Morning glows ...

Botanical name: Asclepias curassavica

Scarlet milkweed is an erect, evergreen perennial subshrub, often grown as an annual. Like most milkweeds, it has opposite leaves and milky sap. The blossoms of scarlet milkweed are are red and orange, less than an inch across, and appear in clusters at the top of 2 to 4 ft. stalks. It is the best milkweed species for the home garden. Scarlet milkweed gets about 3-4 ft tall and usually has a few pairs of symmetrical branches. The leaves are about 5 in long, narrowly elliptic, and pointed at both ends. It blooms continuously from spring until autumn. The fruits are spindle shaped pods, 3-4 in long, that eventually split open to release little flat seeds that drift away on silky parachutes. Scarlet milkweed is native to South America but has become a naturalized weed in tropical and subtropical pastures, fields and disturbed areas throughout the world. I took this photograph on 29th January 2012 during a visit to Pandavapura with my friend Dr A.M. Babu.

Smiling brightly ...

Botanical name: Spathiphyllum wallisii

Commonly known as Peace lily, White sails, or spathe flower is a very popular indoor house plant of the family Araceae. The genus name means "spathe-leaf," and the specific epithet is named after Gustav Wallis, the German plant collector. It is a caespitose herbaceous perennial. It produces typical Aroid flowers: a densely crowded inflorescence called a spadix is subtended by one large bract called a spathe (occasionally two spathes are produced, with the upper spathe smaller). The spadix is generally cream or ivory when young, and turns green with age; the spathe is generally white or white with green nerves distally from the margin, turning green with age. Leaves are basal, glossy and somewhat deeply veined, ovate and acuminate. The petioles are long and the leaves arch gracefully. The plant produces offsets at the base and becomes a dense clump in time. I had this plant while staying with my aunt during my computer course days, more than 23 years. I took this photo recently on 24th January, 2012 from Lalbagh, Bangalore.

Markings to remind you ...

Botanical name: Justicia betonica

Squirrel tail or white shrimp plant is a graceful and elegant plant, native to India. A beautiful unusual shrimp plant, very rare. Very floriferous plant producing in abundance erect white bracts with a green netting pattern. It’s flowers start out white then turn to pink with age, giving a beautiful contrast. A free branching upright shrub, producing a very attractive tropical inflorescence throughout winther-spring of erect heads of 6” white bracts with pink flowers. Noticeable are the conspicuous bracts and the strongly two-lipped corollas. This plant is very common in Mysore and i took this photograph on 5th December, 2011 just outside the institute, where i work now.

Stars of the mid day ...

Hoty hoty ...

A light in the sun ...

Botanical name: Pachystachys spicata

Cardinal's Guard is a shrub, growing up to 2 m tall, native to South America. Oppositely arranged leaves are elliptic to inverted-lanceshaped, 10-30 cm long. Stunning red flowers are borne in a dense spike, at the end of the branches, with a green overlapping bract below each flower. Flowers are tubular, curved, strongly 2-lipped, 5-6 cm long, with 2 protruding long stamens. Upper lip is narrow and the lower one is deeply 3-lobed. This plant is propagated by cuttings. I took this snap on 25th December, 2011 at my native place.