That Time of Year - Troppo Season

There are signs, apart from the hot days and hot nights, as well as the high humidity.

These include:

ripe mangoes increasing in abundance

flowering rain trees in profligate colour and then leaving their flowers on the ground

madly flowering yellow Tabeuia argentea trees along Trower Road from Casuarina to the end

tempers shortening, more cross words

increasing use of air conditioners

increasing or even re-instated use of swimming pools and spas [ usually usage abandoned in the dry season as it is too cold for locals]

increased use of liquid refreshments - of all types

lawns growing

tourists leaving town

AND...............last but not least - green tree frogs noisely croaking in any damp place, or at any sign of rain! 


All are now occurring....................must be close to the troppo season in Darwin.

green tree frog

!

Hot Nights and Hotter Days

A cool day today, as temperature only reached 32C, and a cooler night now, although still 28C as I write this.

With most nights now around 27C as a minimum, the airconditioner is getting a good work out, in the office during the day and in the house at night.

Most days in the past week have been around 34C, and inland even a few kilometres that max is often 37 -39C. And it is humid, so humid you sweat [ note NOT perspire] even standing still! And it will get warmer.....and warmer......for a while yet.

Ah the joys of living in the monsoon tropics!! At least the green tree frogs are beginning to utter mating calls, even though we have really not had a good, decent shower of rain here [ been a little around, but none over our way].

There are plenty of trees flowering in anticipation of rain, with most weeping rosewoods in full flower as are the yellow Tabebuia argentea [http://monsoon-frog.blogspot.com/2009/09/fabulous-yellow-median-strip-flowering.html ], and the frangipanni are magnificent, with lots of flowers.

Batteries New and Old

Over the past 4 months it has been very wet and rainy.

Maybe that has put too much fungal matter in my brain..............but whatever, there have been two total stuff -ups over batteries.

First was a long saga over the remote control for a stereo unit in the bedroom. It died, and that was a pain as we often listen to the radio before going to sleep at night. Getting out of bed to turn it off was a real pain in the bottom. And the remote did not seem able to be revived, even with changed batteries. A new unit was difficult to find or purchase, but then saw www.replacementremotes.com so thought it might be possible to get another.

Then thought, maybe should test again............lo and behold, new batteries and it works!!!

What silly twit I have been. This process went for for about a year.

Part two involves a kitchen wall clock, the one we all seem to have on the wall, the analog one children learnt to tell the time from and so on. It has had indigestion, especially in wet weather, and would not work. As soon as the humidity went up, it went down, then started again in drier conditions. A battery change seemed to have little effect.

So bought a new one, alhough was not a well liked option [ that is a critical issue for an every day wall clock]. Anyway, retested the old one with a NEW battery...........and it has not missed a beat since, about a month ago and with some very humid weather around. The recently purchased clock went back to the store.

Moral of the stories - make sure the batteries are fully charged and new.

Cyclone Yasi IS coming to North Queensland

Cyclone Yasi is a monster cyclone, 800km across, and very well up there among the most intense ever in australia. Top of the list is Cyclone Monica of 2006 [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cyclone_Monica] with a low pressure of 917hpa or 879hpa [ depends how calculations are done] while Cyclone Mahina of 1899 caused the most loss of life, and reputably the greatest storm surge.

Cyclone Yasi is expected to be around 920 - 930hpa at landfall, thought to be around Cairns, during tomorrow night local time. This extreme intensity, and large size elicit one response.................GO GO GO.

Many people are doing just that right now.

Cyclones are nasty creatures, especially at this size and intensity, and not be to trifled with.
There will be [ probably] major damage to houses, infrastructure but hopefully not lives.

See more at http://www.bom.gov.au/cyclone/ [ this will only be current for a short period]

Hot, Humid, Storms - NO CHANGE

Tis' the crappy weather season. That horrible, still, humid, sticky and HOT time of year - November and December.

If only there was a breeze!!

Last night did cool a little, with a lovely breeze late in the evening. Absolutely necessary.

It has been around 29 - 31C by 0800hrs most mornings over the past week, but it has really been NO breezes that is the most trying. Doing almost anything, and you lather into a sweaty mess.

Normally, most days earlier in November, a breeze had developed by around 1200 - 1300 hrs - and while the temperature does not change much [around 32 - 34C], at least there is a cooling breeze across the body, and you FEEL better. But not over the past week or so, and humidity has been in the 80 - 95% range most mornings, with a hot burning sun cheerfully beaming down.

