Welcome to Life Images by Jill

Welcome to Life Images by Jill.........Stepping into the light and bringing together the images and stories of our world. I am a photographer, writer and multi-media artist.
Focussing mainly on Western Australia and Australia, I am seeking to preserve images and memories of the beautiful world in which we live and the people in it.

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Showing posts with label spring. Show all posts
Showing posts with label spring. Show all posts

Saturday, 24 October 2026

Orchid season in Manea Reserve, Bunbury, Western Australia

 Hi all, I hope you and yours are doing well. I love this time of year - spring in Western Australia. With pleasant temperatures and blue skys, making it a perfect time to get out and walk in the bush to see the wildflowers. 

Today I am sharing a few from the last month or so at Manea Reserve which is located on the edge of Bunbury, only about 15 minutes from where I live. I have talked about Manea's orchids and wildflowers before. It is a place we visit every couple of weeks during spring, as some of the flowers, especially the orchids, come and go very quickly. 

There is an easy 2.4km compacted limestone path which winds through the park - allow at least one hour, more if you are stopping to take photos. They ask you not to leave the path, so as not to trample on small plants, and also as the park has a problem with Dieback (Phytophthora) which is easily spread on the soles of shoes. Please clean your shoes at the boot cleaning stations. 

The entrance to the park is on the corner of Sommerville Drive and Winthrop Avenue, in the suburb of College Grove. 


There are many orchid varieities in Manea. Below is one of the most spectacular - the Blue Lady orchid - Thelymitra crinita 


These are sun orchids - Thelymitra - of which there are many varieties so similar to each other to my eye. 


Below from left - Rattle Beaks - Lyperanthus serratus, one of the Mantis orchids, and the Common Mignonette orchid - Microtis media 


Leopard Orchid - Thelymitra benthamiana


One of the white spider orchid varieties 

Below we have clockwise from top left - Enamel orchid, Pink Fairy orchid, Donkey orchid, and Cowslip orchid 
Not flowering this time of year, but I thought I would include it, hiding in the leaf matter, the tiny Helmet orchid - Corysanthes recurva


These are trigger plants - 


And a few other flowers - top left is the Pixie Mop from the Petrophile family, top right I think is Pepper and Salt, bottom right is one of the Butter Cups - Hibbertia, and bottom left a drying flower head. 


Below on the left we have two of the pea family, top right are one of my favourites -  Orange Stars - Hibbertia stellaris, and bottom right is Holly Leaf Banksia - Banksia ilicifolia


This is the flower of the Bull Banksia tree - Banksia grandis - on the left in bud, and on the right the flower head. 


And because I know you love seeing our wildflife, I will risk sharing photos I've shared before - 

When you hear screeching look up - it is most likely a Forest Red-Tailed Black Cockatoo, found in jarrah, marri and karri forests, it is listed as Vulnerable in Western Australia. They love to eat hard seed pods of eucalypts, casuarinas and banksias, using its strong beak to tear them open. Their red/orange stripes on their tail are magnificent to see in flight - but hard to capture with a camera. From what I have read this is a female because of the yellow spots on its head and the yellow/orange stripes on its chest. 
More information at: Birdlife Australia 


And Western Grey Kangaroo, mummy with a joey in her pouch - 


mother and youngster. Please keep your dogs on a lead. 


I hope you have enjoyed seeing some of the flowers from Manea today. A fabulous online site for identifing orchids is - Western Australian Native Orchid Study and Conservation Group

I also use the book - Orchids of South-West Australia by Noel Hffman, Andrew Browns and Justin Brown. 

And Dr Eddy Wajon's series of Colour Guides to Spring Wildflowers of Western Australia. 

Here are a few previous posts I've written about orchids and wildflowers, if you would like to see more.  


Thank you so much for stopping by. I appreciate every one of you and 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!

If you are looking for a translate button - it's there near the top on the right hand side. 
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Monday, 10 November 2025

Wild orchids in Manea Reserve, Bunbury, Western Australia

 Hi all, I hope you and yours are doing well. 

I just realised that I hadn't shared any wild orchids with you this year as I normally do during the spring months. So today is the day. 

We have a wonderful bush reserve, the Manea Reserve, about 15 minutes from our home, which we frequent during winter and spring, walking along the loop formed path. 

There are over 400 wild orchid varieties in the south west of Western Australia. These are not the flamboyant flashy Asian orchids - these are tiny delicate orchids - which often blend their colours into their surroundings. Or stun us with a colour so amazing - like the Blue Lady you will see as you scroll down. No I haven't adjusted the colour in post-processing. 

Here are some wild orchids from September - clockwise from top left - Reaching spider orchid, Donkey orchids, Bird orchid, Dancing orchid, donkey orchids, and the Jug orchid. Enlarged below one of the Donkey orchid varieties. 



