Saturday, January 29, 2011

Flower Flaunt on Friday/Mosaic Monday - in the midst of cyclone season!


Yes I know I'm late, I'm late for this very important date ... again! ... but I really do have a good excuse!  It's been a terribly hectic time at work preparing my room for the school year.  Even though the students have already returned, my new room was still in the throes of re-construction.  It's been quite an effort in diplomacy and patience trying to set up with workmen in the room and plans being changed almost every second day!

So it's been a full week!  Not only that, but a cyclone is now bearing down on my particular stretch of the Queensland coast.  It's due to hit our region sometime on Monday, so hubbie and I have been doing little bits here and there after work to prepare for that as well!

Now to what's flowering.  Well after the rather intense 'wet' season we've already had, the flowering potted plants in both the shadehouse and courtyard gardens have all been trimmed back severely.  Most are far from being in their best form, but there are small splashes of colour.

In the courtyard garden I found the orange of Crossandra infundibuliformis and Ixora 'Twilight Glow',

the soft purples of Streptocarpus caulescens, Viola hederacea and Torenia,

and just a couple of brilliant white flashes from Tabernaemontana corymbosa, Wrightia antidysenterica and Argyranthemum frutescens.

In the shadehouse garden, there's the pinks of my Curcuma australasica and Dragonwing Begonias.



I then took a walk around the outdoor garden beds and found just a couple of sprays of blooms on two of the tallest trees, the Citharexylum spinosum and Tabebuia pallida.



There's an entire bed of Vinca major that's popped up over the 'wet' season.  This plant is considered a weed in my region and I'm forever pulling it out!  I shall wait until the end of this 'wet' before pulling out all these.


I've also found lots of little Cockscomb Celosia plants popping up in one of the downstairs garden beds.  There was originally two large trays of these on the outdoor stairway and the seeds have obviously been blown on the breeze to a nearby bed.


Both my Mussanedas are still in full bloom.  They just power on through all the gloomy overcast, stinking hot and steamy, rainy days of our 'wet' season.



Of course, there's always lots of red in my garden from all the different varieties of red flowering Hibiscus ...

... and the Pentas lanceolata have returned from their rather drastic cutbacks earlier in our Summer.

Finally, there's a few bright bursts of gold around the garden from the Cassia fistula, the Neomarica, the dwarf Allamanda, the Glaphimia glauca ... and the many St. Andrew's Cross spiders that are hanging out in my garden right now.

I'm joining Tootsie's meme, Fertilizer / Flaunt Your Flowers Friday,so please visit to see what's blooming in other gardens.



I'm also joining Mary's meme (a little early, but I thought I should given that I'm not sure how things will be here on Monday as the cyclone draws nearer!).  Please do pop over to Little Red House and check out all the terrific mosaics for Mosaic Monday.

33 comments:

  1. I send my prayers for a safe Monday Bernie. Your garden looks so lush and colourful. Have a great weekend and hopefully not to much clean up next week.

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  2. What a treat, Bernie! My favourite plant changes daily, but Curcuma is always in the top ten.

    Fingers crossed that Anthony isn't too bad. But I'm really not looking forward to what might come after.

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  3. Jennifer, thank you so much for your kind thoughts and prayers. So far Tropical Cyclone Anthony doesn't look too bad, but of course that can change quickly.

    Bronwyn, I've only just become a fan of Curcumas so I'm going to start building a little collection this year. They have such beautiful blooms! Fingers crossed for us all ... not looking forward to more rain with this cyclone at all! Then there's the other one still hovering somewhere out to sea further south! Queensland sure doesn't need any more rain!

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  4. Bernie I think Nature has its own way of making us happy. Although the sky/weather and all may be dull/cloudy but there is always hope. I wish you a beautiful weekend with all these wonderful blooms in your garden by your side :-D

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  5. I thought everything is back to normal over there, now you are telling us a cyclone is coming your way? A little prayer for you that it will keep you,your family and your beautiful garden safe and sound. Such colourful photos of your lovely garden Bernie! Take care.

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  6. A great variety of colours in your beautiful garden. It must be a bother having an unfinished room to start the school year. Take care in the cyclone. Hope he peters out soon.

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  7. Bernie, your flowers are so beautiful, even the vinca which is blue in my area. It can become a little invasive around here also.

    You are just going from one weather situation to another. I hope this one is not as bad as the flooding.

    Eileen

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  8. Dear Bernie ~ Your flowers are gorgeous as always. I do hope this cyclone doesn't cause you any major damage or flooding.

    FlowerLady

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  9. thinking of you Bernie and your lovely garden - hope Anthony brings nothing but a breeze and bit of a drizzle.

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  10. Bernie, I am always amazed at the quantity and variety of your bloomers, which must be a consolation through all the challenges of your climate. Stay safe :)

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  11. Well worth the wait Bernie. Too many beautiful mosaics to comment on individually though as your garden is positively busting with tropical and exotic rainbows of colour. Amidst it all, the simplicity of the begonia made for a lovely understatement. Hope that the Cyclone diminishes to a mere storm
    Laura

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  12. You've got some beautiful colorful flowers, but it's the clear whites in this post (even the vinca) that I really love. I like their brilliant flashes. They look showy but demure at the same time, if that can be.

