Author: Archana

Once a Physiotherapist now a Wordsmith. Field Botanist. Bonsai. Proud Indian. Fauji Wife. Doting Mother and Mother-in-law. Devoted Grandmother. Reluctant Cook. Happiest on a road less travelled. 60s are the new 40s ;-)
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Heritage Tree (#ThursdayTreeLove)

Well, I had heard of heritage structures, heritage walks, heritage conservation and so on but a heritage tree was something unique. Come to think of it why not considering that some trees live for hundreds of years… 


In a perfect coincidence, my tree for the day is the Pilu or Salvadora persica which I have seen in the lawns of the Qutub Minar in Delhi. Our guide told us that this tree is really really old and the tree trunk showed its age. It belongs to the Salvadoraceae family and is also called Meswak. 

Pilu, Salvadora, qutub minar

There are several of these in the complex so do take a while to spot and admire then if you do visit Qutub Minar. They have gnarled trunks with elliptic to oblong leaves with entire margins and arranged oppositely on the stems. We were lucky to see the fruits that were really beautiful glassy looking red globule like structures. 

Leaves
qutub minar, heritage, pilu
Fruits

One of the trees has this massive trunk which has some infestation

As you can see one of the trees has fallen possibly weakened by some infection or due to weather conditions


According to my field botany teachers, this tree is a mangrove associate so how come its flourishing in dry Delhi is a bit of a surprise to me.


Have you visited Qutub Minar? Have you spotted these trees?


I am participating in Parul’s #ThursdayTreeLove27. Head over there to see some lovely trees from around the world. 

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Falling Stars (#ThursdayTreeLove)

October, Night blooming, Millingtonia

This is the time of year in Pune when the beauty of morning walks is enhanced many fold due to the haunting sweet fragrance of the Indian Cork Tree aka ‘Buccha’ (बु च्च ). The roads are carpeted with waxy tube like flowers every morning which demand us to look up at the tree. I never tire of seeing the inflorescence which looks like falling stars!! Notice the flowers in the accompanying images!! 


Millingtonia, Akash chameli, Pune



Universally known as Millingtonia hortensis of the Bignoniaceae family this tree grows straight up and fairly tall. In fact, it grows in many parts of India so many of you will easily recognise this species if not the name of the tree. The genus Millingtonia is in honour of the English botanist Thomas Millington and Buccha is the only species of the genus.
  
They are night blooming and are at their most fragrant in the night and early mornings. I have not seen fruit formation in my city but I am told that fruits do form in Mumbai – I guess the pollinator insects choose to stay away from here 😉

Bell shaped flowers – next to a pen for size comparison

Waxy petals and didynamous stamens which are peculiar to Bignonicaceae family



The cream coloured flowers can be braided into a ‘veni’ but mind you this needs some skill and practise. 

Veni is the Marathi word for a braid of flowers that worn to adorn hair.


Buccha often gives out suckers that grow sideways which means ‘baby’ plants can be found to be growing next to the older trees. It is commonly grown as a garden tree and avenue tree as well.

Millingtonia is among my favourite trees one that I never tire of seeing, writing about – I have written about or mentioned in five posts so far 🙂


Have you noticed this tree in your city? 


I am participating in Parul’s #ThursdayTreeLove26. Head over to read about some amazing trees from around the world. 


Update on 2 Nov 2017

Millingtonia leaf


Leaf, compound leaf, millingtonia hortensis
Leaf

Here is an image of the leaf. Leaf can be described as  Bipinnate, leaflets are opposite in 3-5 pairs. Leaflets are ovate, acuminate with rounded base. 

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Birch (#ThursdayTreeLove)

What do we ‘see’ when we travel away from our home cities? Over the past few years, I have made it a point to look out for plants and flowers of that particular place, especially when overseas. This made my visit to the Scandinavian countries a double delight as I was able to enjoy the flora of the temperate region – which for me had been limited to books and electronic screens so far!


I had a small field guide to help identify the trees and I cannot express my joy at recognising a tree!!  

Here is a road outside our Helsinki hotel that struck me for two reasons, one is obviously the golden carpet of yellowing autumn leaves and the second is the white bark. Moving a little closer, the white almost looked like paint! I did not need any reference to know that these were Birches. They belong the family Betulaceae and the genus Betula. 

Autumn 



White bark


These are mostly deciduous trees which means they shed their leaves in winter. All seemed to have straight trunks. This was most obvious in the countryside, as the scene outside the window was blur of vertical white lines!! 

View from the bus window

An article I read online, mentions that during the World War II, Birch wood was used to build the Hercules H4 which was a strategic airlift flying airboat.  The aircraft is called “Spruce Goose” and is on display at the Evergreen Aviation and Space Museum at McMinnville in Oregon. Wow!! 


Which trees have you spotted in your travels – for work or leisure? 
🙂


I am participating in Parul’s #ThursdayTreeLove25. Head over to seen some wonderful trees from around the world…

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