Old Friend (ThursdayTreeLove)

We had a very brief visit to the Agatti Island in Lakshadweep in the Arabian Sea. It was the destination of our Cruise and I tried to make the most of the short time on shore.

I was surprised to see many familiar trees there. Somehow I expected unknown-to-me 'new' trees after I saw some 'new' species in our visit to Andamans Islands (in the Bay of Bengal).  

Thespesia populnea (aka Indian Tulip Tree) of  Malvaceae was a predominant member there. This particular one grew close to the sea and had a huge spread resembling a Banyan. 

When I went closer, the tree was obviously not a Banyan but a Thespesia populnea!! 

    

     

This species is quite common in Pune along roadsides and gardens. Pretty trumpet shaped yellow flowers with a dark throat that fade to pink. Along with its heart shaped leaves, identification is easier. 

While it's said to be native to India, here's an interesting tidbit from the Flowers of India website on the page for Thespesia populnea "Its name Thespesia means "divinely decreed" and was given by Daniel Solander who saw it in Tahiti as a member of Captain Cook's ship."

Seeing familiar trees in unfamiliar locations is akin to meeting old friends! What do you think? 😄

I am joining Parul in her ThursdayTreeLove bloghop. Do head over to see fantastic trees from around the world. Better still, join in! 

Floral Doorways (ThursdayTreeLove)

Jasmines are one of my favourite flowers. Their heavenly scent is especially attractive as are the while blooms. There are different varieties of Jasmines - that we call Mogra, Jai, Jui, Chameli, Kunda..

All belong to the Jasminum genus of the Oleaceae family and almost all are summer bloomers. We use them in offerings during prayer, decorations, rangoli and ofcourse strung up into garlands and worn in hair. 

I was pleasantly surprised to see a Jasmine species grown over doorways. In our visit, these were in full bloom so walking down those streets with the air full of sweet fragrance was a heavenly experience. 

Here are a few images.. 

More Cousins! (ThursdayTreeLove)

Just like us humans, I think plants too have relatives as in 'Cousins' .. I always refer to plants that belong to the same Genus but different specific epithets as being related as 'Cousins'!

I have had other such plants on my blog.. e.g The Malphigeas 

 

Today I have another... the Kala Shirish/Krishna Shirish or  Albizia amara of the Fabaceae family.

Its yet another resident of our very dear Vetal Tekdi in Pune and this one (shown in the photo) grows right opposite a Albizia lebbeck - The Shirish we all know.

Its presently in full bloom and the small round whitish yellow flowers are an attractive sight.

It has different leaves from the Shirish and there are other family members as well who I have not included today... such as the Albizia procera , Albizia odoratissima .

The green leaf tree at the back is the Albizia lebbeck. 

Unique (ThursdayTreeLove)

After our tree-spotting car drives in 2024 to see the Yellow Bombax, we embarked on another one recently .. albeit it wasn't too far away from Pune.

The aim was to see the elusive, rare beautiful yellow Palash or Yellow Flame of the Forest. 

We all know the red Palash but the yellow one is just as beautiful but very uncommon. According to some experts, the yellow colour is due to a genetic mutation. 

Botanically, it is called Butea monosperma var lutea of the Fabaceae family. 

According to Flowers of India, there are very few trees and is endemic to the Deccan Plateau. Our Tree group reported this particular yellow Palash that lives in Pune. I missed its flowering last year and this year I was determined to see the yellow blooms.

As it turns out, I was a few days late and most flowers had faded and fallen off. I could see some flowers. 

An amazing tree. 

Here you go...

Graceful (ThursdayTreeLove)

Here's another tree from my recent travels.

A graceful Lagerstroemia microcarpa (of the Lythraceae family) in its winter attire!

Having dropped all foliage its trunk and branch 'architecture' was fully visible. The smooth white bark looked was glossy in the winter sun. This must look beautiful when in bloom!

Its home is at the Kasauli Club. 

Driveway (ThursdayTreeLove)

Here is the beautiful driveway at the Chateau Chenonceau in France. 

Lined by Plane trees, a walk on this road evokes a surreal feeling. 

Plane trees or Sycamore belong to the Platanus genus of Plantanaceae family. It has beautiful lobed leaves and the remarkable trunk is patchy, peeling and in shades of green, yellow, grey and white. 

"Wherever you go, becomes part of you some how"- Anita Desai

Chestnut (ThursdayTreeLove)

 Here is a handsome tree .. not seen in Pune but some of its cousins are seen in northern parts of India.

