Summer Blooms
Breakers is set on 2 acres of native bush and landscaped gardens. Our gardens are simple as we’ve tried to keep them in tune with our natural surroundings. This time of the year many of the natives are starting their bloom.
The Harakeke (NZ Flax bush) are laden with their towering flower spikes, all ready to open and welcome the native birds for feeding. The Tui particularly love them, often hanging upside down to drink the nectar. Kereru do an amazing acrobatic show flying in and landing. We watch in awe, thinking for sure there is no way the flowers can hold their weight, but the Kereru seem to have uncanny balance when it comes to where they can feed from.
Our Kamahi trees are layered further back in our bush but tower above the canopy displaying their beautiful pale pink flowers.
Then there are the numerous Pohutukawa trees in our garden. Some of these are massive and over 50 years old – planted by the original landowners. We are lucky enough to have a yellow Pohutukawa tree and it flowers first, before all our red ones. Due to the number of red Pohukawa and their dispersion around the property we have a mass of red in the garden usually from the middle of December through to the middle of January as they take their turn to flower. At the moment the foliage is two-tone green with the paler green going to be the flower blooms soon. It is an exciting sight to see, knowing what is to come.
A supposed sure sign of a good summer ahead is the cabbage tree in flower. We have one in our drive entrance and one down in the garden on the way to the beach track. Both have been laden with flowers at the end of Spring. Unfortunately some strong winds have whipped most of the blossom off the flower frongs (I don’t know… is that what’d you call them….., I think I’ve made that word up but it sounds good……). But they are still looking pretty and I’m holding to that adage for our upcoming summer.
One plant that is already flowering profusely is the NZ rock lily and our garden is full of them. Their pretty pink and white flowers ready add a splash of colour in amongst all the green. The bees love them too and we are happy when we have happy bees.
Spring seemed particularly wet this year but given how healthy all our natives are looking and the size of the towering flower spears on our Harakeke, I guess they all loved the Spring rains. Now roll on Summer – we are ready for you and all your glory.
