Who would imagine that dear old hydrangeas would hold up so well during the 2019/20 fires and heatwave conditions in the NSW Blue Mountains? The origin of the name seems to contradict the very notion that they would! ‘First discovered in Japan, the name hydrangea comes from
Read more →
Time to be out and about now the fire risk has subsided. My own garden is a disaster, with only the natives and hydrangeas holding up. But how is everything else going in this awful heatwave I wonder? Well, to my great surprise an ibis has taken
Read more →
And so Christmas in the Blue Mountains village of Blackheath has come to an end. The saddest, happiest, strangest and scariest festive season I’ve experienced in the twenty years we have lived here. In mid December my husband Rob and I attended a delightful nativity play at
Read more →
Here in the Blue Mountains we have a powerful emotional attachment to the glorious Mount Tomah Botanic Gardens. I remember how surprised I was when the entry fee was removed. How often does that happen anywhere? It’s not the issue of saving a few dollars that delights
Read more →
There is no one more upset when a bird is killed or injured than my partner Rob. He is known as Dr Bob, for his ministrations to all manner of feathered creatures in our Blackheath garden. He scrubs out the birdbaths far more often than me, and
Read more →
SUEPRISE SNOW……It’s weird when you wake up at the crack of dawn and open the front door to find the whole landscape has changed. Trousers might have been a sensible idea, Editor Des. What one earth! While we were sleeping the snow was quietly falling. We don’t
Read more →
Carpets of autumn leaves are truly the Axminsters of the earth. I know there are wonderful carpets of blossom in spring, but autumn is definitely the main period for appreciating Mother Nature’s work. It’s one of the main reasons I moved from Sydney to the Blue Mountains
Read more →
Autumn is a busy time for the birds in our Blackheath garden. So many seeds to snack on, so many fallen leaves to scrabble about in. And I swear there are those who just know they look good against a blaze of colour. The cheeky rascal below
Read more →
Honestly, blue wrens could take over my life if I didn’t keep strict control. I should really give them their full title; Superb Fairy Wrens (Maluras cyaneus). And yes, they are as delicate as fairies. Once I had a blue wren stained glass window made for the
Read more →
WHAT A STAR! I have the gentle climber Star Jasmine (Trachelospermum jasminodes ) growing all around my garden (ten plants at last count). It is extremely hardy, and survives our Blue Mountains frosts and snowfalls without the slightest problem. In the photo below it is tumbling down
Read more →