Without much ado.. meet the beautiful Horse Chestnut .. I could only identify it as from the Aesculus genus ... These have their home in Paris.. the streets are lined with gorgeous massive trees with large digitate leaves. They were in bloom in May when we visited.

Red Glory (ThursdayTreeLove)

Here is a tree from Paris that surprised me due to its shiny red leaves in mid May.

I always thought red leaves were seen as trees drop foliage in autumn. 

Our guide could not help with its name. I hoped Google would help me with ID but as luck would have it...the tree name presented itself to me!!!

Beautiful red wine coloured leave shone in the sunlight!

The Luxembourg Garden had a board next to this lovely tree.

So here's the Fagus sylvatica 'Atropunicea' L of the Fabaceae family (Beech)...a tree that bears new foliage that's red/copper/maroon .

Twin Trunk (ThursdayTreeLove)

Pune has a few really old trees.. I have shared some on my previous posts. 
Here is one more. 

A grand old Baobab that seems to have a twin trunk. Or is it two trees growing side by side?

Difficult to tell really. It is easily visible from the road through the wire fence and I did not try to go inside to get a closer look. 

Its already in full foliage after its winter leaf fall and flowering thereafter. The digitate leaves form a glorious green canopy and looking down, one can see faded flowers and early fruit.

Here is the wonderful Adansonia digitata of the Malvaceae family. Its originally from Africa but seems very happy here in India. The feeling is mutual as we call it 'Gorakh Chincha' in marathi.. chincha is Tamarind!

Flower - this image taken earlier from another tree 

I am joining Parul in her ThursdayTreeLove blog hop. Head over to see wonderful trees from around the world. Better still, join in!

 

Waras (ThursdayTreeLove)

 Here is tree that I have seen on our hills in Pune. There are only a few that grow in the city so I always assumed it was a species that preferred some elevation.

I was proved wrong when we did a few long drives around Pune into the interiors (to see flowering ofcourse!!) . I saw plenty of these lovely stately trees in the plains as well.

I am referring to the Waras or Heterophragma quadriloculare of the Bignonicaceae family. 

It has pretty white flowers with frilly petals and the tree looks majestic when in bloom. 

Many of the native species that grow in and around Pune bloom in Feb/Mar and April. 

It needs great determination to go out in the heat but the joy of seeing and identifying the tree is infinite!! 

For some strange reason, I was unable to find a local name in English for this tree. 

Here it is!

Compound leaves

I am joining Parul in her ThursdayTreeLove blog hop. Do head over to see some fantastic trees from around the world. Better still, join in!

Red (ThursdayTreeLove)

 After the Yellow Bombax on the last edition of TTL it is vital that I post the usual red Bombax that is mostly seen around Pune.

Here it is:

Bombax ceiba aka Kate Sawar / Shyamli/ Seemal/Silk Cotton Tree of the Malvaceae family. 

From a distance, one can only see red spots on a bare tree in a bare brown countryside. As one moves closer the red becomes darker and a lot of bird and bees/insect activity is seen on the tree. The large flowers are not pretty by general standards. They are almost cup shaped and have plenty of nectar in it which attracts monkeys as well. 

Tree Drive (ThursdayTreeLove)

My title suggests i would be writing about some tree plantation drive.

But that is far from the truth.

Recently, our Tree lovers Whatsapp group was swamped with photos of a Yellow Seemal. Thats right ... Bombax ceiba with yellow flowers. It looked wonderful and is rare in this part of the world.

Like everyone else on the group, I too wanted to see it. 

The only problem was the location was over 60kms away. 

I got major FOMO (Fear Of Missing Out) when more folks visited the tree and shared the images. 

Luckily for me, dear husband agreed to accompany me and he drove all the way. 

I packed some sandwiches and we set off early to avoid heat. Surprisingly the road was superb and I ignored all other trees enroute. (That was on the return journey and for another post!! :-)

It was a joy to see the tree at the precise spot, standing alone and in full bloom . The road was lonely, and locals drove or walked past without a second glance. I would like to think they had already had enjoyed the blooms as flowering had been going on for a few weeks at least. 

Without much ado.. here is the Yellow Seemal aka Kate Sawar in Marathi or Silk Cotton Tree. 

Precious (ThursdayTreeLove)

 "Ancient trees are precious. There is little else on Earth that plays host to such a rich community of life within a single living organism."

