Finding Delight In The Dry And Desolate ... My Dry Tropics Garden Journal ... Week 40, 2011

Date:  October 9, 2011


Season:  mid-Spring and 'dry' season





The dry season marches on in my corner of the world, and it's now being flanked by the rising temps brigade and the higher humidity company.  No rain has fallen here for nearly six months now, which is typical for this region. The mercury is creeping up over the 30 deg C (high 80s-90 F) mark every day and humidity is up around 60%.   It's beginning to feel a lot like Summer, even though it's only mid-Spring.

Of course, the surrounding bushland has dried up considerably and the grasses have turned a brilliant shade of dead!

Our property looks remarkably similar.

The bushfires still rage in the mountain ranges that ring our outlying rural suburb and we've had many, many hazy days.




My gardening spirits have been brought low lately, not just because the dry season has created such a parched landscape ... I'm used to that happening every year ... no, it's a few other annoyances piled on the top.

For the first time ever I'm seeing considerable damage being caused by ravenous wallabies.  They've been nibbling away on so many plants in the outdoor garden beds, and then had the hide to move onto the courtyard garden plants!!!   This has never happened before, so I suspect there might be a couple of slightly-brighter-than-the-average wallabies around, and they've figured out there's loads of delicious plants in pots scattered around the back of the house.

I've had to barricade off the seemingly most delicious plants ... like the Euphorbia 'Diamond Frost', the Crossandras and the New Guinea Impatiens ... and put most of the pots of flowering annuals and perennials ... like the Torenias, Nasturtiums and Plectranthus ... up on the outdoor dining table so they're out of reach.  It makes for a great looking tabletop, but a rather barren and drab courtyard!

Then there's the unsightly view of the construction site that was a car shed at the end of our sad looking cyclone damaged driveway garden beds.  There used to be a lovely Jacaranda tree and a massive great stand of Golden Cane Palm in this area.  Not any more!  This project just seems to go on and on and on.  I know it's a hard, complicated job and my darling hubbie is doing it all by himself, so it's not been easy ... but I am getting rather sick of this sight when I come home from work in the afternoons, particularly at this time of year when everything around is so drab and dreary.

To top it all off, there's the re-construction work that has now begun on our cyclone damaged house.  It's been eight months since Cyclone Yasi ripped through here and caused not only damage to the trees and plants, but also damaged the bull-nosed verandah awning, and we've been waiting patiently for something to be done.  Then, out of the blue, it's started!! 

I'm hoping that the roof will be repaired and the scaffolding removed before the next wet/cyclone season is due ... that's now only two months away!!  Do you think I'm being too optimistic?

(Just a quick aside ... these shots give you a great idea of just what 'dry' season means around here.  We don't water the lawn area ... trying to keep that green for around ten months of the year with sprinklers would cost an absolute fortune in excess water fees.  Not worth it)

Back to it ... Oh yes, did I happen to mention that there's garden beds under all that scaffolding.  It seems that the scaffolding team didn't notice there was a garden in front of the house.  They just trampled over the beds and plants in their frenzy to get the walkways up ready for the roofing guys to come and do the repair work.  Let's take a closer look, shall we?  I hope you're not squeamish!

Now if I'd known the scaffolders were coming, I might not have baked them a cake, but I most definitely would have trimmed all the shrubs in those two front garden beds.  The last thing I need right now is more damaged vegetation!!

Anyway all in all, this gardener is quite simply down for the count right now and I'm hoping that in writing this post, I will find some small delights around this dreary looking place of mine.  Bear with me, I think this is going to be a long post!

Let's see .... do I sit down and moan endlessly about just how dry and ugly the view is around here, or do I sit and appreciate the stunning sunrises that light up the bleak dry landscape on so many mornings?

Many of the cyclone damaged shrubs growing down both sides of our driveway are suffering quite a lot right now.  Unbelievably it seems that a few of the Duranta repens shrubs have actually died off.  Now, it takes a lot to kill a Duranta, but it seems the combination of cyclonic wind damage followed by months of dry season has been too stressful for some of them.  So do I get upset with those losses ... or do I jump for joy that there are some flowers appearing on the remaining stunted Durantas that are still trying to recover????

