~ World Of Flowers ~

[MysteRy]

Common name: Calla lily, Arum Lily
Botanical name: Zantedeschia aethiopica
Family: Araceae (arum family)
Synonyms: Calla aethiopica, Richardia africana, Richardia aethiopica, Colocasia aethiopica

Calla Lily is an old-fashioned, but very elegant garden plant, native to South Africa. These elegant flowers have graced many bridal bouquets in Europe, in old times. Calla lily is a clump forming herbaceous plant, arising from tubers, with large arrow shaped leaves. It grows to about 2 ft in height. The flower consists of a orange-yellow finger-like spathe surrounding a white spadix. Pink and yellow varieties of Zantedeschia are also available. Golden calla has elongated oval shaped leaves, dotted with small white splotches, and bright, gleaming golden yellow spathes. All are strikingly beautiful, and even when not in flower, the large, tropical looking, spear shaped leaves make a lush statement, like bananas, cannas or ginger.

[MysteRy]

Common name: Giant Himalayan Lily, Giant lily
Botanical name: Cardiocrinum giganteum
Family: Liliaceae (lily family)
Synonyms: Lilium giganteum

Giant Himalayan lily occurs in the Himalayas and may reach a height of two-three metres with almost 20 cm long fragrant trumpet-shaped flowers and large heart shaped leaves. The middle flowers of the raceme open first. The buds have an upright position in the raceme while the flowers in the beginning are oriented perpendicular to the axis but later on become hanging. The white flowers (maroon interior markings) are beautiful and fragrant. After pollination the petals fall off and the swelling ovary lengthens and turns upright from its formerly pendant position. The flower stalks age beautifully in the fall and on a dry day, the seed pods split open and shimmering drifts of delicate seed float down to the ground.

[MysteRy]

Common name: Kaiser's Crown, Crown imperial, Imperial fritillary
Botanical name: [Fritillaria imperialis L.] Fritillaria imperialis
Family: Liliaceae (Lily family)

Kaiser's Crown is a beautiful plant native to a wide stretch from Anatolia across the plateau of Iran to Afghanistan, Pakistan and the Himalayan foothills. In India, it is found in the Kashmir valley. It is one of the earliest plants to be cultivated. It grows to about 3 feet tall, and bears lance shaped, glossy leaves, at intervals along the stem. It bears a prominent whorl of 3-5 downward facing flowers at the top of the stem, topped by a 'crown' of small leaves, hence the name. While the wild form is usually orange-red, various colors are found in cultivation, ranging from nearly a true scarlet through oranges to yellow. Flowering is accompanied by a distinctly foxy odor that repels mice, moles, and other rodents. Flowering: April-June.

[MysteRy]

Common name: Short Scaped Spider Plant
Botanical name: Chlorophytum breviscapum
Family: Liliaceae (Lily family)

Short Scaped Spider Plant is an annual herb, growing up to 20-30 cm high, with tuberous roots. Short stem has clustered, radical leaves, 6-9 in number, about a foot long, linear lancelike. The leaves are sharp tipped, wavy, shining above and pale beneath, ending below in a broad leaf-stalk. Scape is only 10-20 cm long. White flowers, 1 cm across, occur in racemes 5-10 cm long. Bracts are membarnous, lancelike. Flowers have 6 "petals", linear in shape. Six stamens, about 8 mm long, with 3 mm yellow anthers. Capsules are 3-winged, with black seeds. Flowering: September.

[MysteRy]

Common name: Peruvian lily, Lily-of-the-Incas, Parrot lily, Parrot flower
Botanical name: Alstroemeria spp.
Family: Amaryllidaceae (Nargis family)

Alstroemeria, commonly called the Peruvian Lily or Lily of the Incas, is a South American genus of about 50 species of flowering plants, mainly from cool, mountainous regions in the Andes. It was named after the Swedish baron Clas Alströmer (Claus von Alstroemer) by his close friend Carolus Linnaeus. People often think they are orchids (which they are not) They grow from clusters of white peanut-sized tubers arranged like the spokes of a wagon wheel. In the spring, they send up 8-12 in stalks that have the general character of an upright Solomon's seal with the foliage clustered in a little umbrella at the top of the stem. Although the stem is arrow-straight and the foliage is held in a horizontal position, the glistening parallel-veined pale green leaves tend to curl under at the edges and droop at the ends and always look a bit limp. As the season progresses, the stem elongates to 18-30 in and the leaves (now looking more twisted than limp) appear to spread out along its length in a stretched out spiral arrangement. Early in the summer, clusters of red flowers appear at the stem tips. The tubular 1-2 in flowers look like distorted azalea blossoms that are struggling to open. The ragged uneven petal edges curl slightly inward instead of flaring outward.

