Summer shots

16 Mar '07 7:55 am

Hallo all – I’ve had little time to think of you: last weekend was our Interact 24 hour swim – very successful, very exhausting; this weekend is our Rotary open water swim (500 plus entries expected), our biggest fundraiser where I am in control of the prize-giving… and in between we had all the pressure with getting mark orders and reports completed. But that is done and tonight I have taken TIME OUT (except, of course, that I am busy doing my washing, otherwise I will leave to see my sister and family in Namibia on Monday with my dirty laundry in a plastic bag! Hope that wasn’t what our kids call ‘over-share’ Embarassed

.)

To answer a few questions raised: the berry down at The Embarkment is a Berberis darwinii – a particularly fine example both in flower and in fruit – I must find a flowering picture to show you…

The Embarkment started as a two-level area called Charlotte’s Jetty, named after my goddaughter who spent much time here aged about 3. Her mom is my opera singer friend whom I am going to hear sing Lucia in Scotland in June. The lower level of the Jetty is below water, to allow the squeamish access without getting their toes in the mud. Then we realised that a sitting out area would be great, so three more levels were added, forming steps, seats and a table – all done with flowing lines because straight would have been both boring to saw and awkward with a free-form shape. I built it all myself and completed it for the inauguration of the Rondel Garden, when I invited some 25 of Francois and my friends for the weekend. All the off-cuts went into a little relief panel to one side which I have never photographed… should do so. When my nephews were here in September we restored The Embarkment, and they thought it a wonderful project!

Now I don’t often use it: I prefer shade to sun and the dogs think it my duty to throw sticks into the water for them when I am there, which results in a most dreadful noise. However when my pupils come for their annual picnic it is far and away the most popular spot to congregate, and I’ve had to introduce limits on numbers there (thus the need for the September restoration!)

Today I include more autumn-is-on-the-way shots. And I have also prepared and will hopefully manage to post a few pics of the spectacular Kniphofia which was lifted 100m away and planted in the Cottage Garden. By rights it should go under the indigenous string in My Garden and Plants, so look out for it…

On Monday, as I say, I leave for Namibia. I will attempt to retain a Bluetooth connection but Namibia IS a foreign country and this IS Africa…

PS: I love the word 'brio' to describe Monty, Liza!
PPS: Bluetooth is taking forever tonight and I want an early night: bye all!

16 Mar '07 4:28 pm

Hi, Jack-

I really liked your pictures of the maple just showing colour and the cottage garden with the very grand kniphofias!

Here, the maple buds are swelling but haven't even thought of opening yet! I love it when my Japanese full moon maple opens its leaves like geishas' fans. That's its glory time of the year, as the leaves later tend to dry out at the edges and, in fall, it just turns brownish-yellow.

As for kniphofias, there are some wonderful clumps of them here in town, but mine have never done all that well - not enough sunshine, I suspect. As a result, I'm moving most of them to the front where it gets sunshine all day; we'll see how they do there!

I'm looking forward to seeing more of your wonderful pictures, especially of the dogs!! Very Happy

Cheers!

gordonf

17 Mar '07 3:52 pm

Got to see the Rosemary Borders for the first time in days yesterday. Nothing new -only a final blaze of summer. When I get back in April I shall start an autumn diary...

17 Mar '07 8:16 pm

Hey, Jack- I am SO envious that you have an English Bull Terrier! I had a brindle one for 14 years and loved him dearly! They are definitely the gentlemen of the dog world, aren't they? Mine wouldn't even walk through a puddle if he could avoid it! He used to make me laugh so much when he cocked his head and examined a bug in the grass with one eye! Here's a picture of him; his name was Sherman (after the tank!).

Also, the picture of the white anemone - is that one called, "Honorine Joubert"? I really must get one of them for a dark spot in my back flower bed sometime to brighten it in the fall when the blue Corydalis have finished blooming. Maybe next year!

Once again, your pictures are wonderful and serve to pick me up on a grey day like today! But, wait! The daffodils are in bloom and so spring must be near!!

Have a great time in Namibia!

-gordonf

18 Mar '07 5:49 am

Hi Gordon!

Friends of mine had a bulldog called Sherman! Taubie is in fact a x BT. She looked at me from a petshop window I passed regularly without so much as a thought and she said 'hello I'm yours!' So I phoned my cousin whom I was due to join on the Limpopo farm the next week and said 'could I bring an 8 week-oold pup?' The rest is history.

I have never had a dog I love as much as Taubie. She was sold as BT x fox terrier, but she is in fact very unterrier like in nature; I think she's either a Labrador or Border Collie cross. She has their gentle, co-operative nature and intelligence - and loves a swim! I have had two pedigreed Bull Terriers, both wonderful dogs, but they are bloody-minded: 'sure I know what you want me to do, but actually I'm doing it my way' Taubie is mortified when she doesn't please me. Only when it comes to cats, monkeys or mongooses do I see the typical 'love humans, hate animals' response of the BT. The main reason I don't have cats...

