Flowers of Sri Lanka:

Bougainvillea

The flower needs a little water:

Manoj DISSANAYEKE

Bougainvillea was first brought to Sri Lanka by the British; it is called the traditional variety. This variety is at least 15-20 feet high. The traditional variety has its own pros and cons. It needs at least a space of 3-4 perches of land, since it easily spreads fast.

Bougainvillea has a new variety grown up in Sri Lanka that can be even potted. It blossoms in even at a tender age. The new variety of Bougainvillea consists of 16 colours. The foliage is so pretty looking.

Bougainvillea is a genus of flowering plants native to South America from Brazil west to Peru and south to southern Argentina (Chubut Province). Different authors accept between four and 18 species in the genus. The name comes from Louis Antoine de Bougainville, an admiral in the French Navy who discovered the plant in Brazil in 1768.

They are thorny, woody, vines growing anywhere from 1-12 meters tall, scrambling over other plants with their hooked thorns. The thorns are tipped with a black, waxy substance that is easily left in the flesh of an unsuspecting victim. They are evergreen where rainfall occurs all year, or deciduous if there is a dry season.

The leaves are alternate, simple ovate-acuminate, 4-13 cm long and 2-6 cm broad.

The actual flower of the plant is small and generally white, but each cluster of three flowers is surrounded by three or six bracts with the bright colours associated with the plant, including pink, magenta, purple, red, orange, white, or yellow.

Bougainvillea glabra is sometimes referred to as “paper flower” because the bracts are thin and papery. The fruit is a narrow five-lobed achene.

Bougainvilleas are relatively pest-free plants, but may suffer from worms and aphids.

The larvae of some Lepidoptera species also use them as food plants, for example the Giant Leopard Moth.

Bougainvilleas are popular ornamental plants in most areas with warm climates, including Indonesia, India, Taiwan, Vietnam, Malaysia, Australia, the Mediterranean region, the Caribbean, Mexico, Panama, South Africa, and the United States in Arizona, California, Florida, Hawaii, and southern Texas.

Numerous cultivars and hybrids have been selected, including nearly thornless shrubs. Some Bougainvillea cultivars are sterile, and are propagated from cuttings.

Bougainvillea are rapid growing and flower all year in warm climates, especially when pinched or pruned. They grow best in moist fertile soil. Bloom cycles are typically four to six weeks.

Bougainvillea grows best in very bright full sun and with frequent fertilization, but the plant requires little water to flower. As indoor houseplants in temperate regions, they can be kept small by bonsai techniques. If overwatered, Bougainvillea will not flower and may lose leaves or wilt, or even die from root decay.

The writer is an Agriculture Instructor at Peradeniya Botanical Gardens

Green fingers:

I’ve found my childhood friend!

Ravindu Mahendra

Last week I introduced my childhood friend Niyagala flower and my childhood memories around it. It was very hard for me to convince my mother or anyone else to fall in love with it as it was a well known toxic plant, so I had to leave them alone.

Years went by and one day I was flicking through my A-Level botany text book and found my childhood friend again. It was there because of its unusual habit of climbing. I found out its botanical name was Gloriosa superba and that it belongs to Liliaceae (lily family) family.

A few years ago I saw Niyagala flowers as cut flowers in a florist in London. The florists call them ‘glory lily’. I began to wonder where they came from. It was my understanding that they never grow in British gardens apart from in a green house with suitable temperature and humidity for tropical plants.

I started gathering more information. ‘Gloriosa’ was believed to come from ‘glorious’, and superba from ‘superb’ alluding to the most unusual magnificent flower which holds flame like petals. Some people call it Flame lily. Too many names ……! So let me call the Niyagala flower Glory lily from now on.

Glory lilies naturally occur in semi-shade areas among bushes in tropical climates. Mainly native to tropical jungles of Africa and related species are found in Asia. The peak flowering season November to March though I’ve seen some flowering throughout the year until its dormant period comes. Once the vine has finished flowering the foliage turns yellow and dies down not leaving a single little sign of life. Glory lily tubers can stay dormant for a few months and come back with a great display over and over again if kept undisturbed.

Some countries grow lily commercially to extract chemical compounds. The chemical compounds found in Glory lily are believed to take a vital part in some of the tribal medicines for infertility, skin problems and impotence. My mother was right anyway: research suggests all parts of this plant, both above and below the ground are extremely poisonous and ingestion could be fatal……!

Last Autumn I planted various kinds of spring flowering bulbs and tubers including snow drops, tulips, daffodils, hyacinths and some lilies. While I was reading the planting instructions on the packet labels my eyes were drawn to the warning sign for the customer. Many packet labels warn the customer not to consume the bulbs and tubers as they can be harmful.

Winter now gradually turns into spring. The bulbs and tubers I planted last Autumn are starting to sprout with glory. When the spring flower display finishes, the summer display should be ready. So I have to do more homework now as this is the time to order summer bulbs and tubers. I’m spoilt with a huge range of choice with too many flower catalogues available. All I have to do is spend lots of money and feel guilty for a little while until the plants start growing. Flicking through a catalogue to order some lily bulbs, my eyes accidentally bumped again onto a familiar face. Glory lily is available to grow in British gardens with lots of instructions how to grow and look after as it is a tropical plant and the climatic conditions would not be friendly enough for them as they would be in Sri Lanka or Africa. To my surprise the catalogue did not mention about any toxicity. (I presume people tend not to experiment with exotic flower bulbs anymore as there are plenty of other edible choices.)

What a glory! I have found my childhood friend again and this time I’m not going to lose him but get close carefully without any fear. I might have to grow my Glory lily inside the conservatory if we get a cold summer here like we had last year.

I love and adore all the flowers and some sorts are more favourite than others. I think all the flowers are amazing! We see plenty of wild flowers in Sri Lanka, yet we don’t even look at them. I think we should get close to these invisible beauties more. We can then appreciate and understand the way that mother nature smiles!

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My notes on Samson - 6

It seemed like our family got a new-born, from the moment Samson Jnr stepped out of my brother’s lap. Father, mother, two brothers and myself, everybody had a good time cuddling him.

The dorky duke seemed scared to be in a strange place; his mother was far away now. I was wondering whether his tiny bites were to protest. Anyway I loved to have my fingers bitten whenever I get closer to him. The poor fellow’s biting practice was not a success as it did not pain any of us. Seeing it fail, the blue blood kid used to run out if he saw something fishy of us when getting closer to him

I think you remember what made us buy a Dobermann; my mother had a very good protection by the senior fellow who used to scare away strangers by his fierce barking. Anybody with an urgent matter had to give a call before visiting us. This might have sounded a little inhuman, but it was the probable defence mechanism when we used to hear lots of stories of strangers asking for a glass of water and then grab the chance to take the lady householder’s life.

The junior fellow seemed to have started his duty too. You will have loved to hear the little one’s barking. He could even growl when he want to be let alone. I loved stroking his pug-like snout.

Enough snogging. We have duties to dole out on Samson Jnr.

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Shoot for fun ’n’ fame

“Hi folks today me and my faithful companion, Lucky will demonstrate to you the best self-technique of the era.”

“First you observe your target...”
“Put on your most ferocious scowl....”
“Aim at your enemy with the deadly left hand stab. Meow...”

Cat attack! Lucky and Kitty are new members of the household and it seems that Kitty had not taken too kindly to Lucky. Talk about being unlucky on his first move.

Pictures by Mahinda Vithanachchi
Words by Ruwini J.