What
a strange year it's been in Melbourne: autumn and winter droughts, little rain
in early spring, now torrents in late spring (no complaints from me). Our lime
tree nearly died and the Garrya
`James Roof' looks haggard (and it refused to flower in winter; I sympathised
with this strike; better no flowers but a plant surviving, particularly a good
3m high evergreen shrub. This Garrya
somewhat blocks the view of the henhouse from the house, so it's arguably the
most important plant in the garden (at least until the shrubs planted to screen
the sheds have grown another metre or 2).
Yes,
I should have watered them.
But the spring flowers are so lovely this year:
masses of bluebells, bugle and a few paeonies (top) one minute, glorious species
gladioli (mainly petite The Bride...nearly a species) and fragrant English
roses (such as `Molineux', last pic) the next. Clematis (above), too, one or 2 up a birdhouse pole and
others including `Prince Charles' climbing a large shrub (or `thrown up a tree'
as the Brits say) (I love the soft blue of this one even as my sister teases
me, an Australian republican (in a non-US way) about its inclusion in the
garden). Meanwhile little purple iris dotted all along the front path
beautifully matched our purple gate.
And in the bush? Recently, myriads of pandorea (wonga
vine, P. pandorana, above) flowers, and
masses of exquisite clematis (starry C.
aristata, below) blooms, both climbing up gum trees, conferred lacy white smocks
and sometimes bonnets too.
Were
they flowering so prolifically because of the green drought?
These native climbers are over now, but we have
a lovely surprise by our gate (where there's some remnant bush): a grass tree
(below) which has flowered once before, has sent up 4 showy spikes of white
florets...that smell like semen. Yes, really.
This is Xanthorrea australis, the eastern species with a subterranean trunk, unlike the remarkable ones found west of Melbourne across to Western Australia, each with its grassy clump atop a dramatic, above-ground black trunk.
So...did
the drought cause this floriforescence (if that's a word)? I think so.
I'm
enjoying the show...so much.
Jill Weatherhead is
horticulturist, writer, garden designer and principal at Jill Weatherhead Garden Design
who lives in the Dandenong Ranges east of Melbourne, and works throughout Victoria.
(www.jillweatherheaddesign.com.au)