We are really in the middle of the doldrums, weather wise.............

And most working staff are in full action, trying to complete projects before Christmas vacation. Very easy to be in full sweat mode.

At least that hot sun is good for the solar hot water system!!

Orchids are Fantastic

Pat's Delight this is called..............a truly great Vanda orchid!

Probably the best of type I have grown of this variety, with the greatest number of individual flowers, each about 80-100mm diameter.

Well worth a little effort to water and fertilise regularly.

Another Day, Another Nick

A life outdoors in the tropics has its drawbacks, with the potential for skin cancer one of them.

Another quite small skin cancer was surgically removed from the lower back today. Means no swimming for a few days, blast it. One at this visit to the skin doctor.................that is good!!!

Six months ago a rather nasty, but undetected by me, skin cancer was removed off the side of the nose, along with four other little beasties elsewhere on the body.

One this time is good, and even better, none on the face or arms, common "places of interest".

Apparently, there is often a peak of activity and skin cancers that develop, with a gradual decline in appearances of the blighters after that. Hopefully, I am on the reducing part of the curve now, although eternal vigilance is still needed!

It is prudent, and good insurance to have a regular six monthly check.

The Dry Season Is Here and Frogs Are on the Move

Sounds like a conundrum.........but it seems to be true.

Trouble is, the move has been to come inside the house.......into the toilet bowl, and other damper places.

Anyone who has lived in the tropics will know that frogs in strange places are inevitable. BUT.....that is usually when the weather is wet, and frogs are common. At the present time although we have been away for 8 days, we have found frogs inside the closed house on returning.

I know we had cracker night [fireworks] and some dogs and cats get frightened..........could that have caused the frogs to hide inside too? Or have they just sought out a nice quiet dark place, not quite as dry as outside, where the humidity is very low [not so good for frog skin]?

Whatever.............too many frogs in the loo, too many on the tiled floors inside the house, not to mention the few also jumping around on the outside tiled terrace area. Those on the floor definitely a bit on the dry side, although the toilet bowl dwellers were having a great time!

Clammy frog fingers are not a pleasant experience when visiting the loo, however! Had to go...... all of them!

It's THEIR Turn

The pre wet season period in the monsoonal tropics [say 27N to 25S] can be appallingly trying.

It is hot, little cloud, high humidity, burning near direct overhead sun, and every time there is a shower of rain, the humidity goes up a few notches, breezes are low to non existent...........I could go on for some time.

In Darwin, this period is "madness month" or month of the falling mango, as it coincides with peak mango harvest - say October to mid December. Once rain is more regular, and clouds increase, it does cool somewhat, with the increased cloud cover an important factor.

At the moment while we still have residual humidity here in Darwin.......it just will not go away this year, maybe this weekend.....I wondered how the recent troubles in Thailand have been influenced by THEIR pre wet season, hot weather?

Songkran [ Water Festival/ Buddhist New Year] is mid April........that is early in the build up.

It has been quite hot and steamy in Thailand since then, with not too much cooling rain so far.............surely this must be influencing [badly] decision making?

One has to remember that other parts of the world also cop crappy weather before the monsoon.

Back in Normal Water

People who know me well also know that I fret if I do not swim regularly. Well, maybe not fret, but at least suffer minor to major withdrawal symptoms.

Separation from swimming has happened before, when isolated and working for extended periods away from swimming pools, surf or water, but in those circumstances you allow a certain tolerance and the mind and body adjusts........and no withdrawal symptoms.

Recently - over the past month or so - there has been unannounced and quite sudden remedial works at my normal swimming hole. This has caused some minor difficulties, in timing of my regular swim training, not to mention the instant super-annoyed pique when I arrived to swim on the day the pool had already shut. I like my late afternoon swim to chase a black line and eliminate inhibitions. And it was too late to go anywhere else.

However, my equilibrium was partially restored the next day, with a realisation I might be able to swim at the Darwin City Council operated Nightcliff Aquatic Centre, relatively close to home. But the opening hours were a bit trickier, closing a bit earlier than preferred for my swim training times.

While I vowed never to swim at a Darwin City Council operated pool, over some Council smart tricks that effectively screwed up the local swim club about 15 years ago, I have had to adjust that in light of pool availability, and swim there. But reluctantly, and after 15 years.

