Spring fever

Only six days into spring and I already feel light-headed and well, springy. The sun is out, blossoms are exploding and the urge to potter in the garden is overwhelming.

The front garden is all pebbles and drought-loving plants.

The kangaroo paw 'Bush Fury' is looking good.

The cordylines seem to be thriving.

Near the red front door I have positioned three smallish plants (a dwarf agapanthus, a succulent, and a Japanese box), all of which are growing well.

I have been blessed with lovely gardening friends. One gave me this gorgeous orchid. Its buds refused to do anything for 2 months until last week, lo and behold, a burst of spring fever and I have four delectable flowers. The blue pot was given to me by another friend. How lucky I am!

 I'm a sucker for red geraniums and this one is very obliging.

The date palm was buffeted by the strong winter winds but has withstood the onslaught and is looking good. It's in the pot Kate and Kim gave me.

I had a huge cumquat tree in my last garden and regularly made cumquat jam which always turned out well. So this is my latest purchase. For those of you who like to know such things it is Cumquat Nagami which produces, so the label tells me, 'delicious teardrop-shaped fruit in the winter'. We shall see. It's only just been planted so needs to settle in.

The pot is another gift from my friend Di.

Plants are in full bloom everywhere I look:

The rich purple of the statice

Pale pink diosma blooms against the green foliage

The ever-reliable alyssum

This next photo is cheating. I love the smell of freesias. However, I didn't plant any bulbs this year so had to resort to a purchase. I am definitely putting them in next year.

We have just ordered sun screens for the courtyard, to go between the posts on the western side. This should effectively shield the area from the heavy winter rain (to a degree) and allow me to recline on the sofa in summer without the glare of the sun bouncing off next door's roof in the afternoon.

I have decided to fill in the 10 cm gap between the back fence and the courtyard with shells. I know, not a particularly original idea, but I think it will look good. Plenty to gather at the beach just down the road. It may take a while though, as the shells in the picture filled a bag and they have covered just 30 cms, and I have about 3 metres to cover.

We have also had solar panels installed. There's lots of sun here for at least three quarters of the year, and there are no trees to obstruct the panels from doing their job. In our last house there was no place to put them on the roof as we were surrounded by tall gum trees and every bit of the roof was in shadow at some time in the day. Almost every house in Encounter Bay has them.

 I know it's going to rain again soon, the clouds will spread their gloom overhead, and the wind will reappear, but that's spring for you, so for now, join me in a cup of Earl Grey and savour the delights of chez Robertson in spring.....