Not the Red Centre

We were expecting vast tracks of Red earth - and nothing much in between. But the weather in Northern Territory has been unlike any other winter they have had for a very long time. It has been raining, unusually for this time of year,  and as a consequence the red earth was interrupted with green, purple and blue, yellow and pink. So here are some  of the plants I came across as I walked and explored, bursting with life and kaleidoscopic colour. For the Aboriginals living here a lot of these plants have medicinal properties and offer food, material for weaving and sustenance for the birds and the wildlife.  For us, who know so much less then them, we can marvel at the honey drops hidden among the intense yellow flowers of the honey grevillia and laugh at the funny red flower, called the upside- down- flower because its flowers are on the ground.For the most part we can regard them as feasts to the eyes, accompanied by a feeling of contentment and joy.