Pages

▼

Monday, 24 September 2018

Down in the woods - hunting for wild orchids - Western Australia

Down in the woods over the weekend we went hunting for wild orchids. Though in Western Australia we call it the "bush" not the "woods". 

September is the perfect time to find wild orchids in our bushland, particularly in the wheatbelt, midwest and southwest. 
I've blogged about hunting for wild orchids before here - Hunting for wild orchids in Western Australia's mid-west

 Specifically I went to find the Queen of Sheba orchid - Thelymitra variegata


 It has been a couple of years since we had seen this beautiful orchid in banksia-jarrah bushland about fifteen minutes drive from our home. Difficult to find, but instantly recognizable, there are at least three different forms of this rare species, with scattered populations from Dongara to Esperance and flowering late June in the north to September in the south.

Unfortunately on this particular bush-walk we didn't find the Queen. We did however see other orchids. 

And I asked two kangaroos who peered at me through the scrubland if they had seen the Queen. They just blinked at me and then bounded away. Perhaps they had seen her. I've read that they love snacking on the petals of the Queen of Sheba.


Below are some of the orchids we saw - (please note I am not a botanist, so I can't absolutely identify the exact species, just family names).
 Clockwise from top left -
Reaching spider orchid - Caladenia arrecta, White spider orchid, Donkey orchid, Blue Lady Orchid - Thelymitra crinita, Pink Fairy orchid, Leak orchid, Scented Sun orchid, Enamel orchid, and in the centre one of the Cowslip orchids.  

 I was very happy to see the Reaching spider orchid, as this is a new one to me. 
The Leak orchid was enjoying growing in an area of burnt out bushland which they favour. 


 There are many species of sun orchids, which as the name implies rely on the sun to open, as in this case, the beautiful Blue Lady Orchid - Thelymitra crinita.


 During our recent trip up to the mid-west, wheatbelt, and goldfields, which I started blogging about last week - (please click here if you missed it - Wildflower hunting and taking time out) - I enjoyed hunting over the granite rocks for orchids. Granite rocks in particular in our wheatbelt area, are havens for orchids, which gather in the rock gardens or under bushes on the rocks, like these Lemon Scented Sun Orchids at Karalee Rock, just north of the Great Eastern Highway, east of Southern Cross. 
You have to look carefully to find orchids, as they are quite often very small, and hidden under bushes or overhanging branches.




Here are some of the other orchids we saw at Karalee Rock. 
Starting top left - Snail orchid, Clown orchid (I love his stripey pants) , and Scented Sun orchid
from bottom left - Lemon Scented sun orchid, Silky Blue orchid, and Donkey orchids. 



Of course there were lots of other wildflowers too, not just orchids, but I will be back next week with some more pics from our trip. 

 Thank you so much for stopping by. Do you have a favourite place for looking for wildflowers? Perhaps you would like to share in your comments. I value your comments and look forward to hearing from you. I will try to visit your blogs in return. Have a wonderful week. 

I am linking up to the link-ups below. Please click on the links to see fabulous contributions from around the world - virtual touring at its best!
Life in Reflection

 Hello there! I love reading your comments. If you scroll down to the bottom you can comment too! I would love to hear from you.
at 16 comments:

Monday, 17 September 2018

Wildflower hunting - and taking time out

Hi everyone, as I mentioned last week I took a short break from social media, blogging and internet for a couple of weeks, but I am now back home and back to my computer.  My post a couple of weeks ago would have given you a hint - Gather Around the Campfire - that I went camping.

We travelled up through the Western Australian midwest to some of the old gold mining regions and towns, across some country new to us, and other places we have visited before and enjoy returning to. We travelled on outback roads, watched amazing sunsets, visited old towns with interesting history and fascinating stories, camped under the stars, climbed huge granite outcrops and at the end of the day baked damper and toasted marshmallows over the campfire. 



The added bonus and the reason we chose early September is because spring has sprung in Western Australia and September is the perfect time to travel, particularly to our mid-west region, to see the wildflowers. Before we left reports had been coming in about the amazing wildflower season Western Australia was having, so I was keen to get out on the road to see some of them.   

And we were ankle deep in everlasting wildflowers, by late afternoon on our first day. The carpets of everlastings sprawling through the seemingly dry bushland is amazing to see. 



Boasting up to 12,000 known species, the Western Australian wildflower season spreads over several months starting from July in the far north till November in the south and I feel blessed to be able to travel over parts of our state during wildflower season to photograph some of them. Over the next couple of weeks I will bring you more images and stories from our trip. 


