thistles

Mowing outside the garden

by cjj on April 20, 2011

Me mowing

We spent most of today just outside the fence, pulling up young thistles and mowing. It is not good to have dried grasses right up to the fence mainly because it is a fire hazard. But we are very keen to have mown lawn because it looks so good, and we can walk out there. It was lovely weather today, and that work was good exercise. J took this photo of me because he liked my hat. It is just a big sun hat, but it bends down easily under the ear muffs. I did feel a little like Bo Peep!
See the sheep in the background under the tree!
BTW that tree is the shape it is because galahs flew in one year and stripped the bark off it, nearly ring barking it. The tree recovered by growing branches from low on its trunk. I think the birds do this to encourage branches to die which eventually gives them hollows to nest in.

[audio:http://carmeljames.com/myblog/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/mowing-outside-the-garden.mp3|titles=mowing outside the garden]

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King parrot

by cjj on January 23, 2011

King Parrot

A beautiful male king parrot eating seeds in the thistles. The yellow saffron thistle is still flowing, but I think the bird is eating seeds out of dried scotch thistle flowers. He was very happy, so much food!

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Parrots eating thistles

by cjj on December 5, 2010

The parrots really like these thistles

Sulphur crested cockatoos and galahs, 2 very common parrots around here, love eating the seeds in the scotch thistles.

Because of the very wet spring there are a lot of thistles. Naturally our farmer landlord doesn’t like them and he has sprayed almost the whole property to get rid of them. Now our lovely green hills, that were so full of thistles you couldn’t walk on them, are turning a shade of brown. I don’t know what he will do next to get grass back on the hills. Maybe sow seed????

I hope that one soon we will be able to walk on the hills like in the sound of music!!

ps. Always wondered why Maria didn’t seem to worry about stepping in brown stuff.

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