wattle

  • Wattle On The Way Back Heralds Health

    Our wattle is blooming gorgeously at the moment, bringing back a healthy feel to our garden. When I broke my leg early last November, I didn’t really understand the consequences, and have since had a series of unexpected events that I’ve gotten to deal with. Unfortunately, one of those was the realization that the cold of winter had killed off a lot of our Aussie plants in the garden. It had been a relatively mild winter, but there were also some bitterly cold mornings when the temperature dropped well below zero. And I reckon some of these killed off out hardenbergia, kangaroo paw and grevillea, all of which I had…

  • An Aussie Garden In Japan Is Bloomin’ Hard Work

    After months of pretty much neglect, it was time to get back into the garden with the gifts of a long weekend and the presence of Mrs. Kangaeroo. I’m pretty sure our little haven will end up appreciating us for doing so. Summer ravaged our lawn for the third consecutive year. I’d planned on re-laying the grass using a Japanese seed in the spring, but as it was flourishing then, I decided to try using the North American grasses one more time but cutting higher. I shouldn’t have bothered. But August, the grass had nearly all died and we had a dustbowl. This year was also a great one to…

  • Behind The Great Green Wall

    It was a blistering hot summer in Tokyo this year–the third year in a row to have the highest temperatures on record–and that had a mixed effect on our garden. One aspect of that heat was to great a great green wall. Our wattles, tea trees, grevilleas, and jacaranda all grew thick and fast over the summer, providing some shade, which was greatly appreciated by the tree fern I’m sure, but robbing other plants of light. Combined with the relentless heat that obliterated the lawn, our proteas have both withered away and many other plants are struggling. Only the big trees have loved the summer, but shown that largely with…

  • Garden The F**k Up!

    Unsure of where to put the punctuation in the title, I decided to go without any at all, and I used this phrase because I wanted to talk about the garden, have something catchy, and draw from the Velominati’s Rule Number Five. Our garden, Kangaeroo Corner* is absolutely thriving. But not quite in the way that I may have originally envisaged, hence the latter part of the title, and the uncertainty over where to place the punctuation.** Banksia I should originally have planted in sunny spots are doing well, but none of our four trees have never really flowered, which is what the sun will draw out of them. And…

  • Cherry Bomb!

    Cherry blossoms have started to bloom in Tokyo’s suburbs. For the most part, flowers have yet to reach peak bloom along my most-traversed part of the Tama River. But in some of the areas where the flowers are at their best, the view is lovely. It was a bonus to be able to see them in flower this morning as I had presumed the entire weekend to be a washout. It rained incessantly yesterday. It gave me time to do some much-needed study for work, which is paying me to take the course I’m doing. I should be putting in a bit more effort on my studies than I am….

  • Springing Into Action

    After an interminably long wait, it finally got warm this week, prompting me to spring into action. It was hard to believe that just last week Tokyo got blasted with heavy snow. Short sleeves and shorts were the watchword, even for typically well-covered types such as Mrs. Kangaeroo. Even though she notoriously feels that anything under 35 degrees Celsius is cold, even Mrs. Kangaeroo was walking around on Friday night in short sleeves due to the delightfully warm weather. My aches and pains eased a little with the warmth, too, which made it a bit easier to be mobile. It allowed me to work in the garden a little. Mrs….

  • Seed Of An Idea

    With the onset of spring, I finally took action and planted seeds in the hope of bringing more, longer-lasting flowers into the Aussie garden we call Kangaeroo Corner. I planted some banksia, grevillea and eucalypts, using a variety of different methods. I put seeds into growth pods in three types of planter box. Two of these were to be lit 24 hours, and the other left to get light when it could. Two were also soaked in water, and the third wettened, but essentially to remain dry. The seeds are supposed to sprout anywhere from one to three weeks from now, so I will keep my eyes on them and…

  • Wattle Y’Know

    As the tiny yellow blossoms slowly starting to open on the wattle trees in our garden are showing, spring is gradually inching closer to realization, but it can never happen fast enough. Cold seems to linger for an inordinately long time at the end of every winter, especially as I advance further into old age and the chill’s effects deepen. But that’s usually because I expect too much of March, having the false impression of it being a month where things warm up despite decades of experience proving that to be the contrary. One highlight of March for me, though, is the large number of wattle trees on show. They…

  • Mini Miracle

    One of the tiniest, daintiest, cutest little creatures I get to deal with has a back story of incredible strength and resilience, having bounced back from the brink of death to literally be thriving. I’m referring to our dwarf wattle, who is blooming brilliantly in what is proving to be a remarkable journey testifying to the power of nature. The wattle, a miniature shrub version of the better-known acacia trees like the golden and silver wattle, was grown from seed that I brought back from Australia. The dwarf wattle seeds initially sprouted extremely well, but I made the mistake of adding them to tiny terracotta pots that gave them virtually…

  • Bouquets!

    Mrs. Kangaeroo never ceases to amaze me with her brilliance in whatever she turns her hand to (the sole exception being her choice of men, but let’s not point out that one too much!). Today, it’s bouquets to her. Or, from her, to be more accurate. Our wattle trees are finally starting to bloom thickly, if not quite spectacularly, but Australia’s national flower still looks wonderful as it signals the onset of spring in Kangaeroo Corner from its silver and golden varieties. Early this morning, Mrs. Kangaeroo instructed me to bring her a couple of branches, and I acceded immediately. Within minutes, she had made them into a glorious bouquet….