FIERY SUNRISE

The sky from my window at 6:55 a.m. this morning. Looked a bit apocalyptic, I must admit...

This post is part of the Skywatch Friday meme

BRUNNERA

Brunnera is a genus of flowering plants in the family Boraginaceae. They are rhizomatous perennials, native to the woodlands of Eastern Europe and North West Asia. They have hairy leaves and sprays of blue flowers in spring. Numerous cultivars are available, which are valued as groundcover in dappled shade. Some possess variegated foliage, such as the  ‘Silver Heart’ hybrid shown here.

The best known species is Brunnera macrophylla, known as Siberian bugloss. It thrives in shade but also likes morning sunshine as long as it is in consistently moist, rich, organic soil. It does not tolerate dry conditions. It is often used in woodland gardens along streams of ponds and in naturalised areas as a specimen plant or clumped together as a border. Clumps slowly spread by both creeping rhizomes to form thick ground covers.

Brunnera macrophylla ‘Silver Heart’ (USDA Zone: 4-9) is a superb introduction, forming a clump of very thick, heart-shaped leaves that are silver with green edging and veining. Sprays of deep blue Forget-me-not-like flowers appear in spring. This is a choice collector’s plant, but also an easy-to-grow perennial that performs well in all but the driest of shady conditions. Excellent for the woodland garden. Provided there is sufficient moisture, plants can tolerate full sun; as the leaves are so thick, little or no scorching occurs. Bred by Spitsbergen-Willemsen of the Netherlands. USPP#24685: Unlicensed propagation prohibited.

This post is part of the Floral Friday Fotos meme.

BEE

A bee feeding on a crassula flower.

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.

WILSON'S PROMONTORY

Wilsons Promontory is a peninsula that forms the southernmost part of the Australian mainland and is located in the state of Victoria. South Point at 39°08′06″S 146°22′32″E is the southernmost tip of Wilsons Promontory and hence of mainland Australia. Located at nearby South East Point, (39°07′S 146°a25′E) is the Wilsons Promontory Lighthouse. Most of the peninsula is protected by the Wilsons Promontory National Park and the Wilsons Promontory Marine National Park.

The promontory has been a national park, to one degree or another, since 1898. Wilsons Promontory National Park, also known locally as "the Prom", contains the largest coastal wilderness area in Victoria. The site was closed to the public during World War II, as it was used as a commando training ground. The only settlement within Wilsons Promontory is Tidal River which lies 30 kilometres south of the park boundary and is the focus for tourism and recreation. This park is managed by Parks Victoria.

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

COVID LOCKDOWN No 6

We are now on the eleventh day of Lockdown N˚ 6 in Melbourne, as Australia grapples with the spread of the Delta strain of COVID-19. We are dealing with an aggressive virus which is easily transmitted and affects a wider range of the population (which remains markedly under-vaccinated when compared to other developed nations).

It is unfortunate that we are in this situation yet again, and we can blame a whole host of factors:

• Politicians too busy playing games and jousting for votes so they are not dealing effectively with public health policy, good planning and prompt COVID legislation;
• Incompetent handling of quarantine, contact tracing and stopping of spread of virus;
• Arrant disregard for basic epidemiological theory when allowing super spreader events to occur (e.g. sport spectator attendance in packed stadiums);
• Inadequate vaccine doses and lukewarm vaccination adoption;
• Conflicting messaging from multiple layers of government and public health officials;
• Anti-vaxxers running riot with conspiracy theories and claims contrary to logic and science;
• A population obsessed with quaint, simplistic and selfish ideas of "freedom" and "personal liberties";
• etc,etc,etc...

Further restrictions were announced today in Victoria as exposure sites increase and our COVID cases keep on pullulating... How many more wake-up calls do we need as individuals, as members of groups, as people in powerful and responsible positions, as politicians, as medical professionals, so that we all do what is right and ethical?

This post is part of the Mosaic Monday meme,

and also part of the Blue Monday meme,
and also part of the Seasons meme.

BACK-SEAT DRIVER

This post is part of the My Sunday Best meme

SPOTTED DOVE

Since the Spotted Dove (Streptopelia chinensis) was introduced into Australia from Asia in the 1860s, they have been very successful, expanding their range greatly to occur right along the east coast, as well as in parts of South Australia and Western Australia.

The Spotted Dove builds its nest from a few fine twigs. It is so frail that the eggs are often visible from below, and they often fall out. Being so precarious, it seems the eggs must seldom hatch successfully and nestlings seldom survive to fledge, but this is not so.

Spotted Doves are mostly light brown above, with darker centres to the feathers of the back and wings. The head is grey, and the neck and underparts are grey-brown, tinged with pink. In flight the white-tipped tail is clearly seen. The distinguishing feature is the large black collar on the base of the hind-neck, which has many white spots. Sexes are similar in plumage. Young Spotted Doves are similar to adults, but have a mostly dark grey collar instead of black and white

This post is part of the Saturday Critters meme

SPRING TOUCH

This post is part of the Skywatch Friday meme

NATIVE SARSAPARILLA

The Native Sarsaparilla Hardenbergia violacea (var. 'Happy Wanderer') is a useful climbing and creeping plant useful as a ground cover that grows prolifically in the Southern Australian Region. This vigorous, popular and generally hardy Australian native plant grows to about 1 metre high by 1 metre wide. The pea shape flowers appear in late winter and early spring and are violet in colour. It can be used as a ground cover and will climb on a support. It prefers an open sunny position. Pink and white flowering cultivars are also available.

This post is part of the  Floral Friday Fotos meme

BY THE CREEK

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.