The Effects of Wind

We've had the typical spring winds around lately.  Gusty, blowy wind.  Last week I got home one day to discover I could hardly get the car in our driveway.  Our poor banksia rose, in full bloom, had sucumbed to the force of some heavy wind gusts and collapsed almost onto the driveway.  It was a little top heavy, to be sure (okay, it was very top heavy!), but we'd also had strong enough wind gusts while I was out to tip over our outside table and chairs. 

The car is supposed to go about where the banskia starts here - there was 'just' enough room to squeeze past, with much scraping and squealing!

Fortunately the fence is not broken (it is actually growing through the fence, planted on the neighbour's side), so we borrowed the long-handled loppers from my dad and attacked the banksia.  It seems completely wrong to hack away at it when in such a show of colour.  Very cruel.  But there were no other options.  So it has had a severe and rather crude haircut.  Not that you would know if you hadn't seen it just before the trim.  There's now a huge pile of cut banksia by the compost bin, and a banksia that is now upright again against the fence. 

And what to do with all those amazing yellow flowers?  Display them, of course!  That way we could at least enjoy them for a few days longer.

Amy