October - clockwise from top left - Mignonette orchid, Blue lady orchid, Pink fairies, White spider orchid, White spider orchids, Forest Mantis, Enamel orchids, Cowslips, and in the centre the Blue Lady. Enlarged below the Blue Lady orchid. 


and November - really the end of the orchid season - but still a couple coming on - clockwise from top left - one of the blue sun orchids, Leopard orchid, Mignonette orchid, the leaves of the Slipper orchid (just starting to poke up their flower stems, Leopard orchid, and another blue sun orchid. Enlarged below the Leopard Orchid. 


Here is a photo of the Slipper Orchid - from a previous visit during the heat of December.


Just a short post from me today - if you would like to see some of my previous posts from Manea Reserve go here - I can assure you there is lots of colour! 


And Manea is not just about orchids - clockwise from top left -
one of the yellow pea flowers, Summer star flower, Star of Bethlehem, Holly leaved Banksia, Banjine, Orange stars, Wisteria, Pink Baronia, and in the middle Mangles red kangaroo paw. 
There are over 8,000 species of wildflowers in the south west of Western Australia! 


When you hear screeching look up - it is most likely a Forest Red-Tailed Black Cockatoo, found in jarrah, marri and karri forests, it listed as Vulnerable in Western Australia. They love to eat hard seed pods of eucalypts, casuarinas and banksias, using its strong beak to tear them open. Their red/orange stripes on their tail are magnificent to see in flight - but hard to capture with a camera. From what I have read this is a female because of the yellow spots on its head and the yellow/orange stripes on its chest. 
More information at: Birdlife Australia 


You also might see some kangaroos if you walk quietly. Please keep dogs on a lead. 


And please stay on the paths and don't pick the wildflowers.


Thank you so much for stopping by. I hope you have enjoyed this little splash of spring colour in the Western Australian bush. 
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!

Next time I hope to be back with my continuation of our Coral Coast Western Australia tour. 

If you are looking for a translate button - it's there near the top on the right hand side. 
   

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.
Until then, enjoy your day...Life only comes around once, so do what makes you happy, be kind, and be with people who make you smile. 

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Tuesday, 5 October 2021

Lemons lemons lemons

 Hi everyone. I hope you and yours are all doing well. I thought spring had arrived but now we seem to be back into winter. 

I have loads of lemons on our backyard lemon tree, and it has started flowering again, so I picked a few yesterday to make Lemon Butter and a sweet French Marmalade. It didn't seem to make much difference to what was left on the tree. I need to start giving them away. It was a wet dreary day yesterday, perfect for a morning in the kitchen. 


I have blogged about the Lemon Butter making a couple of times before - if you click here you will find see more: Lemon butter

Here is the recipe: 

  • Juice of 4 lemons and finely grated rind of three
  • 500gm (1 lb) white sugar
  • 250gm (1/2 lb) butter
  • 4 eggs, well beaten together. Make sure they are well beaten so you don't get strands of white in your mixture. 

  • Place all in a large bowl stranding in a pan of boiling water on the stove. Stir constantly until the consistency of honey, but do not allow to boil. This takes about half an hour. 

Bottle and keep in fridge. Delicious on scones! or slathered on a sponge with cream. 



I also made French marmalade out of my old Australian Country Women's Association Cookery Book and Household Hints. This marmalade is a sweet marmalade made from carrots, lemons and sugar, and is so easy to make. 

3 large carrots - I always find this a difficult measurement - how much is 3 large carrots?
2 1/2 kg (5 lb) white sugar
4 lemons
8 cups water. 

Grate the carrots. Cut the lemons into quarters and dig out the seeds. Put through a mincer, including the peel. Mix the carrots and lemons together and leave in a basin overnight with half the water - 4 cups. 
In the morning add the rest of the water, and boil for half an hour. Then add sugar and cook for about 2 1/2 hours. Bottle immediately in hot jars. 

Note: This marmalade still seems very liquid when it starts to set, so please test as you go so as not to overcook. I just spoon a small amount onto a saucer and put in the fridge for a few minutes. If it doesn't move around on the saucer when cold it is ready. 

My friend in Malta made this recipe with half lemons and half oranges. She said it was delicious too. 


This is an old favourite photo of mine I created for a special friend on the other side of the world one morning a few years ago. I couldn't resist sharing again. Sharing a cup of coffee or tea with a friend doesn't need to be complicated. 


While the French marmalade was bubbling away I also made a batch of muffins from a packet I bought when we were out in the wheatbelt recently. These are gluten free made from lupin flour. They were nice, but a bit heavier and grainer texture than the muffins we usually make with normal self-raising flour. 


My quince tree has an amazing number of flowers on it this year for such a small tree. I love quinces. Do you? So delicious. I am already looking forward to quince season - but I will have to wait till around March-April! We always net the tree to keep the birds off. 


Thank you so much for stopping by. Do you make jam? Do you have a favourite? Perhaps you would 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. Stay safe and 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!


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.
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