But more than this, one of the things I enjoyed most about our trip was getting away from our everyday life in suburbia, and away from phones, internet, social media and, dare I whisper, blogging.  The peace and calm I feel walking through the bush with my camera is wonderful and food for the soul. 

The new spring season for me is a good time to slow down and celebrate the beauty around us and to feel grateful.  


 I took several opportunities when the sky was clear, to get up early and go walking with my camera. A lot is written about "mindfulness" these days, and I guess this is what I was doing - being immersed in the environment, looking at the light and seeing where and how it fell, observing the shapes and colours. Feeling the breeze on my cheeks and the feel of the gravel under my boots. Hearing the early morning bird song. Being alone to wander at will and absorb all the gifts around me.



 You might even see a kangaroo or two. Sadly I can't claim credit for this photo. It was taken by my husband.

  One last thing - bocce is a great game to take bush camping! ....  or is it boules? Either way, this set only cost us $10 and gave us lots of fun in camp in the late afternoon and will be a must on our camping list from now on.

It is difficult to return to life after this, but return we must. But I have my photos to look back on, and many stories to share with you over the next few weeks. I hope you will join me.

 Until then, I hope you have enjoyed this little introduction.  How do you celebrate the change in seasons? Perhaps you'd like to tell us in your comments. Thank you so much for stopping by. I value your comments and look forward to hearing from you. I will try to visit your blogs in return. Have a wonderful week.  

You might also enjoy:
Photographing wildflowers 
The wildflower hunter 

 I am linking up to the link-ups below. Please click on the links to see fabulous contributions from around the world - virtual touring at its best!
Life in Reflection

 Hello there! I love reading your comments. If you scroll down to the bottom you can comment too! I would love to hear from you.
at 18 comments:

Monday, 10 September 2018

Flowers for you this week

Hi everyone, I am taking a little break from blogging and social media this week, but I will be back to see you next week.  Where-ever you are, enjoy whatever you are doing.


But if you are a blogger you can still join the Wednesday Around the World linky party at Communal Global on Wednesday right here!



at 6 comments:

Monday, 3 September 2018

Gather around the campfire

 Campfire's burning, campfire's burning,
 Draw nearer, draw nearer
In the glowing, in the glowing,
We'll sing and be happy. 

Girl Guide camp song sung in rounds

 "A campfire is a magic thing and of pivotal importance in stock-camps. It was everything to us. Our hot water, our stove, our warmth and our comfort. In the dark solitude of the night, or the chill colourless dawn, the campfire was like a friend to us. It was the focal point of our living space, pulling everyone to it. In the evening we ringers would gravitate from the shadows to within the fire's glow. There, perched on an upturned drum, or squatting on one heel with a pannikin of tea resting on our leg, we would absent-mindedly gaze at the embers, and ponder on the day just over. In our constantly tired state it was easy to become mesmerized by the gently flickering flames, playing around the edges of a piece of coolibah or woollybutt. More relaxing even than watching wavelets lapping on a shoreline, the campfire's soporific effect soon saw us heading sleepily to our sways. We never sat up late in the stock-camp."

 From "They Even Paid Me", the memoirs of John Wells, Kimberley stockman, compiled by Janet Wells.  2015, page 89

Even though I've never been in a stock-camp, the words above written by Kimberley stockman, John Wells, embodies how I feel about campfires. They are one the the things I love most about camping out in the bush. After dinner we all gravitate in our camp-chairs to the small circle of light surrounding the campfire and sit talking, and looking up at the sky ablaze with stars. And of course marshmallows and a mug of port or hot chocolate goes down well too.
The moon comes up through the trees as we settle around the campfire

 We've had some beautiful camps over the years, and now that the spring wildflower season has arrived I am itching to get out in the bush with my camera.
And honestly the sunrises and sunsets are much more vivid when you are out camping.


 Thank you so much for stopping by.  Do you go camping? What do you like about camping? Perhaps you might like to tell us about it in your comments. I value your comments and look forward to hearing from you. I will try to visit your blogs in return. Have a wonderful week.  

You might also like:
Dehydrating food for camping 
On the road in the Kimberley, Western Australia 
Camping in the Western Australian wheatbelt 

 I am linking up to the link-ups below. Please click on the links to see fabulous contributions from around the world - virtual touring at its best!
Life in Reflection

 Hello there! I love reading your comments. If you scroll down to the bottom you can comment too! I would love to hear from you.

 If you are a blogger you can also link your blog to Wednesday Around the World at Communal Global. 
at 27 comments: