Bench Surfing

A Trip to Cairns (2 of 10)

A natural cave under some big native trees taunted us when we first moved in. It was a cool oasis during summer and a delightful canopy in winter. But nothing was growing there. We recreated our circular clock paving from Murrumbateman and Ruprecht thought the area could do with a few ferns. 18 tree ferns later and he's still suggesting a trip to the local fernery.

It is an absolute joy to sit under the trees in the middle of the ferns in Summer. So guess what? We put a bench there. In keeping with the tropical feel we found a lovely Bali bench. The birds love it too and with a bird bath in the middle of the clock, they hang out there a lot.

The view is lush greenery from the ferns, rugged gum trunks and an overgrowth of grasses, bromeliads, fuschias and orchids. It's a great place to kick back and have a drink or two. Unfortunately in Summer the mozzies hang out for a drink or two, too.

Off to Uluru (3 out of 10)

A complete contrast to the fernery is the other side of the garden. Rugged, dry and barren. A large mound of excavation soil became our Uluru. The bush around it is slowly regenerating and the huge pile of fallen wood next to it was slowly burnt over our first few years here. So we were left with a regenerating bush land in a dry patch of the garden. From there you can see the healthy native plants in the back garden. So guess what? We put a bench there.

We went all out for this one. Ruprecht built a very basic bench and behind it we created a piece of art (well that's what I call it anyway) - ochre coloured circles in the shape of a 6 x 6 square with large lizards crawling around it.

On one side is the flourishing Uluru and on the other we are developing a Kata Tjuta. This is one area under development but I am hoping for great things this Spring. In the meantime we have a great place to sit and enjoy the back garden and the bush around us. Yes, you guessed it - it's great to kick back and have a drink there.

So 3 benches down and 7 to go. As I write this it is getting more and more appealing to go and sit at one of them. If you pick the right time of day (a window of opportunity of about 30 minutes) it is now enjoyable to sit out in the garden.

So 2 more next time. How about Pialligo and the cottage garden? Both beautiful places to sit and watch the world go by .......who'd have thought?