What's blooming in July 2006 in my little garden?

Kamote, or kumura or sweet potatoes- had been harvested and eaten. And so were the passion fruits- not my plant but my Malaysian friend, Rosie's plant.
My next door neighbour's little bush of colourful azaleas.
I think this is called Honesty- clap them in between your hands and you will hear a popping sound- there probably isn't much for you to pop as i've popped most of them. They just come out in winter.
My little bed of flowers that added colour to our front yard- petunias and dianthus.
The orchids on the paper tree- legacy of previous owners of the house- stalks are coming out already and they always do, every year. They are also the most neglected plants in my garden.
Striped impatiens are also blooming- their fruits are my favourites as they also pop and curl- i scared David with one of its fruits once...i got one ripe one, almost bursting, asked him to close his eyes and extend his hands out - which he did... i placed the fruit in the middle of his palm and i asked him to slowly close his hand - and when he almost closed it, it went POP and rolled and curled - and he yelled out ahhhhh and thought it was a living thing. You can guess that he chased me around the house....LOL i like to tease David...
These petunias are so white and those dianthus are just good complements of the petunias.

Happy planting...

Our Fence is Finished but...

Our front fence is finished- apart from the bushes that we planted in between the posts need to grow... I keep on giving them a 'haircut' as someone said that this will make them thrive.

But , this side of the fence where the letterbox is, the bricks in between are just temporary. we have not decided yet whether to put up a gate here or a walkway.

David tried to kill off this tree as it was blocking a lot of sun but being a tree lover I asked him to spare it as I will look after it and will just maintain it to this height...I just love those new growth. And of course David seldom says no to me...he is nice...

BUT a big BUT....he's going to start on a new project AGAIN!...just purchased $800 worth of wood and am really surprised that there are not many of them....didn't realise that wood (from trees) cost so much....let me say that it's just worth a bit over an IPOD+accessories- and digicam here....well I guess it's money( actually loan from the credit card- where else?) well spent as it's going to add value to the house.

Will monitor the progress of this project...apparently it will be 3 meters long and it's suppose to be a carport but for the meantime we will use it like a plant nursery of sorts- for his orchid collection (he has 2 in the pot so far and 2 nailed on a tree)...hopefully i can propagate succulents and geraniums here too....Is it his or mine? OURS....

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Bromeliads

My Botanica Random House 1998 book is getting some good use nowadays as I looked up The
Bromeliads. And here goes...

The 50 or so species of Bromelia are scattered through South America and parts of Central America and the West Indies. They are mostly ground-dwelling perennials resembling pineapple plants, with strong, hooked spines along the margins of their long stiff leaves which generally turn a bronzy color in strong sun. The leaves form large rosettes which in some species can multiply by sending out long rhizomes to make extensive clumps. A stout flower spike arises from the center of the rosette surrounded by leaf-like bracts that may be brilliantly coloured.

I have just started a collection and I have 4 kinds now. The first one was acquired one year ago in a garage sale. The others were from K-mart and the flea market. It's a hardy plant, very suitable for Queensland conditions so I think that I shall propagate this plant.

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