pommepal

Changing Seasons : March 2020

What a month this has been. I’m sure you all know what I mean. We did manage in the first week of the month to have a splendid 4 days in Sydney, celebrating our birthday with a lunch cruise on Sydney Harbour, then exploring the beauties of the cities gardens.

I scrolled back through my blog to look at March 2019. How normal that seemed when we had travelled to New Zealand and spent 4 weeks with family. Then I went further back into the archives and looked at March 2018.

I’m sure these carefree times will return. But in the meantime we must all “self isolate” and observe “social distancing”.

Our garden and art is a solace, filling in all the extra time I now have. For those who live in apartments, or don’t have a garden I would like to share what is flowering this month.

Come for a walk along the garden path…march garden 045_4000x3000

In the ponds the water lilies open each day to greet the sun. I love the symmetry of their petals. Like soldiers on parade. A number of Jack’s quirky sculptures also share this area.march garden 064_4000x3000

The Lilly Pilly bush has burst into an abundant display. The flowers are only small, but when the seeds form they can be eaten or made into jam. This year it looks as though I am going to have a good harvest.

During summer last year, I had made a decision. I would not grow so many vegetables, especially in pots. I had plans, at the back of my mind, to do more short term travel. Just a week here or a few days there. Exploring the area in approximately a 300 kilometre radius. Taking time to indulge in “plein air” sketching. Needless to say plans cannot be made for the future at the moment.

So I have changed my mind.

Autumn is the best time for starting plants in this sub tropical zone. So I went to buy seedlings and seeds at Bunnings, the huge hardware and gardening store  It seems many more people had the same idea, when I went there they had been completely cleaned out of all vegie seedlings AND vegie seeds…

march garden 051_4000x3000Here are my babies. What a drama to get these few. I asked when the next delivery was due in. Then on the scheduled day I turned up early and managed to get some. So silver beet, spinach, coriander are being carefully watched over, growing them on before transplanting into the garden or pots. The 3 tomatoes are being spoilt in the warmth of the green house.

The strawberries are looking healthy. We didn’t have much fruit this last season, but I’ve been told they fruit better from the second season on. That Ceylon Spinach is a good standby and this crop has self sown from last years plants.march garden 008_4000x3000Jack’s second generation Desert Roses (adenium) are doing very well and will be ready to be moved on to bigger pots next spring.march garden 001_3000x4000Finally this is one of our favourite Desert Roses, such a soft, delicate colour and so perfectly formed. Here’s another of Jack’s creations, Buddha celebrating life. Staying happy and positive..

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Thank you Su (Zimmer Bitch) for hosting this monthly “Changing Season” challenge. Now more then ever it is a joy to look back over previous months and see how things change but still essentially stay the same

53 comments

  1. MR ET had the same problem at Bunnings. He managed to get seeds at the supermarket and went back to Bunnings to get seed raising mix. They had none, but a new delivery of seedlings had just arrived so he got a good mix of those instead. We have all our veges planted in pots because the little shingle back lizards eat the seedlings to the ground. Your garden is beautiful and should give you many happy hours while we all see out our isolation.

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  2. Your post is. as usual, a pleasure, all good. Great close up of the Lily Pilly.
    Going by the comments some good is coming out of these disastrous times,
    People are starting vegie gardens and we are learning to be more self sufficient.
    There is a lot of kindness being shares. Stay positive and safe.

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      • I don’t know about that but was notified on my email you comment and was offered a look at three of your previous posts. I could not recall seeing one named “Early Morning Beach Activities.”
        I hit on it and am so pleased I did. It is really great I think and the BushTurkey video captures it all.
        I know writing a blog takes time and effort and want to thank you and the blogging community for the joy they bring.

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  3. Self sufficiency certainly seems a good option at the minute, Pauline. I did think about a few growbags on our patio, but thinking and doing are 2 different things. 🙂 🙂 I’m content to linger by your lovely water lily pond. Take care, darlin!

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  4. I love a good garden tour full of bright colors. Glad to see you managed to snag some veggie seeds *fingers crossed*

    Here’s to hoping for a brighter April – for everyone!

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  6. A garden provides so much pleasure, doesn’t it? My yard is small but filled with pumpkins, potatoes, tomatoes, chinese vegetables, citrus and herbs. Watching these plants growing provides pleasure on a daily basis – and keeps us healthy on the inside and out ! Beautiful, Pauline.

