Attention all plant lovers: Tradescantia, Purple Haze

 https://hort.extension.wisc.edu/articles/purple-heart-tradescantia-pallida/

Yesterday I was out looking in garden nurseries and I came across this stunner at the Heritage Nursery in Yarralumla. I love purple,  and this plant was just amazing to see. I was so impressed with its beauty that I bought it. Thankfully it’s an easy care plant too. I love plants and being surrounded with nature, Australia is fantastic for growing all kinds of plants from around the world. This particular species of succulent comes from Mexico and doesn’t need much maintenance. I highly recommend it to anyone who loves unusual plants with stunning beauty. To Canberra locals, the sister shop is out in Pialigo and they may also have this plant in stock. I know there was at least one in the Yarralumla shop, in the indoor area. And also the shop is cashless shop and doesn’t accept cash payments. But the shop at Yarralumla is definitely a must visit for gifts as well as beautiful plants. 

Happy gardening peeps ❤️🤗🤗

Curious koala survives close call at Sydney train station

 https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2024/oct/08/casula-train-koala-sydney-police-escort

Never mind the shaggy dog stories, we have Koala stories in Australia 🤣❤️❤️🐨🐨

I used to live near Casual which is part of the city of Liverpool in south western Sydney. However I have never seen a single koala in the area back in the day. Canberra though we have native wildlife around us and we love them very much. 

Napping Aussie wakes up to surprise 'friend' in her bed

 https://au.news.yahoo.com/napping-aussie-wakes-up-to-surprise-friend-possum-bed-062257122.html?guccounter=1&guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly9uZXdzLmdvb2dsZS5jb20v&guce_referrer_sig=AQAAADhBm9GbxoqnPX2JISrByjrQyi70VBOkuJb7ngj_4rVkTaCTe65p7cAbhZfnWkxJ4pq4AeOkqhBt6Rr_oF7RY9a8UqfXl12n2941mhiS4eZCbQN5p1pGK6e3uYb8md8SGpi-Nto6-MRGFQamCZPGilpYdawvCmeQ9rGyVPmtx8r0

 

                         That’s possum magic for you. Close encounters of the furry kind.

Underwater mountains three times taller than world's largest structure discovered

 https://www.9news.com.au/world/scientists-discover-four-underwater-mountains/9ef7a3d4-b679-4e84-ad32-e2cca41ccb9

It’s expensive researching underwater and obviously it will take many years to complete mapping the entire world’s oceans and we haven’t physically explored much under our world’s oceans because it’s so expensive. 

Six-legged spaniel undergoes surgery to remove extra limbs

 https://www.9news.com.au/world/six-legged-dog-surgery-remove-extra-limbs/700b2521-cfee-42e0-b03b-2222406dc4b9

Omg, Poor little soul. I am so glad that these good Samaritans helped the poor pup. What a terrible thing she has suffered and to be abandoned by some cruel humans. Obviously there was to be an extra puppy but nature can get it wrong sometimes. 

I just hope that this little girl will be able to walk normally once she has healed. Such a sweet but sad little face. Hopefully someone with a loving heart will adopt her soon. 

Wildlife carers overwhelmed as grey-headed flying foxes experience mass starvation down Australia's east coast

 https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-01-07/grey-headed-flying-foxes-mass-starvation-wildlife-carer-shortage/103284832

This is heartbreaking, lovely flying teddy bears ❤️🥰🥰 After the terrible 2019 bushfires and flooding, tragedy and death just never seem to stop. A shortage of vets and not enough helpers makes things extremely difficult not to mention stressful. 

I can barely bring myself to read these news articles of suffering animals. It’s bad enough when it’s human suffering but poor helpless animals takes it to a higher level. 

                                                        Adorable flying teddy ❤️

Add This Flavorful Herb To Your Garden To Keep Flies At Bay Read More: https://www.housedigest.com/1399872/plant-rosemary-herb-garden-repel-flies-pests-naturally/

 https://www.housedigest.com/1053994/how-to-repel-bugs-naturally/

I have a wooden box of essential oils and they get a good workout. 

