Spring in MtLawleyShire

It was a very Spring-like day today.  Rain tomorrow and early next week, then Spring will hit with temperatures moving to the high twenties.  Today, though, was pretty and pleasant, warm and quiet and filled with colour.  No hint of the terrible summer to come.

And a touch of magic: a fairy door found close to where I live, at the base of a Moreton Bay fig tree shading a street corner.

the area was filled with bird song and the magic of colour:

jonquils and pelargoniums:

 

tiny daisies and the pink variety of buttercup:

 

the lupins have bloomed all over the empty block:

 

not sure what this is with its perfume filling the area, but here are buds and flowers both:

 

flowers of a broad bladed grass plant:

 

an ornamental freesia and an early rose:

 

poppies:

 

the rich hues of an exotic hibiscus squeezing out through a fence:

grass heads catching the last of the light:

 

     

and a cat caught in almost sunset, watching me:

 

MtLawleyShire and Matilda Bay trees

Taken over 2 visits – one a cloudy day with soft, uncertain light – typical look for Autumn though the day itself was humid and warm and unpleasant.  And then there was today: bright and brassy and warm but not humid, the loveliest of Autumn weather (though we need rain).

That Autumn is here is written in the plane trees:

 

I love teh sculptural attitude of these:

Banks of Autumn:

and leaves:

Today – a couple of weeks later: delicate gold.  I am wondering what will remain next time I go!

And then there are the other trees:

on the cloudy day, everything was shrouded in that soft light:

 

even the mighty Moreton Bay fig was softened and others were enriched by a golden sort of light:

 

but today – no such uncertainty, everything written in bold lines of light and shadow:

 

this one – tall in trunk and branch:

 

I love this tree – it is massive & photos don’t do it justice:

 

and these:

 

I do love the trees of Matilda Bay.

Outside of MtLawleyShire: railway line trees

MtLawleyShire, as an area (though occasionally, it is also this person – just to confuse you 🙂 ), is leafy with lovely trees and gardens.  It is an old area, the trees are large, but it is a regular suburb with roads and parks and houses.  The railway line is some distance from my normal routes, and getting near the city, is bridges and buildings without a great deal of space.  Further west, on the oldest rail line – Midland to Fremantle (which also goes through the eastern edges of MtLawleyShire) there are areas where the buffer along the tracks has been allowed to be itself.  Urban bush.  Managed, no doubt, and therefore not ‘pristine’, but nonetheless – a touch, a taste, of bush in the middle of suburbia, so this is what the railway side of the road looks like:

 

I don’t know all the trees.  I recognized this one though – a massive peppermint tree, its huge girth giving an indication of its age:

These are either lemon-scented or ghost gums – or perhaps something else entirely!  Beautiful though:

 

 

especially this one – so straight! It makes me think it’s a ghost gum:

A massive moreton bay fig – known as the strangler fig, it is definitely an interloper that has been here a long time.  It makes me thing the area is managed because otherwise, there would be many of them, and it is dotted with berries:

 

this Norfolk pine soaring above everything renders the lightpole redundant 😀

Cheating a little – this paperbark was in someone’s garden – over the road from the urban bush, so not really straying 🙂 But of such a size! It had been there a long time:

the first of this group is so reminiscent of something you’d see driving something other than the city – trees against the sky.  The other 2 are trees I see frequently, even in MtLawleyShire, and I think they are actually west Australian natives:

 

I have no idea of the names of these trees, but they are lovely:

 

 

and this one – the last of my photos – just magnificent!

This post was to remind myself of my love of trees, and I hope you enjoyed it.  Bulldog, my friend – I hope this made you smile.

Next post will most likely be back in MtLawleyShire, and quite possibly, yet another sunset.

MtLawleyShire at Matilda Bay

It was hot and humid at Matilda Bay, and the city was shrouded in a mixture of humid haze and smoke from ever-present bushfires when viewed across the river:

Light on the plane trees made them appear almost autumnal:

 

but I can assure you, it was anything but!

Walking to the tearooms for lunch with a dear friend, I passed a convivial duck:

a magpie with a juvenile whining and begging for food:

A gracious view of the river framed by two old peppermint trees  – and a smaller one that looks almost delicate in the light:

 

A shade-giving Moreton Bay fig leaning towards the water

and then these – cypress and others as I approached the tearooms:

 

As I walked into the tearooms, I was greeted by a magpie lark:

Then I was joined by my friend.  As we chatted, a flock of short-billed corellas swooped by, calling and screeching, in threes and twos:

 

 

and in a larger flock, swooped over the river to join a larger flock to roost in one of the larger trees on the other side of the tearooms:

 

From under the plane tree, the view across the river was serene, despite the haze.  We saw dolphins, ravens, watched the antics of the seagulls – all of which are included in the following posts.

