"I'm crazy for you.." on Medinilla Astronioides

The craze continues..
For my friends who are loving this flower as much as I do.
This is for you.

Have a great weekend everyone!

Ruellia Brittoniana

"Ruellia Brittoniana"...
What a lovely name.
And why not..
It is after all, a lovely flower..

Commonly known as the Dwarf Mexican Petunia.

This plant is known to tolerate heat and drought.
Yet it bears bigger and brighter blooms under shade.

Comes in three colors viz. white, pink and purple.

I was told that white color is rare around here.

I guess I was lucky to get hold of it :)

The flower buds which comes in a bunch are attached to the stem.
And at that same point grows the thin and long sword-shaped leaves.

This is one of the most fragile flower I've known.
Its ultra thin and soft petals feel like Kleenex rolls.

I love to see these flowers competing with each other just to be seen!
With so many buds bunched together there,
It is fun to see which one gets the first peek and attention :)

Love the stem!
It reminds me so much of a palm tree trunk...
In a miniature form.
Those marks are actually the part of the leaves and flowers which have withered and fell.

Aahh..here is the lovely part.
From pure white the flower gradually changes to pale peach color as it withers..
All in one day!

Before it entangles itself..
Such magnificence from a tiny plant!

This plant is an evergreen perennial.

And with so many buds in various blooming stage,

It gives a succession of new blooms everyday :)

Before I sign off, my thoughts are with my friends living in Italy right now.

Especially those who are affected with the floods yesterday.

We are experiencing peculiar weather everywhere.

Stay safe.. 

The Continuation..Medinilla Astronioides

If this is your first visit to my blog, you may want to see this before you continue reading this post.

As for the rest who have been waiting anxiously... lets move on!

Picking up from where we left, the 'Christmas tree' continued growing...

The pink color intensifies with each passing day and red ants were clambering all over the buds.
Could it be sweet?
Maybe not...
I know red ants have 'unthinkable' and unimaginable palate,
They eat anything including clothes!

Oooppss..the first peek!
Can you see it?
Only one bud..lazily opening up its petals.

Suddenly the next day...walla!
5 buds bloomed!!..
Much to my surprise!
And what a lovely surprise it was...

Just look at it...
Those tiny fingers or stamen in purple and yellow is spectacular!

Close-ups..

The peculiar thing is that, there's only one bloom from the cluster of buds.
Obviously, the rest look immature and not the right time to bloom, yet.

This is how the blooms look like today..
After patiently waiting and observing for about a week..
Just one bloom from each cluster.

This may sound funny but..

Could it be the buds refused to open just because they are being watched? LOL!

I was told that plants have 'feelings'..

Or maybe this is the way Mother Nature wants them to be :)

Either way, this is a unique sets of flowers.

And I am intrigued and excited with each blooming stage.
And you know what?
I was told the flower looks more fascinating when they are dying...
Really? We shall see about that :)

Have a great weekend everyone!
And thanks for being together with me in this 'journey' :)

Medinilla Astronioides

I am so intrigued and fascinated with this flower.
So I am documenting its blooming stages.
I have never seen a flower evolved so much.
Right from the very beginning.


It started as a pod..

Then the pod opens, scattering specks of white dust all over its foliage.

Revealing a cluster of tiny white pearls bound together like an engagement ring!
Outstanding beauty masterfully crafted and designed by mother nature :)

The 'ring' expanded all over.

Looking like a bunch of grapes.

And now it looks like a Christmas tree..
Leaning forward as the bunch gets heavier with the ever-growing pearls.

How enchanting..
What could be more 'magical' than this :)

I am taking pictures daily to capture the wonders of this beautiful creation.
I am curious to see its final 'bow'.
But as of now, this is it.

Thank you so much for your visit.
Hope you had an enjoyable stay :)

How it all started...

never thought i would be gardening, now i am

never thought i would have a blog, now i'm writing on it

-the houris-

Going down memory lane....
I have always loved the smell of fresh fragrant flowers. I would go to the florist every week to pick out some nice sweet scented fragrant flowers for my home. But it got more expensive by the week and at times it was  inconvenient for me to get out of the house just to replace those wilted ones.

Then I was wondering if I could have fragrant flowers in my home without ever having to leave home. 

My mind was telling me to start planting fragrant flowers at home. But where do I plant them? Will it survive? I live in a high-rise condominium with no balcony. What seems to be like a patio at the end of my living room was framed by huge windows. I looked at it with the strong sun soaking in it from morning till the afternoon everyday and realize therein lies the answer. Gardening by the window! I had doubts, of course, but I had to give it a try :)

Come, come, whoever you are,
-Rumi-

Welcome to my Garden!

It started with 3 pots of plants (jasminum sambac, evodia and yellow rose) stacked on a bench which I bought from Ikea and placed at the corner of my patio. The 4th pot (orange jasmine) had to sit on the floor because it was too heavy, and also no more space on the bench. 

After 3 months, the frenzy of having more plants set in :)
I guess it happens to all garden lovers! And what do you know?! My garden expanded!! There were more than 10 pots! Can you believe it? I can't either but that was it. 
The bench had to go to create a softer look. Not to mention the curtains! All gone for the love of my garden.

See what I mean...

Close-up view of the garden at the center of my patio.

I have enjoyed gardening ever-since and never looked back. The houris has left her magic touch in every plant that I brought in. I wish I could move to a house where I could actually garden to my hearts content. But for now, I thank God for blessing my tiny garden.

Now, lets have a closer look at all the flowers which have bloomed beautifully in the houris garden, shall we... 

"Murraya Paniculata" or commonly known as Orange Jasmine

Locally known as "Kesidang" or Bread Flower

Our local rose, known as "Ros Kampung" in yellow

Pentas or Egyptian Star Cluster

Plumeria Cultivar Rubra (pink)

Hyacinth in lilac

Mona Lavender

Angelonia (purple) or Summer Snapdragons

Daffodils

Our national flower, Hibiscus, in yellow

I wake up every morning to the sweet smell of freshly-bloomed fragrant flowers in my garden. Dream come true, really.

So, if you live in a high-rise condo and have passion for gardening, the houris have this to say, 'go for it'. All it needs is direct morning sun and plenty of tender loving care. Don't worry if you have a green thumb or not, actually, does the term really exist?

The houris can't help noticing the similarity fragrant flowers have on spirituality. Among flowers, the most fragrant ones are the ones in white. Highly spiritual people are usually very 'fragrant' people. They carry pleasant smell and people found themselves attracted to them. Their hearts are pure just like white flowers, with no black specks of dust. And their faces beaming with Divine lights or 'nur'.

Have a good day and may God bless your garden!