I must admit though that sunsets at Nightcliff Pool are still stunning, and I am of the opinion it is probably the best located swim centre in Australia, for the view at sunset. It is on a cliff top overlooking the ocean.

BUT.............I am out of there now, the other pool has reopened!!

There is one minor issue though, I might have to do some ocassional distance training there, in preparation for the across the Darwin harbour swim. The view is quite fantastic at times [especially post and pre the Wet Season] but I am not fully reconciled about using the pool, even after all these years.

Thunderheads

This last weekend has provided some sunshine, at least for much of each day, followed by late afternoon storms.


With storms, come thunderheads. The light was still strong when this photo was taken, so little of the texture and shadows seen in some thunderheads, when the light is much less. Impressive still, though.


When out in rural areas with more open skies, these storm heads are very impressive, even without the shadows. This one continued to rise for some time after this photo too........10- 15000 metres is quite common for the top of these monstrous cumulo-nimbus clouds in the tropics.





And yes, it did rain later!

The Monsoon Does Cometh

Although Cyclone Laurence by passed Darwin, it sure has brought heavy flood rains to much of temperate Australia in its aftermath, as it moved across the continent, after a lot of rain [ around 400mm] in the Darwin area over 3-4 days.

We now have another Tropical Low about 120kms west of Darwin, although expected to move south, and away from us as it develops into a cyclone, maybe.

But is has brought a deep monsoonal trough across north Australia with strong northwest winds and regular heavy squally monsoonal showers and the ocassional storm. Almost 70mm of rain yesterday, and maybe 20mm plus today, and more predicted.

It is wet........

The met bureau is closely watching this low, but predictions are it will not effect Darwin apart from the heavy rain this coming week. See more on http://www.bom.gov.au/

Can't Get Christmassy

I just can’t get Christmassy. It seems to happen regularly in this environment, around this time of year.

The tropics, especially in the Southern hemisphere are just not conducive to thinking Christmas.

It is stinking damn hot – humid, hot, very hot, hot and very hot, mostly without too much rain, just enough for the ground to be wet from a shower or storm so when the sun comes out after rain it is around 95 – 195% humidity. You sweat [ note SWEAT – even ladies do more than ”glow”] while standing still in this weather. It is very hot and tricky to get Christmas cooking done, let alone to ensure the products can be kept in good condition for Christmas.

Then there is the issue that school and the academic year finish in early December in Australia, and the long annual vacation starts. This is geared around the temperate cycle of southern Australia, where these sorts of decisions get made or were made in eons past, to be imposed on those hardy souls in the tropics. In the northern hemisphere education is not in vacation mode at this time.

Because of this, everyone wants things completed before they go away.

Around this point, and the fact that the weather is about to get very wet, and even more humid, every contractor and workman is urging forwards to finish work, so they can either go on holidays too, or to get it all done before very wet weather sets in during monsoonal periods, making outside work difficult, while still complaining about the hot weather.

It is also the time for cultivating and planting crops, pastures and hay fields. If that is not done in a timely manner, then they do not grow well, and poor outcomes result. Once again, it makes for a time constrained, stressful, critical period........and not too easy to feel Christmassy, or find the time to feel that way.

I think of the northern hemisphere and the tabloid depictions of Christmas – snow, inside warm houses, short days, cooking and general Christmas preparations and lovely glowing Christmassy lights. Work is slacking off a little, after the more frantic activities of the days of summer and fall when a lot of outside construction and agricultural work is done. Education and academia are well into a new academic year, and while there is a break around Christmas, it is not the 6 - 12 weeks seen in Australia. Sure, it is cold, but then that is part of the Christmas ethos, and also related to warm plum pudding and similar goodies.

It is hard to get Christmassy – too time poor and it is too hot, and people are too busy.

It is not about being like the Christmas grinch or the rest of the anti- Christmas forces. It is not about anti religious zeal or anything related to Christianity. One would like to be Christmassy, a bit more upbeat about the celebrations and all they mean. Please find me a bit of spare time.

So what is to be done?

Some wags have a Christmas in July celebration here in Darwin. But that is a bit hard, when NO ONE else does that.

Is the option to go north for Christmas an answer, succumb to the cold of the northern hemisphere? Will that recreate part of the Christmas spirit?

