November flowers on the first Sunday in Advent

Towards the 25th of each month I wander the garden. We have been away for a week. How disconcerting to see a difference, only a week, but the front path closes over.

Blue sage

The garden is declining into summer dormancy. It presents a much gentler, hazy blue picture now. The rose garden is dominated by a tall mass of wild blue sage We have the season’s first Agapanthus, a Christmas flower for us in South Africa. A dusty carpet of plumbago’s sky blue for a wild annual Lobelia. Lavender. Deep purple bud coming on Streptocarpus. And another flash of sky blue on Tradescantia, a garden escapee from the Americas.

In a mellow blue mood

With a carpet of Plectranthus neochilus raising mauve spires. Pieces tucked in wherever there are gaps, when the soil was damp, last winter.

Plectranthus neochilus

I used to get an annual allocation of seeds from Kirstenbosch. Once I had this white wild chamomile. Lasiospermum bipinnatum. Grows by the roadside and on disturbed ground. Having nurtured those first seedlings, it is now graciously seeding itself around the garden, down the gravel driveway … (PS flora South Africa actually in the Acanthus family. Bear's Breeches? Simply called wild chamomile by the early settlers, because that is what they saw!)

Lasiospermum bipinnatum

The gentle blue is accompanied by equally gentle pinks. Some apple blossom. A handful of Pelargoniums. White Plumbago. Chironia baccifera has opened while we were away. Pink stars which look faded as it was heavily overcast this morning. The Dusty Millers are sending up too tall spikes of flowers, which keel over, and will need pruning later.

With gentle pinks

There are a few roses, with the next wave of buds swelling. A just pink Pearl of Bedfordview, a just yellow Peace, flashy Helpkids, Anna’s Red, and purple-edged mauve Burning Sky.

Five Roses (nobody makes better tea than you and Five Roses ;>)

The weirdest flower, which you wouldn’t believe if you didn’t see it, is the granadilla. The fruit is hanging in the wings, and sometimes startles us, as it lands with a ripe thud while we are sitting on the verandah.

  

Granadilla, or passion fruit

I checked where you, my blog visitors, came from while I was away and the blog was dozing peacefully. The Advent blog post drew lots of visits coming from a Hungarian blog erezdmagadotthon adventi-koszoru, to my original post on the Southern-Advent-wreath using a Swiss glass Advent wreath. 

First Advent Sunday 2010

As the Chinese proverb says – It is better to light a candle, than to curse the darkness. Some music to listen to while your first Advent candle burns (I would have liked to bring you the version sung by Sibongile Khumalo). youtube.com/watch?v=XsWj1FwjPBo

☆

[]

Advent, Dusty Miller plumes, feathery slangbos (Stoebe sp.) and wild oats 

Breathe a prayer for Africa

God, the Father’s love

Can reach down and bless all hearts

From his heav’n above

And when lips are moved by grace

They so sweetly sing

Pray for peace in Africa

God bless Africa

And her sons and daughters

Light a candle ...

‘Plea from Africa’ was composed by John Knox Bokwe (1855-1922). From 1875 Bokwe started to compose hymns. He visited Scotland and sang his hymns in a tenor voice at social gatherings. He returned to Scotland for training and was ordained into the Presbyterian ministry in 1906. From Dictionary of African Christian Biography  

Pictures and words by Diana of Elephant's Eye   
   

(If you mouse over brown text, it turns shriek pink. 
Those are my links)

An egg, young birds and photos by GINKs

We see and hear many young birds now. Teenagers who with their fluffy feathers are anyway bigger than mum and dad. Standing there with open beak, shimmying their wings. Yelling Feed Me Now!

European starlings bringing caterpillars

The starlings, flying in and out constantly. Complaining bitterly – those youngsters are never satisfied!

Dikkop egg, inspiration on the 'desk' I stand at
(Today just this one is from my Canon)

Before we came to live here, this was a vegetable garden. Then a fallow field. The dikkops like to nest on open ground. We still hear them, calling in the night from the rough ground on empty plots in the neighbourhood. Anna gave me this dikkop egg. I keep it on my desk. In a little dish, painted with a spotted guinea fowl feather.

That irritating thing, when you try to peel a hard-boiled egg, and it comes away in grotty chunks attached to the shell? WHY? and How to avoid it!

