WATER TREATMENT POND

The Darebin Parklands has a sophisticated water treatment system that is used to clean leachate derived from the landfill areas of the old rubbish tip that used to be in the site. Leachate is the liquid that drains or 'leaches' from a landfill. Leachate can be generated from the precipitation of water into landfill sites via rainfall or other surface water sources and from underground aquifer activity.

The Darebin Parklands landfill has both sources of leachate generation with the majority of water coming into the landfill site via underground aquifer activity and the associated Alphington water table. Leachate is contained and prevented from seeping into the Darebin Creek. Secondly it is treated via aeration and bio-filtration using reed beds and bacteria. Then it is moved through a series of wetlands where it is polished with macrophytes (aquatic plants) through luxury uptake (nutrient removal). Evaporation from wetland areas and sub surface irrigation outside of the landfill site is the main method of disposal.

On average around 350,000 Litres of leachate a week is treated. The main constituent of the leachate is Total Dissolved Solids (TDS), with the most common chemical constituents being phosphates, nitrates, sodium, calcium, chloride and potassium. Heavy metals, tannins and dyes are mostly contaminants at lower levels. The water treatment pond is a great place to catch some stunning reflections, especially on a sunny Autumn's day, as is seen in these photos.

This post is part of the Wednesday Waters meme,

and also part of the Outdoor Wednesday meme,

and also part of the Wordless Wednesday meme.

NIGHT IN THE CITY

View towards the Northeast, with the Yarra River in the foreground.

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

AUTUMN GARDEN

An elderly back yard in Ivanhoe in suburban Melbourne.

This post is part of the Monday Mellow Yellows meme,

and also part of the Through my Lens meme,

and also part of the Seasons meme.

PARKLANDS PATHWAY

Meeting fellow walkers on the same pathway generates feelings of sympathy and makes one realise that other people enjoy similar pleasures to oneself...

This post is part of the My Sunday Best meme,
and also part of the My Sunday Photo meme,
and also part of the Photo Sunday meme.

SERENITY BY THE DAREBIN CREEK

Darebin Creek is a waterway that runs through the northern suburbs of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. It is the main watercourse of the Darebin Valley and a major tributary of the Yarra River. For tens of thousands of years it was used as a food and tool source sustainably by the Wurundjeri people, Indigenous Australians of the Kulin nation alliance, who spoke variations of the Woiwurrung language group.

The creek rises on the northern urban fringe of Melbourne north of the suburb of Epping, following a general southerly route and meeting the Yarra at Alphington. The creek forms much of the municipal boundary between the City of Darebin and City of Banyule. Formerly an intermittent stream, increased stormwater runoff with urbanisation of the Darebin Creek catchment has resulted in permanent water flow.

The creek runs through Darebin Parklands, a large nature reserve one or two kilometres northwest of the junction at which the creek meets the Yarra. The Darebin Creek Trail runs along the banks in the lower reaches of the creek. This is the creek at the Darebin Parklands in Alphington.

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

SUNRISE, FROM MY WINDOW

This post is part of the Skywatch Friday meme,
and also part of the Friday Photo Journal,
and also part of the Orange you Glad It's Friday meme.

GUM TREE FLOWERS

Gum trees and wattles have started to bloom in Melbourne. Flowering Eucalyptus spp in the family Myrtaceae are the harbinger of Winter Downunder...

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

WET, WET, WET

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

VISIT MELBOURNE!

A trip to Melbourne is a very rewarding experience for tourists, travellers or jet-setters. There is plenty to discover in Melbourne's secret laneways and rooftops, the cultural hub of Federation Square, buzzing bars, boutiques and eateries, and the iconic MCG. It's great to experience St Kilda, the Royal Botanic Gardens, bohemian Brunswick Street and the nation-stopping excitement of the Spring Racing Carnival. Always fun to join world class events such as the Australian Grand Prix or relax on a day trip to the Mornington Peninsula or to Phillip Island for fairy penguins...

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

FINE AUTUMN DAY

A leisurely walk in the mellow Autumn sunshine in the Darebin Parklands.

As some of you have enquired how I make my mosaics, I use Photoshop and its "Layers" feature. After selecting the photos I wish to use, I start with a background photo as the first layer. On this, I add on each successive layer the sized and trimmed photo of each piece of the mosaic. Depending on the look I want I may add layer masks, which gives a blended effect, or otherwise leave the edge hard as in the mosaic below.

