looking good!Your cannas look like they're thriving too.Do you have the richmond birdwing butterfly visit your garden,if so just be careful with that dutchmans pipe vine,the butterflies food source is a native aristolchia..and because it is scarce in its natural habitat,they quite often mistake this one for it with dire consequences..laying their eggs which hatch and the young caterpillars then die from the poisonous toxins in the leaves....sorry not trying to put a dampner on your thread...as it too is a very unusual and attractive flower...and I do like it having grown it some years back..just thought you may like to know,cheers
edited to say...I think you may be a bit far south for this butterfly to visit...I thought you were further north,sorry
This message was edited Nov 22, 2007 10:30 PM
Wow All these treats today ,all the wonderful sights ...ah Summer in Australia!
Lovely ww It has been pouring rain! showers today (I took my pics in the rain) but tonight it has been a very heavy downpour for at least four hours ...just imagine if all that water was being "saved" somehow instead of running out to the sea via our drains etc.
I hope everyone gets a share of this H2O ...it sounds very bad in some places ...I know how they feel because we haven't had anything but drought for years! and now we are getting this almost Tropical downpour almost every night and a fair few showers during the days ...it is very steamy now ...that's a bit weird.
Well thankyou for the lovely pictures
Happy gardening !
Hi Brical, I quizzed the local Coffs Harbour butterfly house before growing Aristolochia, and they said it would be a very rare sight indeed if we got the bird wing butterfly here, but all the same, I will not propagate or sell this one. (I'm sure the caterpillars are thanking you for your concern)LOL.
Hi Chrissy, we had a drop of rain too. Lovely! 14mm overnight and a beautiful sunny day to follow. I've been into town to get Sphagnum moss. You wouldn't think that would turn into a mission would you? Well, there must have been a TV show on with the wonders of Sphagnum or something, because between big W, Bunnings and the Rural suplies stores (Norco e.t.c) there was not one to be had! So I bought a cappucino maker instead! LOL The little rock orchids will have to wait for another time to get mounted!
Sue
Justicia in the rain at 6pm
Day lily and Shastas
1st Red hibiscus of the season (after a hard prune)
A really nice coloured Snappy!
My favourite Salvia. See Chrissy, I like blue too!
Gardenia magnifica, with the magnificant fragrance! Flowers the size of a large orange (for want of a better example)
The Epi I was given only a short time ago, (lucky Me!) Pieces available when it finishes flowering, if it's not one you lot have got already.
A very old Hoya that has been going for years. Now lives in the shade house and flowers for ages! It's actually a bit more pinkish than it appears. I think the flash went off and made it look a bit washed out colourwise.
OOOOH I'll have a cup of that! looks great!
Spagnum moss shortage gosh that's a bit of a worry.
There seems to be shortages of a few things in the shops, very sorry looking plants for sale in some places ...maybe the weather or something ...a lot of the wholesale Nurserys have gone out of business because of water restrictions.Three have closed in this area alone.When money is tight in these places the stock runs down ,I had to wait for three weeks for my sugar cane mulch, crazy! and annoying.I really feel for the Industry at the moment it is really struggling in some places. The place where my daughter in law works has let go of most of it's staff and it is a big wholesale place. Let's hope the rain may help to revive things a bit.
Well all the gardens are looking very good ...wonderful to see all the happenings!
Happy Gardening everyone :)
I'm very lucky to be able to get sugarcane mulch direct from the farm gate! And also to have such a great climate condusive to growing plants. The nurseries here are doing well, and no wonder! It cost me $11.50 for a 5 litre of Sphagnum moss! I finally found it in a nursery some distance from home. I also bought a lovely Alocasia amazonica, which I have wanted for ages. This week I also Bought a Brachychiton acerifolus for the back yard and some Echinacea and a variegated fig and a yellow (better be) water Iris. The Tafe had a plant sale, which we as students did the running of, and as payment we got our plants at half price. Whoopi! Although half price was still dearer than what I sell mine for.
Sue
Hello chrissy and Sue
I had to sneak in and have a look at who was here today. I am supposed to be outside trimming back a few plants. The weather is quite cool and the sun has only just come out. It has been like this for days. I don't like the very hot weather but just a bit of warm would be nice.
I had to put up my latest baby. The color does not show well in photos but it is really bright and large. I have 20 epis all ready to flower and it is exciting to see the first flowers on these orphans. Makes all that work of repotting etc worthwhile.
