:: watsonia ii ::

A salmon-coloured watsonia to brighten this very softly-foggy, misty morning here down South.

:: watsonia ::

Eclipsed in popularity by the gladioli and other bulbs, the watsonia is now not anywhere near as common a sight as it was in my childhood in the seventies as it has been largely neglected by the nurseries.

So, when I see a clump somewhere, I get a jolt of nostalgia, right back to my roots and the beautiful bed of dahlias and watsonias along a fenceline...sigh!

:: iris ::

Happy 100th birthday Nana Joy what a remarkable day we have as a family today to celebrate.

:: ranunculus ii ::

Stunning ranunculus in my parents' garden.

:: ranunculus ::

A scattering of ranunculus bulbs in Autumn is now beautifully resulting in these delicate, papery, jewel-bright flowers appearing randomly in the garden...

...the name apparently comes from the late Latin with the unusual meaning of 'little frog' - go figure!

:: freesia ii ::

Sitting here at the dining table, supposedly, mindfully doing one thing at a time - that would be eating the wholesome salad for lunch ;-) - but actually creating a blog post too ;-) - my nostrils are being tickled by the delicious scent of these beautiful freesia, as the Northerly breeze is literally forcing the smell in the door! 

Not minding a bit!

:: tulipa ii ::

Spied in the garden of one of our neighbour's - a stunning fringed pink tulip with luscious underplantings of mauve pansies and lavender...yum!

:: freesia ::

Making a new garden takes time...we've been in this house for nearly 2 and a half years now...and still there are bit parts of the garden we are working on - and it is not a huge garden by any stretch...

...first we sorted out a decent run for our hens, then the vegetable gardens, some fruit trees and gradually, all the other bits...

...like a place to sit in the sun after doing some of this wonderful work in the garden!

This past Autumn we planted a couple of packets-worth of  Spring bulbs in the borders around the patio - and finally now we have these beautiful deep red freesias - so lovely to look at and they smell divine...can't wait until they become a mini-forest!

:: hyacinthoides hispanica ::

what I thought was a common bluebell growing in our garden is the paler, more upright 'Spanish Bluebell' version...the things you find out when you delve...

:: narcissus xi ::

possibly my favourite daffodil colour combination - cream petals and egg yolk orange corona - delicious!  

...I can't imagine ever not being wowed by the beauty of nature...

...like a small dog with a scent...my eyes are directed in fixed attention to the blooms...

...while our small dog mostly waits patiently, the lead under my foot...

the front of this garden is a mass of daffodils - an incredible display each Spring

...I was musing to myself this morning, phone in hand (for taking pictures!) that it is a wonder I have not injured myself in my singlemindedness when in flower-spotting-mode - maybe akin to that focus the people playing Pokemon Go have?!

:: tulipa ::

well, I didn't expect to find out so much information about the tulip - so much that in the time I have today, I'll suffice with saying there will be another post with all that interesting info in it!

This one is 'pinocchio' - a wee, dwarf red and white tulip, gracing us for the second year in our garden - and such a fun Spring surprise to find it open these last couple of days.

:: narcissus x ::

So busy with being home alone for the day with the child on a mega-friend's-birthday-party-sleepover-marathon that I think we clearly enjoyed the couple time so much that I didn't remember to post the appropriate flower of the day - here a pair of sunlit daffodils in our apple/blueberry/strawberry/lamb's ear/bulb garden surrounding our 'almost-courtyard' space...

:: muscari ::

Another sweet Spring flower - the grape hyacinth - now blooming in decent numbers at the base of one of our espaliered apples...

...named after the Greek, muschos meaning 'musk', referring to it's fragrant nature.

:: narcissus ix ::

That's what I'm talking about! Soak up that incredible 'cheezels' orange of that corona - startling almost when I look closely into it!

Yep, today is the day...the 1st of September...and kind of the first of Spring...at least the weather is feeling more 'Spring-y'

Happy gardening and flower-appreciating out there!

:: narcissus viii ::

...more promise of flowers to come from these voluptuous, if petite, paperwhite or jonquil buds...

...much more green-cream than I had them imagined in my mind's eye...

...often I am overcome with an "Anne of Green Gables" sense of wonder, awe and reverence for just the small things...

...pretty easy to feel content when it's the small stuff that gives me so much pleasure...

...have to admit to 'rescuing' some of these bulbs from the, ahem, er...'red zone'...early on in our time here in Christchurch...in some streets there there are whole gardens left behind framing properties with neglected, weed-infested, rampant plantings all around the boundaries with just the eerie space where the house used to reside...

...at the time we felt it was ok to populate our almost completely bare property by carefully 'adopting' some of these plants, respectfully only taking a few and leaving most...we hope it was an ok thing to do!!!

As the plants are now establishing in our little garden, it is a true delight to anticipate and savour the beauty and goodness of them as they arrive each year, a little bigger and more robust, reproducing and getting stronger...

...and... today is the end of August...so that officially means 'goodbye Winter'...rock on Spring!

:: narcissus vi ::

The proud son of the river god and a nymph, Narcissus was a hunter from the region of Thespiae, in Greece. He spurned all those who fell in love with his handsome countenance, causing much pain. The goddess Nemesis saw this behaviour and led Narcissus to a pool, whereupon seeing his own reflection he fell completely in love...alas...what to do about a reflection for a lover? A love that wasn't able to be returned...there are variations to the versions of the myths from this point, but basically, Narcissus dies - either pines away while staring at his own reflection or commits suicide.

In that place, it is said these delightful blooms sprang up!

:: chionodoxa ::

...or 'glory-of-the-snow' - how sweet is this little flowering bulb...I've been walking past these for weeks and weeks now and the sun is usually so full on them that they are not great to attempt a photo of...

...I thought these were a carpet of crocus - but their more star-like petals are much less cup-like than crocus...a wonderful starry display, never-the-less!!

:: narcissus v ::

these are my first (late) erlicheer or jonquils coming out in our garden underneath an espaliered apple tree...better late than never!

:: leucojum ii ::

Simple Snowbells on a Saturday

:: narcissus vi ::

I like how this clump of erlicheer looks like a whole community, mirroring the clusters of houses behind...here comes Spring!