Winter Solstice

Today is the Winter Solstice - and my first Algerian Iris came out yesterday:

and, while I am here, can anyone identify this small tree. It comes up everywhere, but I like it. Reminds me of Dinosaurs etc:

It is coming into flower at the moment.

Treeferns

Since some of those overseas who happen upon this blog may not be familiar with Treeferns, I thought I would post a couple of pictures. So, here are mine. This is the one I moved the other day, in its new position:

All I have done is cut it off at ground level, and prune the fronds off at the top, and bury the new base in the ground.

And this is the tallest one - which is about eight foot high - grown from a spore by my Mother, and moved from next door.

They grow wild in the bush, but are very strictly controlled - you cannot sell them without a permit, and you should never buy one unless an official ticket is attached saying it has been harvested under licence. The fern gullies they grow in are beautiful. HERE is one scene.

Frosty

Mild frost yesterday, bit heavier today (minus one overnight - birdbath frozen solid this morning). Capsicums and potatoes all burnt off, and the tree dahlia does not look happy.

So there is now mild colour in the crategus, and almost all other trees are bare - apart from the Judas Tree - but it is very sheltered.

It is winter

Today is officially winter - the 1st June. Although some would say that it is not winter until the solstice - is that 21 June????

There are not a lot of autumn leaves left - most blew away in the wind last week. Although there is still good colour in the wisterias, and the crategus is only just starting to colour. And the Spiketail. So there is still more autumn to come.

Today we moved a treefern - it is too cramped by the new fence, so it has gone over next to the house - there was a bare area begging for it. Near it is the tiny treefern that P found growing out of a piece of cut treefern designed to be an orchid board. Hopefully the two will grow almost together, like treeferns sometimes do in nature.

It is the second move for the larger one - Mum originally struck it from a packet of spores (!) at the house next door - about twenty years ago. When we built the new house she just had to take her two-treeferns with her. The other is still doing fine - the crown is way above the top of the fence (it must be seven or eight foot high), so it can stay where it is. With two other treeferns against the house (we cannot remember their antecedents - Mum thinks she got one cheap as a baby), it all makes a wonderful fernery.

Years ago I did hear that if you put half a cup of sugar a month in the crown and water it in, that it promotes growth. Must try it again when the new growth starts in spring.

And, I have just realised that some overseas readers may not be familiar with Australian treeferns. They grow wild in the bush, and when cut off at ground level, the trunk is just placed in the ground and they continue to grow from the top. So that is how this one was moved.

You can see one of mine behind the tank in this photo - that one is about five foot high.