Floral Friday

Wagon's Ho!!
(Be patient, we get to the garden bit eventually)
I took this pictures this morning, between showers, whilst taking Harry out for a run.
We always walk past the wagon. I know it is pretty hard to recognize in it's present state but it is a WW1 Troop Carrier (most probably used for supplies and injured men) DH is going to restore it.
My grandparents bought this wagon from the army, who no doubt had an enormous surplus of them after the war. I don't know if it was new or had come back from overseas.This is the manufacture date and registration number of the wagon and below is a close-up showing the wonderful character this old fella has. In places you can still see the khaki paintwork.


It spent it's working life on my grandparents property at Goodnight NSW which is on the Murray River. They would have used it to cart around the dippers full of sultana grapes to spread on the drying racks.The image above is about as close as I can find to what it used to look like.

Poor wagon wasn't used once the motor-car and tractor came into use and would just sit in the paddock along with the two old Clydesdales who used to haul it around.
I just loved the old wagon when I was a child and would sit up there pretending to be Lady Bronwyn in the 'olden days'. Not realizing that it was a lowly work vehicle and light years removed from posh Hansom Cabs etc.

When my uncle died and the property sold about 8 years ago I got to take this wonderful piece of history home with me. Unfortunately Uncle Harry had left it out the paddock where it was subjected to years of freezing winters and blistering summers so it was very frail and virtually fell to pieces as it was put on the trailer for transportation back to Melbourne.

So after another trip - down to Korumburra it now sits in my paddock, beside the vegie garden and is refuge for all sorts of beasties no doubt and Kanga who uses it as one of her 'safe' places when Harry is chasing her around the back yard/paddock.

Yay - the garden bit - finally - So, after I ripped the silver-beet out of the adjacent vegie garden I threw them into the long grass which was all around the wagon. When DH got rid of all the weeds there was a very pretty patch of silver-beet happily growing beside the wagon. I think it is just so gorgeous with its bright red stalks and veins on the leaves and it tastes wonderful too.

Here is Harry and Kanga playing 'catch me if you can' around the wagon. Can't you just imagine this thing full of snakes in the summer. Our creek is just over that ridge of grass you can see behind the wagon. Very close to snake heaven down there!

Here is Harry admiring the French Lavender. This large garden was a mess with a terrible weed we call Ivan! Truly! DH had to spray it as there was no alternative if we wanted to save our plants (I hate poison in the garden!)
I was so happy that the lavender finally perked up and is growing well now. It was a gift from my Mum, many years ago. It was a cutting from hers which made it even more special. I brought a cutting with me when we moved so it's 3rd generation.

I hope you have enjoyed this little trip down memory lane with my wonderful old wagon.
Please click on Mr Linky below to share any Floral fancies or Garden wonders.