Saluting every life with a flower each day! Flowers are soul of the planet, blooming to play music with silent notes. Smile at them as they are sweet hearted!! Only the photographs taken by me are uplinked. I lean heavily to http://www.flowersofindia for flower identification and descriptions. Looking forward to valuable comments and suggestions.
This plant is also known as Indian shot and is native to Caribbean and tropical America. This popular ornamental plant grows upto to 1.5 m. The flowers are red, orange, yellow or variegated and easily steals the attention, due to the virbrant colours. The seeds are black, spherical and resembles shotgun pellets and hence the name, Indian shot. The perfectly round hard shells have surprised my daughter, just when i opened the pods. The seeds are used in natural jewelry as beads. The plant is very common in Mysore. I usually see it on my way to my work and also on my walking tracks. This photograph was taken on August 28th, 2011 from a house in front of my Institute.
The bottle brush is a shrub or small tree. It is native to the states of New South Wales and Queensland in Australia. They are a gardeners delight for the floral beauty and used in landscaping. The flower spikes are made up of a number of individual flowers. The pollen of the flower is found on the top of a long stalk, which gives the flower spike its colour and distinctive bottle brush shape. I have observed this plant in many home gardens in Trivandrum, my native place. This photograph i took while on a trip to Coonoor in the evening of 3rd December, 2010.
The Mexican prickly poppy is a prickly, hairless, branching herb with yellow juice and showy yellow flowers. It is an invasive weed from American continents. The yellow flowers occur at the end of the branches. The plant is toxic to animals and cattle. It has got many medicinal values. According to Ayurveda, it is diuretic. While searching plants for my research work, i was attracted by the beauty of this plant and collected this one for experiments on silkworm. This photograph was taken on 25th August, 2011 near my home in Mysore.
Larkspur or rocket larkspur is a fascinating plant group with colourful blooms from white to blue to violet. This tall growing flower blooms in the spring. Native to Eurasia, it has spread across the continents and thrives well in cooler climate. The vibrant colour feast is a sight to watch, especially during flower shows. I took this photo on 3rd December, 2010 at Coonoor while attending a Conference. Just outside the conference hall, it was calling me from a flower bed.
The plants are known by Devil's claws or Tiger's claws as they produce strange seed pods that attach to the feet and legs of animals. Leaves are kidney to circular shaped with hairy on both surfaces. Flowers are tubular, 4-6 cm long, white to pink with 5 spreading lobes at the apex. Each lobe is with a purple spot, throat is with red and yellow lines. The yellow lines in the corolla throat are nectar guide lines to direct pollinator bees to the nectar source. I was interested in this plant while collecting plants related to my research work. The wild growth all along the highways have attracted me due to its beautiful flowers. I took this photograph on 6th July, 2011 morning, while on a plant collection trip for my friend, near Ashokapuram Railyway Station, Mysore.
The Pomegranate is a shrub that grows 6-15' tall. The plant is native to Caucasus, Himalayas, Northern India and Pakistan. The flowers are beautiful, orange red trumpet shaped with ruffled petals. We had this plant in my home when i was a child. The fruit value of this plant is highly appreciated and is widely cultivated as a horticultural crop. Just by the side of the lawn near my lab where i work presently there are two plants, which flower profusely and bear delicious fruits. I took this photograph on 11th June 2011.
The showy spider flower is a herbaceous plant with beautiful flowers. The flowers are borne in an erect, showy receme at the end of stem. I was thrilled by the beauty of this plant during 2001 August flower show at Lal Bagh, Bangalore. We purchased the seeds and then nurtured this plant in our home garden in Bangalore. This photograph was taken on 30th November 2010 at Sims Park, Coonoor.