The fierce look was just a bad moment. She was in fact out of breath from running and busy sniffing the tree as though there was a foreign smell on it.

Taubie means 'little dove' in Yiddish; quite appropriate, even though she was actually named after a friend, a rather fierce Jewish theatre empressario who wore flamboyant perspex jewellery. Not quite my Taubie's scene. I always thought the original Taubie singularly badly named...

As for the white anemone: I have every reason to believe it is 'Honorine Joubert' - it is strong and spreads prolifically. However I have never seen anemones advertised by name in South Africa. In fact, despite of the most impressive garden centres in the world, the marketing of PLANTS in SA is quite pathetic. At one stage I thought I might try to change that. But I am neither an entrepreneur nor a marketer. Rather I'll ferret out interesting plants and share them with other collectors without any thought of making bucks out of them.

18 Mar '07 8:21 am

Wow , Jack! Your Autumn ...down there has become again SO beautiful! I remember last year those photos of your romantic bridge and your pond, while it was changing colours according to the season and the time of the day! You are SO lucky living among SUCH natural beauty! Those red leaves photo is like a painting! Your dogs are lovely again! Your Bull Terrier is really funny in the photo ...with the wolf note! I had first met a dog like this in Italy many years ago, and his papa had told me, that he specializes in finding those really tasty(and very expensive) mushrums in the Forest, called Truffes! All Bull-Terriers do that! The Italian chefs create miracles with these Truffes black mushrums!

18 Mar '07 4:21 pm

Hi again, Jack;

Thanks so much for the extra info. about Taubie! I can tell from the description how much you love the dog, and it's easy to do so! I've heard that there is a miniature bull terrier variety that I'd love to get if I ever need another dog, but they are probably very expensive. I'm sure no dog could replace my Sherman! Joey, my current blue heeler, is a completely different kettle of fish - very obedient (as a rule) and quite shy of anything new in his life. He's also definitely a farm dog and loves to get dirty and wet. Although, I must admit that he doesn't like being out in the rain much even though he'll plough through a muddy bog with great glee!

Isn't it strange about anemones in S. Africa? Everybody sells them here. Is it hard bringing plants into the country there?

Once again, thanks very much for the lovely early fall shots. Fall is my favourite season, although the trees here on the west coast don't colour up anything like the ones back east where I grew up. There, the maples and others become so bright that on misty autumn days they appear to have lighted lanterns all over them. It's no wonder that when Europeans saw the first paintings of the autumn colours, they couldn't believe them! Kind of like when they saw the first platypus, eh?

Anyway, I'm looking forward to seeing future autumn pictures from you!

Cheers,

gordonf

19 Mar '07 4:47 am

Dear Jack, again I have enjoyed both seeing the lovely photos and reading your very interesting posts. I was especially taken with the love white anemone. I love those flowers and have tried several times to introduce them to my gardens here, but have had no success so far. They just don't like my climate I suppose. Too warm and wet at all the wrong times. I also enjoyed reading the exchanges between you and Gordon about bull terriers and favorite companions present an past. I started to use the word "pets", but realized that was a misnomer. All of the beloved animals in our posts are treasured companions who bring so much joy to our lives.

19 Mar '07 5:46 am

South Africans are not passionate gardeners; they might like 'pretty'; or 'neat'; or 'indigenous' or 'low-mintenance'... but they don't have a broad knowledge of garden plants and with the long, hot, often dry summers most of the country experiences, traditional herbaceous perennials are very low on most people's list. Then the concept of precision in naming plants is relatively knew, and based more on what the marketers are pushing than on what an informed public is demanding. So we are lucky if anemones specify pink or white...

We had the Ebenezer Mile swim today. And for the first time in three months it rained - a non-stop drizzle which made a 7-hour outdoor function with 2000 people rather trying to manage. I am mentally, spiritually and physically exhausted tonight!

Whilst I go about packing for my holiday and trying to do something to not leave my home in too much of a mess whilst I'm away, I will post the odd pics that never made it to the forum during these last disrupted weeks. Don't quite know what to expect myself - perhaps I'll start with a sunset photo from yesterday, after we had spent ten hours at the dam preparing for today...

Sorry - didn't get much beyond that...

19 Mar '07 6:53 am

I just had to smile about the ubiquitous Coco cola sign ,Jack .My daughter in law worked for some time as an executive with the Coca cola company in NZ .On her world travels she got a photo of herself in every country standing by a Coke sign ~~~Coke sign in Paris ~ Coke sign in Rome ~ Coke sign in Barcelona etc etc.
Also probably the most intelligent ,loyal dog of all is the Border Collie .We always had Bearded Collies as working dogs -loveable natures ,but not the brains of the Border Collie ,who can work sheep ,cattle , geese and hens -I kid you not !
Dixie.

Summer shots

End of term!

Early Fall (?)

Parting shots

A Bull Terrier!!

Bull Terriers

Again, some dreamy photos!

Taubie

Anemone

Why not anemones?

Coke