Scroll down the articles as there are other tips for getting rid of spiders, cockroaches and other critters.

I have rosemary in my backyard and have propagated some new plants. I intend to have them in pots at my back door. Mint should always be growing in a pot, if you plant it in the ground it will grow like wildfire and is a nightmare to control, just like ivy. I am still trying to get rid of my ivy that has gotten out of control. I hope that this year I will finally be able to eradicate the ivy. I  just want to grow it  in hanging baskets. 

Baby birds expeced on my veranda again

 Yesterday afternoon I was delighted to see a mother bird, a Silvereye to be precise, making a nest in one of the plants on my back veranda. This is the second time my veranda has been sought after by a mother bird. I absolutley adore little Silvereyes. They are so tiny and chirpy little dears. Yesterday afternoon this little bird was fluttering around preparing her nest with feathers and what looked like dried twigs or dried grass. I have had a sneeky peak in the plant to see what she has brought in to her temporary nest. But I know to keep right away while she is prearing for her babies arrival. 

The problem is trying to water the plants without frightening her away. Especially once the eggs hatch as she might abandon the nest. I also need to keep an eye on miss Ruby just in case she discovers the bird as her barking  may frighten the mother bird away. 

I really enjoyed the last birds on the veranda, however it was quite hot and I was worried about the chicks not surviving the heat due to the lazerlite holding in heat and it was a very hot summer. However they all survived and flew off shortly before Christmas 2018. 

https://psychictarotreadingwithalexfulford.blogspot.com/2021/03/baby-thrushes-at-alexs-house.html

The last photo was on 23 December 2018. For some reason I kept thinking it was Blackbirds, D'oh! they were Thrushes.

I will try to get some photos from afar and zoom in as the mother bird sits on her eggs and then see if I can get a phot of the chicks, being careful not to upset the mummy bird.

 Below is the blurb and photo from Wikipedia. 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silvereye

 

UPDATE: The little bird has relocated she must have felt the nest is not in a safe place because of people constantly passing by and checking the plant. Good luck little mother to be ❤️

 

California surfers terrorized by board-stealing sea otter

 https://www.news.com.au/breaking-news/california-surfers-terrorized-by-boardstealing-sea-otter/news-story/14468b124a2707d1b001742cfaf66921

Aww, how can these cute water teddy bears be mean and nasty and still look so cute? 

How dead houseplants inspired Josh Armstrong to create cult-favourite plant care brand We the Wild

 https://honey.nine.com.au/living/how-dead-houseplants-inspired-we-the-wild-brand-josh-armstrong-exclusive/e1486378-cbb1-4c98-b8cb-388a4095125d

Attention all plant lovers 🪴🌱🎍🌳 I agree with his advice to buy easy care plants rather than obscure plants. Keep it simple yet a sophisticated look. The right plant in the right place can lift the room. 

https://wethewild.co/?utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_term=we%20the%20wild&device=c&network=g&placement=&matchtype=p&campaign_id=15616018450&ad_group_id=137001331389&gclid=Cj0KCQjw756lBhDMARIsAEI0AgkNEVBSQg_pctW-QjOIRLTz6QCFCY_33O4f0S21yWSFNqElhMKl5loaAk0GEALw_wcB

If you want to support an Australian business check them out, you can see their list of places to buy the products in your state or buy on line from South Australia. 

‘Rather noisy’: Plants make clicking sounds when stressed, study finds

 https://www.news.com.au/lifestyle/home/interiors/rather-noisy-plants-make-clicking-sounds-when-stressed-study-finds/news-story/0d83f1915e1cbba210aa3fdb32baa0ea

Plants like every living thing on the earth have a vibrational frequency, and living things are sentient to varying degrees. Plants are part of the elemental world, they have an aura and life force of their own. Trees, plants and flowers all give off energy; even rocks have an energy frequency, especially what we term crystals. I can hold my hand near crystals and feel the energy, especially something like an amethyst cave. Which is quite common for psychic people to be able to feel especially a healer, as our hands are always receptive. 

