Happy Friday everyone! Today’s flower of the day is the paperflower, also known as Bougainvillea, spotted here in Caringbah, Sutherland Shire.
Interestingly, paperflower has shown potential in fighting urban air pollution due to its ability to absorb pollutants. Its vibrant, extensive bracts and adaptability make it a perfect choice for urban greening projects aiming to reduce environmental pollutants. How cool is that?!
Happy Friday everyone! Today’s flower of the day is not actually a real flower, it’s a flower on a cup, hanging on a tree! I love the idea of hanging cups in a tree, especially when you’re visiting a garden tea room. This was discovered at the Camellia Gardens we visited this morning. It did feature a rose on the cup so I figured it’s perfect for today’s flower.
Happy Friday everyone! Today’s flower is French lavender, however, this wasn’t spotted in France but rather Matamata / Hobbiton in New Zealand. Coincidentally, it has a shadow featured in the image, perfect for a double challenge feature. I could have also posted as a Thursday door but I won’t go that far 😜.
French lavender – posted as a FOTD and part of Becky’s November shadow challenge.
Happy Friday everyone! Today’s flower of the day is the jacaranda, signalling spring in Sydney and reminding us that summer is just around the corner.
The blossoms fall like confetti, leaving a carpet of colour beneath your feet, bringing colour and happiness to the streets. Although short lived, they are truly unforgettable and a highlight of spring.
Happy Friday everyone! I love that Dan and Marsha have created a special challenge today to post a flower in remembrance of Cee, the lady who started the flower of the day challenge. I remember always wanting to find new flowers and post about them, so when I spotted Cee’s challenge I was delighted. Cee was extremely welcoming, friendly and really played a big part in my blogging journey with her encouragement and positive energy. I am delighted her memory lives on through other bloggers and their flower posts, or other challenges that she had inspired. Today I am showing a very beautiful ornamental onion, part of the allium family, which also includes garlic, chives, and leeks. Known for their tall stems and globe-shaped blooms, I thought this singular flower would be perfect for today.
Discovered at Hillsborough Forest Castle & Gardens, Northern Ireland.
Happy Friday everyone! Today’s flower of the day is the African daisy, spotted not in Africa but in Lisburn, Northern Ireland. They are sure to brighten even the darkest day!
Bright, bold and beautiful. Posted as Part of Cee’s flower of the day challenge
Happy Tuesday everyone. I don’t normally post a flower of the day on a Tuesday but I just had to showcase this flower today!
I bought a plant a couple of months ago at the local markets, without even realising what it was and woke up this morning to find my very own walking iris in full bloom! For someone with notoriously brown thumbs, this little miracle made my day.
The walking iris gets its name from the way it “walks” across the garden, after flowering, new baby plants form on the stems, which eventually bend down and root themselves in the soil. A plant that practically grows itself?! Amazing for someone like me.
Happy Friday everyone. Below is my flower of the day and you can see why it is known as a treasure flower.
Spotted outside our accommodation in Margaret River. Really beautiful flowers, thrive best in direct sunlight. It is often called “treasure flower” because of its bright, jewel-like blossoms and is a member of the daisy family.
Happy Friday everyone! Today’s flower of the day is another Barbados Lily. I don’t usually post the same flower twice, as I had already posted one last week. However, even though this flower is the same species / family, I feel like the colours are completely different and deserve their own chance in the limelight. The colours are absolutely stunning and completely eye popping. These flowers were spotted at the weekend past when we went for a walk around Lilli Pilli, not far from us in the Shire (what a great name for a suburb). Anyway, enjoy your day everyone!
Happy Friday to you all. Don’t you just love when you walk along a dusty main road and find a beautiful floor somehow surviving and thriving.
Yesterday I was walking to work when I spotted these absolute beauties, Barbados Lillies(scientific name Hippeastrum puniceum), so vibrant and full of life. Have a good day everyone 🙂
Happy Friday everyone. Today’s flower is the Calla Lily. I went for a run this morning near our accommodation in Margaret River and was lucky to spot these flowers growing in the wild, never seen these growing like this before, magical.
Coastal Groundsel, which is native to Western Australia and common on Rottnest Island, where we currently are! Happy Friday to you all 🙂
A little info – The flowers are classic yellow “daisy” type, growing in dense clusters and the species is widespread on dunes and open spaces on Rottnest Island. They are recognised as part of the island’s wildflower displays, very prominent in the spring season.
