LILIUM

Lilium ‘Tiny Double You’ is a dwarf Asiatic lily (Plant number: 1.318.840) and one of the Lily Looks™ series developed in the Netherlands. Bred originally for containers, these are versatile garden plants as well. The dwarf habit makes them useful near the front of any sunny border where they put on a great midsummer show. Also equally at home in a rock garden. The best effect comes from massing in good-sized clumps of one variety.

This selection is unique and new to the series with large, upfacing double, orange flowers. It is an outstanding garden plant and its unlicensed propagation is prohibited! It is suited to a full sun or partial shade position and will grow in most soil types. It grows to 30-35 cm and blooms in mid-summer. It is deer-resistant and does well in rockeries, borders, massed displays and in containers.

This post is part of the Floral Friday Fotos meme. 

PIGFACE

Mesembryanthemum is a genus of flowering plants in the family Aizoaceae; like many members of this family, it is characterised by long-lasting flower heads. It is a native of South Africa. Flowers of Mesembryanthemum protect their gametes from night-time dews or frosts but open in sunlight. There is an obvious evolutionary advantage to doing this; where sun, dew, frost, wind or predators are likely to damage exposed reproductive organs, closing may be advantageous during times when flowers are unlikely to attract pollinators.

Ground cover plants don’t come much tougher or lower maintenance than this plant. In its native land, pigface is used to growing in dry, rocky and sandy conditions which makes it very tolerant to drought, salt and wind. Its succulent foliage will form a dense and spreading mat, growing to no more than 15cm high and around 40cm wide. It’s prized of course for the spectacularly vibrant flowers that form all over the plant in early spring – electric shades of orange, pink, yellow and a crystal white that contrast beautifully with the foliage.

Choose a dry, sunny spot with good drainage, such as amongst rock. They will tolerate partial shade but you may find they produce less flowers. They have a tendency to trail slightly, so plant them at the edge of retaining walls or pots where they can artfully spill over the side. Pigface is unlikely to have problems with pests or disease, just ensure that your drainage is good to prevent root rot.

This post is part of the Floral Friday Fotos meme.

ORANGE STORY

Love amongst the clivias...

This post is part of the My Sunday Best meme,
and also part of the Photo Sunday meme.

SUNRISE

This post is part of the  Skywatch Friday meme.

CALENDULAS

This post is part of the Mosaic Monday meme,
and also part of the Seasons meme,
and also part of the My Corner of the World meme,
and also part of the Nature Notes meme.

ORANGES

 The orange is the fruit of the citrus species Citrus × sinensis in the family Rutaceae. It is also called sweet orange, to distinguish it from the related Citrus × aurantium, referred to as bitter orange. The sweet orange reproduces asexually (apomixis through nucellar embryony); varieties of sweet orange arise through mutations.

The orange is a hybrid between pomelo (Citrus maxima) and mandarin (Citrus reticulata). The chloroplast genome, and therefore the maternal line, is that of pomelo. The sweet orange has had its full genome sequenced. Sweet oranges were mentioned in Chinese literature in 314 BC.

As of 1987, orange trees were found to be the most cultivated fruit tree in the world. Orange trees are widely grown in tropical and subtropical climates for their sweet fruit. The fruit of the orange tree can be eaten fresh, or processed for its juice or fragrant peel. As of 2012, sweet oranges accounted for approximately 70% of citrus production. In 2014, 70.9 million tonnes of oranges were grown worldwide, with Brazil producing 24% of the world total followed by China and India.

This post is part of the My Sunday Best meme,

and also part of the Photo Sunday meme.

ROSA 'JUST JOEY'

Rosa 'Just Joey' was bred by Cants of Colchester, United Kingdom, in 1972. It was named for the wife of the Managing Director of Cants of Colchester, Joey Pawsey. This Hybrid Tea rose performs well throughout Australia and there are many fine specimens in Melbourne gardens, beginning with ours, where we have no less than four bushes of this variety!

The plant is vigorous and grows well, achieving a height of 1.5 m and width of 1.2 m. Flowers are borne one per stem and can be of an impressive size (up to 20cm in Spring and Autumn, slightly smaller during Summer). The bush is disease and heat resistant and tends to survive well with a little care.

The flower is an eye-catching ripe apricot colour with a loose, informal display of pretty frilled petals. Probably its most seductive feature is its intense, spicy fragrance which will quickly fill a room, when a bunch is placed in a vase. This perfume is inherited from its parents (Fragrant Cloud x Dr. A.J. Verhage) also renowned for their strong scent. It has been awarded the Royal Horticultural Society Award of Merit 1993 and World’s Favourite Rose 1994.When introduced, its colour and size of flowers were considered breakthroughs. This lovely rose is readily available and will reward and delight any rose lover!

This post is part of the Floral Friday Fotos meme.

