The Apple of Sodom is wild plant with sticky white sap and a complex looking flower. In Kannada it's called Yekki Gida, and in Indian culture it's has an ancient cultural significance. These lovely flowers eventually turn into pods. Subsequently those pods release black seeds with silky hair which are carried away by wind.
Back in July 2009 I had a chance to see Yekki seeds being dispersed.
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This plant has been there in our little garden for almost three years yet I did not know it's name. The plant has several stems shooting out from it's base, grows to a height of 2 feet. The long dark green leaves form a spiral around the stem. About two weeks the plant sprouted buds which eventually flowered. That's when it aroused my curiosity. On Googling flower photos I learned that it's called Insulin plant which itself states it's importance and used by diabetic patients. Its botanical name is Costus Igneous.
A day before publishing this post, i.e. Monday early morning I found stems were missing. On inspecting the stem ends, it was clear that goats had feasted on the plant. Goats are known for eating all kinds of leaves with medicinal properties hence goat's milk is considered as a super food. Well, I felt bad to see the state of the plant but it'll grow back in a few weeks.
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Found while browsing through my photo archives, this photo was shot on Feb 2014 in a Motorola EX115.
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Found this pretty little flower on the side of a road. I'm seeing this flower for the first time, I think. However, it seems like the Blue Fox Tail is a rarely seen flower, at least in Karnataka.
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The plant I've always known as 'money plant' is also called Devil's Eye, Golden Pothos, or Scindapsus aureus. It's botanical name is Epipremnum aureum.
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A spotted munia pair have built their nest in our hanging garden. Unlike the previous nests this time they've converted a live grass into a nest. Hoping to get better shots of the nest in future.
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This little red fruit is liked by some birds and bats. The tree is usually umbrella shaped and provides a nice shade. It sheds a lot of leaves which decays quite quickly enriching the soil around the tree.
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This banana sapling arrived from Sirsi along with a canna sapling on Nov 2nd. I planted them in the narrow open space at the edge of our apartment's parking space. The soil was contaminated with construction waste. I removed cement chunks, pieces of brick and pebbles. The soil was mainly charged up naturally with organic waste, which is a slow process.
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| Nov 3 2022 |
One morning, a few days after the second anniversary of planting, the plant was just growing taller but no sign of flower. Normally a banana plant bears fruit in a year's time. I had a thought of cutting it down and planting something else. It so happened Pushpa noticed a bud protruding from the stalk. I dropped the idea and continued watering like before.
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| Jan 22 2025 |
We would check the flower frequently which transformed into tender banana hands. Development was slow. By mid December 2024 the banana stalk had taken a nice shape. However I knew it was a long way to harvesting it. On March 9th morning we checked the stalk and saw a couple of yellow bananas. That's when we decided to harvest it.
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| Mar 9 2025 |
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This is the second time this aloe vera plant has flowered in the past two or three years. I guess it flowers once a year. The flower transforms into pods, each pod containing one seed.
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On a rainy morning, a honeybee sucks nectar from a Tulasi flower.
This ancient cluster of rain trees occupies a big triangular area right besides Kalghatgi road in Saraswatpur locality. Within the cluster is a govt school which is completely concealed by the trees. Decades ago Saraswatpur was 80% vegetation and 20% buildings & roads. There were tiled-roof bungalows completely surrounded by trees and plants. Presently, a number of bungalows have made way to apartments and muti-storied buildings, and in the process vegetation has vanished. I just hope this cluster of Samanea saman trees are around for many more years if not decades.
Rain tree flowers are unique with needle like petals.
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Here's a collage of a Jeerige Menasina Gida ~ bird eye chilli plant and twigs. This plant is approximately two years old. Since it is planted in a small planter there's not much growth, it's about 18" high. Once a chilies are harvested from a branch, the branch starts drying out. I happened to notice the twigs zig-zag formation which is quite interesting.
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