Happy Friday everyone. Today’s flower was spotted in Hillsborough, Northern Ireland. Absolutely stunning to look at but looks can be deceiving. With some research I discovered this flower was introduced a long time ago and has thrived so well that it sometimes crowds out native plants, a reminder that not everything that looks attractive is harmless.
The rhododendron’s beauty can be deceiving, just as flashy headlines can hide the truth (relating to my previous post).
Happy Friday everyone. Today’s flower of the day is the gladiolus (sounds like something from Harry Potter) and it is from the Iris family. Known also as “sword lilies” due to their long, pointed leaves, which resemble a sword.
Apparently these flowers symbolise strength and moral integrity. Their tall, resilient stems symbolize inner strength and courage
Inner strength and courage is much needed in these testing times. The world is very heavy at the moment and I fear I should stop watching the news as I am losing faith in humanity.
Happy Friday everyone! I was going through all my flower images this morning and thought I would post the last few roses that I have in my collection. After today, I will be roseless but I have so many other flower species to showcase. These roses were spotted in Sir Thomas and Lady Dixon Park in Belfast during their rose fair event that they hold annually.
“We can complain because rose bushes have thorns, or rejoice because thorn bushes have roses.” – Abraham Lincoln
Happy Friday everyone! I survived my stomach churning train journey this morning into the city and then walked to my workplace. It was a lovely morning and I managed to spot these wee beauties close to my work, nestled in the surrounding foliage.
They belong to the genus Rhododendron, and most evergreen types are native to Australia and Asia, especially Japan and China.They supposedly only flower in spring, which can mean only one thing here, spring has indeed sprung!
The Belladonna lily spends much of the year looking like not much is happening, with its leaves gone and ground bare but then suddenly out of nowhere, tall stems rise and burst into bloom with vibrant pink flowers.
This flower jumped out at me this morning and made me think about hope. Hope that the weather improves and that next week will be less busy than this one has been. Ps. This isn’t an actually lily but rather belongs to the Amaryllidaceae family.
Happy Friday everyone! Today’s flower of the day is the Japanese camellia, which surprised me as I thought it was a rose. However, it is also known as Rose of Winter. Very fitting considering it is indeed still winter here in Sydney.
As you can see from the droplets of rain on the flower, our weather hasn’t improved much. They’re even saying now we could have a wet spring. Fingers crossed the bureau of meteorology are wrong. Anyway, I hope you all have a lovely weekend, whether you’re out and about or relaxing at home.
Today I hit a HUGE milestone (for me) with achieving one thousand subscribers.
That’s a thousand humans (and possibly a few bots) who clicked follow, subscribe or ‘I’m kind of curious with what Wayne is rambling about today’.
From Wayne’s Word to tray bakes, travel highlights to colourful doors, you have stuck around and I am incredibly grateful for that. Whether you have read, may it be one post or a hundred, I want to say, THANK YOU!
This is my 21st day posting in a row and I have to say this has been the key for me, posting often. With creating Wayne’s Word and joining in different blogging prompts, it has kept the fire burning within me to keep blogging. The community here is fantastic for encouraging you and making you feel extremely welcome when the world around us can seem hard and sad at times.
Here is to the next thousand followers, the next word, travel adventure or whatever wonders lie in between.
The Canna Lily is a striking, tropical-looking flowering plant known for its vibrant blooms and lush foliage. Despite its name, it’s not a true lily. Spotted here in Boracay, Philippines along a main road.
So it’s Friday, which means we get to showcase a flower of the day again. I have shown a bird of paradise flower before but never had I heard of a false bird of paradise! I think that’s hilarious. It’s called false as it is apparently similar to the bird of paradise but is a completely different species. Let me know your thoughts on their appearances.
False bird of paradise ‘Real’ bird of paradise
I love them both but to me they look completely different!!!
It’s a little nod to Wayne’s World, but instead of ‘party time, excellent’ (if you are aware of the cult nineties classic) I will be diving into one WORD each day. It could be something I learned, something bizarre that happened, a favourite word that I have rediscovered or just a thought that won’t leave me alone.
If you’re joining in on today’s word, feel free to use this tag to connect your post to the series: #WaynesWord
Today’s word is HABIBI.
Today’s word is a term of endearment from the Middle East and simply means “my love” or “my dear.”
