Garden Diaries: December (Winter in its glory)

I catch the sweetness of thy latest sigh...

Here in the dim light of a grey December

We part in smiles, and yet we met in tears;

Watching thy chilly dawn, I well remember...

Farewell, old year; we walk no more together;

~Sarah Doudney (1841–1926), "A Parting"

I was not ready for December, it kind of came too soon this year. November went flying – and just like that it was December. Well, I was not ready but finally my garden was ready to embrace the glory of winter. Misty mornings which makes you believe in life and all good things, followed by golden afternoons, which envelop plants and the creatures of the garden to turn them beautiful like never before. Yes, the short and sweet days of winter are here. Sunshine makes you feel loved and winter flowers make the landscape pretty. 

Kachnar flowers

We are essentially a summer country and we do not glorify winter all that much in India. But the fact is, Indian winter is also beautiful in its own ways- it is the time for many celebrations, travels, culinary delights of the season and of course the gardens showcase a riot of colours. When it comes to gardens in winter, it is easy to recall the seasonal winter flowers and winter vegetables. Surprisingly, the typical image of winter, in my mind is also made up of flowering trees. I would specifically mention three -  edible Kachnar blooming everywhere in the city and neighbourhood, silk floss tree- which made our Delhi campus pretty in winter months and a very useful drumstick tree. They are all flowering at present with purple-white, hot pink and white flowers respectively. 

But they were not what kept me occupied this month. It was tending to my flowerbeds of winter annuals that kept me busy.  I am now happy to see the result of all that endless planning and planting. 

    The crowning glory is of course chrysanthemums. It is now blooming all over in many colours, shapes and sizes. The Chrysanthemum, or Kiku in Japanese, is a symbol that represents longevity and rejuvenation. It is said that, when this flower was first introduced to Japan during the Nara period (710 – 793 AC), the Japanese Royal Family was fascinated with the Chrysanthemum. It started appearing in their crafts, dress designs and seals soon thereafter.   Eventually, the Chrysanthemum become the imperial family emblem and continues to be so. To this day in Japan there are two imperial garden parties given each year: that celebrating the cherry blossom and the formal rite of the chrysanthemum. 

Interestingly, in the second chapter of The Tale of Genji, the 11^th Century Japanese classic, a remarkable reference is made to the revered chrysanthemum. At one place it says: "The chrysanthemums had turned very nicely, and the autumn leaves flitting by on the wind were really very pretty." The footnote explains that “Frost withered chrysanthemums were prized." How odd? One can perhaps understand another reference to chrysanthemum buds with beauty of a young woman, but withered chrysanthemums? And then recently, while admiring my partially withered flowerbed of Magenta Mums, it came to me that maturity has its own beauty- in people and in flowers. Once the joy and anxiety of growth has faded, it leads to contemplative deliberation, retirement and peace - all the qualities that contribute to patient and graceful endurance. My beautiful Mums, some gracefully past their prime and others just a bud, are a delight to my heart. No wonder in many eastern cultures, these flowers have inspired poetry, art and philosophy.   

Delicate Begonias

Other than the Mums, I have delicate begonias, colourful Dianthus, Asters, Impatiens and lovely Geraniums. Of course the Pansies are also on bloom but I know they will get better next month. Begonias have a succulent stem, designed for storing water which is used during the dry periods of the year. I like its small flower as well as ornamental foliage. But honestly, last year I did not have much success growing them. I am told one has to be very particular about the amount of sunshine they get and save them from morning frost. Hoping for better luck this year.

This year is a year for many firsts in the garden. This is the first time I am growing Geraniums and Impatiens. This is also the first year when I am trying hand at many exotic vegetables like Broccoli, Lettuce, Peppers etc. Of course I have earlier grown Rocket leaves and cherry tomatoes, quite successfully and I hope to repeat the performance this year.

Pretty Geraniums

 Coming back to flowers, it is funny how marigold, while widely popular in Indian gardens is also generally neglected. We kind of take it for granted. Perhaps because it is found in flower shops all year through and is grown quite easily. I like this flower. While my favourite is red Jafri (French marigold), I am very fond of the usual yellow –orange African marigold. Unfortunately, the squirrels share my love for marigold and saving this edible flower from them is always a challenge.

Talking of squirrels, this is the time of the year when many migratory birds come to this part of the world. There are many lakes and forests around which host thousands of these birds. I am planning to see some of them in the days to come. My garden of course is full of tweets from the branches. Afternoons are specially very noisy.

