Brisbane rain

The constant rain in Queensland is driving everyone mad but since we have just returned to Brisbane we are just pleased it is not too hot. The Bougainvillea whilst not flowering has formed the thickest wreath we have ever seen over the house entrance.

Mould has taken over in places and it is time to have a spring clean in autumn. Wasps have set up new homes and are clinging to the verandah rails so when they went to sleep I had to hit them with insect spray as John is seriously allergic to wasps and bees.

All the Liriopes are flowering purple including this striped Liriope.

Sage, chives and oregano plants were being attacked by possums before we left but have escaped their attention in the wet.

I planted  ‘Moses in the Cradle’  (botanical name Rhoeo spathacea) around the Kaffir Lime tree just before we left for Tasmania.

Another view of the Moses border.

Driveway border of Miniature Gardenia (Gardenia Radicans) are flowering well.

So we have perfume for the house.

The curry leaf shrub has become a tree and is totally out of control. It now obscures the three Bay leaf trees that were planted to form a hedge between the lime tree and the curry tree. The Frangipane we planted before we left is peeping up in the foreground, we thought we had lost it but it survived.

Lemon thyme has taken off but to the right something died. I cannot even recall what I planted there.

Basil is ready for pesto or we better change our diet to Thai cuisine this week to make the most of it. I have just picked fifteen limes so a Thai menu wins.

The Teddy Bear Magnolia is almost buried by the hardy Canna Lillies. Where did they spring from, we certainly never planted them. They are a rhizome and full of starch and are used by the Vietnamese to make cellophane noodles. Just after I took the photo John got the work boots on and removed them. Canna is quite lovely but the Magnolia has superiority for light and water and I don’t ever need to labour over making cellophane noodles.

It is not all good news as the back lawn has suffered from the rain so we are onto a remedy. Just after taking the photo we mixed an anti grub powder with a recommended topsoil and filled in the gaps. At least the Murraya Paninculata (Orange Jessamine) hedging we planted in front of the brown fence are all alive and growing evenly. Our back neighbour’s trees shed leaves all year round including palm trees that drop nuts into our pond, swimming pool and garden and they refuse to maintain them regularly so the fountain behind the pool is a complete mess. We cleaned it out last October and now it needs another thorough clean up.

We do have wonderful neighbours either side of us and this is the glorious view we have over the fence.

The cycad was given to me many years ago by my friend Di and it is another reminder that we live in a sub tropical climate. You can look into the centre from the balcony above. The Gazanias on the ground near the cycad did not do so well. Considering they are hardy and the Brisbane City Council used them for median strip planting I was surprised to see some die. Well gardens are not static, there’s always a few more dollars to spend and some gaps to fill.