Monday, April 6, 2015

My rubies are coming back

These hippeastrum has not yet been flowering with me. I have only three bulbs from an exchange out of the country.  They have not been cared for well because we don't have the good place for them. We have animal pets around us that also sometimes walk on them like chickens, cats, dogs, goat kids.  Sometimes those bamboo fences are not enough barriers to keem them away. Moreover, we have shortage of water during the dry season that my plants have to sacrifice.

A few weeks back i just saw a broken scape emerging from the weeds. I don't know if a pet was there, or maybe mother was not able to see it when she went there sometimes. It reminded me that some bulbs are in those pots, forgotten for sometime. So i watched them during weekends i am home, and my sister put a trellis for the scape. She also watered them. And i was rewarded during the Holy Week Holidays, some are already spent, but some are still lovely.

 A bulb produced 3 scapes while the other got only 2, because one was cut and aborted earlier. Each scape have 4 blooms, and the 2 scapes bloomed simultaneously. I am so pleased.

 The third scape bloomed when the first 2 are almost spent. Their colors make a happy sight for a garden, mostly monopolized by the green background.

The throat is light green, radiating sidewards to the center of the petals. It gives a lovely color contrast too.

Even the back of the flowers are lovely too, the above looks like undulating and swaying with the winds.

Above are the reproductive parts of the flower; the stigma and style, the anther containing the pollen and the filament. I love how the stigma divides into 3 arms, purposely to easily capture the pollen. I wonder how the dark margin helps the anther, or if it has a physiological purpose.

This is the 3rd scape, developing after the 2 scapes are almost spent. So there will be the available red presence in the garden for a longer time. Next weekend they might not be there anymore, but i hope my pollinated flowers all get fertilized, so i can harvest some seeds in a few months. 

21 comments:

  1. What amazing flowers. I am glad that they have survived the difficult conditions. Sometimes plants seem to produce more flowers when they are neglected.

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    1. Yes that is right Nick. Sometimes they have to be stressed too much that will trigger their defense mechanisms to perpetuate the species. Thanks for visiting my post so quick.

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  2. They are such a great and vibrant sight for sore winter eyes!

    Mersad
    Mersad Donko Photography

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    1. Hi Mersad, i a glad i assuaged off a little of your boredom. If only you can see my Hoya photos too!

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  3. Such a beautiful vibrant red. Love the macro detail in the second last photo especially.

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    1. Thanks Gemma, actually i love taking stigma photos. Maybe in the future i will make compilations of stigma photos

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  4. Oh what wonderful flowers these are. Your photos are marverlous!

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    1. Thanks Angie for your kind words. Comments are my consolation in gardening, photographing and blogging.

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  5. They're gorgeous! It's my favorite Christmas flower.

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    1. In your part of the world, yes they are Christmas flower, ours is poinsetia or Euphorbia.

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  6. What a wonderful time for them to bloom--just in time for Holy Week. They're beautiful blooms! I actually enjoy the just-about-to-bloom flowers as much as the full blooming ones. Beautiful photos, too!

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    1. Yes Beth, they just happened to bloom earlier in the dry season because they already received dry environment and then suddenly been given water. So they emerged as if forced to bloom.

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  7. So pretty. Love that lively pop of red.

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  8. These are so stunning Andrea...I grew many indoors all winter and cut them for vases...

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  9. Beautiful blooms Andrea and your macro photos are stunning. That deep ruby color is gorgeous.

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