MARIGOLD'S & GARDEN

Well, the marigold's are all up and kicking along and flowering well... I have these against a westerly wall, and get the full afternoon sun for a short while. Infront, I have Blue Lobelia's and behind, Sweet Pea's are climbing away well...

And whilst the Canna Lillies have almost finished and will be pruned back almost to ground level, the courtyard is looking so good. Come spring, with the Poppies, Alyssum and Crocus all up, new foliage on the Canna's, it will look really good; I can't wait to see how it grows!

Hoo roo for now...

------

Another dull day really

Well today was a bit of a 'just another day'... I had a bad nights sleep really, and I feel that was the catalyst for the day ahead! But I woke up before my alarm at 0430 anyway...

A quick shower and a shave, some breakfast whilst Bronty was outside, and I got the car ready for the work day ahead and left into the darkness and soon, rain...

Whilst the day itself went ok with nothing out of the ordinary happening, from Seaforth, to Darlinghurst and up to Galston and Kenthurst, before a quick stop at Lakeside Private Hospital....

But, getting home this afternoon I saw that the Poppies and Alyssum's were going great guns, as are the Marigolds, Sweet Peas and Lobelia's on the side of the house, so I would give them a foliar feed! So I set about mixing it up in a 9lt watering can, and hand watering them... I can't wait for Spring to bloom!!

Also, this past summer, the Cyathea Tree Ferns took a bit of a hit in the sun and heat, so I have moved them both together, and into a more protected area. As such, I have several new fronds rolling out...

Hoo roo for now...

------

Preparing the courtyard for Spring...

So, now that the courtyard is finished, I can now start planning my Spring display. Next to my recycled brick paving, I have two half wine barrels which have Climbing Roses in them. I am also using these for som Spring Annuals as well.

So I have had in my mind, Poppies (Papaver) and some Sweet Alyssum (Lobularia maritima syn.) in the pots, these are more pastels and whites in colour, and I also added in some Crocus (Crocus spp) in a dusty purple with a darker purple vein through the petal...

BUT, more importantly, before planting the seedlings, I had more important things to tend to, morning tea of Chocolate Hot Cross Buns with a cuppa!!!

Hoo roo for now...

------

Ok ok - I have been MIA....

WHERE have you been I hear you ask... Well, aside from ZERO motivation, I have also been busy, I have moved house, new job, new interests etc....

But, from today, I will endeavour to start blogging more on a (hopefully) daily basis.... So here is a bit of a 'backstory' post on my courtyard...

Now that the courtyard is finished, some things I have learnt...

Bronty prefers to wee on the garden bed that 'had' the prostrate form of the Casurina's near the washing line, so they have, or will, go to the great plant god in the ground...And when she does wee on the new lawn, I simply hose it in so as it doesn't 'burn'!!

I simply LOVE the lighting, the string of fairy lights light up the area nicely for a 'moody' feel, and if I want a bit more, then the chandelier comes on - either are nice alone though!!

The Canna bed may stay as a 'mono stand' of the red, time will tell as I may make it a kaleidoscope of different colours, time will tell!! haha And the climbing Roses (Pierre de Ronsard) are climbing really well, and I cant wait for next summer....

Time to relax and enjoy it now...

Hoo roo for now...

------

A busy day of....

NOT much at all!!!

Well, not really... I actually got a fair bit done! Not huge things, just lots of small stuff....

The biggest thing of the day was that I finally got a new phone; an iPhone 5S! My old 4S had been playing up ever since I was in Vietnam!!

Other than setting it up, making sure everything was back on it, I then went out for a bit and did some shopping, and had lunch whilst out. When I came home though, I had grand plans of mowing the lawns, and/or vacuuming, instead, I had a wee nap... Oh well!

I then collected Bronty and we headed down to the airport, as a mate was leaving on a flight tonight, and I wanted to test my skills of the night panning photography... Only thing is, as the night got on and darker, the harder it all became, and I didn't get his at all, BUT, I did get some prior to his departure!

So, tomorrow it will be a matter of getting the lawns mowed, and putting some water about the place, especially on the rose garden, as i want some more blooms....

Hoo roo for now...

------

Flying away to another land, far far away...

Well, come Sunday, I will be leaving on my trip…. And WHAT a trip it will be… I still have a few things left to do though!! I have a house sitter, so the house will be occupied whilst I am away and the 'fur-kids' will be well looked after… But, where AM I going I hear you ask?? EVERYWHERE!!!

