Tag: Nature’s delights

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K is for Kaempferia rotunda

Welcome! 
I am writing about herbs in the 2016 April AtoZ blogging challenge. Most of the herbs written in this series are those I have seen or used. I have seen this K herb only once as part of a botanical study tour. I am told the flowers are just as stunning in the wild too.


My K herb is Kaempferia rotunda also known as Bhui Chafa in Marathi or Indian Crocus. The blossoms emerge from the ground before the leaves appear which may explain its local name. Its bulbs remain dormant throughout winter and flowers arise one or two at a time, lasting only for a couple of days. If you are amazed with the flowers, then hold on, because its leaves are said to be stunning. The leaf front is green with silvery marks and is purple on the back. Kaempferia rotunda belongs to the Zingiberaceae family and is a native. As I was on a botanical study tour, identification was not an issue! 
😉



Indian crocus, Bhui champa, peacock ginger

This is one herb I will be looking out for, and I am sure you will too.
Happy herb spotting!
🙂
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I is for Iris lactea

Welcome! 
I am writing about herbs in the 2016 April AtoZ blogging challenge. Most of the herbs written in this series are those I have seen or used. Most of them are not very tall either, and flowers are often only the size of a finger nail or smaller. For today’s, post I have two herbs one from the northern most part of India and one from the Western Ghats. 


I have chosen the Milky Iris or Iris lactea as my first I herb. It has very pretty white and purple blossoms and commonly grows in the Ladakh and Kashmir in India. The local name is Temamentok and it is a Native. The flower reminded me of the Iris and we were lucky to spot the blooms in the month of May. Hence identifying the plant was comparatively easy as I searched among ‘Iris’ on the Flowers of India website. Milky Iris belongs to the Iridaceae family 


Himalayan flowers, Ladakh, Iris lacteata

Yet another beautiful I herb is Impatiens dalzellii all called Dalzell’s Yellow Balsam. Again a native plant that is endemic to the Western Ghats. Its lance shaped leaves are striking as they have spines in between the teeth of the margin. It belongs to the Balsaminaceae family.


herb, AtoZ, Impatiens dalzellii, Kaas



I am sure you would have loved these blossoms. 
Which plants have you noticed in your travels?
Do tell us!
🙂

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H is for Hygrophila schuli

Welcome! 
I am writing about herbs in the 2016 April AtoZ blogging challenge. Most of the herbs written in this series are those I have seen or used. Many are not very tall either, and flowers are often only the size of a finger nail or smaller. I thought identifying them was the difficult part but I was wrong. Choosing which herb to write about has been more difficult!! 


Without much ado, let me introduce you to my H herb… It is Hygrophila schulli also called Talim Khana in Marathi and Kokilaksha in Sanskrit. I spotted this armed (meaning a plant with thorns) herb due to its striking purple flowers in an otherwise almost bare patch of land near Satara. These blossoms were in tough competition with the ancient temple close by and which was the basic purpose of our visit there!


There were a few specimens growing near a small pond and all had long yellow axiallary spines.  the entire plant was hairy as were its leaves. The flowers had bracts and bracteoles which is seen in the Acanthaceae family. The purple corolla was bi-labiate meaning two petals on top and three below. Identification was using the FOS app by Shrikant Ingalhalikar.


AtoZ blogging, Hygrophila schuli, herbs
Notice the corolla

Yellow spines

Some texts have classified Hygrophila schuli a subshrub so here is another H herb seen in during our morning walks, namely the Hyptis suaveolens of the Laminaceae family. The most striking feature of this herb is its quadrangular stem and highly fragrant leaves!

Have these posts inspired you to look more closely at the tiny flowers growing around you?
I am sure are many beautiful blossoms just waiting for you..
Enjoy!

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E is for Euphorbia rothiana

I am posting AtoZ herbs in the 2016 April AtoZ blogging challenge. For E I have two herbs, one indigenous and one that has been naturalised in India. The more important aspect is that I could independently identify both of them! 


Yay!!!


Euphorbia rothiana which is also known as Common Hill Spurge is a native herb that caught my eye on a trek in the Western Ghats. Its unusual green flowers were a sight for sore eyes and very intriguing. The stem oozed a milky juice when a branch was accidentally broken off which may possibly explain its Marathi name – Doodhi. E rothiana grows up to an altitude of 1200 m. 


