HINTS OF SPRING

Darebin Parklands is one of Darebin Council’s premier conservation parks sited along the Darebin Creek. The park is managed by the Darebin Creek Management Committee which the Cities of Darebin and Banyule are members. Darebin Parklands is a wonderful setting for walks and escaping into the natural environment, and is located only 5 km from Melbourne's CBD. The park has a full time Ranger coordinating the Education Centre which details the parks rich history and commitment to conservation and environmental sustainability. The Darebin Creek Trail runs through the centre of the park and provides shared trail access through to Bundoora Park 10km to the north.

Darebin Parklands comprises an area of approximately 40 hectares of urban bushland, between the suburbs of Ivanhoe and Alphington. The park is highly accessible being both on a bus route and adjacent to the Hurstbridge railway line. We always enjoy visiting this as it is only about 10 minutes walk from our house. Today was an absolutely glorious day - sunny, fine and warm, reminiscent of a Spring day, rather than the middle of Winter!

This post is part of the Skywatch Friday meme,
and also part of the Friday Greens meme.

MELBOURNE STREET TREES 123 - MAGNOLIA

Magnolia × soulangeana (saucer magnolia) is a hybrid plant in the genus Magnolia and family Magnoliaceae. It is a deciduous tree with large, early-blooming flowers in various shades of white, pink, and purple. It is one of the most commonly used magnolias in horticulture, being widely planted in the British Isles, especially in the south of England; in the United States, especially the east and west coasts, in the Southern parts of Australia and in New Zealand.

Magnolia × soulangeana was initially bred by French plantsman Étienne Soulange-Bodin (1774–1846), a retired cavalry officer in Napoleon's army, at his château de Fromont near Paris. He crossed Magnolia denudata with M. liliiflora in 1820, and was impressed with the resulting progeny's first precocious flowering in 1826. From France, the hybrid quickly entered cultivation in England and other parts of Europe, and also North America. Since then, plant breeders in many countries have continued to develop this magnolia, and over a hundred named horticultural varieties (cultivars) are now known.

Growing as a multistemmed large shrub or small tree, Magnolia × soulangeana has alternate, simple, shiny, dark green oval-shaped leaves on stout stems. Its flowers emerge dramatically on a bare tree in early spring, with the deciduous leaves expanding shortly thereafter, lasting through summer until autumn. Magnolia × soulangeana flowers are large, commonly 10–20 cm across, and coloured various shades of white, pink, and maroon. An American variety, 'Grace McDade' from Alabama, is reported to bear the largest flowers, with a 35 cm, white tinged with pinkish-purple. Another variety, Magnolia × soulangeana 'Jurmag1', is supposed to have the darkest and tightest flowers. The exact timing and length of flowering varies between named varieties, as does the shape of the flower. Some are globular, others a cup-and-saucer shape.

This post is part of the Floral Friday Fotos meme,
and also part of the Skywatch Friday meme.

YARRA RIVER AT 'HEIDE'

The Yarra River or historically, the Yarra Yarra River, (Aboriginal: Berrern, Birr-arrung, Bay-ray-rung, Birarang, Birrarung, and Wongete) is a perennial river in east-central Victoria, Australia. The lower stretches of the river is where the city of Melbourne was established in 1835 and today Greater Melbourne dominates and influences the landscape of its lower reaches. From its source in the Yarra Ranges, it flows 242 kilometres west through the Yarra Valley which opens out into plains as it winds its way through Greater Melbourne before emptying into Hobsons Bay in northernmost Port Phillip.

Here it is seen flowing through the rolling parklands close to 'Heide' Museum of Modern Art in Bulleen. The yellow flowers are wattle trees in bloom, a cheery sight on a Winter's day.

This post is part of the Wednesday Waters meme,
and also part of the Waterworld Wednesday meme,
and also part of the Outdoor Wednesday meme,
and also part of the Wordless Wednesday meme.

RED LIGHT NIGHT

Stopping at red lights on Queensbridge St in the City.

This post is part of the Our World Tuesday meme,
and also part of the Ruby Tuesday meme,
and also part of the Wordless Wednesday meme.

LIBERTY MEAT GRAFFITI

Liberty Meats is a meat wholesaler and exporter that used to have a depot in Northcote. When they moved premises, the wall outside filled with graffiti. While I am not a fan of this type of street art (I can never read what the graffiti says, so any message there is lost on me), I had to look twice at some of the panels - as abstract creations some of them are quite appealing...

This post is part of the Monday Mellow Yellows meme,
and also part of the Monday Murals meme,
and also part of the Blue Monday meme.

MELBOURNE BY NIGHT

This post is part of the Weekend Reflections meme,
and also part of the Scenic Weekends meme.

SUNSET IN NORTHCOTE

All Nations Park is a contemporary 13 hectare regional park created on the site of the former 'Northcote Landfill'. The official opening on the 23 February, 2002 was attended by an estimated crowd of over 10,000 people. Situated behind Northcote Shopping Plaza the elevated site provides views, which are a striking feature of the park.

