Tamborine Mountain

Here I am on Tamborine Mountain. We have moved to a wonderful house on the eastern escarpment of the mountain, looking out over the bush, the Gold Coast and the Pacific Ocean. The flora and fauna here are absolutely magical. We have a delightful garden surrounding the house, with many bird-attracting plants, trees, flowers, ferns, fruit trees, herbs and vegetables. I am so enamoured with it all, this blog may well become more about the garden than my creative endeavours.
Here is a photograph of the first flowers picked from the garden.

A Gordonia tree sits outside the bedroom window and another beside the verandah. The Gordonia, otherwise known as fried egg plant for its vast white flowers and bright yolk-yellow centre, attracts both birds and bees by their hundreds. At dawn, the tree becomes a hive of activity. Birds of different genus flock to the Gordonia to feast on the nectar, and bees, often two or three in each flower, to collect pollen. Here's a photo of a bee at work.

Also exciting is the amazing quality of the produce that is being grown up here. Tamborine Mountain is rich in red volcanic soil, ideal for growing a plethora of fruit and vegetables. We have started going to the Green Shed markets early every Sunday, to buy fresh, locally grown and mostly organic food. I will tell you more about these markets in a later post. Here is a photo of a fruit and cheese platter that we shared on the weekend, made from the local fruit, Witches Chase goat cheese made here on the mountain, and organic chicken balls left over from a soup I made earlier in the week. So good.