 Just a few days back I spotted a pair of white wagtails strolling in the lawn. They are pretty birds and perhaps visit this city in winters every year.  The usual birds viz. spotted owlets, red Wattled Lapwing, Paraakeets and black Drongos are of course there most of the days. 

White Wagtail - a migratory guest 

Another flower, we often miss out on is omnipresent bougainvillea. The roadsides are full of them and the hedges around my house are now bursting with colours. It is true that the flower has no fragrance, it also not a very delicate plant but just the abundance of flowers makes it worth a while. I have now four colours of bougainvillea. 

Earlier this month, I had a problem of fungus in some flowering plants but a timely spray of fungicide was able to take care of that. My much awaited pink cosmoses are finally ready to bloom. While they will get even better in January, they are a tonic for sore eyes, especially in the morning sun.

Hope the new year will bring more beauty, more sunshine  and more wisdom in my garden.

In the Land of Apsaras

Cambodia for me is a country of light and darkness- both metaphorically and literally. Years back when I first read about the temples of Angkor in history books, I assumed that the history of these sites is fully known and documented. Well, it is not. There are gaps in our understanding of why these marvelous places were built and abandoned. In my imagination, the scale of these temple was also far smaller than I actually found them. World’s largest religious sites of Angkorwat temples is spectacular in its scale, design and motifs. It was enlightenment at its peak- before nature engulfed it in its roots- literally.

Earlier this month, standing in the Phnom Penh Genocide museum, I felt a chill down my spine. The audio guide in my ears was narrating one horror after the other inflicted by Khmer Rouge, and my mind was struggling to accept that the people whose ancestors in 12^th century achieved such unconceivable engineering feat at Angkorwat , can go so foolish in their attempt to turn the clock back, to carry out such inhuman atrocities on their fellow men and women. And then for two decades there was darkness. And now again, the country is raising a toast to its heritage as well as its future. A zigzag of light and darkness- very much like the Indian myths.

It is always interesting to find your childhood motifs and characters in far off lands. I was mesmerized by Bali few years back to see the sameness of culture. Now in Siem Reap, it was again the statues of Ganesh, Varun, Vishnu and Buddha that reminded me of India’s centuries old international relations. But historically, the influence came to these part not directly from India, but via Sri Lanka. But there is so many Indian tales around Angkorwat that one cannot mistake the cultural continuation. Now that the west-propagated theory of “discovery” of these temples by a lone European in the dense jungles, has been junked, one would like to believe that these monuments continued to be revered by local Khmer people always.

It is believed that the spatial dimensions of Angkor Wat Temple parallel the lengths of the four ages (Yuga) of Hindu thought. Thus the visitor to Angkor Wat who walks the causeway to the main entrance, is metaphorically travelling back to the first age of the creation of the universe. The central tower is Mount Meru, with its surrounding smaller peaks, bounded in turn by continents (the lower courtyards) and the oceans (the moat- Big Barray). The seven-headed naga (mythical serpent) becomes a symbolic rainbow bridge for humankind to reach the abode of the gods. To top it on 4 sides of the city there are bridges adorned with the statues of Devas (Gods) and Asuras (Demons) in the famous “Amrita Manthan” – Churning of sea to get the pot of nectar.

But what many people never realize till they reach Angkor is that Angkor Wat is just one of the many temples in the Angkor. Each temple is unique in its own way. I still dream of the unbelievable roots strangling the ruins of Ta Prohm and the 216 smiling, serene faces were carved onto gigantic towers at Bayon Buddhist temple. I fell in love with the smaller but uniquely built temple of Neak Pean , the entwined serpent . The entry to this temple was through A fascinating fact about all these temples is that unlike in India, existence of Buddhist statues with statues of Vishnu marks no contradiction or inconsistency in their beliefs. After all, Buddha was among the ten avataras of Vishnu.

Yes, all this was very impressive and spectacular. But even beyond temples, Siem Reap was a delightful place. Though we never managed to see the famed sunrise, the beautiful waterlilies and lotus in every pond on both sides of the road was a sight to behold. Equally charming was the Apsara (nymph) motif which was present everywhere. 