- Sir David Attenborough

This is just one of the trees that live at Pune's Empress Garden. 

It's a very old Ficus and the aerial roots seem to be hosting many other plants. Obviously many birds and insects too must find this space extremely hospitable! 

The Empress Garden is an over 150year old garden in Pune home to many old and unique trees. A part of our precious natural heritage.

I am joining Parul in her ThursdayTreeLove bloghop. Do head over to see fantastic trees from around the world. Better still, join in. 

Unique Tree Unique Place (ThursdayTreeLove)

 As 26th January is our Republic Day, I have a tree from a special unique place. 

Its a Keekar (Acacia variety) that has its home at Longewala. 

Longewala is a place near Jaisalmer in India's Rajasthan state . It is close to the international border and was witness to a fierce battle in 1971. 

There is a memorial at the spot that displays captured enemy weapons, tanks etc. There is also a short film that recreates the events of December 1971 and it is shown in an actual bunker. The entire ambience gives one goosebumps and one can only salute the brave.

You can read more about it here and here. 

Here is the tree. 

The Keekar seems to have a twin trunk or a low first branch. That low branch has grown almost horizontally and curves for quite some distance. In fact, it has been propped up with some supports. 

                                    

Support for the branch

This image gives an idea of the horizontal curving branch. I tried to get an image without people but that was next to impossible considering the queue to see the film. 

Leaves

Visiting such places serve as a reminder of sacrifices made by our soldiers to safeguard our freedom. Here are some images from Longewala.

Republic Day Greetings to all my friends!! 

I am joining Parul in her ThursdayTreeLove blog hop. Do head over to see some fantastic trees from around the world. Better still, join in!

Learn Something New (ThursdayTreeLove)

 Todays post has a very familiar tree but after all these years in Pune, I found an interesting practice related to it. 

Its the Peepal or Ficus religiosa of the Moraceae family. 

We all know it . 

But at a recent Heritage Walk in Pune, we visited the Munjoba Temple which is home to a large Peepal tree. In some family traditions, whenever a boy undergoes the Thread Ceremony, the boys father first plants a Peepal tree, conducts the ceremony on the tree then for the young lad.

I havent personally seen this practice but it shows the importance of trees have in our lives. According to this article about the Peepal on the website Flowers of India, " Hindus associate the tree with the three gods Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva, Vishnu being reputed to have been born under a Peepul. Which is Vishnu himself in the form of a tree. "

Here are the images.

 Here is another article about the Munjoba Temple and its Peepal tree. Do you know of any interesting practises about the Peepal? 

Heritage walks are a wonderful way to know about a city - reconnect with the one we live in or just know a new city we visit. 

Learn something new. Like I did about the Peepal. The same is true with Tree Walks. 

Here is a link to Heritage Walks in Pune by Ayan. 

Disclaimer : This is not a sponsored post! :-)

A very happy 2024 from our family to yours! Wish you all a 'tree'mendous year!! 

I am joining Parul in her ThursdayTreeLove blog hop. Do head over to see fantastic trees from around the world. Better still, join in!

Here are the

Stopping In My Track (ThursdayTreeLove)

The roads in Munnar (a town renowned for natural beauty in the state of Kerala), are narrow and constantly curve up or down hill depending on where one is going. Since I wasnt driving, I was free to enjoy the lovely views and especially the plants. One particular plant with spiky pink flowers was especially interesting.. almost making me stop our vehicle to see it (I finally did do so on the final day of our stay). Stopping and getting off the vehicle was difficult as the road was very busy with lots of cars and buses.  

Its leaves resembled Tamarind but flowers reminded me of the Powder Puff tree. Yet this was different. The plant grew profusely by the roadside, its flowers beckoned me to stop and see. 

Here are its photos when I finally could manage to 'meet' the plant.

A bit of research told me this is the Spiked Powder Puff of Calliandra calothyrsus of the Mimosaceae family. 

The pink thread like structures are staminal filaments

The tree is not native to India but seems to be happy in Munnar. 

Travel has introduced me to several new species and some of them stop me in my tracks (metaphorically speaking). There are two more such plants from the same Munnar trip but I shall share those in another post!

When on a drive, my family is now quite used to my (apparently) random calls to stop.. just cause I have seen some 'different' 'interesting' 'new' plant! 

;-)

I am joining Parul in her ThursdayTreeLove bloghop. Do head over to see some fantastic trees from around the world. Better still, join in!