Mount Maunganui public library

Another sunny late Summer's day here, this morning on my run past our local library it was good to many of the Sunflowers and Rudbeckia still flowering - these had been planted about a month ago.

Hopefully for those in the northern hemisphere you have a bit of thawing out going on. Linking up with Skywatch Friday :-)

Spring at Te Puna Quarry Park

This morning in an effort to getting rid of that cabin fever feeling we drove out to Te Puna Quarry Park, somewhere I haven't visited in over a year.  Near the entrance this part was chained off but naughty me sneaked in and got this quick shot of one of the pink Magnolia trees starting to bloom.

 

In the Rhododendron garden these pinks and reds caught my eye, looks like the insects were enjoying the flowers too.

Near the end of the path was this garden floor covered in a sea of red and white flowers due to the Magnolia and Rhododendron trees towering above.

This white Magnolia was only just starting to bloom so there were more buds than flowers - we think the rain from the previous night has washed many off their branches.

Linking up with Our World Tuesday :-)

Redwood Forest (Whakarewarewa) - Rotorua

While out at Rotorua last week one place we visited was the Redwood Forest (Whakarewarewa). 6 ha of Redwood trees scattered in close proximity to each other that grow so tall and leafy.

Apparently 170 trees were planted in the early 1900s and only a handful are still there today. This one is one of New Zealand's Ponga tree ferns.

We could't believe how cold it was while walking along this track. The temperature for the day was around 8 deg celsius. I should've taken a jacket.

Sad to see quite a few mushrooms and toadstools had been squashed and stood on, this was the only one I could find.

This track we walked took about half an hour but there were various other tracks there too.

One of the main attractions there was the treetop walk which costs around $25 NZD which we weren't going to pay, we were just as happy on the ground - besides I'm scared of heights so that left me out.

Linking up with Skywatch Friday :-)

Views from the Butterfly Garden at Te Puna Quarry

Last week I drove out for a 2nd visit to Te Puna Quarry Gardens and since it was a very very warm sunny Spring day I didn't just limit myself to taking photos of one particular area. This time I walked around 3/4 of the gardens - this shot was taken from the Butterfly Garden section.

This part of the garden was full of annuals and perennials - perfect for the bees and butterflies.

For more Skywatch Fridays click here :-)

Autumn Hibiscus Flowers after the rain.

I just love these flowers. We see them all over Mangawhai and usually they flower on and off throughout the year, whether it's Summer or Winter. It's not easy to find plants that do well in this sandy soil but these seem to do quite well. We get them in colours of mostly pink or yellow...so pretty and vibrant though.

Signs of Summer - Purple gazanias at Te Arai

These little flowers are so vibrant and they line the sandy coastal areas around here making a bright show of colour. Love them!

Winter is here but there's still plenty of colour!

Another storm swept through here over the weekend swamping already soggy regions around Northland. Seems we got a respite Sunday morning because I was able to get out for a walk to the surf beach. On the way it was nice to see some colour in the form of this pink heather in someone's garden.

This one is Mangawhai estuary viewed from Wintle Street - stormy skies still but the water looking much calmer than it probably had been the night before. Think we definitely need some sun to dry out the land here.

Weekend colour in Mangawhai Heads

Because it was so lovely and sunny over the weekend it was too good to stay indoors so I decided to walk up to Mangawhai surf beach. The view on this photo of the estuary is perfect - so calm and blue looking.

I walked through the caravan park on the way home and there were lots of Flame trees in bloom. The red & yellow flowers are a nice addition to what's usually a dull winter here.