It isn’t just for people you love, in Arabic-speaking communities, habibi is used for friends, family, kids, even the guy who makes your coffee just right every morning. It’s affection packed into a single, beautiful word and can be thought of as of the equivalent of “darling” or “sweetheart,” but with more cultural soul and musicality.
I first heard it in my nursing profession, when some Arabic patients would call me habibi for looking after them as a term of gratitude. I heard it again today and I thought, yes that’s a fantastic word.
I thought I would tie in my word today with a flower of the day, seeing as it’s Friday. Today I am showcasing the classic red rose.
In many Middle Eastern cultures, red roses often symbolize romantic love, so they’re commonly used in music, poetry, and art alongside terms like habibi. For example: in Arabic love poetry and songs, phrases like “ya habibi” are often paired with floral imagery.
Happy Thursday everyone and welcome to another week of doors. This week I only have the one door to show you, however, it’s a good’un, in my humble opinion.
We were visiting friends over the Easter weekend in one of our favourite spots, the Southern Highlands and I found this door in a very quaint little village called Berrima.
I also love the flowers in front of the door and they add a lot of value to the image. They are known as Japanese Thimbleflowers, very beautiful but don’t be fooled, as all parts of the flower are poisonous and can be fatal if ingested!
Ps. I love how I can add my door post to another challenge here on WordPress, Cee’s flower of the day (FOTD) challenge 🤗.
Happy Friday everyone! It’s been a while since I have showcased a flower of the day but today is particularly gloomy in Northern Ireland, so I thought this might brighten up the day!
What an absolutely stunning flower! These are often found in forests and mountain grasslands, however, I was fortunate to spot this one in my sister’s garden. I love the tubular, purple flowers and so must many other people as these are often used as ornamental features.
I hope you’re all having a lovely start to the weekend. I’m just back from work and heading to work again tomorrow but hey ho, bills to pay 😝.
Happy Friday to you all. It’s been a while since I have showcased a Friday flower / flower of the day but I thought today was very appropriate. These are Dutch crocuses and bloom in spring time, hallelujah it’s a sign that winter is coming to an end. I love the colour of these and you can’t help but smile when you see them. I am currently on day two of having covid and my only trip outside is for a walk where there are no people. I’m feeling ok, just tired with a runny nose. These flowers cheered me up, as did the walk and fresh air.
Happy Friday everyone and welcome to my last flower of the day for this year. I can’t believe it’s the 30th of December 2022, however, I will be glad to have this year behind me and focus on 2023. It’s been a tough few months to say the least but I feel like this image below signifies it perfectly. This beautiful lavender periwinkle flower was covered in snow and now it’s slowly thawing out, ready to shine once again.
I want to wish you all a very happy new year and take this opportunity to thank each and every one of you very, very much for all your support with my blog. I honestly appreciate it so much, every like, every comment, every emoji and ALL the positivity shown here in this extraordinary space known as the blogosphere.
Greater periwinkle (fabulous name) – spotted at one of my new favourite places, Hillsborough Castle.
Take care everyone and I hope to see you all back here in 2023! I will be participating in this year’s Bloganuary as I loved it so much last year. Will anyone else be participating?
Happy Friday everyone. So, I have showcased this flower before but recently I have seen a different variety and it looks so much different in another season and another country. You can see my previous poinsettia here from March when I was living in Sydney. This flower is always grown as a potted plant and is often used as a Christmas decoration due to its bright red leaves. This flower definitely feels Christmassy, more so as it is now the Christmas season and it’s cold here in this side of the world, unlike when I had previously seen this flower in summer in Sydney.
Have you ever given or received this flower at Christmas? It certainly blends in with our Christmas decorations.
Happy Friday everyone. It is another wet and wild day here in Northern Ireland. I may get used to this! Lucky we have some flowers in our garden that are pretty bright and cheery.
Pot Marigold – found in my parents garden. I love the bright orange colour and it’s perfect looking petals.
This park is located in South Belfast and is a good walk from where I am staying at the moment. I have been here a couple of times and have always known it was famous for its many flowers and in particular its rose gardens. However, this was the first time I actually followed the map and purposefully looked for the attractions listed, such as the walled garden and Japanese garden. I also was not aware that there is a cafe here too, that was a welcome bonus. I will leave the official link for this park here so you can read a little history about this place and how it ended up being available to the public. https://www.belfastcity.gov.uk/things-to-do/parks-and-open-spaces/a-z-parks/sir-thomas-and-lady-dixon-park
This park is great for walking around and taking in all its beauty, made even better with blue skies. We loved the Stables coffee shop and it was so lovely to be able to sit outside. This park is famous for its flowers, especially roses. The first image is from the walled garden. This is a very tranquil and serene space and I encourage everyone to visit if travelling in Northern Ireland.