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  13. I have some of the orange Crossandra plants that are five or six years old now. Your Crossandra flowers look much larger than on my plants. Do you have yours growing in pots or the ground I couldn't tell from the picture? Best of luck with the cyclone [hurricane]heading your way. Hope that everyone stays safe. Been there many times before myself living in South Florida.

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  14. All of your blooms are beautiful but I must admit I still lust after the Mussanedas. I would love to be able to grow them like that.

    Hope Anthony is a good boy and doesn't cause damage - will be thinking of you as he heads in.

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  15. Here’s hoping you all do NOT get hit again by the horrible weather. I do not know how you do it all....teaching, gardening, preparing for the weather. You have got a full plate. Your flowers are gorgeous as always. You certainly have the finest green thumb I have ever seen.

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  16. I think you will be safe Bernie. Cyclones usually loose their strength when going over land and you are not immediately on the coast I believe. I know how you feel and get organised. I am just sighing relief as Cyclone Bianca on my coast has now been downgraded in a tropical low, but it is so vague, we just have some wind and no rain. Here I was hoping for inches of rain....But at least we didn't get the galeforce winds they said could happen. Hope there won't be a repeat of that one in Innisfail....
    Your blog is wonderful as per usual Bernie. Love the variety you still have in your garden and the mosaics are just so great to look at. All that colour I am missing here.

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  17. you have an amazing garden! lush and beautiful. we also have most of these flowers here but i didn't know their names until i read them here. thank you. have a great Sunday.

    http://savorthebite.blogspot.com/2011/01/todays-flowers-26-episcia.html

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  18. You have a beautiful garden. How I wish I have a big one with lots of pretty blooms.

    My entry.

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  19. It's such a treat to come and see your gorgeous blooms!!

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  20. Very nice selection of flowers. I like Crossandra and it is just starting to get more popular and available here.

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  21. Your blooms look great! take care with the cyclone

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  22. All is well here today and thanks for all your concern. TC Anthony crossed further south so we missed all the high wind and heavy rain. (You were spot on African Aussie ... just a breeze and a little drizzle here, lol!)

    Anthony crossed at my home town a little further down the coast where my Dad and brother still live. They had a rough night … winds around 120 km per hour and lots of torrential rain … but luckily no real damage. My brother had some smashed windows and fallen trees at the caravan park where he is the manager and Dad just has some squashed plants.

    Now we’re all watching TC Yasi, the huge system out in the Coral Sea has now developed into a cyclone and is on its way. Weather Bureau is not entirely sure where it might hit, so it’s another wait and see game. Thursday looks to be the day though.

    It's a huge system and the rain will affect an already totally drenched Queensland. It's also expected to affect most of northern New South Wales as well, which has just started recovering from flooding just recently. So much rain!

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  23. Bernie, thanks for sharing these beauties and informing the flower's name in my post.

    So glad to know that the cyclone wasn't heading for your place; unfortunately your hometown got affected. Hope nothing bad will happen this Thursday...

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  24. What absolutely beautiful blooms several of which I've never heard! The Mussanedas are new to me and I think they are so unique. I need to read up on them!

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  25. Beautiful shots and collages!

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  26. Hey Bernie,
    Add my prayers and well wishes to the list...I know the last thing yall on the east coast of oz need is more bloody rain...I am about to call my mother who is in WA to make sure she weathered the storms there ok as well.
    I really enjoyed seeing the flowers, everything here in Florida is still looking dead...well unless you get up close and the tips of the trees are starting to swell into buds, which that and my running nose tells me that spring is just around the corner for us :)
    Stay safe and dry...Blessings Kelsie

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  27. It's Monday here, and I'm not sure if the cyclone hit or not - I hope you are safe and dry.
    What a treat it's been to visit summer in your garden.

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  28. FANTATIC SERIES OF MARVELOUS FLOWERS!

    I would like to invite you to be our Gust Friend for TODAY'S FLOWERS!
    If you agree, send me some flowers photos.

    Luiz

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  29. I can almost feel the warmth coming through the photos. I hope you are safe!

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  30. Not to worry... I am late reading postings ;D

    I love the Mussanedas - I need to find more info on this plant - the flowers and bracts(?) are beautiful.

    I hope you all will be safe in the next monsoon. As usual, your flowers are lovely!

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  31. Bernadette! I hope all is OK with you . . . now that it is Monday and mother nature has had her way with you . . . actually it must be Tuesday for you by now. Your garden is so lush and colorful!! Gorgeous! I do hope you were spared the wrath of the storm.

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  32. Absolutely gorgeous as always, and during these cold winter days here they are a ray of hope!! Thank you! Cathy

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  33. Que lindo jardim com as mais belas flores! Espero que o ciclone não tenha chegado a´te aí!

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