The trees with seeds are Melia azedarach, commonly known by many names, including white cedar, chinaberry tree, bead-tree, Cape lilac, syringa berrytree, Persian lilac, and Indian lilac, which is a species of deciduous tree in the mahogany family, Meliaceae, that is native to Indomalaya and Australasia.

This post is part of the Skywatch Friday meme,
and also part of the Saturday Silhouettes meme.

FLORAL CLOCK

The Queen Victoria Gardens are Melbourne's memorial to Queen Victoria. Located on 4.8 hectares (12 acres) opposite the Victorian Arts Centre and National Gallery of Victoria, bounded by St Kilda Road, Alexandra Avenue and Linlithgow Avenue.

A huge floral clock is positioned opposite the National Gallery of Victoria, containing over 7,000 flowering plants which are changed twice yearly. The clock was donated in 1966 to the City of Melbourne by a group of Swiss watchmakers. Behind the clock stands a bronze equestrian statue, a memorial to Queen Victoria's successor, King Edward VII. The statue, by Melbourne born sculptor Bertram Mackennal, was unveiled on 21 July 1920.

This post is part of the Skywatch Friday meme,
and also part of the Friday Greens meme.

MELBOURNE STREET TREES 122 - LEUCADENDRON

Leucadendron is a genus of about 80 species of flowering plants in the family Proteaceae, endemic to South Africa, where they are a prominent part of the fynbos ecoregion and vegetation type.

Species in the genus Leucadendron are small trees or shrubs that are erect or creeping. Most species are shrubs that grow up to 1 m tall, some to 2 or 3 m. A few grow into moderate-sized trees up to 16 m tall. All are evergreen. The leaves are largely elliptical, sometimes needle-like, spirally arranged, simple, entire, and usually green, often covered with a waxy bloom, and in the case of the Silvertree, with a distinct silvery tone produced by dense, straight, silky hairs. This inspired the generic name Leucadendron, which literally means "white tree".

The flowers are produced in dense inflorescences at the branch tips; plants are dioecious, with separate male and female plants. The seed heads, or infructescences, of Leucadendron are woody cone-like structures. This gave rise to their generic common name cone-bush. The cones contain numerous seeds. The seed morphology is varied and reflects subgeneric groupings within the genus.

A few such as the Silvertree, Leucadendron argenteum have a silky-haired parachute, enabling the large round nut to be dispersed by wind. A few are rodent dispersed, cached by rats, and a few have elaiosomes and are dispersed by ants. About half the species store the seeds in fire-proof cones and release them only after a fire has killed the plant or at least the branch bearing the cone. Many such species hardly recruit naturally except after fires.

This post is part of the Floral Friday Fotos meme.

WERRIBEE RIVER VISTA

This post is part of the Wednesday Waters meme,
and also part of the Waterworld Wednesday meme,
and also part of the Outdoor Wednesday meme,
and also part of the Wordless Wednesday meme.

IN THE VALLEY

The Yarra Valley is the name given to the region surrounding the Yarra River in Victoria, Australia. The river originates approximately 90 kilometres east of the City of Melbourne and flows towards it and out into Port Phillip Bay. The name Yarra Valley is usually used in reference to the upper regions surrounding the Yarra River and generally does not encompass the lower regions including the city and suburban areas, where the topography flattens out, or the upper reaches which are in inaccessible bushland.

Included in the Yarra Valley is the sub-region of Upper Yarra (or the Upper Yarra Valley) which encompasses the towns of the former Shire of Upper Yarra in the catchment area upstream of and including Woori Yallock. The Yarra Valley a popular day-trip and tourist area, featuring a range of natural features and agricultural produce, as well as the Lilydale to Warburton Rail Trail.The Yarra Valley is host to a thriving wine growing industry. The area's relatively cool climate makes it particularly suited to the production of high-quality chardonnay, pinot noir and sparkling wine.

This post is part of the Our World Tuesday meme,
and also part of the Ruby Tuesday meme,
and also part of the Trees & Bushes meme,
and also part of the Tuesday Afternoon meme,
and also part of the Wordless Wednesday meme.

MELBOURNE FROST

Melburnians woke to a frosty morning, the coldest morning in any month for more than 18 years, with the temperature in the city hovering at around one degree for an hour after 6am on Sunday. The Bureau of Meteorology recorded a stinging one degree at 6.49am, falling further to 0.8 degrees at 7.26am, making it the coolest morning since August 5, 1997, when the temperature was 0.3 degrees.

It certainly made for a brisk walk in the morning, but at least the sun came out bright and warm and the day became quite brilliant! A repeat performance was the order of the day for Monday, with once again a very cold frosty morning and a sunny day.

This post is part of the Monday Mellow Yellows meme,
and also part of the Blue Monday meme,
and also part of the Macro Monday meme.