Where Do I Begin?

It has been a while..

Hello everyone! 

It feels good to be writing again

To be in touch with you again :)

It took me quite some time to decide if I should ever write again.

After all, it has been some months now I've not written.

And I was asking myself..

How do I start writing again?

What do I say?

I have been ill.

That's the reason for my long absence.

The hospitals have been my second home.

It's not that bad as I got to meet nice patients

and we end up being friends until today.

Not to mention my garden which were left neglected :(

But to see my azalea with flower buds..??

I was telling myself, this can't be happening.

I never thought my plants survived let alone to start blooming!!

Expect the Unexpected..

And for this particular reason

I told myself I'm taking the road less travelled instead

and marvelled at the beauty that is about to bloom

and reflect it in my own life.

I'm not quitting.

Rather starting again...

Brooom..Broom..Brom!!

For those who are familiar with bromeliads will understand the title of this post.

I was never a fan of "Brom" as it is known in short.

But when I laid eyes on this one,

it captured my heart.

Those tiny white flowers against the chocolate brown and zebra-like gray stripe

is breathtakingly beautiful.

This one is called Earth Star Bromeliads.

Okay, this may sound funny to you but 

when I looked at this plant for the first time,

they gave me goosebumps..LOL!

But after looking at the variety of broms available in the market,

this spectacular species turns out to be unique in terms of color and design!

It is one of a kind.

Well, what do you know :)

Coming from the pineapple family, this foliage is charmingly variegated.

As much as I love eating pineapple, 

Never thought its leaves are cultivated in many ways.

Here is a pup or baby brom.

Which I found underneath those broad leathery foliage.

As strikingly beautiful as the mother,

the pup stays on for a couple of months before getting detached,

to continue on its own life journey.

Check out this "starfish" as a whole.

It is broad alright..

It takes up the space of my garden stool!

Such a friendly plant,

If you keep your distance :)

The edge of the leaves are thorny

Scientifically, this species are known as "Cryptanthus Fosteriana".

As they like humid airy environment,

I'm keeping it as a houseplant,

And as a decor for my living room :)

I'm moving on..and lovin' it!

Hello everyone,

I'm baaacckk!!

Sure feels great to be blogging again :)

And thanks to this gorgeous flowers,

For they are the reason I'm blogging again..

As I couldn't resist sharing them with you!

Called the "Yellow-veined Eranthemum"

Aren't they lovely?

The contrasting color combo is strikingly awesome.

Drops of purplish-pink spots against pure white petals.

A definite head turner to anyone seeing it for the first time!

Just love how mother nature gave it a "dripping paint" look. 

It's as if the fairies just shoved their heavy wet brushes into the flower 

and let the wet paint dripped down to the petals below,

forming scattered dots pattern :)

This is the closest I could get but look who's stealing the show.

Many colorful butterflies were hovering while I took the pictures,

But this moth gets to be the lucky one. 

This is the first time for me to be seeing yellow veins on leaves.

Just look at these leaves,

very very nice indeed, yeah?

All pictures are taken from the courtyard of my condo,

where they are planted as borders there.

So you can imagine how pretty they look in rows.

I will be going to nurseries soon.

Hope to post pretty pictures from my garden then.

Till then, take care.

Happy 4th of July to all Americans :)

Enjoy your weekend everyone!

The Show is Over..

"Why, oh Why.."

I was asking this to myself..

My garden got infested, again!!

And this time it was horrible.

It went on a large scale that 

Many of my plants died :(

All my lovely and scented plants gone.

Boo hoo hoo , sob sob.

I'm thinking of giving up gardening altogether.

But it breaks my heart to do so.

As I love gardening so much..

What do I do?

I have been quiet because 

I have not come up with the best decision.

I've salvaged whatever I could..

Quarantined and ICU

Just hope they survive.

I'm missing all you guys very much

My dearest blogger friends.

I just couldn't see myself walking into any nursery

At this moment.

However, I hope to be with you guys again, soon!

If I ever get to sort out this mess.

Care to give a few words of advice?

I appreciate them.

Take care..

Purple Queen

Can't help noticing this fancy queen this morning.

Known as Purple Queen or Purple Hearts.

Either way, they do capture my heart.

I have seen this plant many a times before.

But never with flowers on it.

Those delicate pink flowers with yellow stamens are outstanding.

Just one plant, 

Is all you need for it to spread and 

Makes an excellent ground cover,

In any garden.

And guess what?

They can be planted as houseplants too. 

I took a few shots of this plant 

While standing in line to vote at the polling station.

Today is polling day for Malaysians.

I was down with flu and fever all week.

It was awful staying in bed.

Thank God I'm doing fine already,

And back on my feet once again! 

To share stories of exotic plants around me.

Take care everyone!

Don't get sick, okay :)

"Ballerina Girl"

Meet my lovely ballerinas.

Standing graciously side by side in their pinkish tulle ballerina skirt.