Update - on a Cyclone for Christmas

It by passed us, but as I write this on Wednesday evening Darwin time, it has developed significantly, moving west and south west in the Timor Sea close to the NW of WA, but generally staying offshore.


This morning it quickly ramped up from a category 2 [ late last night] to a category 3 and then by mid morning had moved to a Category 5 - the highest, and was skirting the coast. It crossed the NW Western Australia coast near Cockatoo island, an isolated area, an hour or two ago as a category 5 cyclone - with winds to 285km/hr, although now weakening slightly to a Category 4 system, and winds have fallen by 30 - 50km/hr, and continuing to fall as the cyclone moves across land. However, now the small township of Derby is in it's path. Tropical Cyclone Laurence is not done YET!





All we had was a rather damp weekend - with a mere 385mm of rain over the weekend. There were some local areas around Darwin with over 450mm over the weekend, and it was wet wet wet, with some wild winds to around 100km/hr. Today here was overcast with very high UV levels and ocassional sunshine [ I know about the UV - got a bit sunburnt while outside working - building a new oval], with monsoonal showers and a late storm.


The rain is vital to our area, even if it all falls over a short period. At least our local water dams are close to full from this wet event, so that is great.

Pride of India - More Great Flowering Trees

Pride of India – the name says it all. A fantastic flowering tree that gets to about 8 m [40 feet]. Botanical name - Lagerstroemia speciosa. Alternate common names – crepe myrtle or Persian lilac [there are others too] Here in Darwin they are flowering right now, mid October. There seem to be three common forms here in Darwin – pale pink, cerise [dark pinky /red] and lilac, and often they are inter mingled where they have been used as street trees. Unfortunately, they can be somewhat susceptible to termites, and there are a few sad specimens that seem to have been somewhat significantly damaged by termites, probably as a result of stress due to poor watering in the dry season, where not all street trees get well looked after by the adjacent householder.

They say that the tree benefits from year round watering, but the most magnificent flowering specimens tend to often be relatively less irrigated. There is a trade off between large well grown trees and plenty of flowers – so a balance is needed to get both.

This year the trees seem very prominent with excellent flowering.

Bangalore in India has some excellent specimens, and they are commonly grown as ornamentals in SE Asia – Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Malaysia, Myanmar, India, Singapore and tropical Australia, even as far south as Sydney. There was one at my parents house in Sydney, but it never grew to be the giant tree seen in the tropics, more like a large woody shrub. Still flowered beautifully though, and deciduous!

At this time of the year, when it is hot, very dry and dusty and the weather is plain just stinking hot, the presence of some of these great flowering trees in full bloom do help to lift your mood.

As does a good mango - yes, it is mango season too!!

Those MAGNIFICENT Poinciana Trees - Again

I know I have had a post about poinciana trees before - even about this time of the year. Afterall, this is the time of the year they flower.

And flower they do............magnificent canopy of orange - red or red flowers that literally cover the tree. Leaves are gone, mostly, just a few remaining black seed pods from last year and red flowers, and red flowers and red flowers.

They occur in many areas around Darwin and the intensity of the flowering is virtually in inverse proportion to the amount of water received during the dry season. Lack of care seems to help with the leaf drop and massive flowering...........almost the "last hurrah", a galant effort to procreate before the storm season commences.

This magnificent specimen is in full colour, although they do grow much bigger, and is in Robinson Road, Millner.

It is spectacular.

Yes........I know that trees in flower have had quite a few posts of late. But.....'tis the season!

And they do look great!

You have to be positive at this time of the year. Hot days - 35 - 37C and very, very strong sun, that seems to burn and burrow through bare skin in minutes, so getting out and doing much between 1100 and 1500hrs is very foolish. The old colonial adage of " Mad dogs and Englishmen go out in the midday sun" is very true. You tend to be lethargic and seeking shade and a good overhead fan, or even better.........into the air conditioning. The weather is very sapping of energy if you are working outside.

The photos were taken around the middle of the day, but from a short venture out of an air conditioned vehicle, to take them without too much shadow.

These trees absolutely flourish in these conditions.

Fabulous Yellow Median Strip Flowering Trees in Darwin

Around September / October each year the median strips are alive with colour............lots of yellow, nothing else.

They are planted along several areas in the northern suburbs of Darwin. The median strips are otherwise, pretty bare. No fancy irrigated grass, no exotic herbaceous plants, no palms! And for about 10 months of the year the trees are very ordinary looking.