Enjoy the coffee I'll have my green tea and a chokkie bikkie.
Have a great day.
Oh that is stunning!how thrilling to be waking up to such wonderful surprises every day ...the problem with thses stunning flowers is that they make us fall in love with their beauty and poof it is all over ...still you will have a whole encore of them lucky you ...Sue all those treasures ! whacko!
It is like a sauna here and the odd sprinkle here and there,waves of bugs and mozzies ...grasshoppers leaping out wherever you step ....ah Summer I can feel the wasp stings already!
Look here comes a little flower on my airplant ...look hard it is a tiny violet blue one
Good morning DG-ers. Gosh Chrissy, look at the buds on the ground! It must smell wonderful! We have had much the same weather as you, but rain at night. The mossies are going to be bad this year!
I love the epi flower Jean. It is an amazing colour with the pink and red!
I've been loaned a copy of Edna Walling garden designs and am going to go and have a read. Then its back to work for a couple of hours. I had to come home for a shower, as I got grass clippings all down my back and am itching like crazy! LOL
Also I am trying to perfect my coffee making skills and scoffing down some cereal! (had toast for breakky, so don't want more bread for lunch!)
Oh Edna Wallings I have read a lot of her stuff ...wonderful! many years ago I was into "cottage type gardening" with great boarders white gardens old fashioned roses etc ...after moving here I had to change and so I went for "jungle" as there is too much for me to do and jungle sort of takes care of itself and covers a multitude of sins! *giggling*. I once had 30 old fashioned roses sent down from Honeysuckle cottage and it was stunning in my front yard until a runnaway truck carting sand lost his brakes and smashed through the brick fence and took out almost everything I had in the front yard
...it stopped one yard from the loungeroom! we moved soon after that.
Getting back to your book, are you a landscaper or garden designer? I have always thought that there would be a huge call for patio and courtyard designers ...the gardens as we know them are fast going poof too and people don't have the time or knowledge to do it themselves.Still I guess you couldn't leave the bush ...I know I would shrivel up and die if I had to.
Well enjoy the day! all you happy gardeners oops I forgot my white angels
Hi Chrissy, no not a designer as such, but always after ideas and inspirations for me and my customers.
Your white angels are exactly the same as mine by the look! I do love the coloured one!
Here is that Salvia again with another nice Snappy
Last of the Pansy's (or are they Violas?)
What do you mean awful? It all looks as though its springing out of the ground!
Second flush for my el-cheapo 'Blue Moon' Rose
The Justicias just keep getting better. I've had this one for around 4 years and it seems very slow, but I no complain! Cause at least it doesn't get out of control!
This is a Hebe that has been in the garden since before we moved here. I give it a small hair cut after flowering and it rewards me with another flush. The bees love it.
Yes please, on the russian sage! I have (I think) Russian Tarragon, which if I'm not mistaken is related to Marigolds. I've planted it in the chook yard as an insect repellent! It isn't flowering yet, but should be close. I have to go now, itching like crazy! I'll catch everyone tonight!
Happy gardening
Sue
I would love a piece of your Angel Chrissy! I'm not entirely sure about how to send a cutting, but suggest wrapping it in damp newspaper and/or gladwrap. As long as it has at least 2 nodes and a bit of old wood and new wood I think. Maybe we should experiment with cuttings and send them with roots. How do you feel about that? Have you seen anything in my posts that you'd like some of? I'm going to get some packages togeather real soon, but want to make sure I can get them to the P.O at the beginning of the week.
Sue
Well what I find is that they grow so very quickly and easily from cuttings (strike in a sandy mix) that I think what we can do is try with the cuttings first, and then if that does not work I will strike some pieces for you and send some with roots ...I gave dozens and dozens of these struck ones away as gifts because everyone falls in love with the beautiful flowers and the perfume.I read in the forums how the American folk swap cuttings all the time so it's worth a try .I am detemined to try breeding some as we just don't have the range available to us here.I think you and the others should have a go too.
You should see the place today 1 inch of rain in an hour last night ,the Russian sage is flat on the ground today! along with whole lot of other stuff.
Well ok I will wait until next Monday to send it off I have to get some other stuff ready too so anyone who wants bits of Grande Marnier Angel or the lovely smelly white one let me know buy the end of this week.
Happy gardening everyone! and trying to blow the water your way to any one who needs it.
chrissy