Scientists have experimented for years with plants including playing various types of music to plants to check the response; which included heavy metal, classical and rock. The plants responded better to classical music and grew toward the sound. There was also an experiment where scientists tested different human voice tones like anger, happiness etc. The detection of the aura or life force of plants was also measured successfully. So it’s down to energy frequency, soft or loud sound in their environment as well as light for growth. 

https://dengarden.com/gardening/the-effect-of-music-on-plant-growth

Cockatoo caught on video dropping pot plants from Melbourne apartment, council warns residents

 https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-11-30/cockatoo-video-dropping-pot-plants-melbourne/101710478

Cockatoos are natures assholes 🤣🤣 they destroy things because they can. They pull big branches off of my box elder in the backyard and chase other birds away from food and make a deafening noise squawking  every afternoon, especially in summer. They are well known for taking the rubber seals out of street lights and opening garbage bing and strewing the garbage all over the street. 

They are iconic and very intelligent birds they even teach other cockatoos to talk and they are good escape artists from cages. I used to watch my old neighbours cockatoos escape from their Avery as soon as my neighbours left for work each morning right on cue, lol. But they would be back every afternoon for food.

 

Explained: Where have all the Christmas beetles gone?

 https://www.9news.com.au/national/summer-weather-update-where-have-all-the-christmas-beetles-gone-explained/5df156a2-088a-4807-96de-e480cda36b61?fbclid=IwAR1qz_DmZMctagQy881Nv22I2RzK1iRgbOlQe6kgOIHMKIpFPnQ0TZVlCXc

You know Christmas is not far away when the Christmas beetles are around. Gosh, this takes me back to childhood when I first moved to Australia. These beetles are lovely to see and everyone loves them. Normally we start to see them in November in Canberra but it depends on the weather. 

Click on the link in the news article if you want to track the Christmas beetles 🪲 

ACT POLICE: Echidna not, rural patrol faces prickly situation

https://www.policenews.act.gov.au/news/media-releases/echidna-not-rural-patrol-faces-prickly-situation 

Poor little guy, if it’s not the poor little Wombats or Kangaroos in danger it’s other little critters. Rescuers need to wear protective gloves to pick up echidnas usually. They can move fast also, I have seen them scurrying along at Tidbinbilla nature reserve. Not always able to get a photo of them but it’s nice to be able to see one. 

We currently have snake season in Canberra especially in the Tuggeranong area, so people need to be on guard when out walking and especially if they are walking their dogs. There have been quite a few sightings this week already. 

'We transformed our city back garden into a wildflower meadow'

 https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/1yRybrcnxvtygjK4xtq0xJS/we-transformed-our-city-back-garden-into-a-wildflower-meadow?fbclid=IwAR2lhQxQNywjj5IWc4nU3j6FYKbDcbhVCT1lYUhcQUkTy9OvKOgkVnh8B0M

My kind of place 😻 with the British climate this works well. I wish that we had hedgehogs and squirrels in Australia. I would just love them to live in my garden. My garden is full of bulbs in bloom right now. I have never seen it so bright and cheerful. Thanks to all the rain that we have had I am enjoying the seasonal colours. I am now hoping that the summer flowers will be just as spectacular and attract ladybugs and butterflies in droves. The bees are back already and collecting pollen from my box elder tree and flowers. I just hope they don’t set up residence in a possum box like last year. Mind you we got 9kg of raw honey from them. The resident possums won’t put up with the bees, they put up a fight if any bees try to use their boxes. One possum per box, they don’t do that share thing or it gets ugly fast, lol. 

 The Lindsay’s garden, noticed the scabiosa and blue cornflowers. Two of my favourites, good to grow with cosmos and babies breath or Queen Anne’s lace. 

