Willow Vale Tuesday 31st May

Beautiful bright blue skies this morning didn't give much indication of the storms that passed last night. But on the ground, near downpipes from the house, large piles of still frozen hail lay some twelve hours after. ( A lot of it is still there now, in the late afternoon, with little warmth to melt them today.) The storms began with spectacular lightning for around an hour before strong winds from the West brought the pelting hail, followed by rain and then silence again.

The ground is saturated and squelchy once more, what a wet year it has been.

Murrwillumbah Tuesday 24th May

I was in Northern New South Wales yesterday, so my Tuesday weather comes from Murwillumbah, where it was looking very green. It was a mostly sunny day with a light breeze, temperature around 21 degrees during the afternoon. Very pleasant and cosy whilst in the car and lovely outside when in the sunshine. Like most of the eastern coast of Australia, Northern NSW has had a lot of rain over summer and into Autumn. The colours in this photo aren't tweaked, the rolling hills really are luminous in their green-ness.

Willow Vale Tuesday 17th May

Weed proliferation blankets any bare ground. It's still warm enough and wet enough for seeds to germinate rampantly; in the vegie garden a local variety of lettuce I let seed each year is germinating now. For a long time I thought of lettuce as a summer vegetable, but here in sub-tropical Queensland it does best in the cooler months.

Big spider webs are thinning out in the garden, but this one caught some early morning light. Over winter the big spiders seem to hibernate, not sure if that is technically correct, but there's a distinct absence of the large webs during winter.

This mornings sky was clear and blue with warming sunlight, clouds built up in the afternoon, but it's taken till 5pm for cooler air to be felt in the house. Strong winds of last week have abated making it very pleasant to be outdoors. 22 degrees today and 12 forecast overnight.

Willow Vale Tuesday 10th May

After a cool, overcast and drizzly day yesterday, I woke to sunshine and blue skies with puffy white clouds. Sunshine makes such a difference to temperature at this time of year, so one less jumper was put on this morning.
It's a hive of activity in the garden with walks serenaded by the chirping calls of WagTails, Fantails, Silvereyes, Thornbills and Honeyeaters. I could watch for hours as these small birds dance and dart between the foliage of trees, eating a few remaining mulberries and insects curled in drying leaves. Butterflies are still plentiful, as are the cabbage moths, making for a morning job of removing their freshly layed eggs from the brassicas I'd like to be eating in a couple of months.
A gusty westerly wind comes and goes and I can see dark cloud banks forming in the skyline to the South, perhaps some more showers this afternoon. Great weather for working in the garden, at a time of year when I won't lose several litres of fluid through sweat.

Willow Vale, Tuesday 26th April

It's still raining, showers were forecast for today, but very heavy downpours and strong winds persisted through this afternoon. Rainwater tanks are all over flowing again and the ground remains squelchy.

Growth is rampant in the garden, though I am noticing a seasonal change in the weeds proliferating. Chick weed, dandelion and creeping vine are relishing the conditions of wet mixed with sunshine this Autumn. It kept cool today reaching about 22 degrees mid morning and then cooling. It's soggy, damp and dull, mixed with lush vibrant green.

Willow Vale Tuesday 12th April 2011

Early morning

Pink-lilac fungi I noticed while weeding. The continuing wet weather has provided perfect conditions.

Afternoon clouds move in.

Weather for Willow Vale QLD - Currently: 26°C °F Wind: W at 19 km/h Humidity: 36%

Tues: 26°C 17°C Sunny

Wed: 26°C 17°C Sunny

Thurs: 27°C 17°C Possible showers

Fri: 25°C 18°C Possible showers

I woke up to sunny, clear blue skies and warm air this morning, a perfect day to be out in the garden. It rained heavily last night and late yesterday afternoon, leaving the ground soft and damp, even squelchy in some areas. I donned my usual long sleeve shirt and earth stained hat before heading out to begin the mammoth task of taming weeds in the orchard. Outdoors was pleasantly warm with a slight breeze and none of the pressurized humidity of summer that makes gardening almost unbearable.

Pomegranates, bananas, lemons and limes, five-sided starfruit and passionfruit vines are fruiting now. The mulberry tree is just starting to lose it's leaves and grasshoppers are still prevalent throughout the garden.

Burrawang Tuesday 12 April 2011

I am very excited to be posting the first in the series of Tuesday weather reports. Nicola Moss and I have decided that, as part of our ongoing weather project, we will regularly post about the weather each Tuesday to record not only the progress of the seasons but also regional differences. This not only continues our practice of serial observation but may also provide some useful material to be explored when we meet to work together on the project at our residency at Montsalvat in October this year.

9:40 am.

Today is the coldest day this year. Even though it is only mid autumn there is a chill in the air. Strong westerly winds are blowing and there is a rapid passage of clouds across the sky.

The leaves from the deciduous trees in our garden are beginning to fall more quickly. In the studio I am wearing socks and a jumper and the heated dog bed is turned on.

 Leaves from the tulip tree and the deciduous pear tree.

 Image from my phone. It's not really that dark.

 Buddleia bush buffeted by the cold winds.

The afterglow of Summer

Well the calendar says Autumn but it feels a lot more like Summer. Brisbane had a top of 35degrees yesterday, the highest temperature in the whole state of Queensland; and well above average. Though not much has been average this year. The sky put on a special show of clouds late this afternoon when I walked down to close up the chooks, with balmy warm air after westerly winds today. I took a moment to just watch the whipped clouds illuminate in the setting sunlight.

Autumn

I haven't posted much lately even though I continue to watch the weather and the series of natural disasters that have unfolded in the past few months. It seems almost impossible that when I started this project in 2008 weather was considered a safe and impersonal subject of conversation. Now it is a topic almost to be avoided as it often causes sad and anxious reactions.

Autumn is coming with shorter days and I have seen some poplars beginning to turn. A series of unpredictable and changeable days led to the last two days which were hot and humid with mid afternoon storms and torrential rain resulting in overflowing gutters and lots of puddles but no damage.

I think we may have seen the last of summer as the two images above which I took on a midday drive show. It is cool and misty with gentle rain and this weather is predicted to continue for the next few days.

Pretty skies and cooler air

March has brought some much appreciated cooler air at night and beautiful colours in the sky as dusk approaches. Days have been mixed with brilliant sunny patches followed by heavy showers and then sunshine again. The heat of summer can temporarily distract my mind from the passing season and quickly approaching equinox. It's that time again to start thinking about planting cool season vegetables. I'm looking forward to cooler days out in the garden.

This morning's early sunshine and passing shower created a vibrant rainbow arching across the valley with a fainter one behind.