SPRING BOUQUET

Spring flowers are blooming in our garden: Daisies, bluebells, sparaxis, bergenias, marigolds, anemones, freesias, stocks, rosemary, canola and ornamental onion.

This post is part of the Floral Friday Fotos meme

WINTER'S GOODBYE

This post is part of the Wordless Wednesday meme
and also part of the Nature Notes meme.

ROSE ST MARKET, FITZROY

The Rose St Market in Fitzroy is an Artists' Market that offers a wide variety of art and craft, usually sold by the makers themselves. It is good to wander through, have a chat with artists and buy some delightful creations.

This post is part of the Travel Tuesday meme

WINTER TRIPTYCH

This post is part of the Mosaic Monday meme,

and also part of the Ruby Tuesday meme,
and also part of the Seasons meme.

IN FITZROY

Some lovely old Victorian buildings in this inner city suburb, however, the tagging on the walls is a real blight...

This post is part of the My Sunday Best meme

AUSTRALIAN RAVEN

The Australian raven (Corvus coronoides) is a passerine bird in the genus Corvus native to much of southern and northeastern Australia. Measuring 46–53 centimetres in length, it has all-black plumage, beak and mouth, as well as strong grey-black legs and feet. The upper parts are glossy, with a purple, blue, or green sheen, and its black feathers have grey bases. The Australian raven is distinguished from the Australian crow species by its throat hackles, which are prominent in adult birds. Older adult individuals have white irises, younger adults have white irises with an inner blue rim, while younger birds have dark brown irises until fifteen months of age, and hazel irises with an inner blue rim around each pupil until age two years and ten months.

Nicholas Aylward Vigors and Thomas Horsfield described the Australian raven in 1827, its species name (coronoides) highlighting its similarity with the carrion crow (C. corone). Two subspecies are recognised, which differ slightly in calls and are quite divergent genetically. The preferred habitat is open woodland and transitional zones. It has adapted well to urban environments and is a common city bird in Sydney, Canberra, Perth and Brisbane. An omnivorous and opportunistic feeder, it eats a wide variety of plant and animal material, as well as food waste from urban areas.

In eastern Australia, its range is strongly correlated with the presence of sheep, and it has been blamed for killing lambs. However, this is very rare, and the raven most often scavenges for afterbirth and stillborn animals as well as newborn lamb faeces. The Australian raven is territorial, with pairs generally bonding for life. Breeding takes place between July and September, with almost no variation across its range. The nest is a bowl-shaped structure of sticks sited high in a tree, or occasionally in a man-made structure such as a windmill or other building.

This post is part of the Saturday Critters meme

SUNSET

This post is part of the Skywatch Friday meme

FLOWERS VASETTE, FITZROY

For over two decades Flowers Vasette, a unique florist shop, has been an institution on Brunswick Street, Fitzroy. The white interior is perfect foil for the colourful flowers of every shape and size. Every part of the shop is covered with flowers - seasonal, native, greenhouse and imported. The result of so many flowers in the space is a beautiful scent that greets you any day of the year. Their signage above the store is also eye-catching as are their arrangements.

This post is part of the Floral Friday Fotos meme.

LICHEN

A lichen (do you say LY-kən or LITCH-ən???) is a composite organism that arises from algae or cyanobacteria living among filaments of multiple fungi species in a mutualistic relationship, where each organism gains benefits from the other. Lichens are important forces in nutrient cycling and act as producers which many higher trophic feeders feed on, such as reindeer, gastropods, nematodes, mites, and springtails.

Lichens have properties different from those of their component organisms. They come in many colours, sizes, and forms and are sometimes plant-like, but are not plants. They may have tiny, leafless branches (fruticose); flat leaf-like structures (foliose); grow crust-like, adhering tightly to a surface (substrate) like a thick coat of paint (crustose); have a powder-like appearance (leprose); or other growth forms.

This post is part of the Wordless Wednesday meme,
and also part of the My Corner of the World meme,
and also part of the Nature Notes meme.

MOONEE PONDS

New high rise apartment buildings in Moonee Ponds. Dame Edna would never have approved!

This post is part of the Travel Tuesday meme,
and also part of the Ruby Tuesday meme.

