FRUITING TIME

Autumn fruits in Melbourne: Lilly Pilly, Pomegranate, Bonewood

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

SUNDAY BRUNCH

In Preston, on a lovely Autumn day.

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

RAINBOW LORIKEET

This post is part of the Saturday Critters meme.

SUNSET

This post is part of the Skywatch Friday meme

COSMOS

Cosmos bipinnatus, commonly called the garden cosmos, Mexican aster or cosmea, is a medium-sized flowering herbaceous plant in the daisy family Asteraceae, native to the Americas. The species and its varieties and cultivars are popular as ornamental plants in temperate climate gardens.

This post is part of the Floral Friday Fotos meme

GUM LEAVES

We have just welcomed Autumn here in Melbourne but the gum trees are sprouting forth new leaves and have begun to bloom. This makes for a welcome recompense for the shortening of the days, increasing coolness and the promise of Winter ahead.

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

MURRAY RIVER

The Murray River (in South Australia: River Murray; Ngarrindjeri: Millewa, Yorta Yorta: Tongala) is a river in south-eastern Australia. It is Australia's longest river at 2,508 km length. Its tributaries include five of the next six longest rivers of Australia (the Murrumbidgee, Darling, Lachlan, Warrego and Paroo Rivers). Together with that of the Murray, the catchments of these rivers form the Murray-Darling basin, which covers about one-seventh the area of Australia. It is widely considered Australia's most important irrigated region.

The Murray arises in the Australian Alps, draining the western side of Australia's highest mountains, then meanders northwest across Australia's inland plains, forming the border between the states of New South Wales and Victoria as it flows into South Australia. From an east–west direction it turns south at Morgan for its final 315 km, reaching the eastern edge of Lake Alexandrina, which fluctuates in salinity. The water then flows through several channels around Hindmarsh Island and Mundoo Island. 

There it is joined by lagoon water from The Coorong to the south-east before emptying into the Great Australian Bight (often referenced on Australian maps as the Southern Ocean) through the Murray Mouth, 10 km (6.2 mi) east of Goolwa South. Despite discharging considerable volumes of water at times, particularly before the advent of large-scale river regulation, the waters at the Murray Mouth are almost invariably slow and shallow.

This post is part of the Travel Tuesday meme,
and also part of Roentare’s Water Meme.

STORM

We are seeing all sorts of strange weather phenomena on the southeastern coast of Australia. Some very devastating cyclonic weather in the northeast, heatwaves and then plummeting temperatures with storms in Melbourne. Climate change is happening and we're facing the music worldwide...

This post is part of the My Sunday Best meme

GOLDFISH

This post is part of the Saturday Critters meme

ARTHUR'S CHOICE

Rhododendron zoelleri 'Arthur's Choice' is a delightfully showy floriferous hybrid Vireya rhododendron with bright red unscented flowers larger than those of its parent species and leaves that are larger, greener and more leathery. It propagates readily from cuttings and develops a robust root system. It was chosen by the late Arthur Hedlam from among eight seedlings raised from this self-pollination and grown to flowering size.

This post is part of the Floral Friday Fotos meme

ROOSTING TIME

This post is part of the Skywatch Friday meme

SUCCULENTS

As our climate is being disrupted and water is becoming more and more precious, many people are turning to alternative. garden plants in order to enjoy a garden that is lush and yet conserves water. Succulents, cacti and sclerophyll forest plants are the order of the day. A garden filled with succulents and cacti not only saves water but also promotes biodiversity, turning into a sanctuary that amazes and inspires.

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

COLLINS ST, CITY

Summer day at the Paris End of Collins St. It looks more like New York than Paris nowadays, but there are still some beautiful old buildings amongst the skyscrapers.

This post is part of the Travel Tuesday meme

ANOTHER WEEK

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

SIDDHARTHA

This post is part of the My Sunday Best meme.

SUMMER HAIRCUT

"It was hot in Melbourne today, 37˚C, and I'm glad I had a haircut yesterday!"

This post is part of the Saturday Critters meme

FULL MOON NIGHT

In the suburbs...

This post is part of the Skywatch Friday meme.

