25Sep25

Phyllanthus Tenellus

Saw this plants Phyllanthus Tenellus in the nursery. It belongs to the same family as keezhanelli Phyllanthus Neruri. Both look similar, but this has flowers on the top of the leaf and Niruri will has small amla like fruits at the bottom. Below is Phyllanthus Niruri from the garden. In a mature plant the stalks look like the amla plant from top. Phyllanthus- means flower like leaf which appears to grow for a leaf like stem. Tenellus means small, delicate and tender. Niruri means Stonebreaker. You can spot both in empty pots, and in open areas.

23Sep25

Barleria prionitis-Vajradanti

Barleria cristata-Sphatika

How to differentiate the two.

The garden grows both these flowers. There is a White Cristata which bloom into varieties of pink, and purple here and there. One of the things about a wild garden is since you don't trim it to shape often it becomes a playground of opportunities for these plants to show up. I did not expect the white one give rise to the pink or deep purple one. The vajradanti, was bought online. I thought it had died but it popped up this year after a gap of two years. Who know which seed hides in the garden.

Imagine

Your Channel No 5 perfume has it. Some of your expensive body massage oil also has it as well. It is a star ingredient in luxury and aromatic products. And therefore one of the most sought after flowers apart from Jasmine for its heady fragrance. It is called Ylang- Ylang. There are two varieties. This climbing Ylang-Ylang is called, Artabotrys hexapetalus. The other variety is Cananga Odorata which has similar type of fragrant flowers but is long stalked. This is a climbing vine that also has a shrubby look. The peduncle forms a hook that helps in climbing. The name “ylang-ylang” comes from the Tagalog term “ilang-ilang,” meaning “wilderness,” reflecting its natural habitat. Local names are beautiful for they describe the character of a flower. In Tamil it is called Manoranjitham meaning that which captivates the mind. It is beleieved that if you inhale the fragrance of the flower thinking of a fruit, you can smell the fruit. There are six green petals in the blooming stage which turn yellow as the flower fades making it even more aromatic. The flower is at its height of fragrance late in the evening and is pollinated by nocturnal moths and insects. A oval shaped fruit forms sometimes.