March leaps in with an explosion of colours, and April scorches in close behind.Blazing bright, samba hot.
Fiery reds, vibrant oranges, sizzling pinks, cheery yellows... throbbingly, pulsatingly ALIVE !Pastels shy into the background, whites struggle to make themselves heard.
Along the seething roads of Mumbai, trees cloak themselves in summer hues . Fire outside, cool shade within ; was there ever a more welcome paradox?
The Pink Cassia blushes in bloom, more apricot than pink. And high among its feathery foliage, the drongo serenades his sweetheart. Singing ever louder and more joyful ... as if the spirit of Summer has infused him with all her passion.
The tree joins in the fun and scatters flowers at her feet, a floral carpet to rival that of any queen.
In my garden, juicy mulberries bend down, begging to be plucked. Sink your teeth into them and let their tart juice drizzle in, a blood-red invitation to snap awake .
Awake; who could not? When showers of gold spread their glory as far as the eye can guess, when every hue is a paean to Life ... thrilling, exhilirating, rejuvenating!
Melting...
Sweltering...
Molten ...If this is the simmering month of March, can the sizzle and fury of April be far behind?
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Ahh....Paradise! lovely photos!
ReplyDeleteOh Sunita,
ReplyDeleteThose mulberries make me all nostalgic... hate to say I had to give away mine away to a friend who has a farm in Mahabaleshwar ... tried my best to make sure my babies were well taken care of ... but I miss them.Good lord,the number of plants I've given away everytime I move ... I could well have been the plant millionaires ... just like you ... if only I could keep them all .
Sunita you beat me to posting my pink cassia blooms. Isn't it amazing that we have the same trees flowering at the same time? I am house bound today because it is raining and I just love it. It has been very hot and dry for the past 6 weeks. I was up until midnight watering and it is raining. I can't win at all. What do you do with the mulberry? Don't have that here. That yellow tree is that the pride of India?
ReplyDeleteMelting, sweltering and molten is right...your garden is a symphony of hot colors. It is beautiful and vibrant! gail
ReplyDeleteThat is the most wonderful ode to nature and its colours I have ever read.There is a hidden beauty in everything around us, but your description makes it apparent.
ReplyDeleteSo beautifully vibrant!
ReplyDeleteMeanwhile, we in New York continue to swathe ourselves in layers of sweaters, jackets, shawls, caps and gloves....Hope is in the air, though. Here and there, tiny green buds are pushing their way through, the eternal triumph of spring over winter. And then we too can complain about the heat!
Wow, what a different looking stage of flowers than we have here in NC. They are so vivid and interestingly shaped. I do wish I could send you some of our cool weather. Come mid August though and we'll be awfully hot as well.
ReplyDeleteSuch beautiful flowers and intensity of color. I can feel the HEAT!
ReplyDeleteThose mulberries sure do look delicious-enough to to go with all the wonderful plants-very succulent! What do they taste like?
ReplyDeleteAhhh! I love this heat of Spring! Just enough heat unlike the summer! What a sight with all those blazing colors!
ReplyDeleteI can almost feet the juice running down my throat! Ahhh! You're a teaser!
Mmmmmm.... Hoooottt!
A lovely poetic post. I like it a lot, Sunita. You are talented. Lots of beautiful flowers, too! Welldone.
ReplyDeletePretty, pretty flowers!
ReplyDeleteThanks Cathy. Isnt it great when summer brings so many flowers for us to enjoy?
ReplyDeleteRajee, plant millionairess? That's a great way of looking at it! :D
Are you sure mulberry wont grow in Vashi? It does quite okay here in Mumbai. Try growing it in a big pot kept in a sunny spot. Or ask the gardener of your building to plant it outdoors. Cuttings root really fast. Even if you have to move again, the children in your building will always remember you! :D
Helen, I'm waiting to see your photos. There are quite a few different varieties of Pink Cassia. Mine is more of an apricot shade but I've seen the baby pink ones too(they're so pretty!)
ReplyDeleteRain! You've got rain! I wish the monsoons would hurry up and come.
The yellow tree by the roadside is known as Rusty Shield Bearer or Yellow Poinciana (Peltophorum pterocarpum). Its one of the most commonly used urban trees to provide shade along the roads.
The Pride of India comes into bloom only in May. That's another beautiful tree.
Thanks Gail. Its almost as if my garden is keeping up with the climbing temperature here :)
ReplyDeleteThanks, Green Thumb. I just had to post this because when the days are so hot, it's difficult to imagine there could actually be something beautiful anywhere:P
Kamini, that's such an impossible picture for my mind to imagine ! When I look out I see the sun blazing down and it is difficult to think that in some part of the world people are still shivering with cold and longing for the sun!
Anna, let's exchange places! I'd love to have some of those very colourful blooms I see on your blog :)
ReplyDeleteRight now, I'd be grateful for every tiny breeze that comes our way. But August, that's when we have our Monsoon season. I love it!
Becky, you're so right. I can't decide whether the flowers are feeding off the heat in the air to become more bright. Or whether their bright colours are adding to the heat in the air! ;D
Tina, the ones I have growing are semi-wild. Meaning that I don't do anything to help them along. They're maybe about an inch long. The ripe ones are slightly sweet, very sour !
ReplyDeleteChandramouli, maybe you could try growing the mulberry too. I know it grows in Kerala ( I got my plant from there) so I'm sure it should do well for you in Chennai too. If you keep it pruned to a manageable height, it shouldnt become too unwieldy. And you can enjoy the fruits all year round.
