Eight Cubic Metres of Gravel

A cockatoo in an autumn tree in Ballan:

We were passing through Ballan on our way to the block.

Here's what we are doing this weekend:

That's two truck-loads of gravel which have to be spread and leveled over a circle 8.5 metres in diameter, to form the first part of the pad for the water tank. Eight cubic meters. Probably at least 10 tonnes. To be moved by two humans without mechanical assistance. In two days.


Here it is after the first hour of hard work:

You will notice that some time in the first hour we realised a wheelbarrow would help with the task. Fortunately the builders had left one in their lock-up container, and even more fortunately, we have a key!

Here's how far we got before we stopped for the day:

There's still a long way to go.

Saffron

The saffron has started flowering.

Work In Progress

Suddenly things are happening:

Vehicles and tradesmen everywhere!

Today the plumber put in the pipes which will be under the slab:

It feels strange, as if the block has been occupied by a lot of strangers, and isn't "ours" any more.

Australian Garden

Took advantage of the public holiday to zip down the empty freeways to visit the Australian Garden of the Botanic Gardens at Cranbourne. It is a few years since I was last there, and the plantings have filled out beautifully since then. Here are a few things that caught my eye.

I had no idea there was a prostrate casuarina:

Swamp oak, Casuarina glauca.

This crowea was thriving in a pot:

Willow-leaved crowea, Crowea saligna.

"Peaches and Cream" grevillea:

Beautiful, and bees like it too.

Collection of natives in pots:

And what Australian garden would be complete without a tyre swan or two?

I haven't seen one with a wooden head before.

Walrus With Eyes

Finished my walrus today. I think he is quite cute!

Follow this link to Quiet Play to see a pack of walruses appear over the course of the month:
April Walruses.

Eyeless Creature

Progress shot of this month's Zoo Animals block:

I started this critter yesterday. I hoped to get him finished today, but I was making too many mistakes and had to stop for now. Perhaps I should have done his eyes first, as I have in previous months.

Can you guess what he is? You can get the pattern from Kristy @ Quiet Play.

Keeping an Eye on Things

A few things have happened at the building site in the last week:

The builder has fenced the area, started marking out the site, and installed a small water tank to keep the workers going until the big tank (80,000 litres!) arrives.

As we walked around the site, a wedge-tailed eagle circled overhead:

I made sure Jack stayed close to us! An eagle might think he was just the right size for dinner.