It was time to go, so I said goodbye to the trees, including this graceful moreton bay fig:

 

Smiled at a seagull appropriating a seat, although he wasn’t gazing over the river as people usually do, and here’s a wee bottlebush flower.  There were bees, but I wasn’t fortunate enough to catch any.

 

I hope you enjoyed this little stroll.  Next post: raven portraits, then the dolphins…and more birds 😀

MtLawleyShire’s imperfect trees in Hyde Park

Yes, they are trees in Hyde Park – & it’s not so much the trees that are imperfect (how can trees be imperfect!), but the photos.  They were taken on a dark day and therefore were not crisp, sharp or otherwise perfect.  In fact, woefully imperfect.

So,I have played with them a little.

If it is not too much trouble, I would value your opinion on whether these photos are acceptable.

This was a shot of a group of trees.  I liked the framing, but there wasn’t enough light.

 

One of my favourite trees.  It’s in a  spot that doesn’t get heaps of light & there are many photos of this tree I am not happy with.  So this time, I played with it a little.  I kinda like the effect.  What do you think?

 

Same type of tree, but a different one.  Again, it grows in an area where light seldom comes in strongly.  I’ve usually avoided photographing it because of that, but this day, I did.  It looks proper spooky now.

 

A group of Moreton Bay figs.

 

An oak that grows along a path, usually in shadow.

 

Another oak, usually comes out much clearer, but the day was grey and clouded.

 

One of my favourite trees in the park, and usually comes out well as it is nicely positioned for sunlight.  Not this day though.

 

the path from William/Vincent Street corner into the park.  These didn’t suffer too badly as the sun was shining when I took these photos, but I played with them anyway.

 

 

This is another path and it is always dark, but I love the shapes of trees and the light on the tree at the end.  I like the effect.  It intensifies the darkness & adds mystery.  Do you agree?

 

Please, I would really value your opinion.

Thanks 🙂

MtLawleyshire’s Hyde Park in Autumn

I took a break from my studies and risked it – I went down to Hyde Park yesterday – a sunny day after days of rain & storm.  We had more rain in 2 days than for almost the entire year (I exaggerate – a little!)  And though its is difficult o find the beauty that I found last year – trees without their graceful bows over the water, an island stripped of everything, construction and barriers and sand piles everywhere, there was beauty.

the first of the Moreton Bay figs as I enter the park.  I love this tree – so straight & sculptural.

 

The path side of the plane trees – beginning to show their shape amidst the gold of their Autumn leaves

For the first time in a long time, there is water in the ponds.  Sadly, there was quite a bit of wind, so no reflection, but this tree is still lovely.

leaves & a coot in the western pond.

The Western island, with most of its growth left intact, reflected in the water.  And with Autumn leaves visible in the water.

 

Along the western edge of the western pond: golden trees and leaves

This isn’t as clear as I wanted, but it goes catch the fall of light through the leaves – it really was golden

He had been hunting – I caught him eating what he caught

reflections

 

Views of autumnal plane trees

 

Autumn leaves & the willow

 

A Moreton Bay fig on the William St edge of the park

Light and shadows in the massed foliage from beneath a Moreton Bay

And as I left, from the other side of William Street, outside of Hyde Park, I saw this – the errant fall of light on the foliage of a young Jacaranda, turning them almost incandescent in the shadows  behind one of the massive conifer.

I hope ou enjoyed this.  I am looking forward to finishing my studies so I can return to this – photographing and posting.

MtLawleyShire inspired art

The Nest – an A3 sized,  pencil and charcoal and I completed recently.

It didn’t win any awards, it didn’t sell, but it did receive good reviews.

It was inspired by the Moreton Bay figs of Hyde Park (though I don’t usually see dragons nesting in them) and as you have all inspired me to continue taking photos, as some of you post examples of your art, I thought I would do the same.

I wish I could take a better photo of it.

Keira 🙂

MtLawleyShire: a weekend

What a mix of things this last weekend was.  Voting and forecast rain & thunderstorms that didn’t happen and heat and the next day?  The same, but not happy with the result of the vote.  The only good thing to come out of it, as far as I was concerned was this delightful wee New Holland Honey eater and the flowers he was feeding on:

 

If you look closely, you’ll see him actually feeding:

A rose in someone’s garden, lovely & golden:

and of course, my beautiful girl:

I walked in Hyde Park.  Because of the lack of rain & the heat and all the ‘road works’, I stayed away from the water till I saw these herons:

 

 

Apart from that, I walked amongst the trees.  The heat & humidity were revolting.  The trees were lovely though:

 

 

 

and the willows with a hint of Autumn in the plane tree leaves:

 

Flowers on Saturday & Sunday as I walked for sunset photos:

 

& Sunday’s sunset: all sullen and full of storms and rain that never happened:

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

But later that night?  Very late?

Rain, thunder, lightning – lots of rain.