The roots of strangler fig tree were so dramatic and were adding to the romance of the place. Not to miss the unique TukTuk as our mode of transport was superb. Luckily for us, mostly during our stay it was a light drizzle or overcast. While it may have affected the dramatic pictures adversely, it was great help to me in climbing those innumerable stairs of temples and other complexes.

Garden Diaries: November (Winter is here!)

“Welcome sweet November, the season of senses and my favorite month of all.”

                                                                            ― Gregory F. Lenz
It seems bit late to welcome November. Yes, the month went by in a jiffy. It was a happy month, as I was traveling to the lands full of waterlilies and coconuts. I saw some beautiful countries and some stunning scenery. But that will be subject of a different post, hopefully soon. By the time I was back to my garden it was already mid-November and finally the arrival of winter was very apparent. If in nothing else the hundreds of Chrysanthemums made it sure that we know about the arrival of flower-season.

My Magenta Mums

A newbie gardener friend asked me the other day, how do I pick colour of flowers while planting seedlings. I had told him earlier that I grow most of my seedlings from seeds saved from last year. I had no response to his question. I do not do colour wise sorting of seeds. Very honestly, I just look at the seedlings and say – “Now come on, surprise me!”.  More often than not, they do. So this time the Mums planted from the cuttings of last year in one long flowerbed turn out to be of same colour…. surprise! The flowerbed made up of bubble-gum striped Petunias (pink and white), Asters (purple, white and pinks) and now, Mums of predominantly magenta   looks very different from what I imagined while planting these. To add some more colour, I have now put a line of Calendulas and Dahlias in it. I hope they will even out this predominance of pinks.

Salvia on the contrary, surprised me in a different way. Other than the usual classic red, this time I am lucky to have at least 6 more colours of purple, yellow and white in my garden. There is one orange colour flower with white inside. It made my heart jump with joy.

 Last year I spent some anxious days planning what to plant in two flowerbeds that are below the big mango tree and thus in shade mostly. I could only think of Cineraria. While it did flower there finally, I had to wait till almost February to see some flowers. This year, I am experimenting with Impatiens for the first time. I had planted them just before I left for my vacation and now- in almost a month, they are already showing a flower here and two there.  I have seen Impatiens in other countries many times but for my garden this is a first. So far it shows promise. It is so difficult to find shade loving plants that have flowers – so, I patently wait for my Impatiens to grow.  

Impatiens so far

Other than these, after months of fighting with earthworms, the lawn is now coming to normal. The other winter annuals- Pansies, geraniums, Cineraria, Antirrhinum (dog-flower), Nasturtiums and Marigolds are coming up nicely. After two unsuccessful attempts even pink cosmos plants are finally growing well behind a flower bed of Mums. In the seed trays – I still have ice plant, Helichrysum (Everlasting flower) and larkspurs. I want to grow a lovely bed of purple larkspurs for a friend who loves them. Though she is not in the same city, I am sure she will be delighted to see images of my garden with larkspur, if I am successful in growing them.

The real delight of coming back home after two weeks was in the vegetable garden. Our radishes are ready to be consumed- white as milk and juicy to the core . Spinach, fenugreek leaves (Methi) and tomatoes are also almost there. Cabbages and carrots are growing well and though I don’t eat them Brinjals are available in plenty. My two Amla trees are full of Amla (gooseberry) and it makes the yummiest of   chutney.

In the early days of November, soon after Diwali, Delhi and region around it faced terrible bout of air pollution and smog. It had reached hazardous level in Delhi NCR but had some effect even in Jaipur. Now that we are back of the bright sunny days and almost blue sky, we should be thankful. Every morning, when I read the news of thousands of birds dying in Sambhar Lake, it pains me. We do not realize the value of clear water, blue sky, birds and flowers, till we don’t have them anymore. I think a gardener can truly appreciate the value of these things and be grateful for them. I feel grateful for each plant that is blooming in the garden, each dose of fertilizer that is nourishing them and each bird and squirrel that comes to share my garden.

Garden Diaries: October (Desperate for Winter)

“I'm so glad I live in a world where there are Octobers.”

― L. M. Montgomery, Anne of Green Gables

I truly appreciate the sentiment of the quote above. During my travel abroad, I have seen the glory of autumn when every leaf turn yellow, red or orange. It is just a riot of colours and such  a lovely transition from summer to winter. In US , the celebration of Halloween also comes during the month and Pumpkins of all sizes are decorated.

