Some Wildflowers

There was a time in the past when all the flowers are wildflowers! When people started to have houses and parks, there are also plants that became domesticated and cared for by the people. Domestication probably started for food, for medicinal values,  and eventually for aesthetic reasons. Some wildflowers in some locales maybe domesticated in others, as per the cliche "beauty is in the eye of the beholder". Then after decades or centuries of domestication, some plants eventually become wild again. These could be those left by some people, escaped domestication, and reverted back to become wild.

Our wildflowers in our area are not as colorful or attractive to men as those in colder climes. Besides, they are not very plentiful in contiguous locations. I uploaded here in pairs some that are found around our area in the province. They might not be lovely for humans, but they are much favored by butterflies.

Wedella trilobata 

This is previously a ground cover for some landscapes. It has been declared invasive in some US cities. Maybe this in our area is planted as ornamental plant but eventually become invasive and conquered an area nearby. I don't mind it near our area as the Tiny Grass Blue butterflies love this.

porterweed, Stachetarpheta jamaicensis

Dark Blue Glassy Tiger, Tirumala orientalis semper

 unknown to me

Lagundi, Vitex negundo

 unknown to me

Tridax procumbens - that is a skipper which suddenly left when i am about to focus. 

This is a Palm Bob skipper that nectars on the plenty of Tridax procumbens flowers.

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Violets are Blue!

I always miss posting at Wildflower Wednesday! It is already Thursday and suddenly i remember that it is the last week of the month, i went to the site of Clay and Limestone and there still are only a few linkers. I hurriedly edited my flowers, then suddenly a harsh thunderstorm hit a transformer nearby, and all our computers are dead. At last after 15 min, current is back, and i am back to posting.

I cannot find a title for my flowers, then i remember an old song..."Roses are red my love, Violets are blue, Sugar is sweet my love, and i'm as sweet as you". I don't know if that is correct, but i got my title there.

This plant is now invading most street sides in our area in the province. It has been there maybe just a few years ago, starting as maybe one then its invasiveness now conquered most open marginal lands. Maybe i am the only person who is happy with them, mostly because of its violet/bluish flowers. I have actually posted them 2 yrs ago, but every after the first rains they emerge beautifully, from the dormant seeds during our dry season. I guess this is not a native here, as there's none of it during our childhood years. Our barren streets now look landscaped.

 this is one side of the barangay street

 the plants are so lovely after the rains during at night, they open in the morning

 it is now invading the grasslands, but i love the way i cropped this scene

 it has a short growing period so flowering is quick and simultaneous

Don't you just love it?

small insects hide or maybe eat among the plants and flowers, look at that tiny green hopper

the last time i visited, i saw lots of this flowers with eaten petals, but leaving the throat

This is the culprit, i wonder what this will become, maybe a moth. I wonder 

why they leave the throat uneaten!

this planthopper is also very tiny, shorter than half a centimeter

This is the bend a few meters from our house, it might not be beautifully landscaped-looking at the moment, but wait a little and this area will be fully teeming with bluish-violet flowers, Ruellia tuberosa.

I searched a little and found that it also has a lot of medicinal and useful properties, some of which are anti-inflamatory, antilipidemia, lower glycemic index, antioxidant, and a lot more. In fact, may studies have been done on it, as compiled by a herbal-medicinal site. In Ayurvedic medicine mostly, all parts of the plants are studied and used. 

At the moment our side of the property already has some singly growing plants. I am sure in just a few years, our street sides will also be having this plants, and by then it is already a noxious weed. 

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Wildflowers near the Falls

I purposely went to La Union, a province >6 hours by bus north of Manila to see waterfalls. (My previous post earlier about the Simminublan waterfalls). My travel buddy met me at Evelyn's house there, our base while looking for whatever interesting things we might go into. Evelyn is also looking for buddies who just want to go nature tripping, butterflies and photography. The only concrete plan is to go see a waterfalls, wherever that might be. Through the circuitous and undulating steep roads we went, enjoying the incredibly difficult trip. As most say "it is the process not the product", or  "enjoy the means more than the end". So we go, they plunged into the water, Linda even jumped from the cliff. But i stayed dry, looked for butterflies, dragonflies, and wildflowers. I even looked for hoyas at nearby trees, but found none!

So i might as well share with you the wildflowers.

 I am sorry, i do not know most of their names. Maybe i am the only one who love them that much. Above and below looks like a species of Impatiens. Both the stems, leaves and morphology of the flowers and fruits have semblance to Impatiens balsamina, even I. walleriana. When i searched in the web, i just realized there's a lot, as in a LOT,  of species of Impatiens. Unfortunately, i was not able to find one image that looks like this.

 those flowers are lovely with the bottom petals darker than that on top

 This one has very minute flowers in spikes, but the leaves have smudges of red like drops of blood. Of course, i don't know it too. They are actually weeds.

 What a lovely color for flowers! I haven't seen any flower design or structure like this. And they are so small with half of that petal only one-third of a centimeter. If you don't call that small,  i don't know what is. Again, a NOID for me.

 Above is so striking in golden yellow. I am sure it is a legume, flowers looking like peas. I searched for its leaves and they look like that of peanuts. I am sure this is a peanut cousin.