I hope you enjoy reading about this wonderful park and please let me know if you have ever visited yourself.
My Friday flower of the day seen this week at Hillsborough Castle. How amazing are these? I love how they look like mini sunflowers and I also love the name, black eyed susan. Also can you see the little wasp on one of the flowers? These are super easy to look after and have even been known to be good for gardeners with brown thumbs (I love that saying!).
Happy Friday everyone. This flower was seen in the garden here at our hotel in Bali where we are vacationing for a few days before heading back to Ireland. I will continue to work on my New Zealand blogs over the coming days and hopefully share my Bali experience also 😊.
Aphrodite’s Phalaenopsis
“Aphrodite’s phalaenopsis is an orchid hailing from Taiwan and the Philippines. It is an epiphyte, which are sometimes called ‘air plants’ because they grow on trees or other objects, and get all the nutrients they need from debris that drops from the air onto those hosts. The delicate yet striking appearance of this flower has inspired the alternative common name of Goddess of Fertility” (Picture This, 2022).
Happy Friday everyone. Check out my flower of the day below. I think it’s amazing and I love the name! It actually does look like a little kangaroo paw.
Tall Kangaroo Paw – Native to Western Australia, spotted in Bronte on one of my walks 😊
Happy Friday everyone. Today I want to share with you these amazing flowers. The Bigleaf Hydrangeas I’m showing today are part of the decor of one of my favourite restaurants in the eastern suburbs of Sydney. The Chiswick in Woollahra offers a plant to plate experience where many of their ingredients are grown in their own garden. I love the outside setting, with a rustic, quaint and countryside feel.
I think the Bigleaf Hydrangeas really add to the ambiance of this amazing restaurant. You can spot them hanging from the outdoor roof in a variety of colours.
Enjoy your Friday and have a lovely weekend everyone.
Happy Friday everyone. It’s a wet one here in Sydney and apparently we are expecting a months rain in the next five days. Something to look forward too. Anyway, I spotted these amazing flowers on my walk a couple of days ago and was really mesmerised. The flowers come from the Matchstick Plant and it’s clear to see why, as the flowers look like they are made up of numerous little matchsticks, with a different colour for the head of the stick, just like a matchstick. How cool is that? Have a look for yourself below 👇🏼
How amazing are these 😍This is such a pretty flower. This plant originated from southern Brazil and is often used for landscaping and gardens.
Have a great day everyone and I hope you all have a lovely weekend.
Happy Friday everyone. Boy, am I glad to reach the weekend this week, it’s been a long, cold one here in Sydney. We’re all looking forward to a long weekend here in Australia for the Queen’s birthday, which isn’t actually her real birthday, so I’m not sure why that is, nevertheless, I’m not complaining for an extra day off.
I am not, in fact, showcasing a flower today but rather, I am showing you the berries of this shrub. The Golden Dewdrop (what a fantastic name by the way!) and I happened to pass this last week when I was looking at some doors in Darlinghurst. The flowers are a blue colour but I didn’t happen to see these, just the berries. I was really pleasantly surprised to discover these, even though in Australia the Golden Dewdrop shrub is known for being a weed. To me, it looks beautiful. It reminds me of the Leonardo da Vinciquote – “Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication”. Let me know what you think?
Golden Dewdrops – I love the vibrant orange colour against the green of the leaves.
This poinsettia was discovered near my home in Bondi Junction, Sydney. It originates from Mexico and Central America and is today a very common decoration in the United States, specifically at Christmas time. This species is known for being a poisonous weed but also an ornamental flower. It just grabbed my attention with its striking colours and beauty. A classic example of how looks can be deceiving 😝.
Happy Friday everyone and I hope you all have a lovely weekend, whatever way you plan to spend it.
What an amazing looking flower. My partner and I thought this looked like one of those bottle brushes you see mothers having to clean their babies’ bottles with. When we found out their name, we thought it was very amusing. The crimson bottlebrush is native to Australia and is very popular with birds for its nectar, specifically lorikeets, which we see here in Sydney all the time.
