Today's Flowers #97

This flower is from my friend Dechu's garden. She said it is a Rutea- a family of flowers. The orangeflowers have an interesting black lip like Sturt's desert pea.

I found these flowering plants in a park. Butterflies flock to this plant.

This orange Ixora is from my garden.

The white Musseanda is loaded with flowers. The flowers shown below are the maroon bracts of the Shrimp Plant Pachystachis Lutea.

This is my contribution to Today's Flowers #97. My thanks to the team of Today's Flowers#97 .

To see more flowers from across the world, please click on http://flowersfromtoday.blogspot.com/

Skywatch Friday

Before the monsoons

The harbingers- some tentative clouds.

At last! The monsoon clouds are gathering!

A Happy World Cup Weekend to All!

Wild Wednesday

Panther! It is a word that strikes fear in the heart of an ordinary city dweller. Panthera is the word used for the Leopard and the Tiger. But the butterfly shown above is the Common Panther found in the areas adjoining the Borivili National Park near Mumbai.

This is one of the orchids in Panther colours.

The Wild Jasmine was in full bloom, sending its subtle scent in the gloom. You can see the wild areas where the Panthera roam. Sometimes the leopards roam into the campus of the adjoining university.

A leopard cage ! I came across it as I was taking a walk in the wilder areas of the campus. The cage has two compartments. Whenever a leopard is sighted in the campus, this contraption is used to catch it. The bait is usually a stray dog . The leopard gets into the cage lured by the smell of the bait, and the trap door closes, and the panther is imprisoned. It can't eat the bait, which is safe behind iron bars! The forest rangers then take the leopard and release it in the jungles miles away.

Today's Flowers

Acampe praemorsa - the name of this wild orchid sounds like a curse from a Harry Potter book. The name has its root in the Greek'akampas', meaning rigid, which describes the flower. It is called "Maravante" in Kannada, which means 'Tree Woman' ! The flowers are small, and have tiger stripes, and are unbending, they have a delicate , heavenly perfume.

The rains have made the Blood Lily Haemanthus burst forth in scarlet feathery balls from all sorts of unlikely places.

The Malabar Jasmine is producing more flowers now.

The purple Passion Flower vine has climbed up the Sandalwood tree and flowering profusely at a great height.

The last of the pink hibiscus flowers before I prune the bush . The bushes will have a good vegetative growth during the Monsoons, and will be ready to display their splendid flowers in August.

My thanks to the hosts of 'Today's Flowers' for hosting the meme.

Floral Friday

Now that the Monsoon rains have started, the Rain lilies are blooming in all odd corners.

The flower of the Water Hyacinth resembles an orchid. This invader of the waterways is hated by the farmers.

The shocking pink Damask Rose sends its fragrance everywhere.

The plants of the Heliconium 'Lobster Claw' are leaning to the side because of the monsoon winds. They are flowering profusely now.

The Night blooming Water Lily closes it blooms at 10 o'clock!

Hope you enjoyed looking at some of the flowers in my garden. Have a good weekend!

ABC Wednesday- Twilight on the Powai Lake

Today's letter for ABC Wednesday is T. Twilight is a time for reflection and contemplation.
The Powai Lake in Mumbai is one of the few lakes that are still thriving in spite of the burgeoning population and the building activity all round it.

Many early Hindi movies had romantic scenes on the banks of the lake.

Now the water in the lake has decreased, but it is a beautiful lake still. For more pictures of ABC Wednesday, please visit Sylvia from over the Hill.

Wild Orchid

ThThe Aerides crispum has started its yearly show in my garden. It is attached to the gnarled trunk of the Amla tree, where its thick roots hang in the air, obtaining sustenance. Hence its name- Aerides meaning 'of the air'. This orchid grows wild in the rain forests of the Western Ghats. I got the plants from my friend Hegde's farm, deep in the jungles of the Western Ghats.

The flowers are mildly perfumed, reminding one of the Frangipani. They stay for a month on the plant.

Aerides crispum is called Draupadi Dande in Kannada, meaning 'garland of Draupadi'. Draupadi was the heroine of the Indian epic, Mahabharata. She obviously did not have enough time to make a long garland Another variety which has become rare in the Western Ghats, is 'Seethe Dande', meaning Seetha's garland'. The inflorescence of that one is 3 feet long, or even longer, showing that Seetha has all the time in the world to weave garlands..