Ever ready to perform a magnificent show together.

No wonder they are called the "Flamingo Lily".

Love its large dark green heart shaped leaves 

Its flower in pinkish white color is unique.

A welcoming departure from the regular red or white blooms.

This flower  is also known as "boy flower" because of its shape. 

And we can see clearly the reason why...

(no need for further explanation)

When NASA listed this plant as natural air purifiers inside our homes,

I do not hesitate to have one.

Although a lot has been said about it being prone to pest attacks.

Well, we shall see about that, won't we?

Here's to a beautiful weekend ahead :)

Platycodon Grandiflorus

Fancy seeing hot air balloons in your garden?!

This "Sentimental Blue" Japanese Bellflowers as it is commonly known, 

captured my heart when I walked into the nursery.

And I knew instantly that I gotta have it!!

Revealing another 'balloon' inside as it slowly puffs out its first layer of petals.

And taking its time to open the rest of it.

Just love its lavender blue color.

And bell shaped flowers fit for fairies :)

Tolerates both sun and shade.

This beauty is definitely for keeps.
In any garden.

Have a good week everyone.
Take care :)

"You're just too good to be true.."

A year...
Which is 365 days.
That is how long I've waited
For this Aussie lass to make her debut appearance.
The Aussie Pink Plumeria.

When I first saw these emerging buds,
One beautiful morning last week,
 I can't believe my eyes.



I thought to myself with a smile,
My prayers are answered.

The very hot weather we have been getting of late,
Coupled with rain, and I mean plenty of rain.!!
This Aussie lass couldn't resist it any longer.

The tangerine fragrance which is released at night,
Or after showers like this is intense.
Simply love it :)

Like a twirled pinwheel,
The orange center is the source for the
Tangerine scent, I think.

Commonly known also as Fairy Wings and Coral Sea,
This flower will appear as a huge cluster,
When all the buds are in full bloom,
Which in this case will take a couple of days more.

Can't wait to pick freshly fallen bloom and float them in a bath,
For that relaxing feeling of a tropical spa retreat,
Right here in my home :)

Thank you God!

Patience has its virtues,
Have a lovely weekend :)

Cymbidium Golden Elf

Hellooo!!!

It's good to be back :)

Meet,

The Golden Elf.

Also known as the "Sundust",

This wild orchid has the most gorgeous sunny yellow color I have ever seen :)

I love this stage of blooming.

 When it slowly wakes up from deep slumber.

Yawning and sheepishly opening up all the 'muscles' of the petals.

Before coming to a final stretch of a full bloom!

And this is when its mild sweet fragrance starts drifting into the room.

And me, as always, 

Being ignorant that this is a scented flower,

Will only realized that,

 When its fragrance filled up the living room at night!

And what a lovely surprise it was :)

"Au natural" air freshener!

Here it is, 

All buds in a row..

If you notice, the bud at the most bottom bloomed first.

I love this scene when they are basking in the sun.

This shot is taken from the top where some buds have yet to bloom.

Don't they look pretty under the sun?

If you have been wondering what happened to me,

Because of no posting for quite a while,

Well, I have been busy with my new blog

And cleaning up my home.

Don't worry.

I'll be back with more flower story

...............................soon!

"To All the Girls I've Loved Before..."

"...and that includes you!!" 

Happy Women's Day!

And these flowers are for you :)

Never posted before.

Pink Trumpet Vine

Japanese Rose

The Lipstick 

Canna Lily

 So, have you got that special gift from that special someone?

It's your day girl,

Go get them!

Work on your charm!

You know what I mean ;)

Bare Essentials

Shhhh..

My garden is resting.

It was barely a week ago when my garden was bursting with colorful flowers :)
After some hard pruning and trimming,
All that is left now are budding new shoots.
May they flourish to bear beautiful flowers!

This firecracker flower reminds me of a tango dancer,

I can't explain why.

But have a great and beautiful weekend anyway!

I will be back with some flowers soon.

Just don't feel right not having any to feast my eyes on :)

Twinkle "Star"

How this beauty is called,

"Egyptian Star Cluster",

I have no idea.

Locally known as "Pentas",

This tiny cluster of flowers make never-ending beauty in any garden.

Just look at the buds below,

Doesn't it look like a petite floral arrangement,

Complete with lovely foliage?

Furry alright and deeply veined....yet beautiful.

This shocking pink beauty is among its bold color collection.

Pentas is known for its gorgeous pastel colors.

Sad to say, I have none of them :(

I just love this stage where the buds emerged into flowers,

As shown below.

Maybe this is the reason they are called "star".

We all know that stars don't twinkle simultaneously.

But, one at a time.

(Hahaha..me and my lame analogy, lol!!)

This bold red color with violet center,

Has been in my garden for a year now.

And I'm still loving it!

Truly a timeless beauty,

It will grace any garden at any time beautifully,
Be it in pots or spread generously over the ground :)