The species is a tough tree that could be planted, in difficult conditions, that is not going to fall over in most heavy storms or cyclones. The species actually grows reasonably well in awful, hard lateritic shallow soils. And does not require much irrigation. Would seem to be a fair choice for a major thoroughfare street tree.

When green and not flowering, it looks straggly, daggy and not all that well shaped. But when it flowers it is absolutely fantastic. To see the mass of flowers emerging from a tree in the most awful growing site is something special. It is not a final, spectacular, last gasp at procreation either........they flower every year. Remember Tabebuia argentea - a great tree for tough conditions.

Trower Road, near Casuarina Shopping Centre.........and all the way along Trower Road to the end, near Brinkin is planted with them, and just coming into flower now.

Singapore F1 Grand Prix - SHAME JOB

What a hoot..............that squeaky clean Singapore, that city state of no smoking, no nothing and with t- Shirts that proclaim some of the "DON'TS" of Singapore should have been the site this time last year at the 2008 Singapore F1 GP of one of the big nasties of the sporting world of 2008.

It has been all over the media in Australia this week and last, caused the sudden resignation of two of the senior racing staff of the Renault F1 Team, provoked much media comment from the luminairies of motor sport...........with Nelson Piquet jnr deliberately crashing his F1 car, under instruction from the now departed team heavies, to allow his fellow Renault team member to win at the 2008 Singapore F1 GP.

They say all publicity is good publicity...........but for a Singapore keen to promote an almost "holier than thou" corporate image, across many disciplines, can it be good for Singapore and the 2009 Grand Prix, this coming weekend?

It is a street race, with many areas of the downtown sections of the main city area either blocked off or with difficult, circuitous access. It happened that I was there the weekend prior to last year's race and have also been there recently. The lights provided for track illumination are fantastic.

Many locals hate the steeets being blocked, and cab drivers are especially robust in their irritation. I think it fair to say that many are less than happy!

Singapore will get publicity, and it is run in the very late afternoon/ early evening local time in Singapore on a Sunday, and Sunday is family shopping day for many Singaporeans, so that timing creates local havoc. Are the two compatible? Local straw polls say no, with many indicating it is just for the tourists, tickets are too expensive for locals, and they would be happy for it to go away. Alternately, they intend to go away for the whole weekend.

But now infamy has struck...........forever to be known as the site where an F1 race was thrown!

Toto's Africa - Like Never Before!!

Monsoon frogs love rain...........lots of heavy monsoonal rain, storms or a steady tropical shower.

And there is a song to match this figurative metaphor............Toto's Africa, a hit from a few years ago. It has a great beat and evokes Africa very well.

BUT.............to really add some topical flavour a recent adaptation is just fabulous. Use the link to have a look yourself. And turn up the volume, while you watch the youtube video. It is an absolutely FANTASTIC 6 minutes of sheer fun!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yjbpwlqp5Qw

Toto's Africa by Perpetuum Jazzile, performed live at Vokal Xtravaganzza 2008 (October 2008) at Lubijana

NT Open Garden Scheme

The Northern Territory has an open garden scheme, which functions during the Dry Season.

The scheme operates with local gardens open to the public - and these gardens are very varied in size, style [or lack of] and tend to represent what may be achieved in local conditions. Garden size is "pocket hankerchief" to several hectares. Most are far removed from the classic stylish gardens of Europe or even temperate Australia. Classic regular form - think of the gardens of Versailles or St Petersburg - is usually absent.

Some gardens have been excellent in 2009...........and some I think ........well, this is a public blog, so enough said.

I was dragged against my choice all of 70kms out of Darwin today to visit an extensive 4 ha garden. Some interesting ideas, and over 4ha the garden was a bit variable, but covered most of the main points of shade, curves and a lead through to something different. Tropical gardens NEED shade......lots of it, to moderate heat and harsh light with mulch to conserve moisture.

They did have about 500 roses.....ONCE......but they are dying off slowly, now down to around 300 and still declining. This is not rose country, you are always struggling, so why try when failure is almost assured - disease seems to get you every time.

But it was not all that awful........a good veggie garden, cool nooks among the trees and it seems, lots of irrigation, obviously from their own bore- so much so in places that the lawn was all sedges from overwatering.

Not one of the top few, even for large extensive gardens, but ok.

Still, I think I could have used my time better. Although the other half insisted I go......oh well.