Tamarind Tree

Every time I water this teeny-tiny Tamarind Tree it reminds me of my childhood days. As children we often spent our free afternoons, playing in our backyard, under the shade of THE TAMARIND TREE, collecting the fallen green and then later the ripe brown pods of IMLI (Tamarind). Decades later, the taste of that Khaati Meethi Imli is still so fresh in my palate, even today.

Now, I have had this Miniature version of a Tamarind Tree in Cascading style, Mame Bonsai, for a little over five years now.

Here’s a picture of the Tree as in Aug, 2005.

It’s been growing quite vigorously, this monsoon season and needed some pruning n shaping….so that the impressive curve in the trunk line is made visible again. While I indulged myself, I kept the Camera handy to take some before & after Pruning Pictures of the Plant and share the same here on EVERGREEN TREE.

Here are some before n after Pruning Pictures as in Aug, 2009

The plant looks good to me from both the front and the back, leaving me with a dilemma....

I just can’t decide which LOOK I like best.

i.e. which is the Front and which is the Back of this particular Tamarind Tree?

Hmmmm…..

PS: An important quality of any good Bonsai is that it should look presentable from either sides...ie both the front & the back. At the very onset, it is imperative for a Bonsai Artist to decide on the Front and the Back, keeping in mind, select Bonsai rules, the plant qualities and its natural flow, curve n bent et al.

SURVIVAL OF THE FITTEST....

.... Acclimatization n Adaptability to Change!

Have you ever wondered why some plants seemingly take longer to adapt and get acclimatized to their new home environs, while some thrive and flourish from the start word ‘GO GREEN’? Still many others simply don’t adapt themselves and hence perish.

I guess Darwin might just have the answer to this particular wondering question at hand. It indeed is ‘SURVIVAL OF THE FITTEST’ in terms of gradual Acclimatization and inherent qualities of Adaptability to Change.

From time to time, I like to visit the local Plant Mart here, for different n newer varieties of plants. Even when I travel, I almost always try and visit a local plant nursery and buy a plant or two to carry back home with me as souvenirs.

Elucidating with a few examples and my personal experience with plants :-

Few years back, I had brought four Mame Bonsai’s with me, all the way from China ~ a Ficus retusa; Chinese Elm; Pepper and Cypress. While I thought the Cypress wouldn’t survive the extreme climatic variations of N. India, it adapted and acclimatized itself well and lasted the longest.

Here’s a picture of the Pepper Tree :-


Notice the ‘S- Shape’ curved trunk line, which is quite typical in many of the Chinese styled Bonsai.
.
Though a hardy plant, it didn’t survive long.
Too Bad! I really liked its teeny- tiny green leaves.

Then again, I brought Pre-Bonsai material….i.e. a Eucalyptus, an Indonesian Premna, and Boxwood from Mumbai last October. Somehow, I lost the Eucalyptus in less than a month’s time; however the Premna and boxwood are doing fairly well, in their new home with us.

More recently, my bro & sis-in-law bought back two plants from their visit to a hill station in N. India. These plants look like a bunch of beautiful GREEN COLOURED FLOWERS. It’s been a little over a month now, and I am afraid to loose this single one on the left hand side, as it is not doing too well, in spite of having kept them both under the shade with other healthy green plants ensuring adequate and timely watering.

From EverGreen Tree

A Cousin once presented us with some of the most Exotic Caladiums, with bright and colourful foliage in vivid garden shades. She had got them for us from Pune or maybe from a nursery in Bangalore. But again none of the 5-6 plants survived here..... Nonetheless, I would definitely like to buy a few Caladiums and give it another try, ensuring that they adapt well and get acclimatized to their changed environment.

From EverGreen Tree Here's a cute little plant (American Karunda)...

I added to my Collection few weeks back.....

It is doing well as off now, but keeps loosing a leaf or two n more - Enough to give me a scare. Keeping my Fingers Crossed n hoping it Survives n last me through the years.
Dear Readers, Looking forward to reading your similar experience n stories which you might like to share here with me.....

