Sunday, October 04, 2009

Sunday Sky: Jacaranda watch

Something which pleases me greatly about our new house is that we have a jacaranda tree in our backyard. Jacarandas are native to South America, but you'd be forgiven for thinking they are Australian natives by the number you see in Sydney (especially on the North Shore and in the Eastern Suburbs), as well as in Brisbane - almost anywhere along the coast, really.


They have the most divine blue/purple flowers, and I'm looking forward to mine flowering. There is a huge jacaranda in the main quadrangle at the University of Sydney, where I studied - the saying was that if you hadn't started studying for final year exams by the time the jacaranda flowered, then it was too late!

The leaves are started to come out, so I reckon it must be gearing up to flower soon ... I figure I'll keep a close eye on it over the next month or so, and hopefully by the end of October will be rewarded with a beautiful display (followed by a carpet of purple flowers on the ground!)


As you can see, a grey day in Sydney today - perfect for staying inside and knitting!

15 comments:

Bells said...

i do love a jacaranda. We don't hvae them here I don't think.

In Canberra the saying was based on trees that grew balls of fluff like cotton. If you hadn't started studying by the time the fluff falls, you're done for!

MadMad said...

OmG. I haven't even read your post yet because I was soooooo distracted by your beautiful college. It's freakin' Hogwarts! Wow! I've said it before, and I'll say it again, I'm sure, I LOVE reading about all the Aussie stuff you sometimes post. So fab. I SWEAR, I'm going there someday. Course, I wish I was going as an 18 year old, to that GORGEOUS school.... but still.

OK. Off to read the post. Be right back.

MadMad said...

Ah, jacarandas! I remember them well. It's always so nostalgic for me when I see plants that remind me of my days living in S.A.

TinkingBell said...

Love jacarandas - I used to say we had 3 seasons when we lived in Qld - wet, dry and jacaranda - I love how they look as if they are standing in their own reflections when their flowers fall

Too cold down here, unfortunately

Jan said...

Our jacarandas here bloom late October and early November on fairly bare limbs before the leaves are really out much at all. Yes, Sydney Uni's exams were in November, if I remember rightly, and jacaranda time would have been far too late to start study.

MadMad, that building and the old quad it encloses are indeed lovely but there are some good modern buildings, some terrible modern stuff and some really old, fairly decrepit terraces etc. All part of the same university. When I was there, well before Rosered, we were told never to sit too close to the building on the grass which you can see. Slate tiles were known to fall off the roof above and one person narrowly missed being decapitated by such a slate. It may well be that the roof has now been fixed.

LynS said...

In my part of thoroughly urban Sydney there's been lots of plantings of red bottlebrushes that look so beautiful at this time of year. Sydney may not have Spring in the European sense but there are other pleasure to be had as trees and shrubs bloom.

Bianca said...

Oh I do love a Jacaranda! We have a beautiful Crepe Myrtle in our backyard which I love even more than the Jacaranda. Beautiful.

And my uni had the same myth but it was blossom fluff flying from trees (not sure what the trees were - flame? - but they were everywhere and the city would fill with fluff).

Lynne said...

Good for knitting, blogging, reading, and writing workshop notes!! More about that later.

My brother works a SU and was married outside the Manning Bar [where his reception was held] but if there was a jacaranda it wouldn't have been in flower in late January! The Uni is pretty impressive, especially compared to UWS and UTS [my alma maters].

As I look out my study window at the grey, grey sky I see red bottlebrushes, golden grevilleas, pink fuschias and a gorgeous silk tree in the distance. If I stand up, I'll be able to see all my miniature roses coming into flower [WM is a great gardener!].

Poison_kitty said...

At least this time you can enjoy the display without worrying about studying!

Gemma said...

I love them! We have one or two at the house in Spain and when they are in full bloom they are gorgeous. I have the awful feeling that they don't do well in England as I've never seen one which is a crying shame! I'm expecting photos of yours when it is doing it's thing!

Alwen said...

It's plenty gray here, too, again this morning, but I'm thinking if there are any jacarandas here, they are in those big botanical garden greenhouses.

Donna Lee said...

We're supposed to be having a sunny day but so far, all I can see is a thick fog. Usually by now it would have burned off so I'm not too optimistic for the day.

roxie said...

Hooray for spring! And you will, of course, share lots of jacaranda photos, right?

Em said...

I've never seen a jacaranda before, so I'm very much looking forward to some pictures. All the flowers are my favorite part of spring, everything feels so hopeful. And, of course, you finally thaw out. We've got some lovely sunshine here today, and some nice, cool autumnal temps. I'll send the sun and keep the cooler weather, shall I?

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