Clue: A milky exudate from the plant suggests that it may belong Euphorbiaceae, Apocynaceae, Asclepiadaceae, Sapotaceae, Papavaraceae or Moraceae families of the Plant Kingdom. One must correlate with other plant features to eliminate and arrive at some possible identities. This herb belongs to the Euphorbiaceae family.

Flowers



Entire Plant

Yet another very pretty almost prostrate herb that I spotted on my morning walks is called Vishnushnakant in Marathi and botanically it is Evolvulus alsinoides. It has very pretty purple flowers that almost beg not to be stamped upon. That’s because the herb grows almost along the ground in my part of the world and folk often walk all over it – possibly out of ignorance or just not noticing it. It has several medicinal uses – though I admit I prefer to enjoy its natural beauty.




I have to rush off, there are several blogs to read…
Enjoy!

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C is for Choices

I am posting herbs in the 2016 April AtoZ my post title for today itself suggests that is has been tough to choose which herb to describe. 


And, the winner is Chavar or Indian Arrowroot which belongs to the Zingiberaceae family. The botanical name is Curcuma caulina. The reason why I chose Chavar over others is that I saw this pretty herb after a really long hot trek up to Raireshwar plateau and the glorious flowers were almost a visual balm for me. Almost reminded me of William Wordsworth’s poem Daffodils!


April AtoZ, Raireshwar



This species is endemic to the state of Maharashtra in India. Despite being locally abundent in its area of growth, the IUCN Red List classifies it under the Endangered list. It faces threats from grazing, mining, soil erosion, agriculture, harvesting of rhizomes etc. The root powder is used as food in some parts. 


Here are the competitors seen on Pune hills who lost out to Chavar…. I took the easy way out for identifying these namely ask friends! 😉

Commelina, Pune, Hills, flowers
Commelina species
Monsoon flowers, Pune, hills
Cleome species
Monsoon, Pune, Rain
Cynotis species

Whenever travelling to a new destination, its a good idea for field botany enthusiasts to make a general Google search about flora in that area. City authority websites, travel blogs, botany related websites will give an idea of what to expect. Few cities have city-specific books (e.g. The Trees of San Francisco, Trees of Delhi, Trees of Pune) that mark out tree locations which is a tremendous boon for tree lovers.


Hope you have enjoyed the offerings today!

See you around
🙂
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B is for Biophytum

I am writing about herbs in the 2016 April AtoZ blogging challenge and its only the second day. Here is what B has in store…


Walking up to the hill near our home is a part of my regular exercise, and observing the plant life there has been an addition over the past couple of years. 2015 saw less than normal rainfall which meant I could enjoy the hill during the monsoon months as well. The weather did allow for plenty of herbs to grow and I was happy to spot several as they bloomed. A few tiny plants (only about 8″tall) with brilliant yellow blooms caught my eye and when I tried to examine the leaves, they ‘closed’ as do the leaves of Touch Me Not (Mimosa pudica)! Whoa… these leaves were sensitive to touch, a wonderful surprise indeed!


This made it easier to identify the plant. My research shows that the herb is of the Biophytum genus and is either Biophytum sensitivum or Biophytum reinwardtii of the Oxilidaceae family. The difference seems to be in the leaf arrangement and leaflets and flowering season. I am happy to have narrowed down my search to the genus level. I would need help to zero down further… 


I have used an app called Flowers of Sahyadri to shortlist species for identification solely using flower colour and season as the filters.




It is said that the flowers of B sensitivum are an important part of the Pookalam which is a rangoli made with flowers in the state of Kerala in India (where this plant is called Mukkutti).B reinwardtii also grows up to an altitude of 1000m. Both these species are native to India. 



What plants have you noticed in your neighbourhood? 
Tomorrow is a Sunday, our first ‘holiday’ in this AtoZ… 
Hope to catch up on many interesting blogs out there.
Take care!

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A is for Asparagus

Hello and welcome. The first post is possibly the most difficult in a challenge- a long one will discourage readers and an uninteresting one will drive them away…


I am using my 2016 April AtoZ Blogging challenge to identify herbs and in the process increase my knowledge about herbs. The chosen ones will be herbs I have seen (in my city or in my travels) or used (as medicine or in cooking).