So many of the shrubs and Palms down the driveway are showing signs of distress from thirst, and I've had to resort to turning on the irrigation system once or twice, which has helped restore them to health but the downside will be a pretty high excess water bill at the end of the year.  Do I get cranky about the impending expense of our water usage in an effort to keep plants going, or do I find delight in the fact that my beloved damaged white Bauhinia is actually flowering?

The Agile Wallabies have been finding it hard to feast on their usual diet of grass, and have been raiding the garden beds every night in an effort to fill their bellies.  They pull down the branches, shred off all the leaves they can reach, nibble off almost every flower and even dig up entire plants.  Should I feel down because the shrubs look broken and ravaged, or should I find solace in the fact that there are still some flowers blooming up high on the bare stripped branches where the wallabies just can't reach???

Should I focus on the ugly mess of building materials lying scattered about the place, or look for the cute things like the sight of birds enjoying a quick shower under the sprinkler when I turn it on in the evenings?

Maybe I should just avert my eyes from the fern fronds being singed and burnt.  They're now being exposed to the full force of the sun, since the tree canopy was stripped away from this garden bed during the cyclone. 

I should perhaps be more appreciative of the sight of all the Brunfelsia blooms.  The 'Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow' shrub hasn't seen full sunlight in many, many years and it's just rejoicing in the new state of affairs since the removal of the tree canopy.

The Plumerias are also very appreciative of this change in conditions.  They are simply loving the new full sun position.  The deciduous Plumeria rubras have started sprouting their new spring foliage and one has even thrown out a flower cluster.  Obviously very happy indeed!  I'm fully expecting a fabulous show of flowers throughout the summer from these two deliriously happy Frangipani trees.

I know I really should stop fretting about the state of some of the older established shrubs in the driveway garden beds ... shrubs like this poor Croton below.  Some are just doing it tough through this dry season and there's really not much I can do to help them along, apart from giving them the occasional watering.  At least there's evidence of new growth!

On the other hand, I should be totally overjoyed by the progress of the new plantings in the driveway rock garden.  I have been religiously watering them just a little every other evening and they seem to have settled in well, especially the Verbena, the Scutellaria indica and the Turnera ulmifolia.

Maybe I need to cease trying to work out just what it is that's afflicting some of the older shrubs around the place.  I just can't work out why one of the Crotons is suddenly becoming paler and paler and looking decidedly ill ... or why one of my oldest Hibiscus rosa-sinensis (the only one that's not been ravaged by wallabies!) has suddenly developed variegated foliage!  Neither of these plants have given me any trouble previously and I'm at a bit of a loss.

I think it would be far better to focus on the more usual occurrences ... such as the beautiful shedding of bark on both my Eucalyptus platyphylla and Corymbia torelliana.

Every year the Corymbia torellaina or Cadaghi Gum Tree sheds it outer covering to reveal a gorgeous green trunk underneath.  It's simply beautiful!

The Eucalyptus platyphylla or Poplar Gum also sheds its bark every year to reveal a new trunk of the most gorgeous salmon pink colour.  This eventually turns to the familiar smooth white trunk in the coming weeks.  Both are sights that never fail to please me.

I must, I must, I must ... increase my tolerance level for wallaby-nibbled plants.  There's really nothing I can do about it, because it's just been impossible to predict what they will eat next!!!  They're chomping on plants that they've never touched ever before.  So I will take comfort in the fact that the leaves on the Iresine herbstii will grow back ...

... and in the meantime, I will rejoice in the fact that the wallabies haven't yet developed the taste for Hemerocallis blooms.  This is the first for the season and so far, there's not a trace of a nibble!  Hemerocallis 'Blackberry Jack' has not yet made it onto the menu of Bush Bernie's Wallaby Restaurant!!

OK, now I'm just being silly ... "goin' troppo!" as we call it here in the tropics.  I need something to soothe the weary gardening spirit.  Thankfully, there are still some lovely flowers here and there.