[MysteRy]

Common name: Drumstick Primrose
Botanical name: [Primula denticulata Sm.] Primula denticulata
Family: Primulaceae (Primrose family)
Synonyms: Primula aequalis, Primula elata, Primula telemachica

Drumstick Primrose is a beautiful Himalayan herb with pretty purple to mauvish-blue flowers with yellowish throats, in compact spherical heads, borne on stout flowering stems 3-15 cm tall. Flowers are 1-2 cm across, with deeply bilobed petals, and a flower tube 0.2-2 cm long. Leaves occur in compact rosette at the base, oblong to inverted-lance-shaped, narrowing down to a winged leaf-stalk. Leaves enlarge quite a bit after flowering, reach up to 30 cm. Drumstick Primrose is found in the Himalayas, from Afghanistan to Burma, at altitudes of 1500-4500 m. Flowering: April-June.

[MysteRy]

Common name: Fuchsia
Botanical name: Fuchsia spp.
Family: Onagraceae (Evening primrose family)

Fuchsia are flowering plants, mostly shrubs, which were named after the German botanist Leonhart Fuchs (1501–1566). Fuchsias are ideally suited for hanging baskets because of their drooping stems and colorful, bell-shaped flowers. The correct pronunciation is "fyooksiyaa", but in the US it has been modified to "fyoosha". There are about 100–110 species of Fuchsia. The great majority are native to South America. Fuchsia leaves are opposite or in whorls of 3–5, simple lanceolate and usually have serrated margins (entire in some species), 1–25 cm long, and can be either deciduous or evergreen depending on the species. The flowers are very decorative pendulous "eardrop" shape, borne in profusion throughout the summer and autumn, and all year in tropical species. They have four long, slender, sepals and four shorter, broader, petals; in many species the sepals are bright red and the petals purple, but the colours can vary from white to dark red, purple-blue, and orange. A few have yellowish tones, and recent hybrids have added the color white in various combinations. The ovary is inferior and the fruit is a small, 0.5–2.5 cm, dark reddish green, deep red, or deep purple, edible epigynous berry containing numerous very small seeds. Many people describe the fruit as having a subtle grape flavor spiced with black pepper.

[MysteRy]

Common name: Ice Plant, Livingston Daisy
Botanical name: Dorotheanthus bellidiformis
Family: Aizoaceae (ice plant family)
Synonyms: Mesembryanthemum criniflorum

Ice plant, native to South Africa, is a small succulent ground cover which forms patches of brilliant, almost flourescent colour in spring. Ice plant is very peculiar in appearance. The plant is covered with bladder-like cells that store water. They glisten in the sun giving it an appearance of icicles, hence the common name. Older leaves redden with age, giving the plant color. It has no true petals. Instead flowers have two rings of white stamens (the male sexual organs) surrounding the female organs. The outer ring of stamens is flattened and petal-like and only the inner ring of stamens is fertile. Modified Petal-like stamens are highly unusual in seed-bearing plants. The flowers are single and may reach up to 5 cm across. They vary in colour from white to pink and shades of orange and yellow. Today ice plant is widespread across the globe; it can be found in Australia, Asia, the Americas, Mediterranean Europe, the Atlantic Islands, and North and South America.

[MysteRy]

Common name: Blue Flag Iris
Botanical name: Iris versicolor
Family: Iridaceae (iris family)

Iris flowers open in the Spring shortly after daffodils and tulips. Once the flower buds reach maturity, the base of the flower elongates to push the bud out from the sheath that surrounded it. Once extended, flower opening occurs with three petals often called the "standards", and three outer petal-like sepals called the "falls". Iris flowers enjoy a lot of sunshine and remain open for several days. Iris is a genus of flowering plants with showy flowers which takes its name from the Latin word for rainbow, referring to the wide variety of flower colors found among the many species as well as countless garden cultivars. Blue Flag Iris and other varitations of those names, is a species of Iris native to North America where it is common in sedge meadows, marshes, and along streambanks and shores. It is a perennial herb, usually 10-80 centimeter. high. This iris tends to form large clumps from thick, creeping rhizomes. The unwinged, erect stems generally have basal leaves that are more than 1 cm. wide. Leaves are folded on the midribs so that they form an overlapping flat fan. The well developed blue flower has 6 petals and sepals spread out nearly flat and have two forms. The longer sepals are hairless and have a greenish-yellow blotch at their base. The inferior ovary is bluntly angled. Flowers are usually light to deep blue and in bloom during May to July. Fruit is a 3-celled, bluntly angled capsule. The large seeds can be observed floating in the fall. Known by the Manipuri name kombirei, Iris flowers have a special significance in the Manipuri New Year, or the festival of Cherei. On this day, Iris flowers are given as offering to god.

