When Mum and Dad got home from Europe, the garden in a sorry state; the reticulation had failed so we had patchy grass, a sad looking herb garden and a few dead prize plants.
It wasn't too much of a surprise as our garden water is pumped from a mill stream which can run dry over summer and some plants end up dying anyway, despite Mum's hawk-like attentions. It was devastating for Mum though as it was somewhat more severe than usual.
By the time I returned a week later, some things were in the process of being revived.
Now a month later, it is amazing what have has quite literally been enticed back from the brink of death through a lot of water and special attention.
The golden shower was looking bare but responded to Mum's concern with a proud burst of colour and is now covered with cascades of golden flowers.
The obstinate apple tree (with five types of apple on it) has never produced more that 2 fruit. This summer, typically it is laden with each stem carrying bunches of apples.
Some of Mum's hoyas (naturally the rare ones) did not survive (but this was a tradition they started early last year), others have decided its the perfect time to send out tendrils to explore the surrounding area and cover themselves with flowers. Even the one indoors went mad.
The cumquat, being yet another citrus tree, had been consigned to a pot (actually a kitchen bin) to stop it growing out of control, and was looking very brown and very dry. After two weeks of drenching it has sprung back to life and has soft green shots covered in delicate leaves.
The fig tree, though barely more than two stems and a dozen leaves, has offered up one fruit, big and fat and very promising.
The baby tree fern was more stubborn and required Mum to go out and buy a replacement for it to cooperate and sprout a green frond. Not that Mum was pleased with its efforts having already progressed through the mourning process and spent money on the replacement.
The Mango and magnolia weren't so fortunate and both have since been replaced.
In the courtyard the ferns have started taking over, resulting in an afternoon of ripping and pulling to get them under control again.
Of the wildlife, the rosellas and wattle birds are making a feast out of the red caped gum, though the little dears have decided they don't like being photographed and disappear the moment my camera appears.
Thankfully the dragonflies are less modest and with the garden filled with red, blue and yellow ones, who flit everywhere scarcely remaining still long enough to photograph.
Though the dragonflies are evil as they eat the little tadpoles, they are beautiful and the garden is full of them, red, blue and golden ones flitting around incessantly. The red one was so easy to photograph I would almost swear it was interested in the sound of my camera's focus.
What was strangest though was the things that did survive, that almost shouldn't have.
It wasn't too much of a surprise as our garden water is pumped from a mill stream which can run dry over summer and some plants end up dying anyway, despite Mum's hawk-like attentions. It was devastating for Mum though as it was somewhat more severe than usual.
By the time I returned a week later, some things were in the process of being revived.
Now a month later, it is amazing what have has quite literally been enticed back from the brink of death through a lot of water and special attention.
The golden shower was looking bare but responded to Mum's concern with a proud burst of colour and is now covered with cascades of golden flowers.
The obstinate apple tree (with five types of apple on it) has never produced more that 2 fruit. This summer, typically it is laden with each stem carrying bunches of apples.
Some of Mum's hoyas (naturally the rare ones) did not survive (but this was a tradition they started early last year), others have decided its the perfect time to send out tendrils to explore the surrounding area and cover themselves with flowers. Even the one indoors went mad.
The cumquat, being yet another citrus tree, had been consigned to a pot (actually a kitchen bin) to stop it growing out of control, and was looking very brown and very dry. After two weeks of drenching it has sprung back to life and has soft green shots covered in delicate leaves.
The fig tree, though barely more than two stems and a dozen leaves, has offered up one fruit, big and fat and very promising.
The baby tree fern was more stubborn and required Mum to go out and buy a replacement for it to cooperate and sprout a green frond. Not that Mum was pleased with its efforts having already progressed through the mourning process and spent money on the replacement.
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| *Not a Tree Fern |
In the courtyard the ferns have started taking over, resulting in an afternoon of ripping and pulling to get them under control again.
Of the wildlife, the rosellas and wattle birds are making a feast out of the red caped gum, though the little dears have decided they don't like being photographed and disappear the moment my camera appears.
Thankfully the dragonflies are less modest and with the garden filled with red, blue and yellow ones, who flit everywhere scarcely remaining still long enough to photograph.
Though the dragonflies are evil as they eat the little tadpoles, they are beautiful and the garden is full of them, red, blue and golden ones flitting around incessantly. The red one was so easy to photograph I would almost swear it was interested in the sound of my camera's focus.
What was strangest though was the things that did survive, that almost shouldn't have.
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