Archive for the 'Adelaide Hills' Category

Art work at Laratinga Wetlands

Art work at Laratinga Wetlands

Art work at Laratinga Wetlands

On a recent visit to the Laratinga Wetlands in Mt Barker I was intrigued to see four very large pieces of art work on display in the picnic grounds. This was the first time I had seen these paintings. By large I estimate that they are about 3m x 1m in size. Both their size and subject matter make an immediate impact on the viewer.

The Laratinga Wetlands are a series of about a dozen ponds on the eastern edge of Mt Barker in the Adelaide Hills in South Australia. They about a half hour drive from the Adelaide CBD and a similar distance from my home. The wetlands make up the purification plant for the local sewage works, the clean water being recycled for watering and irrigation in local parks and farms.

I can find no reference online to the history of these works. If any of my readers can shed a light on this art installation, please leave your information in the comments, or use the contact form and send me an email.

I would appreciate some help.

In fact, I would dearly love my readers to add comments to this post, and other posts on this site. There is a wealth of information scattered throughout this site and it can be access via the archives or the links on the side bar.

Art work at Laratinga Wetlands

Art work at Laratinga Wetlands

Art work at Laratinga Wetlands

Art work at Laratinga Wetlands

Art work at Laratinga Wetlands

Art work at Laratinga Wetlands

Laratinga Wetlands Mt Barker South Australia

Laratinga Wetlands Mt Barker South Australia

Laratinga Wetlands Mt Barker South Australia

Just over a half hour drive from home is a place I like to visit but don’t get to as often as I would like. The Laratinga Wetlands in Mt Barker in the Adelaide Hills section of the Mt Lofty Ranges is a mecca for local and interstate birders. The wetlands consist of about a dozen ponds which make up the sewage works of the nearby town.

By the time the water reaches the final ponds it is purified enough to be used on nearby farms as irrigation water. In the meantime, the various ponds play host to a wide range of water-birds including ducks, ibis, herons, egrets, grebes, cormorants, dotterels, plovers, swamphens, coots and moorhens.

Purple Swamphen

Purple Swamphen

The area around the ponds and the entrance paths have been wonderfully landscaped, with lawns, shelter sheds – it rains frequently in Mt Barker – barbecues and public toilets. Around the ponds and picnic area many trees, bushes and smaller plants which add the great environment which attracts many bush birds, including parrots, cockatoos, lorikeets, honeyeaters, finches, pigeons, doves and swallows.

You can see more photos of the birds seen here on my other site Trevor’s Birding.

Further reading:

Galah

Galah

Grey Teal

Grey Teal

Laratinga Wetlands on a cold misty winter's morning

Laratinga Wetlands on a cold misty winter’s morning

Happy birthday to me

Yes indeed – it is my birthday today.

As a treat for my many readers, today we will have something a little different. Instead of an article about somewhere I’ve travelled to, I want to share some photos of my favourite places.

Enjoy.

If you’d like to leave a birthday message in the comments section, that would also be great.

Australian Pelican, Mallacoota, Victoria

Ama Dablam, Nepal

Circular Quay, Sydney Harbour

Giant Panda, Adelaide Zoo, South Australia

Mt Lofty Botanic Gardens

A visit to a native garden part 3

Australian native plants in an Adelaide Hills garden (Hardenbergia)

Over the last few days I have been sharing photos of flowers and plants in the garden of a friend. Today I feature the last of these photos, plus a bonus.

Our friends told us that a pair of Tawny Frogmouths had been resident in a tree just over the fence for some years. These birds had even raised several broods of young in recent times. It just happens to be one of my favourite birds too – and so easy to photograph!

Tawny Frogmouth

Australian native plants in an Adelaide Hills garden (Grevillea)

A visit to a native garden part 2

Australian native plants in an Adelaide Hills garden

As I wrote a few days ago my wife and I were invited to a friend’s garden a while back to take photos of flowers and cuttings for propagation. She and her husband had collected and grown a wide range of Australian native plants over many years; every spot in the property was utilised. They were about to sell and move elsewhere so we jumped at the opportunity for one last look.

I was particularly taken with the water features in the beautiful pots shown above. Such a simple way to grow, feature and display plants one does not usually see in your average house garden.

My next post in two days’ time will feature more flowers – and one of my feathered friends.

Australian native plants in an Adelaide Hills garden (Acacia)

Australian native plants in an Adelaide Hills garden