AUSTRALIAN SEASONS

A quartet of my paintings. You can find more of my artworks on my Instagram account: @jammysevenk

This post is part of the Mosaic Monday meme,

and also part of the Blue Monday meme,

and also part of the Seasons meme.

OVERDEVELOPMENT

Yet another skyscraper going up in Southbank...

This post is part of the My Sunday Best meme.

BATHTIME

The magpie-lark (Grallina cyanoleuca), also known as wee magpie, peewee, peewit, mudlark or Murray magpie, is a passerine bird native to Australia, Timor and southern New Guinea. The male and female both have black and white plumage, though with different patterns. John Latham described the species in 1801. Long thought to be a member of the mudnest builder family Corcoracidae, it has been reclassified in the family Monarchidae (the monarch flycatchers). Two subspecies are recognised.

The magpie-lark is a common and very widespread bird both in urban and rural areas, occupying all parts of Australia except for Tasmania and some of the inland desert in the far north-west of Western Australia, and appears to have adapted well to the presence of humans. It is also found in southern New Guinea and on the island of Timor.

This post is part of the Saturday Critters meme

WINTER SUNSHINE

At the Maribyrnong River.

This post is part of the Skywatch Friday meme

CYMBIDIUM ORCHID

Winter is nearly over when the Cymbidium orchids begin to bloom.

This post is part of the Floral Friday Fotos meme

MICROCOSM 2

A tiny corner in the garden where a few plants seem to live happily with one another. There is a fern (Pteris spp), a spikemoss (Sellaginella spp lower left) and the pink knotweed (Persicaria capitata).

This post is part of the Wordless Wednesday meme,
and also part of the My Corner of the World meme,
and also part of the Nature Notes meme.

MARIBYRNONG RIVER

The Maribyrnong River is a perennial river of the Port Phillip catchment, located in the north–western suburbs of Melbourne, in the Australian state of Victoria. The Maribyrnong River draws its headwaters from near Mount Macedon within the Macedon Ranges, part of the Great Dividing Range. Formed by the confluence of the Jackson Creek and the Deep Creek below Taylors Lakes, the river flows generally southward, joined by two minor tributaries before reaching its confluence with the Yarra River at Yarraville, to eventually empty into Port Phillip. The river descends 42 metres over its 40-kilometre course.

This post is part of the Travel Tuesday meme,

and also part of the Ruby Tuesday meme.

EARLY SIGNS OF SPRING

This year we are seeing early signs of Spring with many Spring flowers blooming early, the weather becoming unseasonably warmer and less rain than we are used for this time of the year...

This post is part of the Mosaic Monday meme,
and also part of the Blue Monday meme,
and also part of the Seasons meme.

PEPPERCORN TREE

The Pink Peppercorn Tree, Schinus molle, is an elegant, fast growing, evergreen tree with graceful weeping branches, wonderful textured bark and aromatic, dark green feathery foliage. It is a popular shade tree in regions of Australia with hot dry summers.

Schinus molle is also highly decorative with small cream flowers produced in abundance in late spring followed by pink berries which hang down like strings of beads from late autumn. It has a fast growth rate.

In 1982 the FDA banned the sale of pink peppercorns of Schinus molle, claiming they were toxic when eaten. That ban has been lifted, perhaps because the French, who grow them as a commercial crop, produced overwhelming evidence of their safety. Also, there’s reason to believe that the reactions were actually caused by the fruit of S. terebinthifolia.

However, if you’re allergic to cashews or mangoes, proceed with caution. These plants are all members of the Anacardiaceae family, and if you’re allergic to one, you may be allergic to another.

This post is part of the My Sunday Best meme

SILVER GULL

The silver gull (Chroicocephalus novaehollandiae) is the most common gull of Australia. It has been found throughout the continent, but particularly at or near coastal areas. It is smaller than the Pacific gull (Larus pacificus), which also lives in Australia.

The silver gull should not be confused with the herring gull, which is called "silver gull" in many other languages (scientific name Larus argentatus, German Silbermöwe, French Goéland argenté, Dutch zilvermeeuw), but is a much larger, robust gull with no overlap in range.