Flight List & Hotels

Flight Miles

Flightpath

I have a conference to go in Monte Carlo, about the middle of the trip, and I have meetings along the way in Europe mainly… I have also set up a meeting in Brazil! BUT, one spot I am REALLY looking forward to, is the visit to St Maarten in the Dutch Antilles. It is like the 'Mecca' for 'spotters' to go to, and I am really looking forward to it!! NOW, I am getting there from a different routing than everything else I have seen; most arrive from Paris or Amsterdam (AF/KLM) or from Miami (any of the major carriers). Where as, I am routing in from Saò Paulo Brazil!!

Anyway, its ALL booked now, and I am ready to go… All I have to do now is pack!! haha

Earlier in the week, I was wanting to do some more 'macro' photography, some close-ups. The old Passionfruit is in flower again, so I grabbed a shot of a flower on it…

Passiflora spp

Hoo roo for now...

------

Wordless Wednesday No. 77 - Begonia

Begonia

Hoo roo for now...

------

Saturday happenings...

By looking at my Friday Fill-Ins, you'd think I would have had an easy day... Far from it!!!

The day started with an early 'wake-up call thanks to a neighbours rooster! And yes, they're NOT allowed in a residential area within my LGA! You are allowed to have up to 20 birds, but zero roosters! But I wasn't going to let it get in the way of what had to be done. So I got up, got ready and got madam (Bronty) into the car to head into the city for the 'Bark in the Park'! However, we didn't stay long as my hay-fever started to hit, so we just headed to the beach for a swim (after a brief bit of spotting).

Bronty Plane Spotting

Once home though, I took an anti-histamine and got stuck into doing the lawns. I got my brushcutter out and did the edges, and then the mower... Fueled her up (she's been on her last legs for some time), primed her, and pulled the chord, and that was it, she didn't start nor will she start again! So it was off to Bunnings, with my gift cards ($170) and I got me a brand spanking new Masport 4-stroke mulch mower! AND, a bag of chook manure!

When I got home, I had to fill with oil, easy as, filled it with fuel and it was the easiest mower I have ever started in my 30 years of green keeping!

Lawns done, I got my Karcher pressure cleaner and then cleaned the back veranda which was in dire need of being done! Not content with just that, I then got to doing the spa house, both concrete and the roof!!! It looks as good as new!!!

And finally, look whats in flower again, it my Dracunculus vulgaris!!!

Dracunculus vulgaris

Hoo roo for now...

------

Wordless Wednesday No. 64 - Floriade Canberra

Floriade 2012 - Canberra

Hoo roo for now...

------

Wordless Wednesday 60 - Cymbidium Orchid

Hoo roo for now...

------

Weekend Work & Smelly Things...

Saturday, was going to be a busy day, gardening blah blah blah... But NOOOOO... Something came up and I simply needed a diversion, so luckily enough for me, a mate came over and we simply hung out for the afternoon... Nothing planned, but I had wanted to get down to the Wisteria Gardens Fete, that we use to go to 30 odd years back. They had small rides, show bags and the like, but the gardens were (once) wonderful. It is part of a rehab hospital, so there are also patients walking about. BUT, a few years back, before L died, they had removed a lot of the Cherry Blossom trees, the Ranunculus are gone and so on, but there was a bit of colour all the same...

Sunday, this NOW became my gardening day, tidy up the side garden that leads to the front door (on the side of the house; yes), prune, weed and feed the rose garden bed, and the feed the lawn. I stopped for a quick lunch of a Cheese and vegemite toastie - yumm!!

I used Chook manure on the side and lawn, and the Roses got Cow manure. Needless to say that the house smells somewhat 'earthy' this evening!!

Hoo roo for now...

------

Photo a Day Challenge - Day 106 Something You Don't Like

Its widely known of my dislike for vegetables, and I have now come to eat a few more recently, but there are still so many that I have a strong distain for... But here is a pic of the vege patch from a couple of years back showing some wonderful tomatoes growing...

Vege Patch

Hoo roo for now...

------

Photo a Day Challenge - Day 105 Flower

This cute little dusty pink Callistemon lives in the back yard. It such a sweet looking colour, and in many ways, better than the red ones that are so common...

Callistemon

Hoo roo for now...

------

Photo a Day Challenge - Day 94 Tiny

I had a little difficulty in deciding what to do for this one... I could've done Bronty as a puppy, and even then, she wasn't that 'tiny'... So I went in search of what was in my flickr account, and I got zero hits for 'Tiny'! Hmmm, I puzzled for a little bit, and then I thought, 'what about one of my macro shots' and this is what I got in return. It is a Crocus which is in the back garden, and its tiny stamens are of bright yellow.

Crocus

Hoo roo for now...

------