Photo/s of the day. The garden in Spring.

[moonvoice]

This year has been spectacular.
The Melaleuca incana is flowering for the first time (I was worried it wouldn't)
and is lovely and aromatic.
The Verticordia mitchelliana is incredibly proliferate after a rough start,
and both Lechenaultias are still going.
Basically,
it's fucking beautiful out there, in my small xeriscaped garden of low maintenance local natives.


It's only small so far, but it's getting there.






Jewel beetle and acacia - This particular acacia, Acacia ashbyaea, is known for being particularly awesome for xeriscaping. Basically, it does better, and flowers more prolifically, if you don't water it. I skip watering it even in the middle of a Perth heatwave. Even in 'hottest Summers since records began.' It loves it. Sounds counterproductive? Welcome to gardening with local natives in this particular biome.





Same Acacia.





Darwinia citriodora - I have a soft spot for these plants, since one of my favourite photos I've ever taken is of one of these while bushwalking. Anyway, like the name suggests, they have a wonderful citrus (lemony) scent when the leaves are crushed. I only planted these a couple of months ago and I'm shocked and pleased at how vigorous they are.





Darwinia citriodora in flower





A lot of native plants can attract flies as pollinators, not that I especially mind. In Spring they become remarkably pretty.





On an Acacia merinthropa





Grevillea





Grevillea





Another grevillea









Flower bud





Aromatic flowering Melaleuca incana sp. nana - It smells lovely. These were attacked by native ants last year (the big downside to planting locally is they're often attacked by local pests - and they don't always have symbiotic relationships or survive). We saved all the Melaleuca with an aggressive management program, but we'll have to be vigilant this year to make sure it doesn't happen again.





The Lechenaultia formosa is still flowering.









As is the Lechenaultia biloba





We have lots of helpful creatures in our garden.





This is Verticordia chrysantha - It's one of my favourite flowers in the garden. It has a lovely habit, and shapes itself. It also makes an incredibly enduring cut flower. I have not used any saturation on this photo. Or any of these photos.





The flowers are just that fucking bright.





Really, really bright.





In the same family, we have Verticordia mitchelliana - another feather flower which, amusingly, is quite different from the V. chrysantha, but still freaking stunning.





The buds





Flowering





They have very profuse flowering habits - but you need to give them a year of consistent watering to really get them established. Unlike some other local natives, they need some TLC in the first year, and especially in their first Summer. I lost six, all up, and really learned this the hard way. Now, however, they are extraordinarily hardy, drought resistant, water-wise, and just stunning. I purchased more to replace the lost ones and I'm so happy I did. :)

Comments

[mirrorred_star]

I love your garden. The verticordia mitchelliana is such a cool looking plant.

[moonvoice]

I'm a big fan of the V. mitchelliana; it's so unusual looking.

[silverjackal]

Thank you for sharing your garden with me! :) It is marvelous! I'm always intrigued by the tough, herbaceous/waxy foliage, and the wonderful shapes, which are not what I'm accustomed to for plant growth forms at all. The Verticordia mitchelliana is particularly unusual -- leaves point up, blossoms down? As spectacular as the colour is (and it is indeed spectacular!), I keep getting caught up in the forms and marveling. Of course my favorite is still the Lechenaultia biloba, but you know I have a thing for blue. (I'm also very fond of Lobelia erinus, which is a commonly used decorative plant here, and your Lechenaultia is similar, although a wonderfully different shade of blue. If I had the time, inclination, and climate to really do some proper gardening (you won't see any pictures of my yard any time soon, it is a disgrace and a source of shame to the neighborhood) I would try doing up a flower garden in nothing but shades of blue and silver.

Hopefully the above rambling made sense. I was feeling a little odd last night, and woke up this morning with a cold. *Just* what's wanted, yes? Though I suppose the timing could be worse. :D

[moonvoice]

The Verticordia mitchelliana is particularly unusual -- leaves point up, blossoms down?

Yep, that's it. I had to get on the ground to get those photos. It might assist native bees with buzz pollination (which is where they grab on hard to a flower, 'buzz' really hard, and then all the pollen falls off at which point they collect it off their bodies and reposition it - that's why a lot of flowers are shaped in a way to assist that process - they have something to grab) - but it might be something else entirely. It's hard to find books that write about those things.

The Lechenaultia biloba is great; it's doing so well, I'm going to get some more, I think. I only got two, since I'm never too sure how these will go in the garden. Though Summer will be the real test.

I'm sorry to hear about the cold! D:

[white_rabbit]

Everything is so gorgeous with all the dew on the plants. :) Just lovely!

[moonvoice]

It had just rained. It was really beautiful lighting. :)

[ariestess]

Your garden is so gorgeous! And I am in love with that little orb weaver!

[moonvoice]

It's so cute! I wish I had gotten the other side, because I think it's quite colourful, but it was in a really awkward position.

[ariestess]

*nods* We have a LOT of orb weavers around our house and yard, which I am thrilled about. I think Orb Weaver has joined with Grandmother Spider as one of my primary totems. Or Orb Weaver is Grandmother's Spider's physical face.

[nkyinkyin]

Your garden is so gorgeous. I'm completely enthralled by your natives--they're just *that* different from what I'm accustomed to seeing around here.

[moonvoice]

:D Thank you. I really love native plants; but I think I'd be just as fascinated going overseas, or elsewhere. While we have some European weeds, exotics are still really interesting to me!

[spider_fox]

Spider pic <3

I love your little garden.

[kath_ballantyne]

Gorgeous photos.
I love natives in the rain

[jensurvivor]

The V. chrysantha is very attractive

[jensurvivor]

were also glad to get a close up of the acacia:)

[unaspenser]

Your garden is so lovely! It's nice to see the green and flowers since we are heading into fall here and everything is turning brown (though that's the way of the world in the desert...). I've always wondered what Melaleuca looks like. I am a tea tree oil addict, but I'd never seen the actual plant.

[unaspenser]

P.S. I know tea tree oil is from the M. Alternifolia, which must look slightly different, but still. *silly*

[moonvoice]

I saw your second comment, but yeah, melaleuca - over 200 species and all vastly different. Some herbs, some shrubs, some trees, etc. They smell really nice though. I have melaleuca in my back garden, and a completely different kind in our front. And one of my favourite trees - the paperbark - is also a melaleuca. :)