But what about the Orchids?

Out at Tenterden there were swathes of them. It was quite an Unexpected Delight. In planning to go out there I hadn't really thought about anything more than Water in the Wetlands and going back to the Scar Tree.

Scar Tree

Walking through clumps of white spider orchids and spying the rich  pink and purple hues of enamel orchids reminded me of my childhood. We used to go out orchid hunting in the bush, particularly me and my youngest brother Shane. We were infatuated with native orchids for some years. (I still grow orchids, mainly eastern state hybrid epiphytes. This year's flowering has been brilliant).

White Spider orchids

 I remember squealing with excitement when I first found a Queen of Sheba Orchid in Kalamunda.  This uncommon orchid has rich flowers of orange and pink with purple spots, and it has a remarkable cork screw spiral leaf. That orchid was probably the beginning of my fascination with orchids. Sadly, the area in which it grew is now covered in housing.

Purple Enamel Orchid

Our favourite orchid spot had a huge number of species growing there, even the unusual flying duck and hammer orchids. This patch of bush was in a winter wet drainage line behind the high school in Mount Helena. It was magic.

Cowslip Orchid

We'd ride our bikes from Parkerville up there in the orchid season, spend hours hunting for flowers or tell tale leaves and only leave when pangs of hunger sent us treadling home. Luckily the home run was slight down hill, it could be quite warm in the middle of the day in October. To our great dismay, our orchid patch was soon to be used as a dumping site. Great holes were scraped through the ground and rubbish dumped on top of our beautiful orchids. They were destroyed. Those were the days when damp patches of ground were seen as useless and to be filled in. We were too young to know how to protest.

Purple Pansy Orchid

Common Dragon Orchid

Common Dragon Orchid

Bee Orchid

Bee Orchid

There are many species and sub-species of white spider orchids. I hardly dare to put a name to these ones. The top one with the labellum dipped in magenta could well be a hybrid, as I couldn't find it in my orchid book. Most of these orchids were found growing in the swales between the lakes. The Dragon Orchids were growing on higher and dryer lateritic ground. 

Spider Orchid

Common Spider orchid - Caladenia varians ssp

That is a mosquito on the orchid below, and yes, they were very intent on attacking me. That was the small price I paid for these photographs.

White Spider Orchid - Caladenia longicaudata ssp

It was a real buzz to see these orchids thriving here on this farm. All thanks to Alan and his family for a combination of historically low impact farming and concerted efforts more recently to save this part of the landscape.