Another Wordless Wednesday

.

-------------------------------------------------------------------

PS: As an Afterthought... I just felt like including a few words to this Another Wordless Wednesday Post :) :)

Theme: Droplets
Rather, a Splash in a Single Drop of water amidst some Fresh n Flourishing Garden Colours!

Hmmm…..It’s been raining here these last couple of days. In between enjoying the rain; the horrible cough n sneeze seasonal viral flu; (that I have been suffering from lately) n lots of lazy holidays; .....I just couldn’t resist being outdoors with my digicam….Collecting n Capturing some Droplets and pictures of these rain lashed flowers n greenery, around our washed n wet Garden.

Wordless Wednesday

Rain Flowers

.

Zephyr Lily - Zephyranthes

Right Watering of Plants

Plants are calm and quiet living beings, responsive to love, care, watering n nurturing. However, when neglected, they are susceptible to fleeting infections; viral n bacterial diseases; stress due to climatic variations & changes in the seasons, watering et al. Being reticent, they merely exhibit their discomfiture by sudden shedding of their leaves or drooping leaves or even yellowing of leaves etc.

To elucidate the same with the help of an example:

Let’s take a look at this Bougainvillea, which is exhibiting its stressful state with its yellowing leaves, caused due to excessive wet soil conditions. Now these Bougain’s like sunny days and prefer dry soil conditions with only moderate watering. To say the least, this plant should be left sans watering, for its soil to dry out completely or else the roots are likely to decay n rot.

Watering - It is an essential prerequisite to regulate watering of plants keeping in mind a plant’s individual water needs, the soil’s moisture retention properties; the seasonal variations; whether it’s an indoor plant or outdoor plant, potted plant or is growing in garden beds et al

When to water @ Time of the Day:
Plants can be watered both in the Morning and / or Evening. During peak summer months, it might be necessary to water the outdoor plants twice during the day, while during winters, they might need watering only once every two or three days and infrequent watering during the intermittent monsoonal rainy season.

When watering the plant in the morning, the water gets evaporated almost instantaneously as the day progresses and such plants might require some additional watering all over again by the evening.

One should avoid watering them in the afternoon, when the sun is directly overhead as the water is likely to be warm to hot…and so might damage the roots. The water being used should ideally be at room temperature.

On the other hand, when watering the outdoor plants in the evenings, the soil remains wet, retaining its moisture for a considerably longer duration of time, through the night and then through the following day, thereby benefiting n nurturing the plant much more.

It usually depends on a caretaker’s personal preference and habitual itinerary. It is advisable to stick to the same routine and not alter the watering pattern abruptly.

Water logging:

It’s a commonly observed problem in potted plants, usually caused due to a blockage in the drainage hole, thereby leading to water logging especially during the rainy season.
Adequate care should be taken that the soil used is a good mix of manure plus loose mud, granular with some breathing room for the roots and free passage of water. It should not be too sticky, tight and compact thereby disrupting the flow of water through the hole. Prolonged damp and water logged conditions would eventually lead to rotting of the roots and the plant might eventually droop and wilt away.

Succulents, which retain n store water in their roots / leaves / stems, require well regulated watering from time to time. Excessive water (like during the rainy season) can lead to decaying n rotting of the roots.

The picture above shows a decomposing Adenium plant, which if healthy and alive would have borne some of the most beautiful n brightly coloured Flowers... as seen below.


Having lost this Adenium (one of my Fav flowering plants) very recently, I thought I will forewarn friends and fellow bloggers about the ill feted consequences of neglecting one's plant and sometimes even over watering them (more so during the Rainy Season).

A friend from our Bonsai Group, lost a beautifully styled plant @ A Jade recently ..again due to overwatering as she shared a similar tale of losing her plant.

.

However, on a Cheer-y note....our Mentor and Grp President, Mrs Arora always has some comforting and encouraging words to share, advising us to exercise caution n check the plants from time to time before its too late to save and recover a stressed out plant.