The meaning of holidays - or holy days - like Easter has changed and will continue to changes and so it should. Most people know that Easter was a Spring Equinox festival. Eostre was a goddess of renewal and spring. Eggs were a symbol of new life and the promise of spring after the harsh … Continue reading Easter in the Subtopics
Tag: gardening
Celebrating Gladioli
Gladioli is the plural of gladiolus. Who knew? Gladdies were my first favourite flower. My earliest gardening memories are helping my grandmother plant out the bulbs (right way up). There are over 300 species of gladioli but oddly only one colour in my garden. A very pretty plain pink one we found growing in the … Continue reading Celebrating Gladioli
Slow and steady: Bonsai and Books
My friend is tall but she grows bonsai. I have only killed bonsai. So, I am beginning from scratch under her mentorship. I have jacarandas for inspiration. The jacarandas are coming up under the lemonade tree and I have dug up three and put them in a pot each. Now, I wait. I keep them alive … Continue reading Slow and steady: Bonsai and Books
My Ancient Aloe Vera
I can’t remember how old this Aloe Vera plant is. We bought it from our old house in 1999. It could be 20 years old and is stunning in its age. I do nothing to it. It is in a pot in a shaded area and I might from time to time throw some water on … Continue reading My Ancient Aloe Vera
Queensland Fruit Fly
There is one gardening job I hate. I don't have too many pests to deal with. One year I had these odd insects that jumped like fleas. I can't remember what they were called. Another year I had so many cane toads they dug up my seedlings. That made me squeamish. I deal with or … Continue reading Queensland Fruit Fly
How writing and gardening are the same
Gardening and writing are the same. They are both hard work. You either have to put your bum in the chair or get out in the hot sun. An effort is required. You are always learning. The basics are easy. You can throw something in the dirt or write a sentence, but if you want … Continue reading How writing and gardening are the same
How does your garden grow?
Mary, Mary, quite contrary how does your garden grow. This is one of my favourite nursery rhymes. I am not sure why, but thinking about it now, rhyming Mary and contrary has its charm. I don't have silver bells or cockle shells, or even pretty maids all in a row but the garden does grow. … Continue reading How does your garden grow?
Custard Apples: How to win friends and influence people
There are two types of people in the world. People who love custard apples and people who had never heard of them. Those who love custard apples have a problem. You can't easily buy them. I can understand why. They are nobbly and misshapen which must make them hard to box up and transport. They … Continue reading Custard Apples: How to win friends and influence people
Wildlife taketh and the wildlife giveth
Last week I mentioned how excited I was to plant a grape again. Saturday morning I was doing some unwriting (deleting 700 words from my WIP) and I heard a commotion outside. I thought it was the cockatoos who are a handsome menace. I went outside to find this: I want to love brush turkeys. … Continue reading Wildlife taketh and the wildlife giveth
Spring/Sprinter stories part 4
It is officially Spring. I feel good because I have done nearly all my spring jobs already. Most all my fruit trees are fertilised and the fruit fly traps are out. The biggest job, one I hate, I completed today. Mulching. Now I have itchy hay forearms. The other exciting news this week is that I … Continue reading Spring/Sprinter stories part 4