Lalbagh flower show & this year's first flowers

The flower show to celebrate Republic day was on once again at Lalbagh, the center piece this time being a flower decorated Eiffel tower, along with the statue of a lady and of Vivekananda.

I did not visit, hence do not have pictures to share, but I do have some of the first flowers of the year from around me. Surprisingly the gulmohar tree in front of our building flowered in January - not a whole lot of flowers but a few here and there. It was rather surprising as the flowering usually begins only in April - has it been so much hotter?

 This is the one from the pot we have in our balcony.

Last gulmohars of the year - Aug2012

The view from the balcony at this time of the year

The colors of March

While I have admired the colors around this Spring, I have not taken pictures. So rather than share photographs, I can only write about the delicate pinks and whites of the trumpet tree that bloomed all over Indiranagar and greeted me each morning as I drove over the Domlur flyover; The striking red of the tree that is on the 12th main, the yellows of the carribbean trumpet tree in the park near Old Madras Road and the ethereal lilac/purple of the jacaranda all over the city. It has been an absolute delight looking at these trees and reveling in their midst. The raintree right in front of my house has also bloomed, the picture below though is from the one at the Bhoganandishwara temple that I visited a few days back.

The gulmohars in the city have not started blooming yet, they usually wait until April - but this one a little outside was in a riot of color, thanks due probably to the scorching heat.

And finally, the plumeria (near Bangalore Central Mall), showing off its sweet pink flowers.

A riot of red

Around this time last year, the view from our balcony became quite remarkable - the gulmohar tree whose branches touch the walls burst into bloom, transforming itself into a veritable riot of red.
Its happened all over again this year, albeit about a month later.

Fallen

March is when I start keeping a lookout for the presence of buds on trees.. the first ones of spring. Gone are the winter bloomers - the bottlebrushes and the Millintonia Hortensis and the roses in the parks. Its time for the reds, the yellows and the pinks!

Sadly the start of the spring was marked by the fall of a neighbourhood tree, one i had blogged about previously. We could not sleep much the night of the 2nd of March, there was a strange wiring sound in the wee hours of the morning. I thought it was a bike (or several) starting up, but later realised it was the device that the corporation uses to chop branches.

This tree had fallen sometime in the night. By morning it was all chopped up, clearing way for the stream of traffic around the corner. It came as no wonder that the tree fell - one side of it had been done away completely earlier, to make way for the building. It is a wonder how it stood lopsided for so long. The same fate unfortunately awaits all of the trees in this stretch, whose branches are allowed to grow only on one side, upsetting their natural balance.

The ubiquitous roadside gulmohar

Much space has been devoted on this blog to the gulmohar and to roadside trees; the sight of a roadside tree, in all probability a gulmohar or a copperpod, that has one entire side chopped off to make way for a building never fails to move me. It seems so off balance, a deliberate mutation. Its good to see that most of the trees that are being planted now in the city are being placed along the center of the roads, giving them the space to grow out their branches on either side.

Its been two months since the first flowers appeared in the gulmohar tree that our balcony overlooks, and the flowers are still standing strong. A little ruffled by the heavy rains and strong winds maybe...

I've been enjoying taking pictures of these flowers from all angles!

View from the balcony IV

Have you noticed how long the pods of the gulmohar are?


















Or how spiky those of the african tulip tree are?

what about these? look familiar? it's the jacaranda mimosifolia

View from the balcony II

First flowers of the gulmohar

I've blogged about the gulmohar (delonix regia) many a time before, but have never managed to get a close picture of its flamboyant flowers. The tree right outside of my balcony offered an opportunity this week though, with its barren branches bursting into tiny leaves, buds and two little flowers - the first ones of this spring!

I cannot get enough of the enchanting Gulmohar

This one is from the theosophical society in chennai:

And this one is from kanchipuram:

More from the theosophical society - Delonix Regia

Yes, of course i simply had to photograph my favorite chennai tree - the delonix regia. I found this one that seemed rather dimunitive compared to the ones on the streets. Sun washed isnt it? I managed to squint my eyes, look up and take a few pictures of the flowers. The Delonix Regia is also called the Peacock Tree and the Royal Poinciana.

Fiery reds of the Delonix Regia

I can never get enough of this tree, dear readers; it's fiery red flowers and elegant green leaves always make for a striking picture.

Chennai's prolific bloomers - Delonix Regia

And another one that has to contend with the buildings for sunlight and space. The flamboyant Delonix Regia. It is ironic - the delonix regia is probably the most common and most admired tree in the city, yet is the one most likely to be a victim of mistaken identity - it is thought of to be the 'flame of the forest' by almost everyone. It is hard to get to know neighbours in a city, isnt it? Especially when they aren't from around here -- yes, the ubiquitous Gulmohar, as its common name goes, is from Madagascar!



Do you have an interesting story or picture to share about a city tree? Do let me know!