ABCNEWS: Backyard 'frog hotels' hoped to help species recover from East Gippsland bushfires

 https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-08-30/frog-hotels-help-east-gippsland-bushfire-environment-recovery/101353874

What a great idea, many people are trying to do their bit to help nature these days. Planting flowers to attract butterflies, bees and ladybirds/ladybugs etc. Insect hotels are popular as well as planting things to attract birds. We also leave birdbaths and dishes of drinking water for birds, insects and animals to use in our gardens. So this is a great idea especially if you can create a mini wetlands. It’s a win win for nature and people too, the sounds and sights of nature all around is a perfect harmony. 

Blending suburban environments with nature is happening in Canberra, wetlands have been built or enhanced around town and is great to see. People gain from bringing nature into our local environments by observing and spending time in peaceful outdoor parks and nature reserves. 

Air plants guide

 https://lawn.com.au/air-plants-guide/

 I am a huge fan of air plants and have had a few in recent years but occasionally due to the heat and doing multiple things at a time, sometimes my air plants croak it. I have just treated myself to a couple of new ones this week to keep indoors. So that I can keep an eye on them more.

They make a good gift to give people of all ages.So if you are stuck for an idea for a gift for someone these may just be ideal. Low maintenance and a bit of fun too. 

Here is a guide that I came across to help care for your air plants that I want to share. I will get my head around this and hopefully thanks to this person for making this guide, I may just be more successful in keeping mine alive.

Norway's Prime Minister says killing of celebrity walrus Freya was 'the right decision''

 https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-08-16/norway-was-right-to-put-down-freya-the-walrus-says-pm/101336564

Oh great, find any excuse to euthanasia the poor walrus. There is no need for this wilful destruction of an animal, suitable alternatives can always be found. Does this mean that any animal that is deemed a “safety problem or risk” will be killed? 

I though Norway was progressive and looked after wildlife. Apparently not when it comes to too much power in the hands of barbaric knuckle draggers in positions of power. What about the rest of the walrus? This is their environment being encroached upon by humans. There are many animals going extinct because of human interference and hunting. Humans are the cause of nature being imbalanced, whatever happened to peaceful coexistence? It makes me ashamed to be a human being, seeing the rich and powerful  destroying the world. All animals have rights, they are sentient souls and they have feelings. 

Normal people love animals and love to peacefully coexist with them. Yes we should be careful when interacting with them,for both our well-being, but we need to let them have the right to their natural environment without humans demanding to invade their habitats just for fun. 

Biosecurity zone set up after deadly honeybee parasite detected in NSW

 https://www.9news.com.au/national/varroa-destructor-mite-newcastle-port-bees-honeybees-biosecurity-zone-nsw-national-news/761f3d6e-f835-45f9-8316-20b4bce8469a

This is why Australia must be very strict with bio security. No risk taking and having to be very, very strict on what is brought into the unique prehistoric island continent. Things do slip through from time to time usually in food imports, but they do go through strict procedures. Creepy crawlies can be hard to detect because the are so small and can hide easily. There is nothing like Australian flora and fauna anywhere in the world. None of it can ever be replaced, so it all comes under government protection for very obvious reasons. 

Keeping foreign  insects and fungi etc, out of Australia is a hard task 24/7. The damage can never be undone once it happens and can decimate our country very fast. 

UPDATE: NSW Bees are in lockdown 27/6/22 funny there is no mention of the source of origin. We have the right to know this.

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2022/jun/27/nsw-issues-bee-lockdown-after-deadly-parasite-discovered

Scientists find dingoes genetically different from domestic dogs after decoding genome

 https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2022/apr/23/scientists-find-dingoes-genetically-different-from-domestic-dogs-after-decoding-genome

Magnificent Australian animals dingoes don’t bark like dogs, they howl. The closest that I have been to a dingo was at the national zoo and aquarium in Canberra many years ago. I have a photo of my son as a little boy patting a dingo, which is usually done as part of the daily meet a dingo program. 

 Our canine companions have come a long way over the centuries but Australia  being an island continent, Australian animals  have not evolved at the same rate as other parts of the world. So our native animals are very special.