This post is part of the Mosaic Monday meme,
and also part of the Monday Mellow Yellows meme,
and also part of the Through my Lens meme,
and also part of the Seasons meme.

LONESOME...

Little boy all alone in the foggy parklands.
(Don't worry, his friends and teachers were a few metres away)!

This post is part of the My Sunday Best meme,
and also part of the My Sunday Photo meme,
and also part of the Photo Sunday meme.

FETCH!

At the Parklands with a very happy dog fetching the biggest stick I've ever seen fetched!

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

AUTUMN SKIES

We are seeing a lot of weather in late Autumn here in Melbourne and thus a great variation in our skies...

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

MELBOURNE WEEDS 1 - REDSHANK

Persicaria maculosa (syn. Polygonum persicaria) is an annual plant in the buckwheat family, Polygonaceae. Common names include lady's thumb, spotted lady's thumb, Jesusplant, and redshank. It is widespread across Eurasia from Iceland south to Portugal and east to Japan. It is also present as an introduced and invasive species in North America, where it was first noted in the Great Lakes region in 1843 and has now spread through most of the continent.

The oldest name available for this species is Polygonum persicaria, coined by Carl Linnaeus in 1753. In transferring the species from Polygonum to Persicaria, the name Persicaria persicaria cannot be used because using the same word for both parts of the scientific name is prohibited by international agreement.

Persicaria maculosa is an annual herb up to 80 cm tall, with an erect rather floppy stem with swollen joints. The leaves are alternate and almost stalkless. The leaf blades often have a brown or black spot in the centre and are narrowly ovate and have entire margins. Each leaf base has stipules which are fused into a stem-enclosing sheath that is loose and fringed with long hairs at the upper end.

The inflorescence is a dense spike. The perianth of each tiny pink flower consists of four or five lobes, fused near the base. There are six stamens, two fused carpels and two styles. The fruit is a shiny black, three-edged achene. This plant flowers from July to September in the temperate Northern Hemisphere.

Persicaria maculosa is native to Europe and Asia, where it can be mistaken for Polygonum minus. The latter has narrower leaves, usually less than 1 cm wide. It has been introduced to North America and is naturalised throughout the mainland continent, growing along roadsides, riverbanks, and on fallow ground. In the United States, it is very similar to Pennsylvania smartweed, but redshank has a fringe of hairs at the top of the ochrea, something which Pennsylvania smartweed lacks. The species has also been found in New Zealand and Australia as an introduced weed.

Persicaria maculosa contains persicarin and tannins. In medicine, redshank is used against diarrhoea and infections. The leaves and young shoots may be eaten as a palatable and nutritious leaf vegetable. It is often seen as a weed and rarely cultivated. A yellow dye can be produced from this plant with alum used as a mordant.

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

MERRI CREEK, AUTUMN

Merri Creek flows about 60 km from the Great Dividing Range through Melbourne’s northern suburbs to the Yarra River. Merri Creek is an environmental, heritage and recreation corridor that draws its significance from its role as a continuous corridor as it does from the qualities of individual reaches. All areas of the Creek are important because they contribute to the linking of areas of environmental, heritage and recreational value along the Creek.

In the vicinity of Queens Pde/Heidelberg Rd, the Creek wends its way through several suburbs as it meanders to join the Yarra River in Abbotsford. The bridge over the creek in the last photo is the Heidelberg Rd overpass.

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

IN THE CITY

The lanes and arcades of Melbourne have collectively become culturally important. The Melbourne central business district's numerous lanes mostly date to the Victorian era and as a result of the original Hoddle Grid, they evolved as service laneways for horses and carts. In some parts of the city, notably Little Lonsdale area, they were associated with the city's gold rush era slums. Among the most notable are Centre Place and Degraves Lane.

Melbourne's numerous shopping arcades reached a peak of popularity in the late Victorian era and the interwar years. Among the most notable include Block Place and Royal Arcade. Some notable demolished arcades include Coles Book arcade and Queens Walk arcade. Since the 1990s, Melbourne's lanes, particularly the pedestrianised ones, have gentrified and their heritage value officially recognised as well as attracting interest from Australia and around the world. Some of the lanes, in particular have become particularly notable for their acclaimed urban art. The city has several festivals which celebrate the laneways, they are major tourist attractions and frequently feature in tourism promotions, film and television.

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

MOONRISE

Moonrise from my window (with some afterthoughts)...

This post is part Mosaic Monday meme,
and also part of the Macro Monday meme,
and also part of the Through my Lens meme,
and also part of the Seasons meme.