Nature’s delights – Page 19

19/04/201601/10/2020

P is for Pinda

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. The first time I saw today’s herb was in a lecture of our Field Botany class. The white blossoms reminded me of carrot flowers.

Pinda concanensis has delicate white blossoms and the herb usually grows on the cliff edges in the Western Ghats. My first encounter with the Pinda was at Kaas and more recently at Raireshwar Plateau. Pinda and many other herbs grow only in their specific habitats and one has to make the journey to those parts to see the plants up close. And the journey is totally worth it! Its easy to identify the endemic herbs of the Western Ghats once they are in bloom.

Pinda belongs to the Apiaceae family, same as carrots- which explains my initial recall of the plant.

Which of the herbs showcased till now have you seen or used?
Do let us know.
There are more lovely herbs on the rest of the journey till the alphabet Z.
Do visit again.
Till then, take care!
🙂

18/04/201601/10/2020

O is for Ocimum

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. Today’s herb is used widely in India both for medicinal and religious reasons.

Beautiful flowers of Tulsi Photo courtesy @puneribaker

Photo courtesy @puneribaker

holy plants, offerings, AtoZ blogging challenge

Photo courtesy @puneribaker

That’s right, I am talking about the Holy Tulsi or Ocimum sanctum of the Laminaceae family. Many households have a Tulsi growing in their homes, in the balcony or terrace or garden. The plant has a long list of medicinal benefits. The Tulsi leaf is offered during pooja and is said to be the favourite of Lord Vishnu. However the Tulsi is offered to Lord Ganesha only during the Ganeshutsav period and not on other days of the year.

Tulsi (Ocimum sanctum) plant

The herb is native to India and has almost round leaves with a toothed margin. The entire plant is tomentose and fragrant. Leaf colour may vary from shades of green to reddish purple. The delicate flowers bear tiny seeds which are widely used as well.

We are at almost half way through the challenge. How has it been so far for you?
Good luck for the rest of the blogathon!
🙂

16/04/201601/10/2020

N is for Nisurdi

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. Today’s herb is one that I have seen in the Western Ghats.

My herb for the letter N is locally called Nisurdi or Common Hill Borage and its botanical name is Adelocaryum coelestinum of the Boranginaceae family. There are frequent stops when trekking up a hill on a hot day when the monsoon is playing truant. the sight of a colourful carpet is soothing indeed. The heart shaped leaves of the Nisurdi caught my eyes before I spotted the flowers. The errect herb had large leaves at its base and its petiole was surprisingly red. The flowers were light blue or white and have a blue centre.

AtoZ herbs, travel, trekking ,western ghats

Red petiole and heart shaped leaves

Adelocaryum coelestinum

This pretty species has two of its ‘cousins’ that also grow in this area and are endemic to this region. They are Adelocaryum lambertianum and Paracarypopsis malabarica. The famous Forget Me Not flower (Myosotis alpestris) belongs to the Boranginaceae family too.

Kaas Plateau of Flowers– a book by Sandeep Shrotri is good resource for those planning a visit to see monsoon blossoming there.

Another much deserved Sunday holiday is up next for the AtoZ blog challenge takers. I hope to catch up with some more wonderful blogs out there.
Have a wonderful Sunday folks!
🙂

14/04/201601/10/2020

M is for Mimosa

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. Today’s herb is one that I had studied many moons ago in school and I am sure most of you would have heard about it or seen it.

M is for Mimosa pudica most commonly called Touch Me Not belonging to the Mimosaceae family. The plant probably owes its common name and fame to the property of its leaves closing up and drooping when touched. Mimosa has very pretty ball shaped pink flowers. Identifiying this herb is easy, just touch it and you would know! Touch Me Not is called Chui-Mui or Lajwanti and grows extensively in the tropical regions.

Another lovely ‘M’ herb is Murdannia which grows in the grasslands of the Western Ghats.

Thanks for visiting and have a great day!
🙂

13/04/201601/10/2020

L is for Lepidagathis cristata

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. Today’s herb is another discovery on my morning walk…

I had spotted a curious spongy looking semicircular growth on the hill which occasionally had leaves around it. It was not clear if the leaves grew out of this central white structure or were from some other plant. I referred to a group of plant lovers who identified it as Lepidagathis cristata of the Acanthaceae family. This plant is native to India and goes by the common name of Crested Lepidagathis or Bhu Terada in Marathi. It is said to have medicinal value as well.

The flowers are stalkless and arise from the centre dome

Branches arise from the central dome like structure

Another interesting herb also from our neighbourhood hills is most likely the Lavandula bipinnata of the Laminaceae family. Here it is:

I hope you are enjoying this blogging challenge as much as I am.
Bye for now and Take Care!
🙂

13/04/201601/10/2020

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!

🙂

11/04/201601/10/2020

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.

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

09/04/201601/10/2020

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.

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!

06/04/201601/10/2020

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!

04/04/201601/10/2020

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!

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 species

Cleome species

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

🙂