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  7. Thanks sooo much for the outing in your garden, Pauline! It is always a delight to see what’s been happening, and this month is no exception. Will keep fingers crossed that your growing season proceeds peacefully and we all look back on this adventure, as Jack and others suggest, having learnt a few good things. Keep safe, both of you! 😘😘😘

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  9. What a lovely garden! I particularly love the image of the water lilies in the pond, quirky sculptures included. Very interesting to know their seeds can be eaten. I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised since I’ve eaten lotus seeds, but I just never thought of it.

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  11. Another lovely stroll through your very colourful garden, but I am going to make just a tiny complaint – could you add names to your photo galleries? You have so many lovely flowers that I don’t know. The waterlilies are gorgeous. I must think seriously about making a pond, even if it is just a large bowl for now. But with all our garden centres and nurseries being forced to close now is not the time as I won’t be able to get hold of the oxygenating plants that a pond needs to stay healthy. I missed out on tomato plants too 😦

    I’m going to find a bench in your garden – well away from you and Jack – and simply enjoy the beauty around me and those wonderful quirky sculptures that Jack has made. 😎

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    • Suggestion noted Jude 👍 must admit to being a bit lazy, also don’t know, or forgotten (an age thing!!!) many of them are from cuttings I got years ago when I was going to a garden club. Jack loves his ponds and fish. It would be too early to plant tomatoes over there wouldn’t it? Mine are doing ok in the greenhouse at the moment.

      I’d love to have you visit and sit on a bench, plenty to choose from, we are to only have 2 people together now, but you can have one person visit, but we are happy in isolation plenty to do. Stay safe and busy, hopefully this will pass soon. 🌞🌻🌺

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  12. Hey, I just stopped to read this before going to dig a few items from an abandoned home nearby, and was debating where or not I should salvage a heliconia. After seeing yours in the middle of the second picture, I will. I can figure out what to do with it later. Some of what I am digging will go to the new home of the family who used to live in the now abandoned home, so they might take it.

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    • Be careful with that heliconia Tony. They can be very rampant and quite hard to get rid of. Their tubers spread very quickly. We had a major job removing them from a part of the border that they were invading and we didn’t want them there. They are a lovely looking tropical flower though and flower for so long.

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      • Thank you for letting me know. I have never seen them get aggressive, but I have seen them only a few times. They are rare here, and do not seem to do well. I really do not know where this one came from. They guy who planted it does not remember where he found it. I do not know if he will take it to the new home. If he does, it will likely stay potted on a deck.

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          • Well, there is that. Even if they have potential to be invasive, they would not likely do so here. They might down south. I might pull some up at my colleagues house in the Los Angeles region, so will find out if they come back later. They were nice for many years, but are now tall and lanky, and too shaded to develop foliage low down. (I recommended cutting them down to let them refoliate down low, but my colleague would rather try something else.)

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  14. A walk in your garden brings me such joy Pauline — now more than ever. I’m feeling very glad I’d bought some seeds before the chaos as the garden centres ran out very quickly and are now closed. Luckily we have lots of greens in the garden and some seedlings sunning themselves in the living room!

    Take care both of you.

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    • Are you still doing the horticultural course Su? It will come in useful now. Our Bunnings are still open.

      We are being careful and mindful of distances. You stay positive, hopefully it will not be for much longer

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      • Yes; I have just started the third paper of four. Things are a bit chaotic and we’ve all been given an extra month to study, but having some new learning to focus on is wonderful.
        Sending aroha to you and Jack x

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        • Isn’t it great that doing it on line is not stopping the learning and now it is a great way to fill in time and end up with really useful knowledge

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  15. Thank you for sharing a walk through your garden. It is all so very beautiful! There is not much in bloom here as yet as we have just begun to get into our Spring but soon there should be a lot more. My daughter is waiting to plant her garden as the nights and mornings are still too cold. She has some of her babies under grow lamps inside and they are doing very nicely so she will plant those as soon as the colder weather decides to give it up for Spring. I love Jacks little additions to your garden, especially the frog playing his music and the laughing Buddha. Reminds me of one I painted recently. You have given a nice lift to my day. Stay well both you and Jack. Take care.

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    • Pleased you enjoyed the garden Renee. We get a lot of joy from it. It must be lovely for you when spring finally arrives. Does your daughter grow veggies? Autumn is our time for planting.

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      • Yes. My daughter does have a large raised bed vegetable garden and has quite gotten into it the last couple of years. She has Lupus, an auto immune disorder, and loves getting outside and tending her garden. Her husband has already tilled each raised bed…they are quite large as she has a big piece of property…in readiness for her veggies. Take care.

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