AIR PLANT

Tillandsia is a genus of around 649 species of evergreen, perennial flowering plants in the family Bromeliaceae, native to the forests, mountains and deserts of the Neotropics, from northern Mexico and the southeastern United States to Mesoamerica and the Caribbean to central Argentina. Their leaves, more or less silvery in color, are covered with specialised cells (trichomes) capable of rapidly absorbing water that gathers on them.

They are also commonly known as air plants because they obtain nutrients and water from the air, not needing soil for nourishment. They have a natural propensity to cling to whatever surfaces are readily available: Telephone wires, tree branches, bark, bare rocks, etc. Their light seeds and a silky parachute facilitate their spread.

Most Tillandsia species are epiphytes – which translates to 'upon a plant'. Some are aerophytes, which have a minimal root system and grow on shifting desert soil. Due to their epiphytic way of life, these plants will not grow in soil but live on the branches of trees, in deserts and on other substrates that will not be saturated with water for very long. Illustrated here is Tillandsia jucunda.

This post is part of the Floral Friday Fotos meme.

AMETHYST

Amethyst is a violet variety of quartz. The name comes from the Koine Greek αμέθυστος amethystos from α- a-, "not" and μεθύσκω (Ancient Greek) methysko / μεθώ metho (Modern Greek), "intoxicate", a reference to the belief that the stone protected its owner from drunkenness. Ancient Greeks wore amethyst and carved drinking vessels from it in the belief that it would prevent intoxication. Amethyst, a semiprecious stone, is often used in jewellery.

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

SKYLINE

Southbank skyline viewed from the suburban train line overbridge.

This post is part of the Travel Tuesday meme

LUNA PARK

While the weather is still good, why not the Luna Park?

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

CACTUS GARDEN

Amazing cactus garden in "Collectors Corner at Gardenworld", 810 Springvale Rd Braeside Vic. 3195. An amazing retail enterprise with plants, gems, minerals, bonsai, fossils, as well as dozens of displays that highlight the diversity of the wonderful planet Earth. Well worth a visit!

This post is part of the My Sunday Best meme

LAW ABIDING...

...Pet!

This post is part of the Saturday Critters meme

WINDMILL SKY

Iconic to outback Australia are the old windmills. They stand tall and proud in a vast field. There is the characteristic sound of metal creaking as the blades rotate round and round, ever so slowly as the wind blows...  Invented in America the 1850’s, windmills have been a huge part of Australian history.

The windmill meant people could access water without being anywhere near surface-water sources. With windmills, people could inhabit and develop new areas of country by drilling a bore into an artesian deposit and the wind-powered pump could draw the water up to a reservoir for livestock to access.

This post is part of the Skywatch Friday meme

FLORIST FLOWERS

This post is part of the Floral Friday Fotos meme

SUMMER'S END

We are seeing more and more signs of Autumn approaching and whatever few hot days may linger on, Summer is well and truly leaving...

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

WILSON'S PROM

Wilsons Promontory is a peninsula that forms the southernmost part of the Australian mainland, located in the state of Victoria, about 200 km southeast of Melbourne CBD. Coastal features include expansive intertidal mudflats, sandy beaches and sheltered coves interrupted by prominent headlands and plunging granite cliffs in the south, backed by coastal dunes and swamps. The promontory is surrounded by a scatter of small granite islands which, collectively, form the Wilsons Promontory Islands Important Bird Area, identified as such by BirdLife International because of its importance for breeding seabirds.

Wilsons Promontory is home to many marsupials, native birds and other creatures. One of the most common marsupials found on the promontory is the common wombat, which can be found in much of the park (especially around campsites where it has been known to invade tents searching for food). The peninsula is also home to kangaroos, snakes, wallabies, koalas, long-nosed potoroos, white-footed dunnarts, broad-toothed rats, feather-tailed gliders and emus. Some of the most common birds found on the promontory include crimson rosellas, yellow-tailed black cockatoos and superb fairywrens. There are also many pests, including hog deer, foxes, feral cats, rabbits, common starlings, and common blackbirds.

This post is part of the Travel Tuesday meme

and also part of the Roentare’s Water Meme.

MY NEW NOVEL

My new novel "The Nursing Home" has been published and is available on Amazon. I've been told by several people that it's a good read :-)

This post is part of the My Sunday Best meme

KITTY

This post is part of the Saturday Critters meme