House sparrow family

Birds land on the perch on top of the bird house. Peer down to see if that bleddie Ungardener has refilled the seed yet. Which side shall I fly down to? 

Pin-tailed whydah, our Lil Cuss

Oh f*** there’s the Lil Cuss again!

Weaver mother and baby

Because we mulch with straw and leave as much as possible of the Ungardener’s free spirited plants standing – the birds are glad to eat naturally. Not dependent on handouts. 

Young Cape robin

The Nuxia was planted for young Cape robins. Have been waiting to photograph the adults, but we only see this youngster. Seems to be his patch and the parents are elsewhere.

Young masked weaver

On this young weaver, you can just see his black mask beginning to fill in.

  

Red bishop

And finally, just because they are glorious birds, the red bishops.

Tatyana said she has lost the manual for her camera. While he was still choosing a camera, the Ungardener downloaded the manuals. To see if the hype added up. Can you really …? And does it …? Is there a …? He is on a learning curve. Instead of sitting patiently with a numb finger, holding the shutter half down to focus where-the-birds-will-be he can lock the focus where he wants it. pdf Manual for my Canon and Manual for his Panasonic Lumix

And the GINKs in the title? Well there’s us and The Deep Middle? Any more out there?

PS If you are fan of Saxon Holt Floradoragardens lots-learned-at-photography-workshop BTW He is currently recovering from a detached retina

PPS I have been tagged by Hungarian CultivatedGarden. If you are a cat person then we three have that in common! My ten was For-Ellada 

My sister is coming to visit. 

I will be back with November’s Flowers

and the First Sunday in Advent on the 29th.

Pictures by Jurg (and Diana), words by Diana of Elephant's Eye    

November, walk thru our garden

We have ten olive trees. The first two planted at the road. Those weird new English people – have underplanted with pig’s ears and Bulbinella and a bit of Dietes, and Agapanthus. Passersby stop, to look. Then we planted two pairs to cover our neighbours green shaded caravan and garage. A rustic trellis, and I will train the olives to a gentle espalier. We planted four between the post-box and the pecan and the heat wave hit them. Dead. But see, they are growing up again!

Olives

Shocking pink watsonias have gone over. Pale floating Dietes. And those yellow flowers? Inherited day-lilies having a very good season, just enough rain.

Day lilies

Giant/Spanish reed is reaching for the telephone pole. Invasive alien. Home to the weaver-birds. As I explained to the men from the municipality, when they came to complain about the WEEDS. ‘The Ungardener’s free spirited plants’ you mean? I did then shear the middelmannetjie to ankle height. Except for these pretty flowers (which the Ungardener planted quietly when I wasn’t looking). Dusty Miller at the perfect clumping silver fountain stage I love!

Pecan tree, pretty flowers, Dusty Miller, Arundo giant/Spanish reeds

We moved the compost bins away from the vibracrete (concrete panel) wall which faces into the afternoon sun. On the far side blighted earth, sprayed with herbicide whenever anything dares to raise a little green head! A shade trellis, half built over the compost bins. The first raised vegetable bed, built with concrete blocks. And the wood is unfortunately treated with poison; they do say the poison stays IN the wood. And also after the first winter and rain, the loose stuff will have washed off … Then the Folie de MIIX. Door, or not? Spring bulbs gone dormant. Finally we mulch with straw, which means we get wheat and oats and mielies (corn on the cob) – much enjoyed by the sparrows!

Works in progress

Our Mediterranean Sun Circle. There are lots of lemons coming. Salvia greggii is happily growing from cuttings. One lavender survived. Next autumn perhaps another lemon tree? Or the lime I long for?

Mediterranean Sun Circle with oranges and lemons

We have a Nuxia (as seen at Org de Rac) for the Cape Robins and the butterflies. Our neighbours gave us Sansevieria, with a cream border along the length of the leaves. Added to the Karoo Koppie as a drift. Empty pond forced us to buy a bird bath, and today we saw the first three sparrows lining up to use it. We moved Big Red Tecomaria, from where it had SULKED, all thru the summer. 

Nuxia, Sansevieria on Karoo Koppie, new bird bath, Big Red Tecomaria 

The pond has been drained, again. To be relined. Frogs were rescued and posted into Plum Creek. The dragon fly larvae went into the baby baths with the water lilies.