BERRY SKY

Auranticarpa rhombifolia is a rainforest tree of eastern Australia. Known as the diamond leaf pittosporum, this tree is planted in many parts of Australia as an ornamental. The white flowers and orange fruit make it a most appealing street or garden tree. Other common names include hollywood, diamond leaf laurel, white myrtle and white holly. 

Australian botanists recently examined the large genus Pittosporum and decided the more northerly examples are significantly different from those in the south. Subsequently, a new genus was created Auranticarpa, which means "gold fruit". The range of natural distribution is on red–brown basaltic soils from Richmond River, New South Wales (28° S) to Forty Mile Scrub National Park (18° S) in tropical Queensland.

The tree grows well in Melbourne and its masses of small golden orange fruit make for a cheerful sight in Winter.

This post is part of the Skywatch Friday meme.

ROSE

Rosa 'Just Joey' was bred by Cants of Colchester, United Kingdom, in 1972. It was named for the wife of the Managing Director of Cants of Colchester, Joey Pawsey. This Hybrid Tea rose performs well throughout Australia and there are many fine specimens in Melbourne gardens, beginning with ours, where we have no less than four bushes of this variety!

The plant is vigorous and grows well, achieving a height of 1.5 m and width of 1.2 m. Flowers are borne one per stem and can be of an impressive size (up to 20cm in Spring and Autumn, slightly smaller during Summer). The bush is disease and heat resistant and tends to survive well with a little care. The flower is an eye-catching ripe apricot colour with a loose, informal display of pretty frilled petals. Probably its most seductive feature is its intense, spicy fragrance which will quickly fill a room, when a bunch is placed in a vase.

This perfume is inherited from its parents (Fragrant Cloud x Dr. A.J. Verhage) also renowned for their strong scent. It has been awarded the Royal Horticultural Society Award of Merit 1993 and World’s Favourite Rose 1994.When introduced, its colour and size of flowers were considered breakthroughs. This lovely rose is readily available and will reward and delight any rose lover!

This post is part of the Wordless Wednesday meme,

and also part of the ABC Wednesday meme.

HONEYCOMB

This post is part of the My Sunday Best meme,
and also part of the My Sunday Photo meme,
and also part of the Photo Sunday meme.

ORANGE ROSES

This post is part of the Floral Friday Fotos meme,
and also part of the Orange you Glad It's Friday meme.

MOONRISE

View from our window towards the East one fine night.

This post is part of the Skywatch Friday meme,
and also part of the Friday Photo Journal meme,
and also part of the Orange you Glad It's Friday meme,
and also part of the My Town Shootout meme.

SUNRISE

"Nothing is more beautiful than the loveliness of the woods before sunrise." - George Washington Carver

This post is part of the Skywatch Friday meme,
and also part of the Friday Photo Journal meme,
and also part of the Orange you Glad It's Friday meme.

ORANGE SKY

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and also part of the Friday Photo Journal meme,
and also part of the Orange you Glad It's Friday meme,
and also part of the My Town Shootout meme.

SILHOUETTES AT SUNSET

This post is part of the Skywatch Friday meme,
and also part of the Friday Photo Journal,
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PERSIMMON TREE

The persimmon is the edible fruit of a number of species of trees in the genus Diospyros. Diospyros is in the family Ebenaceae, and other members of the genus are grown for ebony timber. The most widely cultivated species is the Oriental or Japanese persimmon, Diospyros kaki.

This post is part of the Orange you Glad It's Friday meme,
and also part of the Friday Photo Journal.

LAST AUTUMN ROSES

Rosa 'Infinity' (Frytropic) is a hybrid tea rose. This is a beautiful garden rose and a really striking variety with phenomenal flowering ability. Classic shaped, huge, fragrant apricot blooms suffused with peach toning are produced in high numbers on sturdy, upright, tough, leathery growth with exceptional disease resistance. Would suit a middle border or patio container.

This post is part of the Floral Friday Fotos meme,
and also part of the Orange you Glad It's Friday meme.

SUNRISE PANORAMA

Sunrise in Fairfield, an inner suburb of Melbourne, Australia.

This post is part of the Skywatch Friday meme,
and also part of the Friday Photo Journal,
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TREE SILHOUETTES

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and also part of the Friday Photo Journal,
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PRICKLY PEAR

Opuntia ficus-indica in the family Cactaceae is a species of cactus that has long been a domesticated crop plant important in agricultural economies throughout arid and semiarid parts of the world. It is thought to possibly be native to Mexico.

Some of the common English names for the plant and its fruit are Indian fig, opuntia, barbary fig, cactus pear, spineless cactus, and prickly pear, although this last name has also been applied to other less common Opuntia species. In Mexican Spanish the plant is called nopal, while the fruit is called tuna, which are names also used in American English, especially as culinary terms.

This post is part of the Floral Friday Fotos meme,
and also part of the Orange you Glad It's Friday meme.