My courtyard flooded as the gutters overflowed in a Niagara Falls simulation creating ‘one of the smaller of the Great Lakes of Mt Lawley’.  That hasn’t happened since – I think it’s 2010.

In the morning:

Raindrops on the lemon grass and magnolia leaves:

 

My garden smells lovely.  I am off to Hyde Park…

Out of MtLawleyshire – Trees at Murdoch University & Matilda Bay

I have had a busy week and while there have been no sunset photos for the end of the week, there have been lots of trees.

It is Festival season in Perth, and within the Perth festival is the Writer’s Festival – & I am a writer, of sorts.  This year, I actually attended an event at the University fo Western Australia, but before that, I was invited to attend a Q&A with China Mieville at Murdoch University in the southern suburbs.  It was an excellent talk.  He’s a very articulate engaging character, which is to be expected from his books (my favourite is The City & The City).  But, though he would probably raise his eyebrows at this, it was also a chance to look at trees.

Murdoch University has wonderful native grounds, filled with mostly natives.  But not just trees – flowers:

Grevillea:

 

This – so reminiscent of a flame tree flower, but it isn’t.  Glorious red 🙂

Eucalypt blossom:

 

& the nuts they leave behind:

Water lilies:

& this

Grows into this:

 

Now the trees. I don’t know what this is, but its brilliant green is striking, and the duller yet graceful shape of a sheoak:

 

Wonderful tree with almost furry bark:

 

Cape Lilac in the outside cafe:

 

These are just beautiful from various places around the campus:

 

& this is the trunk of a massive tree:

Finally, two towering trees soaring into the inconstant, uneven sky of a terribly hot day threatening rain and delivering none:

 

A plane tree in the city as I made my way home:

& this?  At the small park in West Perth just down from where I teach – a peppermint tree looking like a jungle unto itself:

Today, I attended a talk by China Mieville & the wonderful Margaret Atwood.  They played so well off each other, and Margaret Atwood is such a character – so sharp & funny & wonderfully subversive.  I love her writing, have heard her talk often and this was just as wonderful.  China Mieville was a wonderful partner for her.  Of course, with his genre writing, her novels Oyrx & Crake and After the Flood (as well as The Handmaid’s Tale)  were under discussion along with his novels  (& mention of  a book the talk reminded me of that I want to read for the PhD: Hoban’s Riddley Walker).

And although I had no time to wander along the river, everywhere you go around the University of Western Australia and Matilda Bay there are trees:

a Moreton Bay fig dappled in the inconstant sunlight today:

A scribbly gum and another:

 

just trees – a strip of manicured wilderness between roads and car parks, paperbarks and others:

 

in the university grounds as I hurried towards the lecture theatre – white trunk amidst intense green:

& this wonderful tree on the corner of a carpark:

 

& then it was time to go in, and after that?  Time to go to work.  No more trees till, maybe tomorrow.

& today, it rained.  A little.  Enough for me to make my students laugh as I ran outside to dance about in it.  In the middle of the city.  Oh dear 🙂  But it was such a relief after a cooler, though intensely humid day, and tonight, I will have to have a light blanket.  Much better than the 40 degree celsius of the two days before!

I hope you enjoyed my trees.  I enjoyed looking at them, and the activities of the two days 🙂

Out of MtLawleyShire and back for Sunset: river, trees and birds

These are from a trop to Matilda Bay and back again, a quick walk around the streets, then a snatch of sunset and the moon.

First – birds: a quickly snatched shot of a wattled honeyeater in the fully leafed flame tree – it’s not on the right setting, but was this bird going to wait?  Uh uh.

The others are the ubiquitious seagull, but such clear shots against the river, including wind-ruffled feathers.  And they are attractive birds – in appearance.  Habits? Not so much – & getting aggressive too.

   

Left from a magpie lark, I think.

the wonderfully knobbly trunk of a plane tree, and the massive trunk of a moreton bay on the bank of the river.

  

Back in MtLawleyShire – this beautiful tree is in someone’s backyard.  Envy 🙂

I don’t normally like these, but the way the red caught the sun was stunning.  I almost caught it.

Dunno what this is either, but it’s pretty.

Early moon.

ah – sunset – snatches of golden sky

 

from a  distance, the colour is small and slight in a sea of infinite blue

closer the colour is more vibrant, deeper

 

& it really is the middle of suburbia – inner city suburbia at that.  This one looks like it’s out in the middle of nowhere.  Well, I suppose it is Perth…

a hint of rays

 

the moon partly obscured by clouds tinted by sunset

the sky darkens and I alter the settings on the cameraL moon waxing towards full:

 

The real distance of it

I like this one 🙂

but I like this one too 🙂  The second of these the camera was totally on the wrong setting so she comes out as a glamour-Plush 🙂

 

I hope you enjoyed my little afternoon.

More soon

🙂