We've been seeing some magnificent sunrises over the last week from our verandah. These last few days of Autumn have been simply wonderful, with very pleasant daytime temps. and some cooler nights.
We've also had a few showers of rain during the week, with most of the light rain falling overnight. It seems that our long dry season is not quite ready to begin yet, and Mother Nature has decided to bless our gardens with some lovely liquid sunshine. We're not used to getting rain at the end of May, and certainly not in the last official week of Autumn.
Fri
Chance
of Rain
Low:
19°
High:
27°
|
Sat
Chance
of Rain
Low:
18°
High:
27°
|
Sun
Partly
Cloudy
Low:
19°
High:
27°
|
Mon
Partly
Cloudy
Low:
16°
High:
26°
|
Tomorrow is officially the first day of our Winter, and the forecast is for a very pleasant start to our chilly season! Just look at our fabulous tropical end-of-Autumn / beginning-of-Winter temps. I simply love this time of year!
The first snow-white bracts and tiny flowers have appeared on my Euphorbia leucocephala or Snowflake Bush. It's one of the few winter blooming shrubs in my garden.
My two potted Sclumbergeras or Zygocactus our in my courtyard garden are starting to show some buds. This plant is known as the Christmas Cactus in the northern hemisphere, but of course this winter-bloomer doesn't show its flowers during our Christmas. Christmas for us is during our Summer, hence we refer to this plant as Zygocactus, and not Christmas Cactus.
There's actually already one bloom on the Zygocactus baby that's growing out in my shadehouse garden. A piece of one of the courtyard Sclumbergeras broke off last year, and I stuck the little piece in a pot out in my shadehouse. Now it's trying to upstage its parent by blooming first!
Elsewhere in my shadehouse garden ...
the Aeschynanthus lobbianus is hanging onto its last blooms of this blooming cycle,
there are always Impatiens walleriana blooms to be found somewhere,
and the Dorstenia bahiensis or Mattress Button Plant is still blooming.
Back in the courtyard garden there's a bit of colour on show from the annuals that have begun blooming.
I'm joining Tootsie for Fertilizer Friday / Flaunt Your Flowers
Hi Bernie, this is like GBBD! Imagine you are already starting your cold, but we still haven't finished our dry season. Years before May is our start of rainy season, but now it is not official yet although there are some afternoons with rainshowers, and the grasses are now green. We are delayed by one month, but i already lost my sunsets at the 5th Floor Window.
ReplyDeleteSounds like we're both experiencing a delay in the start of the dry season. Usually we've seen the end of the rain by the end of May, so it's been delightful getting these light showers of rain every evening. Today is officially our first day of Winter and it started with a shower of rain as well. It will be interesting to see how it progresses.
DeleteHow lovely! Especially love your collage of floral colours!
ReplyDeleteGemma, I'm happy to hear you enjoyed the shots of some of the annuals on show at the moment. This is the best time for annuals in my garden.
DeleteG'Day my down under friend. What at stunning sunrise. Most of our mornings this week have been greeted with rain and howling winds. Although this morning the (shhh!she whispers the sun is shining). The white Euphorbia leucocephala is fantastic. lovely to see lots of colour in you garden when mine is predominantly green at the moment I hope S will take me up to the garden centre this weekend so I can get some summer bedding plants to add some colour. My Dahlias are almost ready to go in along with the geraniums. Have a lovely weekend.
ReplyDeleteG'day Sue. The late Autumn / Winter sunrises always seem to be especially wonderful. It's almost a joy to be getting up early to head off to work ... almost, lol! I can't wait to see you summer garden taking shape, although the the rain and wind might cause some havoc. I'm just potting up some more Pelargoniums this weekend. They do so much better during our dry season here. They really don't like the heavy rain during our Summers.
DeleteWith such a wonderful sunrise, I would like to get up early to enjoy not only daybreak but the rest of the day too. Its so uplifting.
ReplyDeleteI love Impatiens walleriana and I have clumps of them in my garden too. However over it is so hot they have to go through a wilting phase by mid day but recover to show its lovely side by evening. Your plants are lush and robust.
Yes, Stiletto, the sunrises make the early start to the days quite wonderful. The colours really do lift the spirit. My Impatiens are usually in shady spots until this time of year. During our mid-to-late Autumn and all through our Winter, they sit out in full sun. In our Spring and Summer they get a respite from the fierce sunshine, but they still wilt in the heat.
DeleteA glorious sunrise and beautiful flowers. Pleasant temps and light rains. Life is good.
ReplyDeleteHave a lovely weekend ~ FlowerLady
Lorraine, wintertime here is really really good. It's just the most fabulous time to live in and visit the tropics.
DeleteHi Bernie, divine sunset, and I particularly love the snowflakes shrub. Enjoy the start of winter. We have had torrential rain and storms here, I think your weather may have dropped down south. But the garden is smiling.
ReplyDeleteCatmint, it does sound like you're getting what we should have gotten during our wet season up here. There's still predictions of more light showers on the way, which is a little unusual for this time of year. Last year we had a slightly wetter than usual dry season too.
DeleteOne of my neighbours has a whole row of Snowflake Bushes at the front of their driveway and they're really looking spectacular at the moment. It's given me food for thought!
Lovely flowers! These is also a November cactus and a Easter cactus, but I thing they're all the same Schlumberger hybrids.
ReplyDeleteThanks Gunilla. It's amazing to see all the common names for Schlumbergera. We really only refer to them as Zygocactus here. I'm afraid mine don't bloom at Christmas, in November or at Easter time, so Zygo it will have to remain.
DeleteOh how beautiful! I Heart Macro opens tonight at 8pm EST at my blog if you want to join the fun:-)
ReplyDeleteThanks for visiting Laura, and thank you for the invitation.
DeleteBernie so hard to believe it is winter where you are as your weather is my summer....lovely end of autumn blooms
ReplyDeleteHi Bernie, what a lovely sunset :-) And lovely bunch of flowers for us this time too. I particularly liked the Sclumbergera, every Christmas I decide I must buy one, but I never do, this year I really want to. I tried to find a dark red last year but there were only purple and pink ones available. I need to keep it in my kitchen and my kitchen walls are crimson red, it wouldn't fit with pink or purple flowers so I am going to look again for a red Sclumbergera this year.
ReplyDelete