h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

All right, Peanut asked for photos of my garden, so I took some today. Some of you might be interested as well. I'm hoping this serves to inspire me to organize things better as well, to pretty the place up a bit. Anyways so this is mostly a record for myself of what's going on, but some of you might like the photos.

Bird-of-Paradise flowers, Gasterias, Aloes and Giant Carrion Flowers in the little garden just outside the living room windows and inside the inner security gate:

http://i360.photobucket.com/albums/oo45/WillemvdMerwe/Strelitzias_zpsb475e0cb.jpg

My succulent garden, between the house and the driveway. In this photo: quiver trees and a few other aloes, several species of Crassula, some Haworthias, Kleinia fulgens, Senecio articulatus, tiger-jaw mesembs, small Euphorbias:

http://i360.photobucket.com/albums/oo45/WillemvdMerwe/SucculentGarden1_zps2de069b3.jpg

A big Celtis tree standing just inside the outer security gate. In its shade is a Bird-of-Paradise flower plant (with one flower), some Kalanchoes, pretty Agapanthus 'lilies' (not flowering), a Senecio Barbertonicus, and a scruffy Lopholaena (a wild daisy that grows on the hills around here) that decided to grow there:

http://i360.photobucket.com/albums/oo45/WillemvdMerwe/ShadeofCeltis1_zpse7a6c983.jpg

The same bed, continued: a Wild Olive tree, to the right of it a Pride-of-de-Kaap, and the weirdly shaped tree at the far right is an Outeniqua Yellowwood. The palm tree is in the yard of neighbours across the street. Below the trees are Jade plants, Kalanchoes, Agapanthus 'lilies' and Irises:

http://i360.photobucket.com/albums/oo45/WillemvdMerwe/WildOlive_zps9562a8db.jpg

A tree ... my dad planted it, it's not native and I don't know exactly which species it is, we call it a 'violin' or 'violet' tree (no distinction in Afrilkaans). Beneath it are some plants I offer for sale in bags:

http://i360.photobucket.com/albums/oo45/WillemvdMerwe/Violwood_zps096e7936.jpg

Here are some of my plants for sale: Crassulas, Senecios, Euphorbias, Kleinias, and Tongue-leaved Mesembs. The tree at the left is a young Wild Plum:

http://i360.photobucket.com/albums/oo45/WillemvdMerwe/PlantsforSale_zps9c9d2704.jpg

A huge Jade (or Money) plant, Crassula ovata, growing beside the mail box:

http://i360.photobucket.com/albums/oo45/WillemvdMerwe/MoneyPlant1_zps737b986a.jpg

Outside the outer gate is a large and flourishing Mitzerie tree, Bridelia micrantha. Beneath it are jade plants, carrion flowers, and an Ipomoea albivenia:

http://i360.photobucket.com/albums/oo45/WillemvdMerwe/Mitzerie1_zps1172412e.jpg

On the other side of the driveway on the outside of the gate is a large bed with lots of succulents growing in the shade of the Celtis tree:

http://i360.photobucket.com/albums/oo45/WillemvdMerwe/OutsidetheGate_zpse1ed68cf.jpg

A large bush of Aloe arborescens in the above bed, with other Aloe species, Cotyledons and Crassulas below it:

http://i360.photobucket.com/albums/oo45/WillemvdMerwe/Aloesoutsidegate_zpsebfd890b.jpg

Continuing this bed: Aloe maculata, Aloe peglerae, 2 species of Crassula (the flowering ones are perfoliata, the small-leaved ones are rupestris), and Thorncroftia succulenta, a member of the Sage family:

http://i360.photobucket.com/albums/oo45/WillemvdMerwe/AloesandCrassulas_zps10692142.jpg

The succulent bed, from a distance. Prominent plants here include tree grapes or Kobas, Sesam bushes, a Helicopter Tree, large members of the Sage family, Kleinia fulgens, quiver trees and other aloes. The bare patch is where I'm planning to plant more stuff:

http://i360.photobucket.com/albums/oo45/WillemvdMerwe/SucculentGardenWIP_zpsb73da523.jpg

In this close-up of the succulent garden shows quiver trees, a Senecio ficoides bush, and a huge bunch of other stuff including some 'giant' Kleinia fulgens plants getting ready to flower:

http://i360.photobucket.com/albums/oo45/WillemvdMerwe/SucculentGardenFront_zps4712b82e.jpg

In the back yard I have some bags in the shade of a Boer-bean tree. These inlclude Kudu Lilies, several different carrion flower species, two small Senecio species, some small Euphorbias, a few small Quiver trees, crassulas, Kalanchoes, a small Thorncroftia in flower, at the back some rare Paperbark False Thorn trees (the ones whose leaves are just in front of the chair):

http://i360.photobucket.com/albums/oo45/WillemvdMerwe/UndertheBoerBean_zps8800c3ea.jpg