Octobers in India are not like that. They are, however, lovely in their own ways. In India also this is usually the month of festivities of Navrati , Dussehra and then Deepawali. For me October is a month of sweet-winter sunshine, lovely mornings and planting of winter annuals. As long as I remember, we have been planting our seedlings in October for winter flowers.

But then, there is climate change. It is so real and obvious now that one third of the October is already gone and the monsoon is still around. The millipedes are still digging up my lawns and the clouds dutifully turn up every now and then. The impatient me , is desperate for the change of weather but the day temperature refuses to drop. In the sunny days, it is quite hot and the cloudy days are even worse. The mornings, though cooler than before, have not reached the level of typical October mornings.  The rains have overstayed their welcome and continue to flood my flowerbeds.

Yet, unable to stop myself, I have planted some asters, petunias and salvias so far and I am waiting for rains to go completely before I venture further with marigolds and calendulas, Pansies, Nasturtiums and daisies. I have also put seeds for some cosmos and cineraria and hope that the weather Gods will oblige a dip in temperature to make germination possible.

Luckily, despite the continued heat and rains, Mums are doing fine and finally Balsam is flowering.  Last weekend I also attempted planting some Geraniums in pots and I hope they survive the weather. Same day, I also planted my Petunia stars. It was a nice sunny day and then by the noon, the clouds started gathering. It rained cats and dogs for about an hour. Petunias (much like me) do not like their feet wet. But thanks to the rains, the bed was flooded. Luckily since then, it has not rained and plants have managed to survive the onslaught.

On one such humid Sunday, I found a golden oriole on a tree nearby. I had never seen this pretty yellow bird and was mesmerised by its appearance and its song.  The Green Bee eaters are always roaming around and the kingfisher is often seen in the afternoons on his usual tree. On one Sunday, in an hour, I found Coppersmith barbets, Plum faced parakeets, Grey Hornbill and even a Blue Roller.  But to make my heart glad, about a few days back my favorite family of spotted owlet flew back. The three of them are now often seen enjoying the sun on the neem tree. The other delightful news is about the peahen, who has chosen the roof of our guard room to lay her eggs. She is usually sitting there whole day and only steps down early morning to get some food.

For the waterlilies, our little experiment of burying 8 water tanks in the ground around fountain seems to have worked.   So far, it is only an occasional waterlity or two , but I do hope that in winter months, there will be much more beauty in my little ponds.

In absence of seasonal flowers, plants like Anthurium (Flamingo flower), Mussaenda and some kalanchoes are my saviours. They break the monotony of green and make the garden look happy.

October also turn out to be a busy month for sowing vegetables and filling up patches of hedge . Now that I will be travelling half of next month, I want to complete the work in garden a lot more impatiently. 

Garden Diaries : September (Come September)

“For all I can really do is

stand here

in September’s rain

savoring…

soaking it all in

slipping..

and simply

holding on to poetry

for dear life.”

        ― Sanober Khan, Turquoise Silence

September generally brings respite from the wreckage of rains and the news of upcoming winters. But not this time. Intermittent rains continue to bless the garden and usually the weather is warm and humid. Generally, this weather is good for sowing and thus I took my chance with some winter annuals. But then Rains lashed out on the seeds and ruined them. Mistake . Big mistake. Or should I say my impatience which led to this. But I think when you are a gardener you do at times make this mistakes and then you learn from them. So as of now, except from Mums, no other winter annuals yet planted. With some effort lawn grass has improved but much remains to be done.

Colours of Hibiscus

 There is very little colour in the garden except from Hibiscus – my showgirls of this dull season. I have five colours of Hibiscus and all are on bloom right now. They are found everywhere in Asia and are commonly used for various purposes. My mother in law use red hibiscus for Puja and I have tasted Hibiscus tea, which is supposed to be very good to cure/ control various ailments. Portulaca bravely continue to add flowers but frankly it does not charm anyone except our resident red wattle Lapwing.

Portulaca bed and our resident bird 

But then, a garden is much more than just flowers. Even though flowers remain my favorite element in the garden, today I will discuss about other plants. Last year I planted some herbs in my garden and was moderately successful in growing Basil, Thyme, Rosemary, Lemongrass and Carom. At the moment Basil, Lemongrass and Carom are growing like anything and the other two are not doing too well. Though till last month even they were doing fine. I keep on searching new use of these herbs in my kitchen. Mint (pudina) ,tulsi ( holy basil), curry leaves and coriander are anyway staples in any Indian kitchen garden, for our recipes can’t do without them. We are lucky to have Giloy creeper and some Aloe vera plants as well. In winters, I am determined this time to experiment with more herbs. The thing with herbs is that they are useful and it makes growing them even more delight.

