MELBOURNE STREET TREES 29 - BRUSH BOX

The Brush Box, Lophostemon confertus, is a tree native to Australia, though it can be found in the United States, Africa and elsewhere. Its natural range in Australia is north-east New South Wales and coastal Queensland but it is commonly found as a street tree in Sydney and Melbourne. It is considered suitable as a street tree, due to its hardy nature, its disease and pest resilience, high tolerance for smog, drought and poor drainage, as well as needing only moderate-to-light upkeep.

It often requires lopping to accommodate overhead power lines but survives pruning quite well. It has a denser foliage and hence provides more shade than eucalypts, and is considered safer than eucalypts as it rarely sheds limbs. In form it is used as a replacement for the weedy Camphor Laurel (Cinnamomum camphora) while having a low potential for being weedy itself.

It was previously known as Tristania conferta and may be seen in old plant books under that name. Its common names also include Brisbane Box and Queensland Brush Box. In the wild its habitat ranges from moist open forest and rainforest ecotones, where it might reach heights of 40 metres or more, to coastal headlands where it adopts a stunted wind-sheared habit.

This post is part of the Floral Friday Fotos meme.

SAILING INTO THE SUNSET

Here are some photos I took of the big cruise ship "Celebrity Solstice" as it sailed out of Melbourne last Saturday. The light wasn't the best and the distance was considerable, but I think these photos give you an idea of the size of the ship... Melbourne is a popular port of call for the cruise liners and one can often see groups of tourists int he City after a ship docks at the port.

This post is part of the Watery Wednesday meme,
and also part of the Outdoor Wednesday meme.

PLENTY GORGE

Plenty Gorge Park offers a wide diversity of natural and cultural experiences only 20 km from the Melbourne CBD. The spectacular gorge sets a backdrop for stunning landscape views, while the abundant native wildlife is always on show. The walking tracks in the beautiful Plenty River Gorge reserve afford views of native bushland. One can enjoy a quiet picnic amongst the Yellow Gums, and if one is more active, one can play ball games or fly a kite in the wide open spaces of Yarrambat Picnic Area.

The Plenty River flowing through the park makes up the border between Mill Park and Plenty. Known to the locals as "Blue Lake" because of the beautiful colours of the water owing to the mineral contents. Yellow Gum Park is nearby and is a popular swimming spot on hot days. The park is closed off to visitors on total fire ban days because it is considered one of the most high risk fire danger areas in Australia.

This post is part of the Our World Tuesday meme.

EMPORIUM MELBOURNE SITE

Emporium Melbourne, is the shopping centre that will replace the old Myer Lonsdale Street store. Emporium will have 240 tenancies taking up 46,000 square metres of floor space. The aim is to complete the project by Christmas 2013. At Emporium, the developers are promising a judicious blend of old and new design:

''On Lonsdale Street - the main entrance - we will retain the heritage facades. A lot of structural steel is in place to hold up the facades, which we will refurbish,'' said Colonial First State's regional development manager, Daryl Stubbings, who heads the development team. At ground level, the plan is to completely activate the street with boutique retailers, in Lonsdale and Little Bourke streets. A typical store is 100-150 sq m. However, the developers aim to attract concept stores - including large flagship stores - that will take up to 1500 sq m of space over several levels.

These photos were take from the top floor of the Myer Bourke St store and the site looked a little post-apocalyptic to me, so I applied a quadtone effect to heighten the feeling of doom!

This post is part of the Mandarin Orange Monday meme,
and also part of the Nature Footsteps Inspiring Photography meme.

And just for the record, a couple of untampered with photos:

WEEKEND ON THE YARRA

A Melbourne icon, the Yarra River offers a multitude of picturesque settings. The banks of the river have a number of barbecue and picnic facilities, fishing platforms and jetties. In addition, there are trails and paths which cater for cyclists, walkers and joggers.

Board one of the many river craft at Southgate or Princes Walk or travel along the Yarra in your own boat to visit attractions such as Melbourne Park for the Australian Tennis Open, the Royal Botanical Gardens and Herring Island Park. The Yarra River is now the undisputed social heart of marvellous Melbourne. The river is the focus for numerous spectacular events including the famous Moomba festival, rowing regattas, the Melbourne Festival and Dragon Boat Festivals.

We have had gorgeous Summer weather at the weekend, so it was no surprise that many people flocked to the banks of the Yarra, or boarded one of the many pleasure craft.

This post is part of the Scenic Sunday meme,
and also part of the Nature Footsteps Waters meme,
and also part of the Sunday Bridges meme.

POND REFLECTIONS

Our local Darebin Parklands once again provide lots of opportunity for a little reflective photography...

This post is part of the Weekend Reflections meme,

and also part of the Weekly TopShot meme.

BIRDS IN MELBOURNE

We are lucky in Melbourne to have many birds around that nest in the pockets of bushland and abundant parklands within the metropolitan area. Stretches of water also attract water birds. Here are some birds that are commonly seen in Melbourne. I think I have identified them correctly, but feel free to correct me if I am wrong!

This post is part of the Nature Footsteps Winged meme,
and also part of the Skywatch Friday meme.

A coot

Duck

An Eastern Rosella

A Little Wattlebird

Crow

Seagull and dusky moorhens

Crested pigeon

A magpie

More ducks!

Sulphur-crested cockatoos in flight