More Tropical Season Changes

Aside from last Friday's changes in dormant plants, i want to add some more changes from the very long dry season to the rainy season. These are all in our area and garden in the province. Even if the rainy season is already officially declared in June, and thunderstorms happen most afternoon in the big city, our area is still needing the much needed rain follow-up. Some farmers who planted corns and vegies after the first rains are now praying fervently so their crops will not die. Rains continue to be just in slight drizzles only.

This falcata tree, one of the tallest in our area is now full of shoots, it behaves like it is still in its own country's spring. It is one of the characteristics of species that are only acclimatized in our country, somehow it still retains the old characteristics. But of chores the genes are still there.

It is not only in the big city where the sunsets are not as lovely anymore. Most of my sunset skies are cloudy with only a slight window for the sun. My sunrise in the province, direct to my bedroom window is also a bit dim as above. Only a slight window at the bottom allows the sun to peep through.

We have two mussaenda around the house, the above is our neighbor's, while below is ours. They are both taller than shrubs, but still a low tree. We normally prune them during summer, but this time i was not able to do that. So the branches are taller, and more flowers appear because all shoots have flowers. Actually, they are not real flowers but bracts. The real flowers are inconspicuous and hidden among those lovely modified leaves.

Anothre bulb which has dormancy, the blood lily or Scadoxius multiflorus, bloomed later than the hippeastrum. They produce large very round umbels in a profusion of red bursts, that stay there for at least 5 days. No wonder they are called blood lily in the area they came from. It is not native to our country. 

those umbels are even lovelier in close-up shots

 Some of the Hippeastrum puniceum flowers are still there, but a lot are already spent and wilted. Eventually, this will only be a hedge of green leaves that are still lovely to see there. Those leaves will accumulate food again in the bulb to be ready for next year's blooming.

The back of the hippeastrum also have lovely patterns that are nice to the camera.  My disappointment with this species is its inability to produce seeds, as it is self sterile. Even attempts to cross it with my H johnsonii failed, although i am not sure if crossing was correctly done. I instructed my niece to do that, but nothing emerged as fruit buds. Maybe it is the technique of pollination too, which might not be right, or the timing of crossing. Who knows i did not observe it.

Nature Notes

Our World Tuesday

Outdoor Wednesday

Water Blobs

Rain has always been a positive element for me. Whatever others feel during heavy rains, I am always joyful and celebrate the rains; and it hasn't changed through the years! Even in the  city, commuters get depressed to  ride the jeepneys or busses during heavy rains. I relate with them very well because you run and struggle with fellow passengers to board first against everyone else, while at the same time holding on to the open umbrella to be closed quickly on entrance. Despite this difficulties, i still enjoy these and amused at the collective movements of the passengers, sometimes they can be like a mob with a distinct sole purpose, that is get a place in the bus and go home.

At other times i just watch the commuters while at the sidestreet enjoying the scene. Of course your pants will be wet to the knees and your shoes get soggy. That is a bit uncomfortable, but that is also an interesting experience. I also like watching the plants after a good soak. They communicate with me their joy and sense of well-being, and they send the sense of contentment. That, somehow, is how i fell too.

Custard apple leaves after the rains

Caladium leaf

a hoya leaf 

a cactus flower

an orchid inflorescence

Macro Monday 2

Water World Wednesday

Nature Notes

Outdoor Wednesday

Rain Effects

I waited for the rain for a long time, so when it arrived i have to really experience it. I didn't have a thorough soaking, but i went out without an umbrella or a hat, just let it wet my hair and my shirt. It is comforting and felt like I have done a ritual. Oh i should have thought about that when i am still in there, i should have put very good positive thoughts in my electromagnetic field while in the rain. I think I am late for that, anyway, i had fun. After the slight wetness i came back to the house and got an umbrella for the camera, and started shooting. 

Earlier we had a thick fog, which visits us once-in-a while during the rainy season. This time there was a visibility of around 10-meter radius. I am imagining i am somewhere in Scotland or the mountain states in the US except that the temperatures here are higher. In fact I only have a thin shirt and i didn't feel cold. Maybe that temperature was around 28C. So the clouds just went very low to experience the earth's vegetation, what about that!

 Crinum lily has a good soaking, it has all stages of blooms

 The big bunch with opened flowers  fell off, cannot bear the heavy beating of the raindrops

 Caesalpinia pulcherrima  flowers had to droop

 Pachystachys lutea bracts and flowers were able to stand the raindrop pressure

 Cacao's new emerging leaves look so happy with the heavy rains

 This praying mantis has a poker face, so i can't discern if it is happy with the rain or not, it just stayed there on the spent blooms of the crinum

 Ti plants (Cordyline fruticosa) look hilarious and having a good soak after the long scalding heat they experienced a few weeks back. The yellowish sunscald suddenly becomes green now!

 Duranta erecta hasn't been pruned, so the limbs are trying to outdo each other in reaching the sunlight. Even the Florida beauty emerged at the center of the canopy for the light it wants to see too. Survival of the fittest is being shown in this little patch.

 The crotons whose leaves were drooping in the last few weeks now looks so satiated and healthy. It is a very pliant and adaptable plant. I hope there are larvae which eats them too.

The dormant caladiums show up everywhere, they are beautiful but later on my sister will uproot them including their tubers to limit their invasiveness. We have killed and dried a lot of Colocasia esculenta tubers last dry season to limit their population in the property.

Asparagus fern dried up in May, and now fabulously growing again. I still have to prune the dried stumps. I am trying to train it climb the molave tree near our gate.

Caesalpinia pulcherrima leaves with colored beads in them

Atis or custard apple (Anona squamosa) has lots of mealy bugs earlier, now they get a thorough bathing and hopefully got rid of the infestation. 

        

 Fertilizer Friday