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

Church at Eden Valley, South Australia

Sometimes when we travel from home in Murray Bridge, South Australia, to our daughter’s home in Clare, we travel through the small rural community of Eden Valley. Every time we see the Lutheran Church just off the main road through town we admire this beautiful building. I’ve often commented that I should one day stop and take some photos. On a recent trip I did stop, but I still messed up the shot. The lovely church appears to have a lean on it to rival that famous one in Italy.

Not so.

Trouble is, I didn’t get out of the car but merely grabbed the camera, twisted around in my seat and “click”. I didn’t check that I’d composed the photo properly and so the bell tower appears to have a definite lean. It doesn’t; I’m the one leaning. Next time I must get out of the car, compose the photo carefully and then shoot.

Eden Valley is only a small community on the edge of the world famous Barossa Valley wine region. There are many vineyards and wineries in the district, as well as orchards (apricots, peaches, cherries), sheep and wheat farms and a some cattle as well.

Leaning farm shed near Tungkillo, South Australia

I grew up on a farm in the Murray Mallee region of South Australia. We had a number of very interesting sheds on the farms, many of them built by my father. While I wasn’t interested in becoming a farmer I do remember the many pleasant hours spent poking around in the sheds at home. Now in my more mature years I enjoy travelling throughout Australia, observing the many and varied types of sheds that can be found on farms and within view of the road.

The shed shown in the photo above has been amusing my family every time we drive past. It is on a farm near to the township of Tungkillo in the eastern Mt Lofty Ranges here in South Australia. I’ve never been to Pisa to see their leaning tower so I can’t make comparisons about grace and beauty versus function. This shed is still used on occasions to store hay bales, but it is obvious that it is threatening to finally collapse in a puff of straw and dust.

But not yet.

This shed has been leaning like that for at least ten years, though the list seems to have been accentuated by recent wild stormy weather. It will be a sad day when it finally concedes to gravity because it makes me chuckle every time I see it.

Tungkillo Hotel, South Australia

When we go to visit our daughter in Clare in the mid north of South Australia, we usually go through the small township of Tungkillo. This town is near the eastern slopes of the Mt Lofty Ranges on the road from Adelaide through Birdwood to Mannum.

In all the times we have driven through this town, I recall only stopping on one occasion – to buy an ice cream from the general store – the only store which is now closed. The hotel (shown in the photos) does good meals I believe, but we’ve never been through the town at the right time to stop for a bite to eat. The town is a small community in the midst of farming country, mainly sheep, mohair goats, cattle and some wheat farming where it isn’t too hilly.

The photo below also shows a large pipeline. This transports water from the River Murray at nearby Mannum to the reservoirs which store water for our state capital city, Adelaide.

Tungkillo Hotel, South Australia

Hay bales near Tungkillo, South Australia

Farm ruins near Palmer, South Australia

For a good proportion of the nearly 175 year history of the state of South Australia, agriculture has been predominant. In the last few decades manufacturing and mining have taken over as our leading economic arenas.

Because of this history of settlement on the land in the early days, farms were established in many parts of the state, including many which didn’t last all that long. Travelling in the rural areas of our state reveals many formerly fine homes and farm sheds now in a poor state; most are buildings slowly becoming ruins, mere shadows of the dreams of their optimistic builders.

The buildings shown on this post can be found near the road from Palmer to Tungkillo, east of Adelaide.

Farm ruins near Palmer, South Australia

Rock formations near Palmer, South Australia

Whispering Wall at the Barossa Reservoir in South Australia

On our way to the Yorke Peninsula during our holiday last week we stopped for lunch in the picnic area of the Barossa Reservoir. This dam is between the towns of Williamstown and Gawler in the Barossa Valley wine region. This is a delightful spot to picnic and very popular with tourists and locals alike.

The dam wall was constructed between 1899 and 1902 in the shape of a parabola. After construction it was discovered that the dam had a unique acoustic effect, leading to its common name of “The Whispering Wall.” A visitor can stand at one side of the dam, speak softly towards the wall and can be heard quite clearly across the other side, about 140 metres away.

Barossa Reservoir in South Australia

Whispering Wall at the Barossa Reservoir in South Australia

Barossa Reservoir in South Australia

Flowers in a friend's garden

Over recent days I’ve shared some photos of flowering Australian plants. These photos were all taken in the native garden of friends of ours who live near Adelaide in the Mt Lofty Ranges. They enjoy collecting and planting native Australian plants as do we. Many of the plants found in Australia are very colourful, as illustrated by the photos I have shared in this blog.

Related Articles:

• Flowers of the Canberra Botanic Gardens
• Australian National Botanic Gardens
• National Botanic Gardens, Canberra
• Australian Inland Botanic Gardens near Mildura
• Royal Botanic Gardens, Sydney
  

Flowers in a friend's garden

Flowers in a friend's garden

Flowers in a friend's garden

Yesterday I shared with you some photos of beautiful Australian plants. These photos were taken in a friend’s garden in the Adelaide Hills. Like us, our friends enjoy looking at and growing plants found here in Australia. From this small selection you can see that our plants have very attractive flowers.

To view enlarged images of each photo, click on the photo. I’ll share  more photos in a few days.

Flowers in a friend's garden

Flowers in a friend's garden

Wittunga Botanic Gardens, Blackwood, South Australia

On a visit to the Wittunga Botanic Gardens in the Adelaide Hills last year I managed to get some lovely photos of the various plants which were flowering at the time. This was early spring last year and many of the plants were already in full bloom.

On the downside, I didn’t see many birds. Admittedly it was around midday and one of the hottest days we’d had since the winter. I guess the birds were feeling the sudden burst of heat.

Wittunga Botanic Gardens, Blackwood, South Australia

Wittunga Botanic Gardens, Blackwood, South Australia

Wittunga Botanic Gardens, Blackwood, South Australia

Botanic gardens are excellent places to hone your photography skills.  I particularly enjoy taking photos of the many birds that tend to congregate in such places. But birds have a habit of flying off just as you focus on them!

Plants and flowers are different. They tend to stay in the same place making photography much easier – except when they are swaying in the breeze. When that happens I usually ask my wife to hold the branch still,  trying not to get her hand or arm in the shot.

How about checking out my blog about birds?

• Trevor’s Birding Blog

Wittunga Botanic Gardens, Blackwood, South Australia

Wittunga Botanic Gardens, Blackwood, South Australia