Friday, May 24, 2013

Another Flower Flaunt Friday ... Getting closer to Winter Here!

Today is a beautiful cool late Autumn day.  Overnight the temp dropped down to around 15 deg C (59 F), and right now at 9.00 am it's a gorgeous 19 deg C  (66 F).  For us, that's a rather cool morning!  The air is crisp, cool and fresh.  Our marvellous wintertime is not far off now.

Out in the garden things have slowed down considerably in terms of blooms.  There are no huge blooming displays on any of the trees or shrubs, but as is typical of a dry tropics garden, there are still a few flowers to be found here and there as you wander around.

Out in my shadehouse garden, on the western side of my house, there's been a new arrival.


Now I think this plant is Kalanchoe gastonis bonnieri or Donkey's Ears Plant.  It was given to me by a very kind gardener from down south (thanks Titania!), and I've spotted the first flower spike.  I can't wait for the blooms to open.

Other blooms to be found out in the shadehouse include ...


my wonderful all-year-round-bloomer, my purple Anthurium,


along with another of my year-round-bloomers, Impatiens walleriana;


and Coleus.

Out in the courtyard garden,


there are Violas blooming.


There's one lonely bloom on the white Justicia carnea,


and there's still flower spikes on the Angelonias.


The Celosia are blooming,


and a few little Marigolds have started to bloom as well.


The native Sterculia quadrifida or Peanut tree is covered in its rather inconspicuous creamy flowers.


Under the pergola, the Salvia involucrata is blooming,


whilst on the outer corners of the pergola the Hibiscus schizopetalus is always flowering.

Elsewhere,


the Crotons beside the driveway are still throwing out flower spikes,


and the blooming cycle of the Triangular Palm near the carshed, is coming to an end.  These flowers attract a lot of bees and wasps.  You can always hearing a lot of buzzing whenever you stroll near this magnificent looking Palm.


The native Acacias are still blooming, both on our property

 

and out in the surrounding bushland.

In the tiered garden beds at the front of the house,


the Salvia madrensis is coming to the end of its blooming cycle.

The Dianthera nodosa or Pink Lady's Fingers is blooming,


and the Cordyline is just beginning to flower.

In the front-of-house garden bed you can spot


Mussaenda philippica 'Bangkok Rose' bracts and littel flowers,


and the dwarf Azalea is showing just a couple of blooms as it begins in winter blooming time.


There are also just a few flowerheads on the Pentas growing in the side garden bed.

I'm joining Tootsie for Fertilizer Friday / Flaunt Your Flowers


Nix for Floral Friday Fotos


and I'm joining Fishtail Cottage's Garden Party


14 comments:

  1. Hi Bernie, I love this time of year in your garden as I actually know the names of most of the plants on your lovely photos :-)

    Oh, and the purple Anthurium was just stunning! Have a great week-end, take care, Helene.

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    1. Thanks Helene. It is just the best time for gardeners in my part of Oz right now. Cool days but still lots of lovely sunshine and blue skies. It's wonderful to be out in the garden for longer periods now. That purple Anthurium is my favourite colour. I've just gotten another purple one to keep it company.

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  2. I love your temperature and your description of your conditions today. You always consider your climate as dry tropics, but i think it is subtropics, because we don't experience conditions like yours. Or is it us who should describe ours as 'above tropical'? Is there such a thing, haha. I wish i can have a consultant meteorologist or geographer, or maybe tropics really have that wide range of conditions. Whatever, i love your blooms, and envy your temps!

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    1. Kalantikan, our gorgeous winter weather has begun although officially winter only starts with the first day of June. It's just the best time of year here.

      The 'subtropical' zone here is recognized as the area further south, down around Brisbane to I think to about Rockhampton. The 'wet tropics' zone is quite close to us, just a little further north. Here it's recognised as the 'dry tropics' because of the long dry period we experience, when very little to no rainfall occurs, although that seems to be slowly changing when looking at the rainfall totals over our Autumn to late Spring over the last two or so years. The temps and humidity levels though as still just plain 'tropical'!

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  3. Hey there! I've missed seeing your posts!!! always so beautiful over here...please come over and link up to Fishtail Cottage's garden party! xoox, tracie

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    1. Hi Tracie, yes I've been a little quiet on the blogging front lately. I've managed to join in with your meme this week though.

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  4. So many lovely flowers! My favorite is the hibiscus. Have a great weekend!

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    1. Thanks for visiting Gunilla. That Hibiscus is my favourite of all Hibiscus, even the more brightly coloured varieties.

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  5. Good morning my down under friend! So many lovely flowers but today the little Marigolds take my eye such a pretty shot. Hope you have a lovely weekend. I plan on having a seat in the greenhouse and potting on some of the many plants I have not had a chance to pot yet. I have to have them ready for the Church fate on the 8th of next month I also bake about 100 cupcakes every year.

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    1. Hi Sue. Those little Marigolds are really lovely. I just have to have a few Marigolds as annuals every year.

      It sounds as if you've recovered a little from your ordeal, so I hope you really enjoy your time out in the greenhouse. I've just finished organising a plant stall for my church fete, and you're just starting. Enjoy! As for baking up 100 cupcakes, that's not something you would find be doing. Not much of a baker! But I know you are, and you always create fabulous cakes. I bet they disappear like hot cakes at the fete!

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  6. Gorgeous pictures. We're still in the grips of winter here in the UK, or at least it feel like it.

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  7. Your fall is lovely...you have better weather than we do...40 at 12:30 PM at the end of spring when it should be 30 degrees warmer...strange...but I can see your lovely flowers even if mine are hiding.

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  8. Those are awesome flowers. Here us springtime.
    From FFF.
    My entryis from : joysnotepad.blogspot.com
    " rain or shine"

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  9. We've had bloom last long past the regular times here in New Zealand. I suppose it's because of the long, dry summer. Your remaining colors are so pretty!

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