Thursday, August 26, 2010

Quisqualis indica - Tropical August Blooms

Here it is hot throughout the year. At times we wilt with the heat and get exasperated with the high tropical humidity but the plants I planted thrive and flourish with splendour. The sight of showy blooms was like balm to the spirit and their heady fragrance more than made up for all the discomfort.

Quisqualis indica (Single petal) aka Rangoon Creeper, Drunken Sailor

What amazes me about this plant is the bunches of flowers which starts of as white, turning to shades of blushing pink and finally maturing to a flamming red. Fortuitously, as they mature at different times, all three hues can be found on the same cluster. It's a robust plant needing very little care and is easily propagated by runners. The fragrance is particularly stronger at night and is delicate.
 
This was planted as a standard to keep it tidy and structured. The branches were only allowed to sprawled at the top of the balcony. When the flowers fade, the branches are pruned down hard, up to a third to encourage the next crop of vigorous new growth.
Quisqualis indica (double petal), Bauhenia Kockiana and Bougainvilla Mrs Eva
All three plants clamour for a piece of vertical territory and solar radiance. Long vegetative limbs stretched out languorously and got blisfully entangled in their quest for the energy-boosting sunshine.

Quisqualis indica (double petal)
The double petal variety is lovely and blooms profusely. Branches are heavily laden with clusters. However they are not so easily propagated as they hardly throw out runners. Their fragrance is not as delicate as the single petal ones.


They happily colonised the rain water gutter and stand out as emblems of a cheery floral welcome to all who dropped by.

14 comments:

  1. My Goodness!!!
    Your Garden is truly like from a fairytale land!
    You really manage to keep the so neat and tidy with bougainvillea and the bauhinia (orange flower)
    Those ones are very difficult to flower unless in the right condition.

    Truly its a mesmerising moment to enjoy those fragrance.

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  2. Thanks for kind words. Actually my creepers are kind of wild. I can only weild some sort of control by grooming them all as standards (single trunk). This way, I only have to prune the branches.

    Thankfully my Bauhenia flowers more than 8 months of the year. It is at the side of the house.

    Originally there was a sandpaper vine (Petrea Volubilis) intertwined with the 3 creepers but it succumbed to too heavy handed pruning.

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  3. Hello Elsie

    It is so nice to hear from you again...you have been absent so long. I am less prolific on my blog these days but still like to maintain a semblance of regular posting, albeit at wider spaced intervals.
    Your climbers and flowering plants are wonderfully vibrant and lush. You must really enjoy the garden...We have a lot of colourful bougainvillea and bauhinia trees and creepery more prostrate bauhinia shrubs here too but the Rangoon creeper I am not familiar with.

    Happy days

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  4. Hi there Delwyn. Delighted to hear from you. Just dropped by your blog and was touched by the lovely poem.

    I think the bougainv in Australia last longer. Here, it blooms and flourish but as soon as the torrential rain pours, they lose quite a bit of their floral splendour.

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  5. Wow...
    You had sandpaper vine.
    They look like orchids!!!
    You must get them again - they look so gorgeous!

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  6. I have another sandpaper vine planted at the back of the house. I love to see them swirl down whenever there is a strong breeze.

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  7. I love all your 3 creeping blooming plants. They are gorgeous! I bet many passers-by wills top to admire these spectacular sight!

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  8. Hi JC, thanks for dropping by. Passerbys on their morning walks do pause and look. These 3 creepers are actually low maintennance plants. A difficult vine is stephanotis (bridal flower). I had one mature one but it suddenly died one day. Perhaps it had a botanical cardiac arrest!

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  9. Yes, it can be quite spectacular when they are in full bloom until the next tropical downpour.

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  10. such a beautiful garden..wished i had a garden like that...

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    Replies
    1. Hi Lorraine, if you are willing to sweat a bit and dirty your hands (there are latex gloves to don), why not? :)

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  11. Wow ... your climbers certainly do make a wonderful display together. I just love your gorgeous double petal Quisqualis ... that is a stunner!

    Thanks you so much for dropping by to visit my blog ... I'm so glad you enjoyed the verses about the Wattles. As a result of your visit, I've found your great blog. I'll be looking forward to visiting and reading about your garden now!

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    Replies
    1. Thanks for visiting. The double petals are nice but the fragrance is not as sweet but more intense and pungent.

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