Laughing All the Way to the Banksia

After worrying for literally months, maybe even years, banksia are finally giving me a great boost as they showed signs of thriving now that spring has sprung in earnest.

It’s hard to tell which banksia is bringing the most delight.

The main hairpin banksia, intended to be a centerpiece of the garden, has finally showed clear and pleasing signs that it is growing with new shoots sprouting in a manner detectable by the naked eye after having appeared to be dormant and not taking root months after it was planted in the ground.

Then there’s the little hairpin banksia bought as a contingency plan last autumn and immediately planted and coddled over the colder months with the expectation that it would die anyway, only to have formed deep roots and burst forth spectacularly.

And the birthday candles banksia is proving to be the real star of the family after having flourished almost from the moment it was planted in the early spring.

And I’ve even got a couple of little banksia seedlings going, albeit timidly, but battling on nonetheless as the sold seed project I undertook in 2024.

Even the coastal banksia giving me worries for its yellowing leaves appears to be picking up (as I admittedly expected it would).

Although I may not actually be laughing all the way to the banksia, they are certainly bringing a bit of a smile to my face.

Banksia are reputedly hardy and easy to grow. As I’ve written before, though, this hasn’t been my experience and none of the banksia I’ve tried growing have ever done very well….until now.

All that’s needed now for complete banksia satisfaction is a flower…..which I’m sure will come eventually, but has not yet been the case for Kangaeroo Corner moving into is third year of existence.

Cop A Gander At These Rippers Too...

  • Ocker/オージー

    Australian English A loud-mouthed, drunken, swearing, uncouth, uncivilized and stereotypical Australian. Amazingly, despite the above description, the term can also be endearing at times, depending on the context in which it is used. Ockers live in Oz, another named used for Australia and an abbreviation of the country’s phonetic rendition. 日本語 ステレオタイプなオーストラリア人。その典型的な例えは、口うるさく、酔っぱらい、悪口ばかり言う、洗練されていなく教養のないしつこい人のことだ。これにしても、文脈によって温かみを込めて使う場合もある。Ockerは、オズという国に住む。これは、「オズの魔法使い」じゃなくて、現地の発音でAustralia(Oztraylya)の省略だ。 Plain English Aussie, Australian. Strine Dictionary

  • Forget Tiptoeing thru Tulips and Plod thru Paddies

    Normally, we’d be smack-bang in the middle of the rainy season by now (and we are, officially), but the skies have held off for the past few days, providing great cycling weather which has made for some wonderful rides, including this morning’s through the rice paddies of outer suburban Tokyo. May seemed a little cooler and damper than usual this year, and all sorts of appointments meant I wasn’t able to ride as much as I would have liked. June is a hard month for cycling as there is so much rain. I have pretty much given up on riding in the rain if possible, now, due to the rapid…

  • |

    「やばいリンガル」Lair　（アジト）

    　Lairは、米・英語で使うと「アジト」や「隠れ家」などを意味するけれど、オージー英語ではもっと軽い事を表す場合もある。どのような意味になるのか、見てみよう。 A lair in British or American English can conjure up images of a hideout or animal’s home, but it takes on fair less sinister meaning when used in Strine.

  • |

    豪キャブラリー： Littlies

    　日本語では「大人」という言葉に対し「子供」を「小人」という風に表現してもおかしくない。オージー英語でも、まさしくそのような使い方があり、littliesは子供、ようは「小さい人たち」という表現の仕方がある。ちなみに、「小人」はdwarfかmidgetという言葉を昔使ったがいずれも現在では侮蔑にあたるのでlittle peopleという表現が正しいとされているが、彼らは決して子供ではない。