Wednesday, September 26

Treats & Gifts.

Look at this beautiful creamy lemony Clivea. It was given to us by a very kind neighbour. It didn't flower last year for some reason, & so I was so excited to see the buds form.We have some orange Cliveas which are flowering under the Maple tree. I had divided them up, & there were many clumps, but they seem to have all faded away, & we are just left with the original clump.


I love this view, which is what I look at when I sit out on the patio with GOM. There is a Bangalow Palm tree, which I am rather fond of, the Maple, which is just showing its' new lime green foliage, & the tree fern is in the foreground.
Lovely new shoots unfurling. It reminds me of New Zealand. This tree has taken a hammering from drought, but it seems the rains we have had, along with Spring's warmth, has spurred it into fresh growth.
We have 4 other fern trees, but one seems to have died. We are not sure why, but have wondered if it is run-off from the poisoning mission on the Neighbour-Privet. It is slightly downhill from the Privet, so perhaps the poison leached down the slope.
In the evening there is the most glorious perfumed air. There is Jasmin flowering in overgrown profusion in the neighbour's garden. They also have wonderful Azaleas which are in full bloom, & give off a sweet scent. Our Port Wine Magnolia adds to it all, as well as the lemon tree, which is just a riot of blossom. Seemingly overloaded, & it worries me a little. I have read that some trees produce a plethora of blossom just before they die, as a sort of last ditch effort at prolonging life.
I have not noticed many bees at the the Lemon tree this time, & yet they are usually thick, when the flowers appear. I am very watchful, as I am allergic to bee stings.
I remember lying under the blossom trees, - peaches, nectarines, apples, -smoking cigarettes, with a young man I had a crush on. He was a neighbour of my girlfriend, & we used to spend time with his younger sister. I was still a teenager, & I think he was 20. So handsome, & seemingly so dashing. He smoked, offered me cigarettes. Of course, not wanting to appear unworldly, I took the proffered, horrible things. They made me dizzy, & feel slightly sick, but as I was lying under the fruit trees, I just pretended I was enjoying them!
My girlfriend had more sense, she refused the cigarettes. But then, she didn't have a crush on Mr Suave! His 'Little Sister' was never offered. She was younger, & she looked like a little doll. Such a pretty, blonde haired girl. Her mother had died in childbirth. The Grandmother had raised the children, the father never really recovered from his wife's death, & he was what would be called today, "A Functioning Alcoholic". He did his job, then went home & drank himself into insensibility every afternoon. Poor man. But I know he loved his children, dearly.
And another neighbour, of my girlfriend's, had a hideous huge silver Stainless Steel Seal, balancing a huge stainless steel ball on its' nose. Forever condemned, to stand on back flippers, holding the ball aloft, in a pond/fountain, on the front lawn. They also had a small dog, a bundle of white fluff & frenzied ferocity, that went insane every time the paper boy rode past, delivering the paper. I know from inside information, how much he yearned to give that little canine flying lessons.
The Waifs, Vermillion

13 comments:

Anonymous said...

Beautiful Clivia , Meggie . -- Yes , The neighbours ' Dog' -- It tore & shredded the legs of several pairs of my jeans and bib overalls as I delivered the papers -- and tore pieces out of me more than once as well! A nasty mindless fleabag . Its owner told me it had ' a nervous disposition' To me it was a brainless waste of time and space & not my idea of a dog at all.
You are right about the little blonde girl being pretty , I thought her beautiful & I guess her brother was handsome also . Her father I liked too -- in spite of his sadness he was ever polite and cheerful to & with everyone as he went about his work. Some good memories triggered for me , Meggie !

Mary said...

I think I prefer that creamy lemon to the orange cliveas.

The seal sounds truly horrific.

I used to catch a ferry to work when i was living in Sydney years ago and I swear you could smell the jasmine wafting over the harbour.

Ragged Roses said...

How wonderful to be able to smell all those exotic scents, I love jasmine. I've never heard of cliveas so thanks for showing them.
Kim x

meggie said...

Ah Henri, your memories are funnier than mine...but you witnessed the dog with 'nervous disposition' more often than I!

The Jasmine is lovely, Mary, but I realise a lot of people find it very distressing. I still love it though. It bears many happy memories of my mother!

Joyce said...

The first time I went to Australia the Jasmine were blooming and I'll never forget the wonderful aroma. Many of your wonderful plants are only houseplants over here because of our long cold winters.

~Bren~ said...

I had my first cigarette from a crush also...I just did not stop for 5 years...then quit for more than a decade and started again! now I am free from the nasty habit once again. Glad they did not stick with you!

ancient one said...

I was blessed/cursed with allergies! I grew up in a home with smoking parents. I never could stand the cigarette smoke. I'm sure if I'd not had allergies, I'd have probably smoked. One of my sisters and two of my brothers smoke, still. My mom gave it up years ago.

Enjoyed the pictures of your view. So different from the pine trees I see every day.

CONNIE W said...

Ditto to ragged roses post above.
I was a failure at attempting to smoke cigarettes when I was a young thing, just could not get the hang of it...thank goodness...never learned how so never got hooked...I am so happy that I failed at that little episode. And I remember at the time that I didn't WANT to smoke, I just wanted to fit in with my friends at the time. It was all about peer pressure.

Ian Lidster said...

You're making me long for warmer climes, Meggie. The fragrance of plumeria (frangipani, as you call it) is perpetually in my nostrils. I do have a palm in the front garden, but we are limited to windmill palms due to climate, but it still brightens my day to look at it.

Exuberantcolor/Wanda S Hanson said...

Hi Meg,
I had no idea you had palm trees there. And I love the fern tendrils in the picture.
Wanda

Thimbleanna said...

Ah, spring is in your air! You're too funny Meggie -- the image of the flying dog cracked me up!

Pam said...

Yes, indeed, how very exotic-looking your garden is to us at the top of the globe. That clivea looks wonderful. And magnolia - ah, as we descend into autumn and the shorter days, it's good to think that it'll all come round again. Winter's not for ever.

Mrs. Goodneedle said...

The Clivea blossoms are beautiful... I love the description of "white fluff and frenzied ferocity", funny to imagine. I wish I could smell the jasmine as you describe, I'm sure it's heavenly.