Ah, once we had a pond, with Water ...

Figs are coming, there will be plums.

Karoo Rose and Sheila's Perfume, figs, Chaim Soutine, Pearl of Bedfordview

Pictures and words by Diana of Elephant's Eye    

  

Pushed out of Paradise

Thru October I combined my four Pink Ribbon posts with the four beds in Paradise. Um, I’ll read that again. The four beds in my rose garden, which I call Paradise, inspired by a Persian garden. Still busy collecting photos to record all the roses as they bloom. Have completed the ‘red’ roses in Autumn-Fire with the last one, Karoo rose.

Sundial in Paradise / rose garden

We inherited four roses along the driveway. It got too hot in the summer for this half of the four legged grey water system. Had to make a plan. We made one of the beds near the front door bigger, and shuffled those plants around.

May/June 2009 newly transplanted

Entrance with Aragon come to investigate

Entrance today

Anna’s Red (no label, that is what I call it) become four plants, one died, but we still have three which, recovered from transplant shock, are starting to make fragrant bunches of flowers again. The dark red roses are not a happy choice here, as they get a lot of afternoon sun, with the glare from the concrete ramp and garage door.

Anna's Red bed

Anna's Red (my name for this, anyone recognise it???)

In the newly extended bed we have Black Prince (only he has A Name) very deep velvety, swooningly fragrant red, which grows to a stately height. Pick as much as possible, as this one also toasts in the sun. Doesn’t have the sense to keep his head down. Hubris. Who said – those whom the gods wish to destroy, they first make mad? (Wikiquote says anonymous, wrongly attributed to Euripides)

Perfume Passion bed

Perfume Passion

Black Prince in July

A deep Schiaparelli pink. And a gentler apricoty pink. Just buds now, but I will come back to this post and add pictures when they bloom again. Then I bought Perfume Passion, as I wanted to choose at least one myself. One that was definitely going to give a fragrant welcome as we come home.

Paradise is secluded behind a wall. With the arrow slits in the curved brick wall, and the sash windows from the living-room giving the effect of a colonnade, a cloister. Today’s roses are out there, exposed to the public gaze. At least those who persevere down the driveway.

Blue-sage has begun flowering again in Paradise

One of my quirks is that I am fascinated by the naming of the parts. Wandering off in the direction of knowing everything about nothing. Cloister and garth are given meaning at The-Medieval-Garden-Enclosed .

And I will pull all five rose posts together at In-a-Persian-garden. Fast forward to December 2011.

Pictures and words by Diana of Elephant's Eye    

Dona nobis pacem

Peace be with you -

- And also with you 

Today bloggers around the world are writing for peace. Mimiwrites Blogblast-for-Peace

Dona nobis pacem

Living in peace, at peace, gives us the chance to stop and smell the roses by the way. At first I was going to be light-hearted and use an earlier post on the Little-black-dress-at-Peace. A delicately beautiful rose. With a history that began in the Second World War. Over five decades, and two generations ago. And still we wish, hope and pray for world peace.

Being a PANDA, previously-advantaged-now-disadvantaged, in South Africa, I can’t claim, won’t pretend, that I was active in The Struggle. The nearest I came to feeling threatened, was one day, walking to the bus for the University. Between the Houses of Parliament and St George’s Anglican Cathedral. There was a CASSPIR (an armoured personnel carrier) heading for me, travelling ON the pavement. You know how you catch the driver’s eye, when you want to cross the road? Will he stop for me? This – was like being menaced by a beetle. All windows obscured. No eye to catch! For a few minutes, until I got away from it, was very afraid.  (The Purple Shall Govern – you had to be living here then) 

I remember a mural on the wall of the Deanery. In two halves, from ‘In pieces’ to Peace. We used to pray for a just peace. The New South Africa (was going to be called Azania, South Africa is not A Name, it’s just first left, second right). We began our life cradled between the hands of Nelson Mandela and Arch Toots.

Somewhere lost in the mists of my time, The Anglican Church in South Africa included the Passing of the Peace in our church services.

