Friday, November 28, 2014

FLORAL FRIDAY, TODAY'S FLOWERS & I Heart Macro - Cactus


Just got home from the Farmers' Market
and had to show you this beauty
I met outside a shop in Angaston

I had never before seen such a cactus flower


Enjoy!

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&


Thursday, November 27, 2014

SkyWatch - A walloping storm


Last Saturday at the Angaston Farmers' Market
a great storm arose
do enlarge for a fuller effect

the light changed


and multi-coloured clouds with pink and green in them 
gathered in the space of a few minutes


they darkened and started turning into horizontal ropes


then a mixture of rain and hail bucketed down


as lightning flashed vertically and 
horizontally at the same time


driving was a bit hair-raising and at a snail's pace
but we got home safely none the less.

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Saturday, November 22, 2014

TODAY'S FLOWERS, Nature Notes & I Heart Macro - Gems of the Desert


Most people would find this to be a hot, 
dull and fly ridden landscape


but if you still your mind and open your eyes
it becomes so much richer

at your feet bright little gems of nature appear


they may be few and far between
but all the more precious for that

this tiny yellow flower at my feet
at the edge of a kangaroo trail I was on
looked very much like an orchid although
I have not been able to find it
in a book or compendium of native orchids yet


the golden glow of an Acacia offsets
the red seed heads of native hops
while the silver grey of Blue Bush
lends yet another colour variation.

life is often savoured so much more
not in the fast lane but in the quiet moments

roses and peacocks may be stunning
but it is the shy violet
that so often moves the heart


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Thursday, November 20, 2014

SkyWatch & FLORAL FRIDAY - Dark clouds and desert flower


We were so lucky to have a thick cloud come up
and drop 4.5 mm 

everything in the garden perked up for a little while


a slightly closer view of our rain bearing cloud and sunset


a tiny white star gleaming in the desert
for Floral Friday


Linking with SkyWatch and FLORAL FRIDAY

Tuesday, November 18, 2014

Wild Bird Wednesday - Kookaburra dinner time


At The Basin, Kuringi Chase in North 
Sydney this Kookaburra had found a 
bite and a half


turned it this way 


and that


and felt rather smug after getting it down



and off he went to find some other
tourist tit bit


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Saturday, November 15, 2014

FLORAL FRIDAY, TODAY'S FLOWERS & Nature Notes - Bottle Brush


An emergency session with the dentist on Friday
made me a present as solace for loosing a tooth
of this cascade of Callistemons
overhanging the steps as I left to rescue 
my waiting dog in the car


walking under this gleaming red canopy
was a delight indeed.


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Saturday, November 8, 2014

FLORAL FRIDAY, TODAY'S FLOWERS, I Heart Macro & Nature Notes - Orchids


A couple of nice surprises from the shade house

this unnamed orchid I took in as a stray, a leftover 
from a school fete some 15 years ago
it refused to show me what it's blooms looked like 
for all that time


today I discovered these pretty blooms on it
not large, about 2" and a bit across
an upright habit,
all in all a pretty surprise


below is one of my tiny Australian native Sarcochilus 
the flowers are less than 1" across


but they certainly make a splash


this is another first time flowerer
the bloom in not very large
but the markings are precise and very pretty

probably another orphan I have taken in


lastly, the most splendid of my Cymbidiums
with 2 great sprays and blooms the size of saucers


my shade house this year has produced more flowers
and had the longest flowering season ever

is the universe sending me some message?

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Thursday, November 6, 2014

SkyWatch Friday - Mounting Storm . . .


The sun had set and all these lovely clouds
were thickening 
with an occasional flash of sheet lighting


the light here is from hidden lighting in the cloud
that lit up our road and paddocks

at this stage I was not yet worried,
I was waiting for my grandson to return from
his evening run
and the lightning was getting nearer


when it was this close with a few big bolts
hitting the ground
I was getting anxious


it was flashing all over the place
and the rain started to pelt down as well

it was a very long eight minutes until he returned
sopping wet, a perfect conductor and moving target
as well.


linking with


Sunday, November 2, 2014

OUR WORLD - The new flock


Guess I can't keep showing off our desert scenery 
all the time
so here, for a change, are our new arrivals 
on the farm

a bit skittish yet


a small mob of Merino sheep to augment our depleted flock

getting curious and taking an interest in their photo-op


the next lot is scheduled for next week.

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