The area where birds used to feed. We don't throw food out for them any more because feral cats of the neighbourhood ambush them. Trees visible here include Porkbush, Star Chestnuts (small, in bags), a Pecan Nut tree my dad planted, a Cork-bark Monkey Orange, a Broom Cluster Fig, some Senecio linifolius bushes:

http://i360.photobucket.com/albums/oo45/WillemvdMerwe/TheBirdsNoLongerFeed_zps55f7412a.jpg

The Plant House from the outside. Just in front of it are some Tetradenia riparia bushes; the branches to the right are a Blue Guarri, with an Ipomoea albivenia twining into it:

http://i360.photobucket.com/albums/oo45/WillemvdMerwe/PlantHouse_zps35f0319f.jpg

Inside the plant house: so many different things here, and they can't really be distinguished ... there's a Broom Cluster Fig tree and also a Carrot Tree growing rampantly in here, and the branches in the left foreground are Parsley Trees.. There’s also a thermometer that records daily maximum and minimum temperatures:

http://i360.photobucket.com/albums/oo45/WillemvdMerwe/InsidethePlantHouse_zps5af4958a.jpg

My Compost Heap – it’s really huge. Inside are earth worms and also the larvae of colourful fruit beetles, and some other invertebrates like spiders and wood lice:

http://i360.photobucket.com/albums/oo45/WillemvdMerwe/CompostHeap_zps8add8c12.jpg

This is the most neglected corner of my garden. There are black bags now in tatters, there are wild fig trees that started out in bags and are now rooted in the ground. The large tree on the left is a Sacred Coral Tree; there are also a couple of large-leaved dragon trees, some Pompom Trees in the back right, and a couple of Irises behind the brick and wood pile:

http://i360.photobucket.com/albums/oo45/WillemvdMerwe/NeglectedCorner_zps151b2cfa.jpg

Continuing from the corner of neglect there is now a very jungle-like patch. There’s a Wild Peach tree, rampantly growing Pompom Trees, Yellow Bauhinias, Euphorbias and a bunch of other things, and a few succulents, mainly gasterias, in bags below them:

http://i360.photobucket.com/albums/oo45/WillemvdMerwe/SuburbanJungle_zps6e98d297.jpg

This is the tool shed. The scruffy-ish plants in front of it are Cotyledons:

http://i360.photobucket.com/albums/oo45/WillemvdMerwe/ToolShed_zpsb0333e6e.jpg

This scene of riotous growth is centred on a large Blue Guarri, in which an Ipomoea albivenia is climbing; there are also leaves of a Giant-leaved Fig, a Wild Medlar, Porkbushes, and in the right corner, a Candelabra Euphorbia:

http://i360.photobucket.com/albums/oo45/WillemvdMerwe/Riotousgrowth_zps77053633.jpg

The swimming pool is something I can’t afford to maintain. There are now plants growing all around it. In the bags at the front are some rare Euphorbias I’m growing from cuttings, some quiver trees, carrion flowers, mesembs and also smaller Euphorbias. The dark green, densely leafy tree in the background is a Bride’s Bush; to the right of it stands a Toad Tree:

http://i360.photobucket.com/albums/oo45/WillemvdMerwe/BesidetheExPool_zps0eaa4b1d.jpg

All right! This is a record of my garden on this day, the 24th April 2013. If I can manage to stay here for some years longer I'm sure it will change a lot and I'll do a lot myself to make it better.

Wow. I find so much beauty in one place kind of overwhelming. But in a good way. What an amazing place.

Thank you for the tour! And best of luck - your gardening knowledge is impressive to us outsiders.

Oh wow, that is an amazing garden and it is huge

It looks beautiful to me and very organised.

Thank you so much for posting them

Great piccies, Williem! That's some compost heap!

I like observing the different light and vegetation. And your soil looks quite copper orange in colour. Maybe that's not the right description, it reminds me of Devon soil, we call it red earth.

Is your soil iron rich?

I wonder what your garden smells like? Of course all the flowers will have different scents, and the compost heap will be kinda fruity ...

...but what I love about different climate zones is the way that the atmosphere smells different to home, especially in early morning.

I remember in the South of France, and Greece, the smell of herbs in the air.

Of course, this garden is your home, but .. .. ah well, you know what I mean. .

Hey Peanut, How would we describe the smell in the atmosphere of an English garden, do you think? Depends on the season I guess.

The smell of cut grass and primroses, mixed. I don't think dew has a fragrance, what would be the the fragrance of dew? hmm. And trees. Do trees have a fragrance? Pine, of course, bay trees, lilac ... hmm.

oh gawd, I don't that I can describe the smells

It did lead to bizarre thought of the day, I thought probably compost heaps smell pretty samey after a while don't they? Then imagined myself sniffing Willem's compost heap to see how different it smelt than mine

, yes, be an interesting survey, comparing the smell of compost heaps the world over. After a while they might start to smell like perfume. . Or maybe not. .

Hi folks! Sorry for the 'empty' reply. Thanks for all the comments, first of all! I wouldn't exactly call my garden 'well organized' but I'm working on it. Would like the day to arrive when I can start in one corner and take photographs of every plant and everything can be clearly distinguished and looks good ...

