One of the locals that move through our bush block on a regular basis.The best part about our bush block is the multitude of reptiles, birds and mammals that live here too. I'm pretty clear that it's their home and I'm just sharing it with them. We try to maintain as much natural bush as we can for our fellow species and restrict our activities mostly to the house pad.
Another treasure from the Tip Shop.
When I'm not tending veggies I'm filling up bird baths and rehabilitating several areas that have suffered over the years - I think because of the change in climate. Bracken has taken over and pioneer species that loved the acidic peaty soil are being replaced by eucalypts. My approach is to observe how Nature is coping and help things along - which often means leaving bracken to shade young native plants and removing them later so the original endemic species have room to grow.
This year the old soak held water and we had to remove all of the fruit trees we had planted there, thinking the water table had dropped so it wouldn't hold water any more. Rookie error. We also realised the soil was way too acidic and that's why the fruit trees weren't thriving. It has been lovely to have this small body of water because it supported hundreds of tiny frogs, 2 families of ducks and herons. It dried up last week and we may not see water in it for another 10-20 years.
Last summer's spoils. Can't wait for the basil to get going again. (I didn't bake the bread)
The river mouth - where the river spills into the huge Wilson Inlet. A fair way from our place.
Our local break on a small day.
The 55 km winter drive to work - mostly through farmland and bush - colours of the south coast winter.
Winter Sunday drive.
Summer is nearly here and it's warm enough to take bush showers again. My partner picked up the old trolley from the Tip Shop so we can move it around. Outside showers are so refreshing in summer and tend to be shorter so we use water more efficiently (and it waters the bush).
Looks like a boomer! One of the saddest things ... today there was a dead doe with her joey beside her. I haven't seen this before. Someone must have pulled over and taken it from her pouch.
ReplyDelete... Anyway the outdoor shower is most excellent. We have one in the air bnb next door although I haven't used it yet. Go Boy Robin!
Oh that's so upsetting Sarah. I assume the joey was dead too? Otherwise I'm sure you would have contacted someone or taken it home.
ReplyDeleteI am so grateful for the locals who check the dead kangas around here. Some of them have a system of spraying them with pink marker once they've been checked. They drag them off the road too. I am so careful driving early to work. I would hate to hit one.
Yes, the outdoor shower is about to get some kind of movable bush screen because the wind has been so strong lately the water misses us!
I love seeing where your live. The land is so beautiful. I don't know why it surprised me to see that kangaroo. I guess because there's no way we'd ever see one here. Your photos make me want to go back to living on bigger piece of land again. We gave that up when we moved to our little suburban street. I miss the expanse. Your photos are beautiful. Winter is on its way here. This morning was just a few degrees above freezing. Brrrr.
ReplyDeleteThanks for your comments Robin. I never get tired of seeing the kangaroos. I have made sure we don't block their habitual movements through our place which I suspect has been going on for hundreds of years. I think the does bring their joeys through and the joeys grow up and take the same route.
DeleteTaking care of the place is a lot of work. We should have done it when we first moved to this town 20 years ago but it took me a long time to convince my partner. He now concedes it was the right thing to do and loves it here. I'm possibly getting too old to manage everything though. I'm constantly cutting back bracken and it grows faster than I can control it when conditions are right. But it also creates perfect habitat for all the small creatures so I take it one day at a time and enjoy just being here.
That's a lovely photo of the boomer.
ReplyDelete