Thanks for taking a look at my flower of the day and I hope you all have a very happy Friday!
Happy Friday everyone!! Today’s flower of the day is from the Coral Tree (Erythrina), also can be known as a Flame Tree. I think the flowers look really spectacular. The vivid red colour and their shape is extraordinary. What do you think? Have you ever seen a Coral Tree?
Spotted at Queen’s Park in the eastern suburbs of Sydney
Happy Friday everyone. Please see below my flower of the day. Todays offering is a China Rose.
China Rose – native to south-west China
This rose is significant for it’s ability to bloom almost every month of the year and therefore, it represents longevity. I like this idea of living a long life, through thick and thin.
Happy Saturday everyone. Usually I post my flower of the day on a Friday as I always think of Friday Flowers. However, I was pretty beat after work last night so I thought I would leave it for this week.
However, I was doing my usual walk today after work around the eastern suburbs and spotted this amazing flower on my way home from Bronte Beach. Even though it is Saturday, I really wanted to share this one with you all. It is known as Silky Oak and it’s botanical name is Grevillea Robusta. The Silky Oak is an evergreen tree and the flowers appear from spring to summer, which is quite funny as here in Australia it is autumn going into winter. Go figure! I was fascinated as I don’t recall ever seeing this one before. Let me know what you think? Have you ever seen this flower before? It honestly put the biggest smile on my face when I spotted it. I love the bright orange colour and the long looking tentacles.
My Friday Flowers are back again this week! Sometimes I will post a flower of the day on a Friday but if I have a few to share, I will call the post Friday Flowers 🤗. I think it’s a nice way to end the working week, splash a bit of colour through WordPress and it’s a good opportunity to appreciate the little things in life that we can often take for granted. We are still having A LOT of rain here in Sydney and through NSW. I can’t even complain about it as some people have it much, much worse then me. There are severe floods here, people losing their homes, their livelihoods and sometimes even their lives. Plus we still have the war in Ukraine that is in my thoughts every single day. When will it all end? 🙏🏼 .
Please feel free to check out my Friday Flowers below and hopefully they can make you smile and add a little colour to your day ☺️. I will tell you their name and where I have seen them 👇🏼
Scarlet Star – Bellagio Resort, Las VegasFlame Vine – Vaucluse, SydneyAngel’s Trumpet – Wendy’s Secret Garden, SydneyPride of Madeira – Vaucluse, SydneyChinese Hibiscus – Kogarah, NSW
I have to say, I am in no way a botanist but I have an amazing app on my phone that can tell me about a flower species by simply uploading a photo. I cannot believe how amazing it is that we can learn so much from a photo. The app is called Picture This if you want to have a look for yourself.
It also gives you the botanical names, where they originated and other common names. It can also identify weeds, birds, insects etc. – simply amazing 🤩
Ps. This is not an advert for this app. I just want to share as I think it’s fantastic if you want to know more about the flowers you are photographing. You can check them out here at https://www.picturethisai.com/
I hope you enjoyed my Friday Flowers post. Have a great weekend everyone and if you’re in Sydney, good luck staying dry 😬.
I want to share with you today some flowers from a very popular place here in Sydney at The Grounds of Alexandria. Presently they are showcasing their Secret Garden, where lots of people come to take some pictures and pose with the flowers, mainly girls for their social accounts but it is a really impressive spectacle. I’m unsure if the flowers are real or artificial or maybe a combination of both but it really is a feast for the eyes either way. You can see more information about the event here.
Let me know what you think 🤗
A little video to capture your imagination ☺️This was when I visited the event last year.
Cee from Cee’s Photo Challenges has a Flower of the Day challenge. You can check it out here. I thought this would be a fun post to show some of my flowers as I have quite a lot on my camera roll. They just aren’t popular on my Instagram feed for some reason, therefore, they are rarely seen. I’m delighted to show them off here on my blog. A big thank you to Cee for creating this challenge 🙏🏼.
Tulips from the Walled Garden at Glenarm Castle, Northern IrelandOrange Coneflower, Swords Village, IrelandMontbretia, Cremorne Reserve, SydneyGuarianthe skinneri, Fiji Fire-star Orchid, Fiji Bird of Paradise, SydneyDaffodils from Queen’s University Belfast
Thanks for having a look. All photos taken by me. I have so many more if this post becomes popular enough 🤣.