Summer beauties

With temperatures hovering around 45 degree Celsius in many parts of  India, the year is being considered as one of the hottest. The heat wave has taken a toll not only on humans but on plants as well. Every morning when I go out I see the top soil of a few potted plants completely dry though they had been watered well the previous evening. In the afternoon, the Red Shrimp, chillies and even the hardy Periwinkle are drooping under the harsh summer sun. It is only in the evening when the sun is about to set that they muster the courage to hold up their heads and look towards the sky. But even in such dry and hot conditions, nature promises a show of colours. Many plants have their flowering season in summers particularly lilies like Amaryllis, Spider Lily, Football Lily or Rain Lily that flowers later during monsoons. 

Football Lily

Football Lily (or Blood Lily) is one such plant that puts forth its blossoms in great pomp and show. Its striking scarlet inflorescence in the shape of a globe or football sets it apart from all other plants.

Botanical name : Scadoxus multiflorus

Family : Amaryllidaceae

 

A native of Africa, this bulbous plant flowers in the second year of its growth. The round flowerhead called an umbel is borne on a leafless stem called scape. This umbel consists of numerous flowers upto 100 in number. Each flower is borne on a stalk or pedicel. The tepals, stamens and style are all scarlet in colour. Tepals are six in number and are fused together at their base to form a cylindrical tube. Stamens too are six in number with chrome yellow pollen.

Unopened flowers in centre

Inferior ovary is present in the form of a swelling just above the pedicel. 

The inflorescence stays on for about a week then the flowers slowly fade away to pink colour. After the inflorescence withers away leaves start emerging. The bases of the leaves are covered with dark coloured spots. The leaves wither away in autumn and the bulbs remain dormant throughout winters till spring. In mid- summer, they become ready for flowery display.
 

Periwinkle

 

If Lilies can put on a striking show of colours in this sweltering heat, so can the members of Oleander family. One of its member Periwinkle is rightly called ' sadabahar ' (सदाबहार) in Hindi meaning ‘ always in bloom’.  It blooms throughout the year taking a short break when the winter is at its peak. A hardy perennial, I spotted it once growing in a wall crevice and bearing flowers under full sun. Though owing to its xerophytic characters it can thrive in less water and full sun but under intense heat, its leaves tend to droop a little. Nevertheless, these little shrubs keep blooming and spreading everywhere.

Leaves show xerophytic characters. They are thick and leathery to conserve water and have a glossy surface to reflect sunlight falling on them.
 

Botanical name : Catharanthus roseus 
Family : Apocyanaceae

Corolla consists of five petals fused together at their base (gamopetalous) to form a corolla tube that hides stamens and carpel inside. Petals are pink above, white below and with a dark coloured centre. Stigma is dumbbell shaped. Fruit is a pair of follicles.

This white Periwinkle is a new addition and most probably its seed came from our neighbourhood  since we have only pink ones growing.

 

Red Shrimp Plant

 

If you want Sunbirds visiting you every morning then this is one of the plants that should find a space in your home. Sunbirds visit it often to feed on its nectar. This plant is named so as its inflorescence looks like a shrimp. They start blooming in spring which continues till the beginning of monsoons. They start flowering again in autumn till the weather becomes too cold.

Inflorescence is a terminal spike. Red coloured bracts are big and showy. Flowers arise from these bracts. Corolla is bi-lipped, gamopetalous yellowish in colour with red markings.

Botanical name : Justicia brandegeeana
Family : Acanthaceae

A female Purple Sunbird

The red colour of bracts is lighter in summers than in autumn. In monsoons when it takes a short break from flowering, roots can be seen emerging from the nodes of stems. These stem cuttings can be used for propagation.

Shrimp plant cannot withstand long hours of direct sun and needs plenty of water.

 

Canna

 

Their broad foliage and big, attractive flowers can brighten up any place. They are commonly called Canna Lily but they do not relate to lilies in any way. They fall in the order Zingiberales that comprises of Ginger and Turmeric and this is the reason why non-flowering plants of Canna bear a marked similarity with Turmeric plants.

A popular ornamental plant, horticulturists have developed numerous cultivars of it. I have an orange and yellow coloured variety growing. 

Botanical name : Canna spp
Family : Cannaceae

Canna shoots grow from an underground structure called rhizome which is a modified stem. Rhizomes are a rich source of starch. Flowers are large and big. Colourful lobes that look like petals are actually modified stamens called staminodes.

Canna grow best in full sun with a good amount of water. They are often seen growing along marshy areas.

For more summer beauties, read my next post Summer beauties contd.