My memories of Asparagus are ancient dating to my school days (trust me, thats a long time ago) when we were served Asparagus soup at some hotel and I remember liking it a lot. Over the years, I have had to choose between umpteen soup varieties but the asparagus soup has never appeared before me again! Asparagus is now fairly commonly available in the bigger super markets in Pune but the price is discouraging. Growing them seemed to be a good option. This meant giving up some of the prized (sunny) spots in my balconies which are occupied by my Bonsai. A decision I dont regret as we now have source of fresh, chemical free herbs. 🙂


Here are a couple of images of my Asparagus.

The growing plants
Tiny seedlings from Asparagus seeds


















































Asparagus officinalis or Garden Asparagus is said to be native to the Middle East and the Mediterranean but is now naturalised in India. It has thread like delicate leaves and I am waiting for my plant to flower. According to this website, the flowers are small and hard to see and are attractive to bees. Asparagus officinalis belongs to the Asparagaceae family. Here is a link to the key to the Asparagaceae family .


Another variety is the Asparagus racemosus also called Shatavari. This has huge medicinal properties especially for women’s health.


Here is a Pasta and Roasted Asparagus made by a dear friend. She says that Asparagus is an easy vegetable to cook with and needs minimum preparation. Just blanch/ steam / saute it and add sauce. Alternatively roast in the oven and season as desired. Viola, a healthy tasty meal for you! 

Pasta and Roasted Asparagus by Vishakha


Aerva lanata is a yet another “A” herb that I was able to identify – also called Mountain Knot Grass. I have seen it in Orissa and was flowering in mid January. The white flowers stood out against the almost bare soil and this is what it looked like…

April AtoZ, herbs, aerva lanata






Do you have an Asparagus recipe to share?


Tomorrow, I have an interesting herb for you.
Till then, Happy Blogging!
🙂

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2016 April AtoZ Theme Reveal

Its my fourth attempt at the AtoZ Blogathon, one that I plan to use with a purely selfish purpose… Let me give you a brief background..


My theme for the 2015 April AtoZ posts was Gardens in Pune. It took me around my city and I got the opportunity to discover some relatively unknown fantastic gardens. I am really glad that these posts helped me guide a few friends to visit and enjoy some of these gardens. Yet another positive development was a Times of India report dated 16 November 2015 about a proposed study by the Physical Education Department of the Savitribai Phule Pune University to survey major public parks in Pune to develop a plan to maximise use of open spaces in the city. Wow! My survey had revealed that some parks already had or were in the process of installing exercise equipment which folks can take benefit from… 


I have realised that 26 April AtoZ posts need a lot of research and I stand to benefit if I choose a topic that about which I want more knowledge. I have been observing trees for a few years and the most important aspect of identifying a tree is to be humble. 
Look Down. 
Fallen leaves, flowers, fruit provide vital identification clues. It was under these trees that I noticed carpets of beautiful flowers on tiny plants. What were their names? When would they bloom? Are they native plants?


I have decided to use my 26 posts in the April 2016 AtoZ to try and identify such plants. Botanically speaking they are herbs – which means the plants are small, they bear seeds and its parts are not woody. However generally speaking, the word herb refers to ingredients used to flavour food like spices and condiments.  


This means that a herb can be a spice but a spice need not be a herb!


A to Z Challenge Theme Reveal 3-21-2016


Without much fanfare, as you may have already guessed… my theme for the 2016 April AtoZ is Herbs. I have taken the liberty to use either their botanical names or local names to comply with the AtoZ theme. At my stage in the study of field botany, I am happy and satisfied to be able to narrow down the identity of a plant to the genus level. Its been a journey that has been eye-opening and humbling as it literally got me on my knees…. as I had to reach down to photograph, observe the specimens. Majority of the chosen herbs are only a couple of feet tall and the flowers are about the size of a finger nail. 


Obviously there are several species for every alphabet but I shall write about only one and mention a few more. Most of these are ones seen in and around Pune or during my travels. Where ever possible, I shall include my source for identification or a clue about identification in the field. 


As usual, some alphabets have been a huge challenge… 


There is so much beauty to be enjoyed if only one looks.


Do join me as I embark on a herbal AtoZ this April!
🙂

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