birds – Anne Lawson Art

My Fella went to WA for a week, coming back last Monday. So I had a week to myself. By Friday I realised that I was on Holiday. Now some of you must think that, as a semi-retired person, I am on permanent holiday. (A big part of me agrees)! I didn’t go anywhere, except the movies, and some days I only ventured as far as the backyard. But interestingly I didn’t go into the Playroom, the room where the computer is, as well as my painting things. I seemed to be on holiday from Etsy shop, my painting and my blog (sorry about that).

I was also on holiday from Getting Ready For Christmas. You haven’t received my Christmas card in the mail because I haven’t sent it. The tree has just been decorated. Unlike last year, there are no tasty treats. But I may get around to them…..just not today, because it is 40 degrees C!

However, I came out of slothfulness to do some gardening. The last time I wrote about the garden it looked like this

August 2013: The garden bed that is in the process of ungrowing. (Photo copyright: Anne Lawson, 2013)

Now I can proudly unveil the same bed, which looks like this:

December 2013 (Photo copyright: Anne Lawson 2013)

Because of a prolonged drought in Victoria — over 10 years — I couldn’t justify water for annuals. Now I have lobelias and pansies flowering, the foxgloves just budding and the aquilegias putting forth their light foliage. The fern like leaf in the foreground is from the prostrate banksia, and the flower cone is in the bottom right corner.

Another view, because I am so happy with the way it looks. This time I took the photo over the pot plants. My garden is not big. Keeping some in pots, like the chives, is a good use of space.

The chives up close

The salvia and fox glove buds up close

And what is a garden bed without a rose? This one is something like Spirit of Peace.

I have also carved some space out of the former jungle to put up the birdbath. It was a Christmas present from my Mum last year. I finally have it in a spot where the birds are happy to use it and where I can keep it topped up. I have planted some impatiens, which should look good. Fingers crossed that they grow!

I can see the birdbath from my window and know that it is used a lot. Where did the birds go before?

View from the window -- sneaking a peek at the sparrows! (Photo copyright: Anne Lawson 2013) — View from the window — sneaking a peek at the sparrow! (Photo copyright: Anne Lawson 2013)

And lastly (well done if you have got this far!), the hydrangea my sister gave me. I have always wanted one. As I was not sure where it should go, it went into a pot. The photo shows how cleverly I have been able to crop the other photos to not show the mess and raggedy bits of the garden, like the hose, bricks, leaf litter and weed mat!

Unfortunately the hydrangea is struggling today. It doesn’t like 40 degrees, but then not many of us do.

I am sure you are thinking “But where are the veggies?” How astute of you. Unfortunately, they are something else growing in pots this year. Our Veggie Patch, otherwise known as the Front Yard is a fallow wasteland at the moment. Enough said about it, as today I am enjoying the colours and pleasures of the back. I might have a moan to you about it next time.

Enjoy your gardening, wherever you are. If your world is too cold to garden at the moment, I hope that my flowers have given you some extra warmth. 🙂

Along the major waterways of Australia you will see the mighty river red gums growing. They are magnificent trees, majestic, old strong. We need to take care of them not only for their own sake, but for the habitat they provide.

Many Australian birds and marsupials nest in holes in trees. These are created after branches drop off, exposing the softer pulp. It is why it is so important to keep our older trees. Even dead ones have wonderful nesting sites.

In Mildura my evening walk along the Murray River was magic. I did more stopping, listening and looking than I did walking. I saw where the kookaburras were nesting in a hollow. The galahs and lorikeets squabbled over branches and holes. I saw a pair of top knot pigeons building a nest. One of the pair, I guess the male, flew from the bushes with a twig in his mouth and presented it to the female on the branch. He repeated this half a dozen times. However, when I went back the next day there was no sign of them or the nest. Perhaps it wasn’t the perfect nesting place after all.