Herbs - Carom, Basil , Rosemary and Lemongrass

Other than herbs, there are always some crotons which add to the delight of the garden. Recently a friend and me spent half a weekend discussing how to landscape evergreen crotons and coleuses in shades to add some colours. We have carried some of these plants with us from our previous city. One can count on these and plants like African Grass, Jade, Asparagus densiflorus,snake plant, money plant etc. to remain green and nice, whatever be the weather. That is why these are my choices even for indoor small planters, which I keep in my house as well as in my office room.

Though this month is not the best for garden, in terms of flowers, we already have dragonflies and butterflies doing rounds on remaining cosmoses and other plants. Snails and worms, which end up being dinner for the family of enterprising Hoopoe and Peacock also are in plenty. This year I learnt much about behaviour of the birds with change in weather. It is a pleasure to look for birds after rain has stopped.

I have four scented creepers in my house and at the moment all are on bloom. While Bela, Juhi and Chameli are all white scents , Rangoon creeper (madhumalti) adds colour as well as faint fragrance in the evenings.

I think the rains will finally stop by the end of the month and then the fall cleaning will commence in October. There is so much to look forward to in the days to come. 

Garden Diaries: August (The Magical Monsoon)

“And at last it comes. You hear a patter…you see a leaf here and there bob and blink about you; you feel a spot on your face, on your hand. And then the gracious rain comes, gathering its forces—steady, close, abundant. Lean out of window, and watch, and listen. How delicious!...........the verandah beneath losing its scattered spots in a sheet of luminous wet; and, never pausing, the close, heavy, soft-rushing noise…”

~ John Richard Vernon, “The Beauty of Rain,” 1863

Finally, the Rain-Gods were happy. The city was blessed with beautiful rains, turning my garden into a riot of green shades. The flowers are damaged with incessant rain and wind and the weeds are everywhere. I wanted to work on my lawn grass before the rain starts but as many good things in life, it was delayed and well, now I will rush. There are some uneven patches which I would like to mend and the gaps in hedges which can be easily filled during rainy season.  With more rains came the millipedes and the problem of waterlogging in plant-beds. There was so much work in the garden to just clean and de-weed.

Adenium in Rain

Rains is a lovely period for a garden. You can grow almost all possible perennials and creepers. Rangoon creeper and Heart-leaved moonseed (Giloy) sprang to life with the touch of raindrops. The leaves have filled the bamboo fencing with our neighbouring house. The evergreen plants like money-plant and crotons are showing new leaves and rain lilies are the pride of the garden.

This weather made me lazy and for many days I did not even think about the vegetable beds. Finally we get an expert for treatment of soil and hope that by end of August, the kitchen garden will be ready to grow seasonal vegetables.

"Weather means more when you have a garden. There's nothing like listening to a shower and thinking how it is soaking in around your green beans."

                                                              -Marcelene Cox

August turned out to be an interesting month for the birds. We are witnessing a baby boom in the garden as there are nests and eggs all around. The young ones of doves, pigeons, bulbuls are now learning the ways of the world from their elders and the baby peacock is all grown up. The pair of peacock and peahen frequent our garden almost every other day.  And the new adult peacock one day literally knocked on our glass door . It turned out it was charmed by its own reflection in the glass and perhaps wanted to touch the 'other' bird . It persistently knocked on the door and made a very fascinating sight . 

Knock Knock- Peacock 

The other day I saw a pair of Greater Coucal roaming in the lawns. The news of the month however,  is that on last Sunday morning, in the rain soaked garden, I was finally able to click the resident Kingfisher . And while my delight was still new, the very next day,  a full contingent of Kingfisher family, with four cute baby birds in tow,  was found frolicking in my garden . 

Oriental White Breasted Kingfisher

Monsoon sky is a sight to relish. Evening sky showcase so many hues of red and orange and then it turns into the deepest shade of blue-black. With the patterns of clouds changing every moment , I can sit and watch the sky for hours . Even in the nighttime , clouds play with the moon and stars and create amazing nightscapes. The only thing missing so far is a rainbow .  

