17 March 2024

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. 

07 March 2024

Bare (ThursdayTreeLove)

    The Peepal (Ficus religiosa) are almost leafless presently in Pune. However the bark colour and peculiar fluting of the trunk and branch ramification make it easier to identify this tree.

    This is a massive Peepal standing alone in a parking lot. The ramifications are superb...we try to achieve this in our bonsai (and it's quite difficult to do so). 

    This tree just waiting to burst into leaves looked especially attractive to me as I was meeting a few of my batchmates after 40 years!! A unique date (a leap year) added to the surreal quality of our meet up! 

    Its great to meet college friends, relive memories and enjoy each others achievements. 



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



     

    21 February 2024

    Theobroma (ThursdayTreeLove)

     We meet a product of this plant quite often.. we consume it often in most age groups and for some it is a prohibited joy. We have it as  a treat/gift it/ relish it on the cheat day of a diet and so on...

    You may have guessed.. I am referring to the Chocolate.. which is made from Cocoa beans that grow on the Theobroma cacao trees of the Sterculiaceae family. 

    It is an introduced species in India but seems to be very happy in our southern states where it is widely cultivated and we are now a significant producer of Cocoa beans. These images are from Munnar where it is a common sight. 

    The evergreen tree is well branched with shiny green leaves. Its small whitish flowers and grow directly on the trunk and thereafter it grow into a large fruit that's yellow when ripe. 


    Cauliflory - refers to flowers that grow directly on the trunk

    Tiny fruit visible

    A small tree that stands out in the lush green countryside

    The fruit needs some processing to extract chocolate as we know it. There are several chocolate making units in Munnar but I could not see their extraction process. 
    So that would be for another visit and post!
    :-) :-)

    Next time you eat chocolate, do think of this flower and tree with the unique sounding name!

    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!



    26 January 2024

    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. 

    21 January 2024

    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!

    28 December 2023

    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

    26 November 2023

    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!