Showing Tag: "gardening" (Show all posts)

Cherry Tree in Autumn (13 June)

Posted by Sally Cummings on Monday, June 13, 2016, In : Creativity

I'm totally in love with the colours on my cherry tree right now. Every time I catch a glimpse of it through my laundry window, or step outside my back door, it makes me feel happy. A reminder of the beauty in the world.

Love the golden colours on my cherry tree right now!

Last week I desperately needed some inspiration for an assignment on modernism that I was really struggling with. I had ideas, but just couldn't pull them together and move forward. One of my friends suggested taking inspiration from a landscape, and suddenly everything came t...
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The cumquats are coming (10 June)

Posted by Sally Cummings on Friday, June 10, 2016,

It may be a little premature to be blogging about my much anticipated cumquat harvest while the fruit are still green (counting my chickens before they're hatched?), but ooh I hope this lot ripens successfully :)

Last year, after our cat Roxy died, my friends at work bought me a cumquat tree. I'm not sure who contributed, but I know it was Rose that remembered my reminiscences about growing up with a cumquat tree, and I was so touched at receiving such a personal gift at that time.

I took this ...
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Cherry season

Posted by Sally Cummings on Monday, November 30, 2015, In : Food & Recipes

When we first bought our Melbourne home, one of the attractions was the number of fruit trees in the backyard. Since then, we have added some and lost some, and they are still a huge part of the pleasure our garden brings us.

One of the trees we lost along the way was a wonderful old cherry tree. It was on its last legs when we moved in, but we were able to get a few years' harvests before the tree finally died. It was a black cherry, with sweet luscious fruit. It was always a battle with the ...
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Silver Princess (4 June)

Posted by Sally Cummings on Thursday, June 4, 2015,

I recently showed this photo of a neighbour's Silver Princess (Eucalyptus caesia) to my great friend Anna-Maria.

Not only was she able to identify it for me, but what a delightful surprise I got when she also bought me one as a gift! Fingers crossed it thrives in my garden and grows beautiful gumnuts like these :)

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Hoya (17 June)

Posted by Sally Cummings on Thursday, June 17, 2010,

I have so many blog posts in draft form, but they need more polishing than I have time for tonight. *sigh*

So I thought I'd share a photo of one of my favourite things :)

This beautiful Hoya Carnosa is growing on my back balcony. I adore its waxy texture, starburst shape, sweet scent and velvety petals - truly a feast for all of the senses!

Hoya Carnosa is my favourite variety (we always had a plant growing next to my parents' front verandah), but there are many different Hoya species available ...
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Busy year ahead...

Posted by Sally Cummings on Wednesday, January 20, 2010,

Well here we are in 2010 :)

It's going to be a very busy year for me and Tim, at least for the first few months. We're doing repairs and renovations around the house, doing a major cull of our possessions, moving interstate, looking for work - and who knows what will come after that!

Since Christmas we've had three large trees removed, a new toilet installed and other plumbing work done, new roof insulation put in, and we've thrown out or recycled several large bins full of 'stuff'. We've also ...
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Advent Calendar - Day 9 (Berries)

Posted by Sally Cummings on Wednesday, December 9, 2009, In : Food & Recipes

I picked some delicious berries from our garden today :)

On the left are raspberries, and on the right are boysenberries. The raspberries are especially sweet and delicious - so much better than anything you can buy! They were all eaten within 10 minutes of taking this pic ;)

Below is a photo of our berry patch. It was taken a couple of years ago (I thought of taking a new photo, but it's very overgrown and brambly at the moment!). Along the back wall are boysenberries and loganberries. Raspber...
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Advent Calendar - Day 4 (Herb Garden)

Posted by Sally Cummings on Friday, December 4, 2009,

This week I started a small potted herb garden to see us through the summer. It's just a temporary one until we move, but it's definitely worth it. There's nothing like adding herbs from your own garden to a home-cooked meal - especially when it's to highlight the flavour of some freshly picked vegetables from the same garden :)

I've planted parsley, chives, thyme and oregano. I may also try to get some sage and coriander growing from a previous season's saved seeds.

In addition to these potted...
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6 days in Hobart (Part 2)

Posted by Sally Cummings on Tuesday, June 9, 2009, In : Travel

Sunday was museum day, and we started out at the Maritime Museum. I have a thing for swashbuckling tales of adventure, so was interested to find out more about Hobart's rich maritime history. More models of ships than I personally needed to see, but great stories made it a worthwhile visit.

Mum and I then went on to the Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery, which provided an interesting combination of fact and fantasy. I loved the Antarctic exhibition, which included a 3D theatrette for viewing so...

Sally sets forth ... with first post!

Posted by Sally Cummings on Thursday, April 30, 2009,

Righto, I'll start with some information about myself...

I currently live in Melbourne (Victoria), Australia. I've lived there for most of my life, with the exception of four years spent in sunny Canberra (Australian Capital Territory). Later this year, my partner, Tim, and I will be moving to tropical Darwin (Northern Territory) - a place we've always loved.

I work as a librarian, and think it's a terrific profession to be a part of. I really enjoy helping others find information and resourc...