Hi Blossom! Thanks, I'm glad you liked it :)
Mmm! Deliciously hot!
ReplyDeleteLovely flowers lovely photographs and excellent description just loved it
ReplyDeleteHi Gowri! have you got your long-awaited rains yet? Do a rain dance for me too, will you?
ReplyDeleteHi Zindagi (great user-name). Hey, its great to meet you here. Its always fun to meet plant-lovers from India... there seems to be too few of us blogging.
What colours, all gold and red! How alive you make one feel, shaking us out of the lethargy of summer - oh yes, we already feel the heat here in Madras.
ReplyDeleteNot me, Raji. That's the dance of Summer in Mumbai :)
ReplyDeleteWhat a wonderful post of colorful blooms and magically poetic words. I love it! Your mulberries look wonderful. And you insight about paradox of a tree is heart-stirring.
ReplyDeleteCindy
A sizzling hot post with these vibrant coloured flowers. A real tropical feast.Very well described as well, Sunita. One can feel the pulsing live within the tropical blossoms like they would like to burst out of their own beauty.
ReplyDeleteDear Sunita,
ReplyDeleteThank you for this "hot" and "lively" post. I so enjoy seeing your birds.
All of your blooms are new to me and so very interesting and beautiful!
Ice and snow have covered my spring flowers. I am looking forward to "hot" and "lively".
Namaste,
Sherry
Cindy, isnt it fun! I'm so glad you liked the flowers. I kept thinking of you and wondered what you would do with all these flowers. Enough for new floral arrangements, I think!
ReplyDeleteWell put, Trudi. I loved that "as if they would like to burst out of their own beauty". You can literally see them trying to do that! :)
ReplyDeleteAre you enjoying your cooler days now?
Namaste, Sherry! Hot and lively ? You bet it is!
ReplyDeleteIce and snow now? Wow! I cant even begin to imagine that! And here I am (feeling guilty but stil..)switching the air-conditioner on !
Colours to die for! As usual....gorgeous photos!!
ReplyDeleteAnd which can shake you awake too, right Kanak?
ReplyDeleteHey, great seein you over here... how have you been?
Lovely post Sunita! How beautiful those hot colors are! I'm amazed we can grow something here that you grow in your climate - mulberries! They are a welcome feast for the birds when they ripen in July.
ReplyDeleteQuite a difference in our climates! We had snow yesterday, and this morning our temperatures are below freezing.
Really? I wish I could taste the mulberries that grow for you... just to see how similar (or different ) both are. Here they are in fruit all year round. All I have to do is to prune some branches and fruits grow on the new shoots.
ReplyDeleteSnow! I wonder how the embassy staff and American / European expats in Mumbai adapt to such different climate from what they're used to.
OH, SO PRETTY.
ReplyDeleteOkay, I am now officially jealous! You have mulberries growing in March...this is not fare. Where do live so that I can eat you mulberries!
ReplyDeleteDawn, thanks! The number of flowers blooming their heads off now is one of the reasons summer is halfway bearable in Mumbai .
ReplyDeleteZach, I've got a great idea... why dont you move to Mumbai? Then you can mulberries all year :)
Okay, if thats too tough, I think Florida has got almost identical climate and plants. Think about it.
feb - march is indeed the most flowerful season :)
ReplyDeleteThis is a spectacle of colors. Beautiful. I like the macro shot of the sunflower WOW.
ReplyDeleteAbsolutely, Sandeep! And its moving on to April and it doesnt look as if the parade is winding up anytime now.
ReplyDeleteHi Thomas ! A 'wow!' from you? You've just made my day.
Incidentally that is a gerbera but until you pointed it out I had never noticed how much it looks like a sunflower when up close and personal.
Nice photos. And your bouganvillea is for sure much bigger than mine.
ReplyDeleteSigne... lovely to see you here! Has Spring caught up with you yet?
ReplyDeleteYes, my bougainvilleas are bigger but your roses (or geraniums or ...) are much more beautiful than mine could ever hope to be.
Sunita, your words infuse excitement into your posts, and your lovely photos show me what a different world you live in. The contrast between our colors at the moment is astounding.
ReplyDeleteYou are the queen of adjectives :)
Thanks for sharing those vivid and bold beauties to brighten up my morning.
We do have welcome sunshine here this morning, after several days of cold winds and snow flurries. It renews the spirit of hope that spring will indeed...eventually..bring us more beautiful warm days and colorful blooms :)
I have a few daffs struggling to open and this may be the day! My little crocuses will love the sunshine today too. They've been keeping their petals closed to the gray skies...just waiting for a sunny day!
Sigh! What a lovely thing to say, Kerri. Thank you so much.
ReplyDeleteYou know I really wish we could have just one of your snow days here. Here its so hot that I get a headache when I look out of the window. When I go out, my car's airconditioning gives up. Theres no way it can cool down the inferno inside :P
Yup! You can have some of my sunny days... I'll keep your cold ones for a change, okay? :)
I can feel the heat from that last photo! Molten describes it perfectly -- such glorious colours!
ReplyDeleteNancy, the heat is just building up here. And you know what, I would kill for one of your iced teas right now (I loved that post) !
ReplyDeleteoh the mulberries looks gorgeous. And now I'm green with envy, again!
ReplyDelete