Friday, March 7, 2014

LANTANA

Do you remember this post where I wrote about the pesky plant Morning Glory ?
 
 
A pretty but invasive introduced plant here in Australia, but one I've seen in plant nurseries in England.

Well here's another one.



It's called Lantana and was introduced to Australia as an ornamental plant. It comes from  the tropical and sub-tropical regions of Central and South America.
 
Its first recording was in 1841  but it quickly escaped the colonial gardens and thrived under the favourable tropical, sub-tropical and temperate conditions of eastern Australia.



Pretty isn't it?
 The flowers are small and many, and it comes in several different colours.
It is flowering a lot at the moment in my area, an outer suburb with lots of open paddocks for horses and also plenty of areas of bush.


Lantana is one of Australia’s most debilitating invasive weeds.
It currently infests more than four million hectares of land across Australia, mainly in areas east of the Great Dividing Range in NSW and Queensland.

 
Lantana grows up to four metres high and often forms dense thickets.
Flesh of the plant produces a strong, aromatic odour when crushed.
 
In our family we call this BO ... Bush Odour
and it fills the air with its distinctive smell as you drive through heavily infested areas of Australian bush.
 
Lantana is a dry, scratchy, unattractive plant with square-shaped stems and short, curved and hooked prickles.
 
It is a very versatile plant preferring rich moist soils but able to survive prolonged dry periods.
It will tolerate poor soils and sand and will grow on stony hillsides as long as moisture is available.
 
In other words perfect for the east coast of Australia where it quickly invades areas that have been thinned or cleared for grazing and takes over preventing the growth of pasture grasses. 
 
 
But this is not its only bad feature.
 
All forms of lantana are toxic  to stock, and of all the colours the red-flowered forms are the most dangerous. Poisoning of stock due lantana can be quite substantial particularly in times of drought when there is little grass for the cattle to eat.
 
Horse owners always check their paddocks to keep them clear of lantana as death from lantana poisoning is slow and painful , usually occurring 1-4 weeks after the appearance of symptoms like constipation, frequent urination and jaundice.
 
Death is due mainly to liver insufficiency, kidney failure and, in some animals, myocardial damage and internal paralysis. 
( I've been doing some research !!! All I knew was that it was poisonous !)



Worse still this devil of a plant is very difficult to kill.
 Even bushfires don't kill it off
 and it regrows quickly from the base of the burnt off plant while the bush around it is slower to recover allowing it to get a bigger hold than ever.
  
There is a variety - low growing and spreading but not  invasive which is cultivated for people's gardens.




It has very pretty yellow or purple flowers which densely cover the plant giving a very pretty show



but you won't find it in the garden of anyone with any connection to farming the land !!

Cheers.
(all photos today from the Internet )

http://www.abc.net.au/local/stories/2012/11/12/3631060.htm

Tuesday, March 4, 2014

WHAT'S HAPPENING ?

What's going on ?

 
What's happening at my place?
 
1. Disaster averted !
 
I have been unable to get into my blogs!
Yes blogs, I have four on the go:
 
Helsie's Happenings
Helsie's Travels
Budget Baby Boomers' Travel Tips - abandoned but left sitting there
and Awesome Activities at Moggill - a CWA blog
 
Recently I have been unable to get into any of them.
When I signed in and clicked on Design to enter them I was faced with a blank page.
Nothing, just a white page with nothing on it!!
 
I tried my usual solution - rebooting the computer - no different.
 
I tried using another browser - no different.
 
I went away and came back the next day. Same thing.
 
I asked Tony .  No progress.
 
Finally, in desperation I asked two blogging buddies for help, the first step on going from blog to blog and putting the same comment on all of your blogs asking for help from any tech savvy bloggers out there.
 
Both of them set to work to find a solution for me and while Carol ( in Cairns ) was at work Sandy ( Tea Cup Lane ) found the solution for me !
 
Tony cleared my Cache and History and boom I'm back in business !
 
That's what I love about the world of Blogging.
When you have a problem your pals are always there to help you through.
 
Heartfelt thanks Sandy and Carol
 
2. Cooking
 
Recently there has not been much good stuff happening in my kitchen.
Tony and I have been dieting !!
Trying to get some weight off before our trip.
We both need it.
I need it more !
So we've been eating salads - easy enough in this weather - and not much else!
Needless to say Tony has lost twice as much as me !!!
 
BUT !
I've been seeing people making bread out there in the blogging world.
 
Artisan, no-knead bread
in particular
( on this blog and this one )
 
and I just had to have a go.
 
WOW ! Just look at this !!!
 


 
Yes, it is as easy as they say !

 
and when you slice it ......
 
 
 
Lovely holey, bread with a chewy crust.
 
I'll be making it again !
 
3. A Visitor
 
 
Yes, Scout has come to stay for a month while Sally is on holidays.
She ( Sally ) is spending two weeks in New York and 2 weeks in Whistler skiing.
 
Scout 's making herself at home.
 
 
Too much at home sometimes!
Not allowed on the new chairs Scout !!
 
Scout's habit of early rising is taking its toll on Tony.
 

 
 
4. Another disaster !
 
Sally's bathroom renovation has been a disaster.
 
Incredibly poor workmanship and $9000 down the drain so Dad and cousin Ben to the rescue.
 
They are jackhammering it all up while she is on holiday and organising and supervising the repair.

 
5. Exercise !!!
In an effort to help with the weight loss drama I am now swimming 1000metres - 20 lengths  -one kilometre - twice a week at the local pool.
As the pool will be closing in three weeks time for the Winter this will not continue but then it might be cool enough to do a little walking in the evenings with Scout.
 
Suffice to say exercise and I are not friends !!!
 
and now finally the most exciting of all
 
6. An Engagement !
 
 
These two special people
my handsome son Brett ( do you think he looks a bit like Bear Grills ???) and his lovely girlfriend and partner for about 6 years, Sarah
have finally decided to get married later in the year.
We are so happy for them and delighted to have Sarah an official member of the family.
 
So that's what been happening here !
 
Cheers.