First of all, here's what's blooming in the pots out in the courtyard garden, whether they be sitting atop the table or braving it out on the pavers.

It's also terrific to see the first ever blooms on my Diffenbachias and the first 'break' on one of my Cycas revolutas.

Here's some of the lovely sights out in the shadehouse garden.

Finally, there are still a few blooms left in the tiered garden beds.

An Early Spring Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day.

Early Spring ... and the garden is dry, dry, dry!  Typical of our dry season, there's been no rain for over four months during our Winter and early Spring, and my passion for gardening has waned a little.   In addition to the lack of rain, the wind has also whipped up considerably in the last few weeks and the potted plants that provide much of the colour here at this time of year, are drying out faster than usual.  

Not only am I spending a fair amount of time trying to water the poor thirsty plants, but the hungry, hungry wallabies have managed to get into my bad books this year by decimating so many plants they've never touched before.  I'm almost afraid to get up in the morning and wander around the place as I inevitably find something else that's been nibbled down to a tiny stump.

Luckily there are still some plants they haven't yet acquired a taste for, so some colour remains in a few corners.  So I do have some blooms to share on this mid-Spring GBBD post.

One of my favourite combinations at the moment is this gorgeous Vanilla Marigold and the Bumble Bee Petunia.  They do make a great looking pair.

There's always fabulous foliage plants to appreciate, and I do so love the splashes of white that just seem to lift various corners of the garden.  There's the little round ball shaped flowers of the Ozothamnus diosmifolius, the striking white flowers of the unknown variety of Begonia, the startling white of the Pentas and the happy faces of the white Gazanias.

Then there's the bright vibrant colours of the annuals and perennials like Impatiens walleriana, Rudbeckia, Nasturtium, Torenia, Russelia, Verbena, Pelargonium and Impatiens hawkeri.

One thing that really does lift the spirits of this dry season gardener is the presence of so many beautiful birds with their amazing songs.  They surround me every day as I wander through the garden and simply make my day.

I've also spotted some fantastic creatures, like this fabulous looking North Queensland Day Moth ...

... and this Ladybird, which is not a common sight around here!

Oh ... and then at the end of another day of being disheartened by the discovery of yet another nibbled plant or seeing plants in obvious distress because they're craving a decent drink, I get to see stunning sunset skies like this ....

... and this!

For fabulous posts on this Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day, make sure you go and visit Carol at May Dreams Gardens

I'm joining Tootsie's meme Fertilizer Friday / Flaunt Your Flowers 

and I'm joining Gesine for her Blogger Flowers For September meme.

Spring Is Here! ... My Dry Tropics Garden Journal ... Week 37, 2011.

Date:  September 11th, 2011


Season:  Early Spring and 'Dry' Season

The weather has turned a little overcast lately and there have been some ominous looking dark clouds hanging around, but no rain.  We're now just over four months into our 'dry' season and, with the beginning of Spring, it's the beginning of the end of the glorious cool comfortable climate we experience here during our Autumn-Winter.

Summertime is not something I look forward to in my part of the world  ... only 80 days to go, but who's counting ... so Springtime is not something I get all that excited about.  For northern hemisphere people this may be a little hard to comprehend, but for those who live in the sultry tropics you will know exactly why this is so!

It's still pleasant enough during the daytime though, to wander around the garden areas I call the Shadehouse Garden ...

...  and the Courtyard Garden.

I realise I show this view of the Courtyard Garden a lot.  It's what you see if you stand with your back to the main part of the house.

I thought I should probably show the courtyard from another angle, and you will see why this particular garden area is such a favourite of mine.  To me, the Courtyard Garden feels like it's part of the house.  It's like an outdoor room.  Here's the view looking towards the house for a change.

This area is where I spend a lot of my time.  It's my wonderful colourful haven.  When I'm not at work, I probably wander out there anything up to twenty times a day.  A bit of watering, deadheading, trimming.  There's always time for a bit of a chat with the residents whether they be plant ...

... or animal. 

The remainder of our property however, is not so much a haven as one huge expanse of dry parched ground where I choose not to spend a whole lot of time.

