Completely dormant in the winter, in the very early spring the leaves of the River Crinum emerge, forming a crown of long green straps. And then a green spear emerges rising to almost a metre in height as the buds start forming at the tip, eventually opening into white and pink lily-like flowers. Continue reading “In the pink in the spring: River Crinum”
Painted by the glow of the late afternoon sun, the reflective water illuminates a Sombre Greenbul at the garden birdbath. Continue reading “Sunbrushed”
I am sure I am not the only one to wonder why these barbets have been named for the black collar and not for their distinctive and bright red head – surely a little perverse? Continue reading “Black-collared Barbets: Duets and warfare in the garden”
Need some perspective to gauge the size of the reptile clambering over what appear to be boulders? Continue reading “Reptile atop boulders”
I set myself a personal photo challenge, to photograph only spring flowers in the garden in a short space of time. So, I had to capture what were there, even those flowers that were not “at their best”. Continue reading “One fine spring day: Thirty-minute photo shoot”
Usually seen buzzing about collecting pollen from flowers, I spotted this carpenter bee taking a walk. Continue reading “Unusually Pedestrian”
Going with the flow of nature is such a natural choice when it comes to gardening. Yet many of us were brought up in a tradition where gardens are controlled and orderly spaces. Continue reading “Live and let live gardening”
Standing tall and divided into sections by the window frames, Nougat the cat watches me watching him. Continue reading “Looking out, looking in”
A layered look is definitely in for this Olive Sunbird. Although she is slightly dishevelled after preening, one stray feather randomly adds panache to a style where fluffy wins out over sleek. Continue reading “This season’s layered look”
