Burrawang Tuesday 19 April 2011 3:05pm

After a beautiful crisp clear day yesterday today has been mild and overcast. I took the three following photos at  8:30 am this morning and apart from some sunshine at midday it has remained largely overcast. Shadows are lengthening as the sun moves north.

The trees continue to colour and shed their leaves. 

I gathered the leaves below on a visit to Goulburn on the weekend. While they scanned red it was the intense cadmium orange of the leaves that was striking when viewed as a mass on the trees.

I think the rapid changes that mark autumn make it an exciting time for weather watching.

Weather Monday 18th April 2011

It's a day for gumboots and jumpers today. The air felt cool when I woke this morning, with light rain overnight it has stayed damp all day with heavy downpours at times. Jumpers on, though I am acclimatised to Brisbane weather, it's comfortably cool. No gardening today, but i did spot Blue-faced Honeyeaters feeding on the nectar of flowers on the Icecream Bean Tree and a Willy Wagtail doing a bit of a dance in the vegie garden and chirping his call. A rather squelchy walk to the letter box with ground saturated and getting muddy. The laundry looks like the proverbial 'chinese laundry' with drying racks and other hanging vantage points draped with wet washing. Windows are all closed up to keep out the gusting squally winds and at times horizontal rain. A good day for curling up with a book or making some warming soup.

Weather for Willow Vale QLD at 3pm, currently 21°C , cloudy with heavy rain. Wind: S at 21 km/h . Humidity: 84%

Monday - 22°C 20°C showers

Tuesday - 23°C 19°C showers

Wednesday - 26°C 19°C Clearing and sunny

Thursday - 26°C 18°C Sunny

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.