[MysteRy]

Common name: Rosy Everlasting, Rosy sunray, Pink paper daisy, Pink-and-white everlasting
Botanical name: Rhodanthe chlorocephala subsp. rosea
Family: Asteraceae (Sunflower family)
Synonyms: Helipterum roseum, Acroclinium roseum

Native to Australia, Rosy Everlasting is an annual plant up to about a foot tall and a foot wide. It has linear or elliptical-shaped leaves which are green to greyish green in colour and up to 2.5 cm long. The flower heads appear mainly in winter and spring but sporadic flowering can occur at other times. The heads occur singly at the ends of the stems and are 1-6 cm in diameter with yellow or greenish centres surrounded by white or pink, papery bracts. Subspecies splendida has the largest flower heads while ssp.rosea has the most colourful heads. This species, particularly ssp.rosea, has been a popular plant in cultivation for many years because of its very colourful display, especially in massed plantings. It is suited to most temperate areas and will often germinate in the garden from seed produced from the previous season's plantings. It prefers well drained soils in a sunny position. Propagation from seed is usually reliable and seed should be sown in late autumn or early winter.

[MysteRy]

Common name: Desert Rose, Adenium
Botanical name: Adenium obesum
Family: Apocynaceae (Oleander family)

A member of the same botanical family as Frangipani, Adenium is sometimes also called Japanese Frangipani. A small treelet, mostly grown in pots, Adenium can reach the height of about 1 meter. The Desert Rose is a native of East Africa. It has fleshy leaves and beautiful 2-inch pink open-trumpet shaped flowers. It is a succulent, and forms more of a bush than a tree. It will be an indoor bonsai in all but the warmest climates. Needs little water during winter, especially when kept cool.

[MysteRy]

Common name: Dianthus
Botanical name: Dianthus chinensis
Family: Caryophyllaceae (Carnation family)
Synonyms: Dianthus amurensis, Dianthus heddewigii, Dianthus laciniatus

China Pinks are short-lived perennial garden plants, native to China and northern parts of India, blooming in several colours. They are extremely popular garden plants in India. The small single flowers have four to six slightly overlapping petals that have smooth or often cut and fringed edges. The pretty petals in the shades of pink and red and white are gathered at the base into a strong green tubular calyx. Stamens protrude out and the anthers are blue. The plant grows in well drained soil, in beds, pots, borders in sunny areas and can easily be multiplied by seeds.

[MysteRy]

Common name: Tiger Flower, Mexican Shell Flower, Peacock flower
Botanical name: Tigridia pavonia
Family: Iridaceae (Iris family)

This exotic Mexican bulb is named completely after its quite startling colour combinations- all the shades of scarlet, orange, pink, yellow, mauve and white, usually with contrasting markings. The botanical name Tigridia means tiger like, and pavonia means peacock like. Tigridias are bulbous plants, which have been in cultivation since the 17th century. Tigridia pavonia is a popular species within the tribe; growing when happy up to a metre tall, though generally, the flowers and plants peak around the 30-54cm. Flowers on these are up to 15 cm. in diameter with spreading but usually reflexed segments. These segments are brightly coloured, coming in various shades depending on the colour form grown and generally show multi coloured spots and blotches in the cup formed by the bases of the segments. The flower is made up of two distinct segments, the outer segments about 10cm. long; while the inner segments are smaller. To grow them well, a good well drained soil is essential, coupled with a sunny warm position. Tiger flower is a fully hardy plant in all climates except in the extremes.

[MysteRy]

Common name: Scarlet Flame Bean, West Indian Mountain Rose, Brownea
Botanical name: Brownea coccinea
Family: Caesalpiniaceae (Gulmohar family)
Synonyms: Brownea capitella, Brownea latifolia

Scarlet Flame Bean is a slow-growing, small tree from tropical America with large heads of orange-red flowers, 6-8 inches across, which hang primarily beneath the foliage, on older branches. Generally, the exotic looking flowers are not visible at all from the outside. Leaves are pinnately compound, leaflets up to 6 in long and up to 2.3 in wide, up to 6 pairs, with sometimes one terminal leaflet, pink-brown and pendulous when young. Flowers borne in large, bright, orange-red clusters, hanging mostly beneath foliage primarily on older branches, which distinguishes it from other Browneas. Fruit is a woody pod about 6 in long and 5 2 in broad. Scarlet Flame Bean is native to tropical America, and now cultivated in India, among many tropical countries.

[MysteRy]

Common name: Kansas Columbine
Botanical name: [Aquilegia 'Kansas'] Aquilegia 'Kansas'
Family: Ranunculaceae (Buttercup family)

Kansas Columbine is a garden cultivar of Aquilegia, with stunning red and yellow flowers. Flowers grow on a long stem above the leaves and have five pointed red sepals and five rounded yellow petals with long red spurs projecting backwards between the sepals.