Evening sky after rains 

I am not sure whether this is already the time to sow winter annuals' seeds or wait till the best of rains are over. Reason says it should be latter. My gardeners suggest that it is already time for early annuals like salvia and marigold to go for sowing . Chrysanthemum plants saved from last year are already up for their first round of pinching . I am also determined to try some new flowers in the upcoming winters. 
 Other than this and the need for always cleaning the garden beds , it is just the magic of monsoon all around . And when it rains, one can just savor the delight of it, preferably with the fritters of your choice. 

Monsoon and the display of green 

As wisely said – 

For after all, the best thing one can do

When it is raining, is to let it rain.

~Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Tales of a Wayside Inn, 1863

Garden Diaries: July (Arrival of Rains)

 In the harsh season of the hot sun

Men and animals alike languish

While the pine burns

The cuckoo unlocks his voice and in quick accord

Both dove and goldfinch sing along

----Sonnet of the Summer Concerto Antonio Vivaldi

As if following an ancient calendar, clouds arrived in my city on the first day of Hindu month of Ashadh. Centuries back, Sanskrit poet Kalidas had begun his famous poem Meghdutam (Cloud messenger) by narrating arrival of clouds on this day. It rained well for two days, pleasing all of us around. The plants half burnt in heat, were suddenly alive, the lawn turned green and the rain lilies bloomed. Even the peacock danced more often than earlier.

The happiness was short-lived. After 2-3 showers, while the weather remained humid and sultry, there were no more rains. But the weather decidedly moved towards better and the rain soaked breeze stayed on till now. The temperature is down by several points and there is humidity in air. It might be very distressing for humans but humidity is great for the garden. Within days, Rajnigandha plants flowered and even the seedlings of Gulmehndi(Balsom) came out like magic.

After the rains 

The next two months belong to green-ness and the white scents. We have Juhi, Rajnigandha  and bela blooming and the entire garden is enveloped in green . Sadly this also means weeds in the lawn and there is no escape from that. A considerable time goes in weeding and weeding again. Scents of course make the air fragrant, especially in the evenings.

Rajnigandha- the fragrance of the rains 

The birds to seems too have found their voices back. In fact early mornings are full of their chirping. So usually around 6 am, I have koel singing on mango tree, Peacock screaming from far away and parrots talking all around. To add to this melody, I have put a metal chime on the frangipani tree in the centre of my lawn. The concerto is superb …that is if you have an ear for these unique garden melodies.

For flowers , I have nothing much to boast right now. Zinnias and Cosmos continue to delight and there are plenty of colorful Portulacas to add charm and colour in the flower beds. Now, here is the funny thing about flowers , it is very interesting how they spread geographically. Historically, tuberose or Rajnigandha is native of Mexico (Aztecs used it first to decorate their house ) and is now an integral part of every floral perfume of Europe( including supposedly Queen Marie Antoinette's perfume called Sillage de La Reine ) . It is also used extensively in weddings or funeral decorations in India  and so on. Even my petite Portulaca are native of  South America( Argentina and Brazil )and are now used all over the world . I have already discussed in previous post about the incredible journey of sunflowers across the globe . Talking of sunflowers,  I was worried that arrival of rains will be end of my glorious crop of sunflowers. But no- I still have plenty of them despite rains and more importantly, despite the families of parakeets. 

Portulaca beds

 Parakeets somehow, seem to be more interested in now almost-ripe mangoes and are always attacking them. At times they also drop the half eaten fruit for the benefit of other creatures of the garden you are not daring enough to go to the upper branches of the tree . 

A plum face parakeet going to attack a mango 

 Interestingly the first day of showers also brought a pair of Black-rumped Flame back and a bunch of little green bee-eaters to my garden.  The flameback or the woodpecker in layman words are beautiful birds and have found a place in Amla tree. There are many younger birds around, including a little baby peacock, who roams under her mother near the hedges and pond. There are several nests with eggs or little birds in them. I even had a cuckoo nest with blue eggs but duly warned by a bird-enthusiast, I never dared to go too near.

Black-rumped Flame back 

This month among the surprised pleasures in the garden – I had two plants of Blood lily (football lily) which suddenly flowered. And just after that, an adenium of dark maroon colour flowered like never before.

Adenium 

I am praying for more rains in the days to come so that I have lilies and more fragrant flowers. I am also determined to grow some vegetables this time. Let’s see what August has in store.