March 1 marks the first day of Autumn here in Brisbane. The last of the summer flowers are almost finished, but it is little early for autumn beauties like the dahlias, so I expected slim pickings for this Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day. I haven't been out in the garden so much lately because it has been so wet, but when I sallied forth, camera in hand, I was pleasantly surprised.
The first bloom is in fact the last photo I took. Just as I was finalising my post, I remembered that the brugmansia was in bud yesterday. I peeked outside my back door and sure enough. How I could have missed the wonderful perfume when I came home from work, I don't know. I intended to duck out in the morning to capture a photo, but couldn't resist seeing how they would photograph at night.
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| Bees and other insects have visited the 'Little Gem' magnolia, knocking off the anthers in their race for pollen. |
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| A little, self-seeded zinnia |
The daylilies are slowly spluttering to a finish, but each time I think I have seen the last of them for the season, they manage to produce one more flush.
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| Daylily 'Fetish' |
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| Daylily 'All American Tiger' |
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| It seems as if there is always a Leopard Lily in flower for Bloom Day. |
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| Globba capicola 'Golden Dragon', a member of the ginger family |
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| 'Golden Dragon' |
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| Another Globba. This one is 'Redback' |
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| Aechmea 'Burning Bush' |
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| Cestrum nocturnum, the night-scented jessamine or jasmine. |
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| Once it has finished flowering, I'll give the Cestrum a light prune to tidy up those errant branches. |
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| 'Black Beauty', my first dahlia of the season |
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| An unexpected repeat bloom from the Zygopetalum orchid. |
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| Rejoicing in the rain, the rain lily Zephyranthes candida. |
My goldfish continue to vanish. The population had been constant for a long time, but now the secret is out that they are a convenient snack. I am still not 100% sure which of the local birds to blame: kookaburras and butcher birds are the Number One suspects. The sole inhabitant has managed to escape suffering the same fate as his companions so far, but I think a net or wire cover might be needed before I expose any more fish to an untimely demise. In comparison, the miniature waterlily
Nymphaea helvola is thriving with not one, but two blooms out
.
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| The water feature has developed a tilt in the soggy ground. |
If we get much more rain, I'll be able to plant the waterlilies directly into the back garden!
Finally, not one of my blooms, but the golden penda have been so wonderful this year, probably as a result of all our rain, that I had to share one more photo of them. (Lots more
here).
Thanks again to Carol at
May Dreams Gardens, who hosts Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day on the 15th of each month and provides the opportunity for gardeners around the world to share what is blooming in their corner of the globe.
You've certainly had a great wet season down there. We've had a dismal one up here this year. It looks like you managed to snaffle it all!!
ReplyDeleteYou've got so many beautiful blooms on show at the moment. I loved those Globba flowers, and your Golden Penda is simply magnificent.
That pretty Brug caught my eye today. Gorgeous colour. I'm still jealous that you've got Daylilies on show. Mine never last as long as yours.
Sorry about pinching your rain, Bernie. I hope you get some good rainfall before the Dry.
DeleteOh my, your poor flooded garden! Does the water go down between each rain pour or has it been like that for a long time?
ReplyDeleteStill, you have so many lovely plants, love your Brugmansia, wish I could grow it here but it won't survive our winters (or spring for that matter!) Also loved your daylilies, I am definitely getting some more this year. And your water lilies, just gorgeous!
Helene, I am on the crest of a hill, and the water usually soaks in very quickly, but it's been such a wet summer that the ground was waterlogged. It took about a day to go down.
Deletewow, that is alot of water!
ReplyDeleteLove the daylily 'Fetish' such a beautiful colour.
I do hope you discover who's been snacking on your poor goldfish. we had our entire pond wiped out of Koi & Goldfish over one winter because an Otter decided it like the menu.
I repeat what Helene says about the Brugmansia. I could possibly grow one in the polytunnel but it would take alot of protection.In fact the one I have in there has now got a frozen stem so I don't think it will recover.
Thank you for sharing
Linda
Thanks for dropping by, Linda. I feel very sorry for your koi, but I love the thought of a resident otter. They always seem to be such fun-loving animals. Sadly we aren't allowed to keep koi here in Queensland in case they escape into the local waterways.
DeleteYour floral blooms certainly surprised you...loved them all.
ReplyDeleteI'm so envious of the rain that you're having. We have scorching days and not even a drizzle in sight. Our rains usually kick in end of March and into April, hope they come soon.
Please save your last fish, if he's been so good at hiding away from his predators, he deserves a chance to live on.
Our positions will be reversed soon enough I'm sure, Virginia. We often get rain over Easter - always bad luck for those who go camping - but from then on it starts to get drier until next Summer (December).
DeleteHappy GBBD! The Golden Penda are beautiful- never even heard of that! Love the Zygopetalum orchid!!! Stunning!! Great shots!
ReplyDeleteHi Kacky. Hope you have a great GBBD too. The Golden Penda have been fabulous this year. Everyone is commenting on them. I think they must have loved all the rain.
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