Tunbridge sixteen

Visit sixteen in early Spring, this time we were welcomed with wild and cold equinoctial winds on the first night of our arrival. Loud bangs and scrapes kept us alert in our bed during the night. Brisbane has cathartic thunderstorms but Tunbridge has wild, wild winds - and once again we thrilled at the differences between our two 'homes'. Green, wet, windy and cold - the morning brought bright sun and these sweet arrivals;
Muscari or Grape Hyacinth - those little garlic sized bulbs that often turn up when weeding I'm glad to see they have survived last summer's hasty re-burial in this spot. 

Apricot, the first of the espaliered trees to blossom, though the frosts that are sure to follow will usually spoil any chance of these flowers developing into fruit - this sight is charm enough.

Two survivors, Blue Fescue grass and Rosemary - looks like I should plant more of these.

Winter colour

Helen Young's tip-off in the Weekend Australian led me to a nearby garden, open to the public over the weekend as part of the Open Gardens Australia scheme. After a few rainy days, un-characteristic for our Brisbane winters, the sun returned to light up this unusual garden.

A small steep block showcasing over 50 new types of colourful Aloes. These drought resistant sculptural plants with their spiky conical leaves are not unfamiliar, but these spectacular blooms, mass plantings and stylish companion plantings felt like a riot. 

Garden owners Michael & Alexandra Dent certainly do know what they are about, Michaels company Aloe-Aloe markets and distributes this premium collection of Aloes in Australia. Michael was on hand to advise on selection and I came away with four new plants which will add drama to our garden.

Black Pekin Bantams

Two new hens have brought the number of my little backyard flock to six again. Pekin Bantams are docile birds, well suited to discrete free range living in a suburban garden. 

The new 'girls' layed a couple of eggs on arrival then promptly went broody. This is a natural part of their cycle they stop laying and just sit on the nest - its all about hatching the eggs. Quite often the other laying hens will favour the broody's nest, slip in beside the sitting hen, lay their egg then leave and get on with their day - its all very co-operative.

The Life of the Bee - Maurice Maeterlink

Intrigue has prompted me to find out more about the new arrivals, so this book, seemingly waiting in my bookcase for this moment, is now providing a rather florid insight into the hidden workings of the hive. Written in 1901, The Life of the Bee by the Symbolist poet and essayist Maurice Maeterlink does not purport to be 'a treatise on apiculture, or on practical bee-keeping'. Far from it, in writing of the 'spirit of the hive' the language is that of rapture and heroics. What startling synchronicity, since I have just finished reading A.S. Byatt's Possession, a story situated in just the same era -that is the late 19th century and the Romantic Poets. 

A Beehive in the Garden

A month ago, seeking to expand his holdings, Dimitar placed one of his beehives in our garden. This insect agistment arrangement is of mutual benefit and enables me to learn more about 'the Bee', always a favorite symbol of mine. We aimed to position the white box somewhere away from the house, the chook pen and the dog's yard and decided on a section of the the path, one of the few level surfaces on our steep sloping block. Without fuss, he installed the gently humming hive one morning shortly after dawn, then we watched, standing a good way back, as he removed the strip of wood which sealed the entrance. Immediately the first bees emerged and flew up in spirals to reconnoitre the new surrounds.