July – Part 2

The silver beet is struggling on.  At least it looks better since the blackbirds can’t toss the plants out of the soil any more.  Oh well time will tell how it all turns out.  The sugar snap climbing peas are still taking their time appearing fully.  I have lost some to the jolly blackbirds but what can you do????

I finally got the compost filled and so it should be ready by the middle of September.  I tested out some chicken fertilizer to see if the dog would treat it the same as she did the ‘Blood and Bone’ (what a disaster that was).  It has no smell and she was totally indifferent to it.  So I spread it onto the empty vege. garden – raked it in, and she has paid no attention to it at all.  YAY. 

I pruned the roses the last weekend in July, so hopefully we have seen the last of this year’s frosts.  Only two roses – what a joy – it took all of about half an hour.

The daphnes are out now and smell divine.  The camellias are just starting to bloom.

This is a large camellia and an azalea 'Kirin' in the front garden.  Eastern Spinebills have made it home.

The potted standard daphne at the doorway to the shade house.

the first flowers on my white daphne

Buds are forming on most of my dendrobium orchids

Daffodils made a surprise entrance into the front garden.

Lots of wrens visit the garden every day.

and this New Holland Honeyeater  sat enjoying the view for several minutes before heading off to the birdbath

July Part One

At the start of July I planted some seedling Silverbeet ‘Rainbow Chard’.  I thought it would look nice and colourful even if it didn’t do very well.  I also put in seeds of ‘Sugar Snap’ climbing peas.

The sweet peas (planted 1^st June) are up in places, not a full row but I’ll remain patient and see what happens.  The climbing peas are still thinking about popping their heads up but I had a little tickle about in the soil and they look like any day they’ll be up.  My main problem with the silverbeet is guarding them from the blackbirds who love to scratch around in the mulch and have no regard for where the silverbeet goes.  My next outside task is to make them little teepee shapes of bamboo sticks to hopefully protect them from the blackbirds.

I bought a cumquat tree and planted it in a very large terracotta pot near the back corner of the house.  It should get lots of sun there, so it should be happy.

I have had some very welcome visitors to the garden – a family of blue wrens are once again nesting in the Hebe near the side fence.  I often see the young males darting about and occasionally a female.  The other day I heard them in the garden – got out my camera and instead of a blue wren photographed an ‘Eastern Spinebill’.  I actually didn’t know what it was, looked through my ‘Tassie Birds’ book but couldn’t find it so I sent an e-mail to a man who has a site on the web called Tassie birds.  I asked if he would identify it for me and back cam e the answer.  The eastern spinebill was enjoying the birdbath until a female blue wren chased it away. 

My ‘osmanthus’ is out in flower.  It is very fragrant, and is doing well although I will need to give it a trim after it has finished flowering.

this carnivorous plant is enjoying some indoor sunshine

my new cumquat

one of my favorite azaleas 'Rose Queen'

a white helebore

'Burgundy Iceberg' has a few late blooms

a female blue wren

a happy female blue wren

the 'Eastern Spinebill' before the wren chased it away

'Osmanthus'

Osmanthus flowers