In Canada, where I grew up, the shift between seasons was slow with subtly changing colours. I always associated red and green with Christmas: the middle of winter, against a backdrop of frozen white.
Red Banksia Leaves ~ Coolum Beach, Queensland
Australia, on the other hand, is the opposite. Reds come out in spring and summer; a white backdrop is more likely to be ocean waves, clouds, white sands or the white-light of a searing-hot day; and even in the tropics, greens are liberally mixed with olives, muted greys and blues.
The dry land and long coastline exposes the continent to severe storms, regular floods and annual bush fires. It is not uncommon for part of the country to be experiencing drought while another region is under rising waters. This year alone, Queensland, in north-eastern Australia, suffered widespread disastrous floods causing deaths and enormous fiscal losses, followed only a month later by a category 5 tropical cyclone, possibly the worst the country has ever seen.
Closer to the equator than most of North America, and surrounded by larger bodies of water, even without inclement weather the country experiences abrupt seasonal changes. One of the things I missed most when I first moved to Australia was the transitional seasons: spring and autumn. In most of the country, the onset of cooler weather is accompanied by rain rather than frost, so leaves are more likely to turn a muddy brown than red and orange before they fall. After the cool of winter, spring growth explodes into an almost instant summer of opulent foliage.
The weather last week in Coolum, Australia, near the coast and just outside the Tropic of Capricorn, was unseasonably cold and wet. But what I noticed most was the prevalence of reds: dashes of red everywhere against the paperbarks, banksia, bottle brush and eucalypts. Definitely not a North American spring!
A lot of new growth is red rather than “spring green”.
Pale rhododendrons with bright red stamens.
Red firecrackers light up their green shrubs.
Deep red spiky Venezuelan Megaskepasma flowers contrast against blue sky and pale green leaves.
Red white and green: Megas flower
New growth in wine red and green.
Splashes of red cabbage trees hiding among the stately paperbarks.
Peeling bark in layers on a paperbark trunk.
The reds, browns and whites of a paperbark trunk.
Touches of red and brown on an arching white paperbark truck.
The dappled green and white bark of a leopard tree (Caesalpinia ferrea)
Tinges of red on a baby paperbark shoot.
Red berries hanging.
Christmas colours: Fresh red grevillea against spiky green leaves.
Grevillea (Proteaceae) flower
Red and pink eucalyptus leaves
Red and yellow wattle on a bush turkey on the move.
Red and green plants flank a female torso outside the Spa at the Hyatt Regency Coolum
Green umbrella ~ Red package ~ Hyatt Regency Coolum
Red-brown banksia
Touches of red and green on the dainty yellow bottlebrush.
A red leaf on a bush growing wild by the golf course.
Red and green ~ after the rain
It might be spring – but it felt a bit like Christmas.
Of course, at the rate this year is going, that will be here soon enough!
Happy travels, what ever season you are in.
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beautiful
It is fascinating that what we see all about us when we stop and consider what we are actually seeing… all those amazing shrubs and trees blend on a daily basis, I love that you focus on the individual nuances rather than the overall blurb, the majesty of colour that makes up the overall vista, that definition is exposed rather than lush clump. Thanks as always for the share.
I know it was hard work but I am glad you got the soundtrack attached. Sounds great.
XXX
Lovely post Ursula – are you excited to be going back to Australia?
PS – Stella (the dog) loves the soundtrack – she is hunting around madly for the birds . . .
Hi Lisa! So glad you stopped by.
At the moment, the move feels more “overwhelming” than “exciting”! It is amazing how much rubbish I have collected in eight years!!
Cheers! 😀