Dave Walker, cartoonist cartoonchurch The-Peace

We all found it very strange at first. Some could NEVER bring themselves to shake hands with their neighbour and say

Peace be with you -

- Peace be with you

When we went rarely to St Paul’s in London, I missed that. But today, even London joins in. Regretfully it is not a part of the Dutch Reformed Church where we now worship.

franciscan-anglican peace here a brief explanation.

finleypres a more reflective essay.

telling-secrets give-peace-chance and here I found the cartoon to share with you!

We have family friends, the grandparents fled the Belgian Congo, and found sanctuary in Cape Town. And, as the wheel turns, their granddaughter and her family went to live for many years in the Democratic Republic of Congo. We often find that the car-guards at the shopping mall will graciously respond in French if my sister or husband tries. Au revoir! But the wheel turns again, and South Africa finds itself sometimes locked in the evils of xenophobia.

Peace be with you –

- Peace be with you

Pictures as credited, words by Diana of Elephant's Eye    

Wellington books, or food for the mind

My mother loves to read. Holds-upon-happiness. But as she is 97, she doesn't get out to book-shops. Skimming the internet I fell over bid-or-buy and discovered that an hour away in Wellington is a promising second-hand book-shop. The Book Traders. 

Edwardians

Once I said to mother indignantly – Father’s positively Edwardian. Then she looked at me, Yes, he was born in 1906 when Edward was on the throne.

Dannevirke

My father came from Dannevirke in New Zealand. That silver filigree is his christening mug.  His school prize is a beautiful leather bound, gold-tooled book. Went to London during the Depression in search of work as a newly qualified engineer. There he met my mother. She could choose, shall we go to Malaysia or South Africa? And the rest as they say, is our story. This cabin trunk travelled with him, but I imagine it came from his father in turn.

'from the author of Longitude'

Mama has just read Nicholas Crane’s novel, and wanted something about longitude. So I scooped up this. I am intrigued by womenandthegarden's Sister-Maria-Celeste-Italy, we should enjoy reading it! The wooden plane was once made for a little boy called Jurg.

Russia

In her sixties my mother taught herself to read Russian. Her generation, her life, meant that she had a simple education, raised four daughters. But her mind still sparkles, with a love of languages. As a teenager in Truro, there was a family friend who worked with the War Graves Commission in France. He married a French wife and brought her back to visit the family. My mother was the only one who could speak French to her. Led to a few months in Achicourt near Arras, polishing her French! This Terryville Connecticut cabin trunk belonged to my great-grandma. Crossed the Atlantic three times, as she went to visit Dick and Charlie near Vancouver. As my mother says – we lost Uncle George. The sword is my father-in-law’s souvenir from WWII. Silver tea caddy leaf was granma’s.

The English, and the Cornish pixie

We grew up in South Africa, but we think of ourselves as English. Not from England, but English. And that is NOT a garden gnome. He is a Cornish pixie, mending a tiny shoe, if you look very carefully. Large ginger jar comes from my grandmother’s home. The jam-jar with a silver lid also. And the little wooden Dutch doll from my mother.

Snakes for the Ungardener

The Ungardener as you know is interested in wildlife, snakes and spiders.

Family memoir

And I will read almost anything. This is a family memoir tying back to Scotland and the sea. Years ago we were enchanted by the Scottish lochs. This is Loch Awe. The fish pictures my father won in a fishy story competition. (Altho his true fishing story was about – going fishing with his uncles – my father got a fishing hook stuck in his cheek – they cut the barbs – and pulled it out – so he once told me!)

People displaced seek out home

This starts with rescuing a temple from the Aswan Dam. ‘A story of people and nations displaced and uprooted and the myriad means by which we all seek out a place we can call home.’ As my mother did, I left home and family. But my mother was only able to visit her mother once, after coming to live in South Africa. And remember, when I was a child, long distance phone calls were brief and seldom. Like a telegram. Just once, I heard my grandmother’s voice, when she wished me a Happy Birthday!

To return to the food. In Wellington at Pick ‘n Pay we found fresh baked 100% rye bread, and Florentines smothered in nuts and fruit. At Pacmar 100% fruit juice in Tetrapak cartons from the factory shop. Dried fruit leather, fresh roasted peanuts and apple cider vinegar at (Wellington Fruit Growers, now more prosaically) S. A. Dried Fruit Co-op The Safari Shop .

Pictures and words by Diana of Elephant's Eye