Cactuscafé, yes the soil is naturally reddish around here, certainly there's much iron in it ... there is a significant component of red 'Kalahari Sand' even over here. There are different coloured soils in the region ... interesting to have a project taking photos to document soil colour!

OK as for smells ... I'd say this region will have a 'dusty' smell most of all except after rain showers or in such a nice rainy season as we've had this year. There are the smells of many grasses ... impossible to describe ... as for my garden, different areas have different smells. I think I'll go outside tomorrow and record my experiences.

But it brings up a specific thing ... I have many aromatic plants in my garden. I can give visitors and olfactory tour! I have things that have wonderful smells like the various members of the Sage family (indigenous species ... northern South Africa has a wealth of them). Then there are those that have 'interesting' smells, like the Carrot Tree (which smells of carrots of course), the Parsley Tree (which smells of parsley) and the Sneezewood ... and then there are the repulsive smells, such as the Momordica balsamina, a twining wild 'pumpkin' (although its fruits are tiny) that releases a vile odour when you touch it, and the various kinds of carrion flowers!

Oh and the compost heap ... it has a musty, earthy sort of smell, there's a component of nitrogen compounds from grass leaves ... I guess it can't smell much different from compost heaps in other places. Do you also have fruit beetle larvae in the compost heaps over there?

Yes, but what about your compose heap,Willem?

sorry

I love that dancing simpost smiley that Elektra used there. .

Do dancing smileys dance away all night, even when our computers are switched off?



I don't think we have the fruit beetle larvae in compost heaps in the UK, but Peanut might know more.

What about the North Carolina compost heaps? Are there fruit beetle larvae in them?

My neighbours would tease me now if they read this, , we have a shared garden, sometimes I help dig the compost heap but I always go ooooh yikesy yikes when all the worms come out, and they say I am a wuss. .



Thanks Willem! That's fascinating about the soil, and the smells! I'd love to see photos of different soil types in your region, and also your writings about different smells in the areas of your garden. Pleeeze?

You serious about the Carrot Tree? The Parsley Tree? The Sneezewood, the vile odour pumpkin, the carrion flowers? No kidding, really?

Nah, get away boy, you're having me on . No? That's amazing. I love it. I need further evidence, I think you tease me. .

What a strange mysterious world we live in eh? I think I shall devote my next life to vegetation.

that is some garden and a credit to you. I have only had time to look at half the photos but will be back.

It must be a great comfort to you to have your own space like that. I feel so sorry for people who have no garden, I have only spent two years without one and I really pined for my own open space.

Keep up the good work,

Websailor

oof I couldn't identify a beetle lavae. Beetles have taken a bit of a hit in the uk

I see Cardinal Beetles, Churchyard beetles, Garden Chafers, Lesser Stag beetles and Stag Beetles, the stag beetles are becoming rare.

A lady stag beetle hitched a ride in my bag on the way back from Cornwall, she was a beauty and I noticed her in there somewhere on A30

cor she was risking life and limb as everyone just chucks everything in my bag and rootles around for it when they like, anyway we made sure she was ok and found her a home that she was hopefully happy with in Somerset when we got back

Peanut, have you discovered the critter in your woodpile yet?

No, I haven't, it is not a wasps nest, on account of no comings and goings in the daytime, this is good thing to tick of the list before you go poking around

I have left it undisturbed for a few days, given that we have been quite rudely rearranging the garden

I think the critter in Peanut's woodpile is the Parktown Prawn.

That is some beautiful array of beetles you mentioned there, my luv. Heavens, I don't know anything. This is awesome. Thanks for the knowledge!

I love the lady stag beetle heading out on the A30 with you guys. I am sure she will love living in Somerset with you. Glad she hung in there, in your handbag, wise lady she is.

Been thinking about the sense of smell. I decided it is one of the most evocative of the senses, it transports me, and a sense that I need to develop more. Like, the other day I saw all these hyacinths in the public gardens, blue and pink and white! so fragrant, and I crouched down to smell them. Immediately I was transported to my Gran's living room, at Easter time. Ah lovely time. . She always had hyacinths in pots on the window sill.

I really like this website for identifying things in the garden CC
It is clear and easy, good for all ages and a good jumping off point if you feel inclined to google your little critters furthur

http://www.uksafari.com/

Hah! Splendid! UK Safari! I love that! Thanks! And easy to access, from young to my braintype. .

I know what you mean, Websailor, about own garden space, forgive me interrupting your conversation with Willem, but it is interesting to think about. My Dad used to say that working in his garden brought him close to heaven on earth.

We've never had a garden of our own, yet. , perhaps we might now we are retiring, although I'm not sure I could adapt to working a garden now. Right now we have a shared garden, with five flats, it's great, provided everyone gets on. It can get annoying when someone says 'I want this flower here or this tree there' and someone else says 'I don't'.

We are lucky to have a beautiful public gardens just nearby, so I walk there all the time. And I don't have to do the weeding, , although gardeners say that weeding is all part of it.

I dream of retiring to a flat by the sea, with a balcony, then I could do balcony gardening, just a couple of plants, and make sculptures from stones and shells.