SkyWatch & Nature Notes ~ A Walk in the Park

Except for the bare Birches, one could think it warm, serene

and summery. Think again, it is a wet, windy, winter's day.

Don't let this patch of blue fool you although my resident

Grebes are happily chasing each other about making cute

gurgling noises.

Moments later, the dam reflects another story but they still

have fun.

The sun has briefly lit up the clouds but one of them has decided

to go deep sea diving.

A moment of warm sunshine to enjoy while hiding from me

amongst the reeds.

Just so you can getter a better look, enlarge the cropped version

to see how cute they are with their fluffy bustles.

Meanwhile in the next paddock, part of our population explosion

of kangaroos. Since we planted some Bluegum forests, they have

moved in and are multiplying like rabbits. They are lovely to have

around being one of our national emblems, just not in great

numbers and I don't at all mind sharing our pastures with them,

if only they did not turn our fences into sieves. Due to this

destructive habit of theirs, our sheep now roam at will . . .

Here is the cropped version, in case you could not spot them

in the above. These last few years we seem to be having the

biblical plagues not just singly but overlapping. As though an

eight year drought had not been enough, when the rains came

and we relaxed as our dams filled again, it did not take long to

see that blessings come with conditions. First a plague of Locusts

and Crickets last summer, concurrent with Earwigs out of

control invading houses, as did the Portuguese millipedes.

Powdery mildew stripped the leaves the Locusts had left only to

be followed by a second wave of them coming through.

You might be forgiven for thinking that was the end but wait,

there's more, at present we have a double whammy of millions

of tiny white snails munching their way through everything

including the bark on fruit trees and, waaiit for it, another

pet the settlers brought with them, yep, now we are tripping

over field mice by the hundreds. The cats are so sick of the

sight of them they don't bother any more and prefer

cat-crunchies. After all, one can only stomach so many mice!

If you think me rude not visiting your sites, think again, you

can 'put the blame on Mame' or rather blogger, if I am lucky,

I can open 3 consecutive sites and if I am even luckier, leave a

comment on one. Sometimes comment boxes don't upload, at

others it just revolts at sending the comment and I cannot

even copy it! Small wonder I am tearing out what few grey

hairs I have left. If this goes on you will have one bald blogger.

Please leave me a sign of life that you have been here lest I

feel like Shirley Valentine talking to the wall.

I encourage you to click on both the SkyWatch and Nature Notes Logos

and join in.

Nature Notes ~ Locust Plague and Sudden Autumn Colour

Autumn has settled in, temperatures have plummeted, rose

hips are gleaming here and there on the verges of paddocks.

The birds are enjoying hawthorn berries. It all sounds

so tranquil,

the resident huntsman in the living room enjoys the warmth

of the wireless internet router,

but not all has been an unmitigated pleasure. At the end of

summer there was a major locust plague. The swarms were

aerially sprayed yet not eradicated. We did not have enough

to demolish our pastures but certainly more than I bargained

for. The first wave stripped all the leaves off our broad beans

and damaged a number of other plants. Thankfully, they left

the citrus trees intact.

Unfortunately they came again while we were away and stripped

all the leaves from all my grapevines that provide shade for the

front and back of the house and were full of ripening fruit.

With the loss of the leaves, the green fruit also fell robbing

both us and our visiting birds of a delicious food source.

Then there were the crickets in unmentionable numbers,

invading the house and taking their toll on the vegetation.

On top of that, the grasshoppers were also out in force.

On a lighter note, I found this beautiful Dragon fruit at our

farmers' market.

The first mouthful was very sweet but the flavour became rather

nondescript after a few spoonfuls. It is the fruit of a cactus and I

got a piece to strike as well. In a couple of years I may have a few

fruit to brighten up my fruit basket. Even if the taste is nothing

spectacular, it is high in vitamin C.

My pomegranates have turned colour and the fruit glows

like a ruby in it's golden setting.

The pin-oaks are providing extra colour in the park.

I will have to go out and capture the wonders of the changing

colours for you to enjoy with me as soon as we get a sunny day.

Enlarge if you wish, the pomegranate is worth it.

Thanks to Michelle at Rambling Woods we can air our observations in this meme.

TODAY'S FLOWERS ~ Clematis

High up in my shade-house, my lovely magenta Clematis

flowers regardless of the heat and dry,

of attacks by locusts,

it sets seed

and blooms anew, now that is resilience!

TODATS FLOWERS is hosted by Luiz Santilli Jr. with his team,

click on the Logo to join in or admire.