Roses

No commentary necessary!

Sprung - and a project

This is the third spring I have spent in this garden and the number and variety of blooms have blown me over each time.  It is such an embarrassment of floral opulence. If it was wallpaper, they would call it 'overblown'!

Heralding in the end of spring, the five crab apple trees down the drive, have had their 10 days of glory.  So much effort and for such a short period of time!

 

Monet would have gone ga-ga over the tones of pink and purple in this shrubbery.  It doesn't even belong to me but grows through and over the fence from next door.

On the other side of the house...the herb potager, with the outdoor kitchen in the background.  Both of these projects were more than worth the work put into them.  They continue to delight me.

The latest project is to create a link between the potager, outdoor kitchen and the house, in the form of an outdoor living area.

Behind that camellia to the left of the air-conditioner (which is being removed) is a chimney.  The chimney doesn't draw and the open fire-place is a waste.

 So...out with the chimney, and the wall, and in with another window and door set, similar to the one you can see.  Nothing fancy, but it will make a huge difference to our main living area, making it lighter and creating a view. I'm hoping it will create a natural flow between inside and out.  

A narrow deck along the house with an open pergola to carry a grape-vine, will give summer shade to the north facing windows, but let light in in the winter.  The area between the deck and the outdoor kitchen will be paved.  

Wait till you see the table and chairs we picked up for this area...very rustic.

So these are some of the 'before' pictures.  Stay tuned for the work to begin!

Variety

If you asked me to do a quick drawing of a flower,

I would probably draw something daisy-like.

How boring when it could be 

something as flamboyant as Miss Rhoda Dendron...

... or as daintily floribund as Mrs Banksia Rose...

 ...or as discreet as the tiny japanese, Miss Maple...

 ..or as textural as the Mr Elm...

...or as bright and starry as the native Ms Wax...

...or as chocolatey as Mr Pitto Sporum

 ...or as potentially fruity as Miss Mul Berry...

 ...or as demure as Granny in her bonnet...

...or as unforgetable as this...

...or as flaggy and fragrant as Mis Lav Ender...

...or as promisingly fecund as Mrs Cox Pippen...

..or as complex and community minded as Mr Wis Teria?

Breaking with tradition

It bugs me every year that retailers 

(especially supermarkets and the like) 

put out tomato seedlings early...

long before the soil is warm enough for them.  

I always feel sorry for those people who I see at the check-out, 

buying these early seedlings, 

because I feel sure they are doomed to fail.

Where I live, 

the traditional time for planting out tomatoes 

is on the first Tuesday of November.  

This is 'Melbourne Cup Day', 

a public holiday in these parts - for a horse race. 

The race has been dubbed, 

'The Race that Stops a Nation'.  

Well it may stop the nation but it spurs the gardeners into action!   

But I am flouting that tradition!

Last week saw me at the checkout in a certain supermarket with, you guessed it, some tomato seedlings.  If you had seen me, you may have noticed I was looking a little embarrassed in case other people thought I was barking mad.  I fought the urge to explain myself to the check-out girl.  I paid quickly and slunk out of the shop, breathing a huge sigh of relief once I had my purchases safely stowed, in the car, out of sight.

I planted them yesterday...76 days early.  

I planted them in pots...and of course, they are in the Fat Fruit Greenhouse.  

I have also begun planting some seeds...

but that is blog news for another day!

Have you got spring fever already?

Are you having trouble holding yourself back from planting already?

What are you planting?

You know...

Spring is on the way when:

first the jonquils, then the daffodils make an appearance,

some of the earlier-blooming street trees begin their display,

 when this particular, and rather strange, camellia flowers,

when the resident fruit trees threaten to join it,

when all the gardeners begin to plant some of their saved seeds,

and when Hazel goes all ga-ga over the deliciousness of compost.

But the clincher, the biggest and best indicator

that spring is just around the corner, here at Hazel's...

is when the Claude spends more time

in the gardener's favourite fire-side chair

than she does.

Delovely

In the words of the clever, witty lyricist

Cole Porter...

I feel the kind of ditty 

that invokes the spring....

It's delightful,

It's delicious

 Its delectable

It's delirious

It's dilemma

It's delimit

 It's devine

It's de-victory

IT'S DELOVELY!

And before you even think it...

I am not old enough to remember 

this song in its original release!

But I do know a great lyric when I hear one.

The season of Spring...

and Cole Porter's lyrics...Ahh!

Crabby Grannies

It may be a bit cool and a bit wet today

but nothing much can dampen

the enthusiasm of the crab apple trees

or make them crabby.

Just as an aside...I love the ziggy-zaggy twigs on the weeping elm. 

....and the grannies...

aquilegias or granny bonnets.

How can a granny be crabby 

with so much beauty about?

I'm embarrassed!

I know, you never thought 

you would hear me say that.

But I am!

Every time I look out of a window

or go out into the garden,

I am not only embarrassed but, 

SHOCKED!

I want you to take a deep breath,

gird your loins

and examine the evidence.

If you are easily shocked

perhaps you had better not proceed.

This is the brazenly sexual display

I must endure on a daily basis.

All these loose women flaunting themselves, 

trying to outdo each other.

Sluttishly luring innocent bees, 

unsuspecting birds, 

fumbling moths, 

naive flies 

and goodness knows what else, 

to be corrupted by their garish colour, 

intoxicating perfume, 

and irresistible nectar.

Quite frankly, if I had known the neighbours

were into orgies, I would never have

moved here.

I am concerned the crab apple trees 

are on the verge of joining in!

I am going to write to someone and complain.

Oh, hang on, I am writing,

I am complaining....

So what are YOU going to do 

to rectify this disgusting situation?