Early Spring Garden Update

Spring is definitely in the air here in Australia. I can feel it on the wind. It's still a cold wind, but there's a fresher quality to it somehow. So I went outside on the first sunny day that came along, to see what was happening.

The fruit trees are blossoming and looking very beautiful right now. The wind has blown some of the blossoms off, but I think we should get a medium-sized crop of both nectarines and apricots this year. The plum harvest should be smaller as I pruned it much more severely than the others last year. There was just too much to deal with and, I have to admit, a lot of fruit (of all kinds) went to waste. I want to do things better next time.

Some plants that I was fond of have died, but others (both old and newer) are growing better than I've ever seen them. Like this daisy I planted about 3 years ago. It's doubled in size in only a couple of months. Unfortunately its twin isn't doing so well due to an apparent whippersnipper incident (I guess the mowing man didn't see it as it was so small) but I didn't bother to take any photos of that.

The hardenbergias on either side are also growing better than I've ever seen them. They didn't even flower the first few years that we lived here. I'd like to make a trellis for them to grow on one day, seeing as they're actually vines.

The lavender I planted last year also suffered from a whippersnipping accident but it seems to be recovering. Also you can see here, the grass hasn't been mowed for months. I have to admit, I secretly like it this way. It's best this time of year: the clover and those plants with the yellow flowers create a beautiful soft green carpet, but the actual grass hasn't exploded yet.

The fernery is looking a bit scruffy. The second of the three large ferns has died now (the stump is visible in the right side of this photo). I waited a year to be sure, but I don't think it's coming back. I will need to decide whether to put in another fern, or do something different. The spider plants are growing well though, and the azaleas are looking beautiful right now, if a bit long in the stems.

Even the hanging plants are growing well. The first photo, of the Winter cactus, was taken a few weeks ago. They're a bit limper now. I haven't re-potted them for a couple of years, so I should probably think about doing that soon.

Husband and I want to plant a lemon tree in our front yard, in a nice retro-looking garden bed (the retro part was my idea, in case you weren't sure!). That will be a bit of work to set up though, we're busy/tired/sick, and the window of lemon-planting season is already here, so I'm not sure if we can get organised. I'll post any updates if and when they happen!

Meanwhile, happy Spring/Autumn!