Late spring on Sequoia Farm

24 Oct '06 7:37 pm

I took these pics last week, when the first rain arrived dead on target (wrong image Shocked

) - let's hope it is going to be a good year, with enough regular rain combined with lovely sunny late afternoons...

24 Oct '06 10:11 pm

Absolutely breath-taking scenes! So vast, so rich in greenery and exquisitely beautiful! Awesome photography too! Thanks for sharing these calendar masterpieces, Jack! Very Happy

And may your hopes and dreams come true!!

25 Oct '06 8:50 am

I'm quite envious of all the beautiful trees you have. They're wonderful.
*wishes she could fast-forward her own trees a few years*

30 Oct '06 10:09 pm

The time has come to start calling this summer, so I guess this is the last time I post here! On Thursday afternoon I managed to fit in a walk in the garden – it has been a luxury to be home before dark these last three months – luckily ‘dark’ is happening a lot later now!
In the arboretum I found the last camellias in bloom, and there are still many lovely azaleas.

I photographed the view across the valley: things are starting to take shape… in the middle back the caravan-home, our original home after my aunt inherited the part of the farm with the house, can be seen. Today it serves as a self-contained guest flat. The Upper Rosemary Border is filling out nicely, the Lower one has just been planted to seedmix – over 200m² of what I see is known as ‘wild flowers’ in NZ. Hold thumbs for the results! Even the hedges look OK from this distance.

I also photographed some wild flowers; it is amazing just how many gorgeous flowers are endemic on the farm, and how many surfaced soon after the pines were cut down in what is now the arboretum. I photographed the dramatic Scadoxus puniceus, known as the bloodlily or ‘sore eye plant’ because of the damage it can do to grazing cattle (Are cattle colour blind – surely they can SEE it a mile off!) and a diminutive and shy lobelia relation. The flower is about the size of a garden carpet lobelia, thumb-nail sized. I cheated a bit, as the light was going, and put it through hole in a flowering cherry leaf for the close-up! I photographed Scilla natalensis growing wild and unirrigated in the arboretum – some stems are only now preparing to flower, their leaves only 5-10 cm long. In the rose garden they flowered in September, huge plumes with huge strap shaped leaves like agapanthus!

At the Embarkment I photographed Diarama pulcherrima, known as Angels’ Rods or Fairy Fishing Rods. They grow wild in the high grasslands of our area, but I’ve never seen them wild on the farm. The very first time I ever saw them was at Bodnant in Wales, and what an impression they made on me! Their grass like habit, and the way their quite large pink bells – about 2cm long - hang at regular intervals from drooping wands is quite unique – and their common names are perfectly appropriate! I also have white ones which I will photograph in the weeks to come.

At the Embarkment – the jetty often seen in the background in views of my dam – I planted two roses that were accidentally doubled up when planting the Rondel. Ironically they grow infinitely better here, where they have space to romp, and trees that help support their stretching habit. They never get pruned – mainly because they get forgotten – and every year they grow more magnificent.

Planted near the Carpet Garden is a very beautiful Japanese Maple, Acer palmatum ‘Tricolor’. My friends the Railtons propagated by grafting from it, and gave me a young plant last week. I shall plant it where one can look down on it even when it is quite large, because that is how best to see the leaves.

On my way to work on Thursday I stopped at the waterlily pond to see how things were developing. Monty was confused: we went through the usual workday routine and then I stopped – did this mean it was a playday? That explains his rather confused look.

This morning (Saturday) I was back there. Seconds after taking the pic of the first (rather miserable looking) yellow waterlily planted a week ago, a snake swam at speed under water towards me and disappeared into the growth on the edge of the pond. I tried to disturb it, but did not see it again. It is the first time I’ve seen a snake swimming underwater – usually their heads are above water and they move quite slowly. I’d love to know what it was – we are said to have no dangerous snakes in our immediate vicinity.

The second (yellow) waterlily in flower for the first time and there are two blooms and three buds on the pink waterlily. Now that I know they are happy here, I plan to rival Monet in this small pond! Mothertjie – the rose – is planted just to the left of the picture and Thursday’s pic of Monty was taken just to the right.

When I took the gorgeous pic of the pink waterlily (‘Mrs Richards’) I did not even realise there was a dragonfly perched on it – imagine my joy when looking at the pic on the computer! I love the colour, the meniscus and the reflection in this photo as well.

On Sunday I again went walking. All over the roses are looking splendid. I took more photos around the garden, and include two photos only posts on the Anniversary Garden and the Rondel, although I guess they ought to be in the Rose Forum!

31 Oct '06 5:01 am

In my last post I talk about wild vs. garden scillas. These scillas were photographed in the garden in late September - more than twice as tall, three-five times the leaves and a full month earlier. Just goes to show what a bit of nurturing can do! (But how pleased I am to find scillas when I thought their time was over...)

31 Oct '06 3:18 pm

More beautiful photos which I appreciate. Thank you for them.
Monty's lovely isn't he? He looks to be a sensible size (medium-ish?), unlike our monsters. I hope he's well behaved in the garden. If we gave our dogs 'freedom' (they have a large run) they'd be off. Very Happy

31 Oct '06 6:55 pm

Monty, like most Jack Russels, tends to have a Napoleon complex. He is a big dog in a tiny body, but when you see him at 100m he actually gives the impression of being a big dog, so self-assured is his manner. He is bright and charming - and extremely manipulative. He didn't come home on Friday or Saturday night, because there were weekenders to work over, then arrived home at 8pm on Sunday demanding a hero's welcome from me and the other dogs as his birthright. At the 'cuppa for cancer' function at the tea-garden up the valley on Saturday morning, friends tell me he was the perfect host, seeing everyone to their tables and checking that everything was to their (and his!) satisfaction.

He occasionally comes short with Doubly, the Border Collie. Doubly is a lover, not a fighter, and would love to spend all day licking Monty's ears. Monty finds this threatening and tends to growl before the licking can start. So often Doubly fixes him with a Border Collie stare and keeps him cornered. Doubly after all also has his pride. But given half a chance he would rather lick than stare or growl.

1 Nov '06 10:05 am

I think that's hilarious. Laughing

Our two get on reasonably well but Brandy is the dominant one for sure and poor Ziggy gets a hard time from her occasionally. Mostly they get on.

Sorry to be hijacking the thread, and I know I ought to put this in the pet forum but I'm here now... Very Happy

Ziggy's the multi coloured one and Brandy's the all tan. Smile

1 Nov '06 6:20 pm

Is she Ziggy after Ziggy Stardust? She does look rather like David Bowie in full 70s Glam Rock make-up!

1 Nov '06 6:59 pm

Wow, another set of beautiful photos and great photography! Love them all! Your garden pics never cease to dazzle me! Very Happy

and thanks for sharing them, Jack!

Not forgetting all those gorgeous portrait of doggy shots too! Wink

Thanks!

Late spring on Sequoia Farm

First rain

Wow!

End October

wild vs. garden

Monty

Ziggy Stardust?