 And while the above is a wildflower i know very much it is lantana. Whether it is L.camara or another species, i don't know. I watched for butterflies nectaring on it, but i didn't see any.

 This one is the favorite of butterflies, as we have them too in our property as weeds, and butterflies love them, the porter weed, Stachetarpheta jamaicensis. I will not forget that long scientific name because i had been teaching my nephew and niece this name since they are 5 yrs old. Now they can recite that long name even if they just woke up! That is the first Sci name they learned, hahaha.

Another NOID (No Identification). This is an umbel and the white flowers are arranged around it, i wonder why there are no white flowers at the center, maybe the maturity starts from that bottom. The golden yellow pollens are very prominent.

I searched for more wildflowers at the vicinity of the waterfalls, but the dragonflies and damselflies got my attention most. So next time i will be posting them too, maybe next post. Thanks for your visit and comments. Your comments are the life of my posts.

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Wildflower Wednesday

Hortikultura 2017

The Horticulture Garden Show, Hortikultura 2017,  is ongoing at the Quezon Memorial Circle, Quezon City, Philippines from 3-15 February 2017. It is sponsored by the Philippine Horticultural Society, Inc. This is an annual show that features landscape and flower arrangement exhibits as well as commercial booths. There was also on the spot painting contest that i saw last Saturday. I have been a regular visitor to these garden shows, and this year i stayed there for 2 days last weekend. I was with a friend and it was also a time to bond with plant enthusiasts and hobbyists. We also attended lectures of my two friends way back from the university. They are both plant breeders, so i also learned from their lectures.

In the past garden shows i normally go there mostly to take photos. This time i somehow forgot my camera in the bag. I just used my celfone and did not take a lot of photos as before. Now i wish i had taken photos of the more organized and more artistic arrangements of the commercial booths. Moreover, there are a lot more booths that participated. A nearby street is closed for the additional commercial booths not accomodated in the original enclosure. Also the center walkway in the original commercial booth area was widened, and a centralized overhead netting was installed for the plants. It was a better experience this time than the previous shows. It provided better ventilation for the people traffic, and much easier experience in appreciating the plants and flowers. PHSI needs a well deserved congratulations.

I am sorry for the quality of my photos, as it was very hot at about noon when i took these shots.

 one of the landscape exhibits showcasing mostly bromeliads

my favorite landscape design because of the elevated bridge crossing a supposedly canal

This is also very attractive showcasing the airplants. I love how they used those ducks as focal points.

...and look at those lovely colored Tilandsia ionantha on the duck's head! 

a pair of this planter was outside the door to the lecture hall

this orchid attracted my attention as i saw it for the first time, sorry i forgot to look at the name tag

of course this is the pride of the country, our very own waling-waling, Vanda sanderiana

an oncidium species well located for that trunk as background

i also love the color of this chrysanthemum, i didn't take photos of other colors, just this

another tilandsia as part of a big clump on a big driftwood, i purposely took only these two

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Purple Allamanda

True to its color, this is named Allamanda violacea, synonymous with Allamanda blanchetii. It is viny and climb if there is enough support. I got interested here because mostly of the raindrops on the young flower buds. 

 The reddish purple color give it a 2-tone color making the blooms more attractive. It even turns pinkish later on after opening. The flower has a deep throat resembling a bell. Its cousin, Allamanda cathartica, is yellow and often called yellow bell.

 Even the fallen flower still shows the 2-tone color at the back side. 

Here is the main plant showing lush growth.

One very important consideration in planting this plant is its toxic properties. Every part of the plant is poisonous, so care must be exercised in planting it in areas with young children. Playing with it especially the toxic sap must not be done. Everybody must be informed of this characteristics.

 Macro Monday 2
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Ruby Tuesday Too
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Leaves and Diamonds

 We were in Guinobatan, Albay in the Bicol Region and before the one-day meeting discussion, i roamed around the area. My major prospect is to shoot Mt Mayon, an active volcano known for its nearly perfect cone. I had to wake up early as when the sun rises, the clouds already comes in covering the whole mountain. Those three mornings, i was lucky to have found it clear, and i got lots of shots.

It was a bit drizzling for sometimes, so i have an open umbrella while walking. I looked for butterflies, but they hide when the rains fell. Even then, i still have lots of subjects to photograph. One of those is this magenta-colored plant full of raindrops. It looks so full of gemstones of different sizes. I was so thrilled.

 My only regret is that nobody knows the name of this plant, not even the common name. I am posting this with hope that someone will give me the lead. Thank you so much.

 Even the petioles are so lovely in red, and the leaf undersides are red-magenta as well. I just don't know if the color only happens during this time when temperatures are colder, or because the days are shorter. Nobody in the vicinity seems to be knowledgeable about it.

It is nice with the green leaves at the background. Above picture shows some greenish portion of the leaves when covered by another, meaning the change in color responds to the direct sunlight.

Whatever it is, i might be able to plant it in my own garden sometime in the future. By then i hope i already know its real name.

PS. Thank you so much bettyl-NZ for leading me to Carribean copper bush. It is Euphorbia cotinifolia, same genus with our poinsettia. 

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