Fremantlebiz - Paul's Letter from Australia

Autumn garden news

In May last year we received a free new back fence, courtesy of the developer of the block behind. At the time it gave us the opportunity to dig out a wisteria plant which had gone feral. Almost a year later the wisteria is still clinging on. We must have left some roots in the ground and new shoots have been sneaking up here and there.

Yesterday was 'try to kill the wisteria day.' I flew at it with a mattock while my wife managed the secateurs. We got quite a lot of the root system out, but some of it defied our efforts and I feel pretty certain the plant is going to live to fight another day.

We have another couple of plants which are equally persistent. One is a Cape Lilac seedling on the southern side of the house. We cut it back and put Roundup on the stem, but it keeps re-shooting.

Another trouble maker is a creeper which has been annoying us for thirty years. I don't know it's name or where it came from. It reproduces from small knobby warts on the stems which are easily knocked off, and seem to be able to lie dormant for a long time before popping up. Just when we think we have got them all, another bit appears. These seem to spring from small pieces of root which snap off.

The main weed we have problems with is called stinkwort. I don't think it stinks at all in the olfactory sense. But it loves to grow in the cracks of brick paving. A sharp shovel does the trick. Unfortunately yesterday I noticed some had gone to seed and so it appears there is going to be another stinkwort war this year.

On the northern boundary of our house there is a bamboo. It's come under the fence from next door and pushed up the brick paving. Bamboos can be difficult. Roundup doesn't work on them either, unless they are cherished rare species.

Meanwhile the rest of the garden seems to behave itself. The cycads are currently making new shoots, while other things like our ginko are dropping leaves in preparation for winter.

We have a chilli bush which is loaded with chillies. If we were Mexicans we'd have a hasta la vista fiesta. But we're not. So I'm only allowed to use one or two chilies at a time when I cook a curry, and even then some of the ingrates have a whinge.

One of the unusual plants we have in the garden is a Japanese nashi pear. It has a few fruit on it now, but they are slow to develop and often we forget about them until it's too late. We have a custard apple tree too. It's been in for about eight years. We've never had a fruit from it yet, but the foliage is looking good at the moment.

This morning I've put some pictures of some these things in the 'Our garden' file on my Picasa site.

© MMVIII Paul R. Weaver.

Click here to visit 'dogandcatwatcher', my YouTube website.

Original still photographs are stored online in a cache at my Panoramio website or my Picasa site. Most of them have a brief description and a link back to a relevant essay. Images on Panoramio can usually be enlarged several times by clicking them.

About the writer

Click here to see our backyard.

Check out each month's subject index on the Calendar Page for my "common-man" monologues about survival in 21st century Australia – plus a little history occasionally. An original essay is added most days as part of an undertaking to write at least couple of million words. Zzzzzzzz!