This post is part of the Saturday Critters meme

EVENING WALK

This post is part of the Skywatch Friday meme

JAPONICA

Chaenomeles × superba (hybrid C. speciosa × C. japonica).

This post is part of the Floral Friday Fotos meme

WERRIBEE RIVER

The Werribee River is a perennial river of the Port Phillip catchment that is located on the plain West of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. The headwaters of a tributary, the Lerderderg River, are north of Ballan near Daylesford and it flows across the basalt plain, through the suburb of Werribee to enter Port Phillip. A linear park follows the Werribee River along much of its course. In total the Werribee River completes a journey of approximately 110 kilometres.

This post is part of the Wordless Wednesday meme,
and also part of the My Corner of the World meme,

and also part of the Nature Notes meme.

AT SOUTHBANK

At Southbank, looking onto Port Phillip Bay, towards the southwest.

This post is part of the Travel Tuesday meme

FUNGI

A fungus (plural: fungi) is any member of the group of eukaryotic organisms that includes microorganisms such as yeasts and moulds, as well as the more familiar mushrooms. These organisms are classified as a kingdom, Fungi, which is separate from the other eukaryotic life kingdoms of plants and animals. Abundant worldwide, most fungi are inconspicuous because of the small size of their structures, and their cryptic lifestyles in soil or on dead matter.

Fungi include symbionts of plants, animals, or other fungi and also parasites. They may become noticeable when fruiting, either as mushrooms or as moulds. Fungi perform an essential role in the decomposition of organic matter and have fundamental roles in nutrient cycling and exchange in the environment.

They have long been used as a direct source of human food, in the form of mushrooms and truffles; as a leavening agent for bread; and in the fermentation of various food products, such as wine, beer, and soy sauce. Since the 1940s, fungi have been used for the production of antibiotics, and, more recently, various enzymes produced by fungi are used industrially and in detergents.

Fungi can break down manufactured materials and buildings, and become significant pathogens of humans and other animals. Losses of crops due to fungal diseases (e.g., rice blast disease) or food spoilage can have a large impact on human food supplies and local economies.

This post is part of the Mosaic Monday meme,
and also part of the Blue Monday meme,
and also part of the Seasons meme.

DAREBIN CREEK

The new fish ladder in the Darebin Creek at the Darebin Parklands.

This post is part of the My Sunday Best meme

AUSTRALIAN WOOD DUCKS

The Australian Wood Duck (Chenonetta jubata) also called the Maned Duck is very common throughout Australia and can be found in most suburban parks and waterways. They are also seen in woodland areas often perching in the trees. The male is on the right, and has the darker head, while the female to the left is more speckled and has a lighter-coloured head. Here they are seen in the Darebin Parklands in Melbourne.

This post is part of the Saturday Critters meme

WINTRY SUNSET

View from my window this evening.

This post is part of the Skywatch Friday meme

FLORIST

At the South Melbourne Market, "Azalea" florist shop always has wonderful flowers. These beauties in the foreground right are Australian natives, the scarlet Banksia coccinea taking pride of place at the top.

This post is part of the Floral Friday Fotos meme.

MICROCOSM

This post is part of the Wordless Wednesday meme,
and also part of the My Corner of the World meme,
and also part of the Nature Notes meme.

AT LYGON ST

Lygon Street is a street in inner northern Melbourne, Australia running through the suburbs of Carlton, Carlton North, Princes Hill and Brunswick East. Lygon Street's name has become synonymous with Italian restaurants and cafés located in the Carlton part of the street. In addition, there are specialty shops, boutiques and gourmet food provedores.

The Italian restaurants synonymous with Lygon Street occupy the few blocks between Victoria Street and Elgin Street in Carlton. The area is heavily European in nature, and is the home of the yearly Lygon Street Festa, one of Australia's largest outdoor street festivals. The La Mama Theatre and Courthouse Theatre are also in this area, as is the heritage-listed neon sign at Borsari's Corner, named after Italian cyclist Nino Borsari, on the corner of Grattan Street.

Toto's Pizza House, the first pizzeria established in Australia, has been located at the southern end of Lygon Street continuously since its opening in 1961. Excellent coffee lounges and cake shops are to be found here. Nothing like taking advantage of some Winter sunshine and sipping the best coffee in Australia outdoors and people watching!

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