I don't share vista views of the property much, especially not during our dry season.  It's about now I can hear the voice of that robot in 'Lost In Space' saying "Danger, Will Robinson.  Danger!"  I feel the need to change that sentence slightly and say "Danger, dear reader. Danger!"  But, this is a garden journal, not a showcase of lovely garden photos!  You will understand completely why I'm not all that keen to share many vista views when you see the following photos.

Months without rain for the grass and plants on this rocky granite hillside means they die off, die back or look pretty horrid for most of the year.  But, of course, given the damage many trees and bushes suffered earlier in the year during a destructive cyclone, the place is looking far worse than usual because so many of the established plants are just not in top form.

So here's the view down the driveway garden from the gates this time last year ... during dry season.

This is the view this year.

Spot the differences!!

The Calliandras on either side of the gates are almost missing from the view as they had to be cut back a lot.  The huge stands of Duranta repens shrubs appear to be missing.  They're not actually missing.  They're just tiny, standing at less than a metre in height still.  There's one of the recovering Durantas in the photo below ... you can see the bright green new growth.  That shrub was over 3 metres high this time last year.

It's also obvious that the massive Golden Cane Palm clumps are not quite their usual lush and full selves.  So many of the fronds were broken or snapped off during Yasi, and a lot of the long erect golden stems had to be thinned out.  Cyclone recovery is still on-going for so many of the trees and shrubs in the driveway garden beds, but of course, this has been drastically slowed down by the lack of rainfall.

In spite all this though, there have been some delightful finds.  There's finally a spray of flowers on at least one of the severely trimmed Duranta repens shrubs.  It's terrific to see the pretty purple blooms once again, even if it's just one spray at the moment.

My poor beloved stunted white Bauhinia has also thrown up a bloom.  What a darling sight from this old trooper!  A valiant effort considering the tree is less than one-third the size it was last year.

OK ... enough of finding the good, here's another little tale of woe.  At the moment, I'm having trouble keeping the Agile Wallabies out of the garden beds around the house, especially the two front beds.  Now I know the wallabies are having trouble finding food during this dry season, but they have now resorted to nibbling on my plants ... plants like my oldest Hibiscus rosa-sinensis, which is usually covered in huge red flowers right now. 

This poor shrub not only had to put up with the indignities dished out by Cyclone Yasi, when it was stripped of most of its leaves and had its branches ripped off, it's now become a favourite with hungry wallabies. These creatures have never touched this shrub before in the more than ten years we've lived here and it's strange seeing the shrub looking so bare and forlorn.  The wallabies have now resorted to pulling down the branches and breaking them off to get to the leaves that are left.   By the way ... did you happen to notice the dead grass?   We're so used to the sight, but I know visitors are often taken aback.

One of the biggest jobs around my place at the moment, apart from attempting to keep ravenous wallabies at bay, is to keep an eye out for those plants in distress because of the dry conditions.  After almost five months without rain, there have been some signs that the older established plants down the driveway are starting to get a little thirsty.  Plants such as the Crotons have started dropping leaves.

The Giant Sword Fern clumps down the hill driveway have started sizzling in the bright sunshine, thanks to the removal of the tree canopy by Cyclone Yasi, and have started dying off because of lack of moisture.  I've had to actually put the sprinkler on for a couple of hours in the early mornings this past week to try and keep them going.



The old deciduous Plumerias in this area are not showing signs of distress though. They are starting to show the first signs of new foliage, so (as I said before) it's not all doom and gloom out there.  I have high hopes for a brilliant display of blooms this summer now that they have had so much time in full sun since the tree canopy was removed.

There have also been some firsts in the garden. 

The first red bracts have appeared on my Stromanthe sanguinea 'Triostar' out in the Shadehouse Garden...

... and the first bottlebrush bloom has appeared on my Callistemon 'Pink Champagne' which is growing in the tiered garden bed.

These are the things that gladden the heart despite the fact that all around is looking so drab and dreary There have also been some fabulous sunsets which have indeed lifted the spirits.  It's a fantastic way to end the day.