Tanner's Plant and other Wild Flowers

Yesterday I went to a meadow which belongs to the Forest Department. The scene was incredible. There were wild flowers everywhere, and butterflies, dragonflies, bees and bumblebees besides hundreds of birds. I found a Tanner's Senna Cassia auriculata in full bloom, its golden flowers attracting butterflies and bumblebees.

There were the wild white plumbago and many other wild flowers.

Tanner's Senna flowers are used to make a tea for diabetics. The plant is used to make a rich ochre dye, and also in tanning.

Independence Day Flowers

Today is Indian Independence Day. The flowers depict the colours of the Indian flag. Orange is for Sacifice and Courage. White is for Peace and Purity, and green is for Prosperity and Harmony with nature.
Happy Independence Day to all my Indian friends!

Friday flowers

These roses are from my school's rose garden which is in full bloom now. The roses bloom three times a year here. The next display will be in December, when the display will be spectacular. I don't know the names of the individual roses.

Besides the rose garden, there are other gardens and play areas too . As the school is situated on a hill, the Head Gardener has created a beautiful, landscaped garden using the natural contours , slopes and rocks.

You can see the pink Powder Puff Calliandra in full bloom at the back of the white rose bush.

New flowers in my garden

The white Clerodendron Wallacii is the most beautiful Clerodendron. I have seen it hanging like a white screen in a Hong Kong garden. I got this from my sister's garden in Goa.

The mauve Tecoma has just started flowering. It flowers profusely for many days.

At last a blue flower in my garden! The Amazon Blue is new, and has flowered for the first time.

The red Fragrant Panama Rose, Rondelatia odorata looks like the ixora and the lantana, but prettier. These are the new flowers in my garden.

Old Faithfuls

There are some corners in my garden which get habitually neglected. Even watering becomes sporadic there. But these inhospitable places have been colonized by my old faithfuls who give me beautiful blooms in spite of the neglect. The tiny purple flower has brown leaves. I don't know its name, as it came piggy back with another plant I bought from the nursery. I wonder how it produces food, as its leaves are always brown!
The Asystasia produces lots of flowers in all seasons. It can flower in deep shade too. I got it from my sister's garden in Goa.

The old fashioned Milk-and -Wine Lily has pretty pink and white stripes , and produces abundant flowers even when there is a drought. Its bulbs are used for treating rheumatism. Its name in Hindi is Sudarshan, meaning 'good looking'.

I am gateful to these plants for their flowers .

Cinnamon, the Queen of Spices

This spice was the cause of major wars between the great powers of Europe. It inspired Vasco da Gama to discover the sea route to India, and this was the plant that was the inspiration behind the discovery of America.
The cinnamon is a small , handsome tree with shiny leaves, which is a native of India and Sri Lanka. Its bark is what we use in our cooking. Highly skilled workers in the cinnamon plantations of Kerala, peel the bark from lopped off branches.
This tree is planted as an ornamental roadside tree in my neighbourhood. Whenever there is a shower, I walk past it to inhale the fragrance of the leaves.
Cinnamon is very effective in controlling blood sugar levels. Honey and cinnamon taken together , reduce cholesterol levels and strengthen the immune system.

Some more wild flowers

When I go for my early morning walk, I invariably get a blocked nose. My yoga teacher suggested that I should put a drop of the juice of the wild leucas aspera leaves in my nostrils. It worked wonders! Now I am not troubled by blocked nose in the mornings.

The humble white flower attracts bees by droves.The juice of the leaves is used to treat skin diseases like psoriasis. The flowers are a good cough remedy. The whole plant is used by organic farmers to control pests.

The red variety is more attractive, though not so versatile.I have grown the red one in my garden to add colour during drought.