About Bracty Beauties

Arrangement # 122

The month of November is very wet in this part of the world. As a result many types of flowering shrubs will not be in their best. Thus it is good to have a mixture of plants that do well in the rainy months as well as the hot and sunny periods when the rains are less frequent. One such species is the heliconias. Today I did not see any good blooms except those of the heliconias. Therefore I scouted for the parrot flowers ( heliconia psittacorum) and found two varieties. One close relative , the heliconia latispatha with its green tips exhibited herself very well and I thought why not? I had the sassy pink twist around the rest of the orange and yellow bracts and finally let the sassy pink terminal bract come out straight from the glass vase while the rest of the company followed in unison. To add more lustre and warmth to the display, I added the Red Ti ( cordyline terminalis) leaves which I rolled back to give a certain artistry to the show. "Wait", cried the the banana terminal bracts of which I had two varieties. One in pink and the other in deep purple. They too joined today's composition as added interest. It is a day of bright colours and hues despite the gloomy overcast of November. Thus the title of today's composition.....Bracty Beauties.

Red Ginger, Red Ti , Sassy Pink and Seven Golden Candlesticks

Arrangement # 121

I like the glow of the Red Ginger,

The attractive leaf of Red Ti,

Orange bracts of Seven Candlesticks,

The pink of Sassy Heliconia,

Together in a posy,

With ripe colours of rambutan,

And the hot spicy chilli.

I name today's composition... Warm Feeling.

The Brilliant Yellow Allamandas

Arrangement # 120

What is so special about allamandas? They have large yellow trumpet-like flowers ( Allamanda cathartica) , looking golden and confident at any time of the day. They are free flowering here in the tropics of course.  They form bunchy flowers that if planted en masse are indeed eye catching. Despite their attractive appeal, allamandas aren't scented.  But never mind. On my way back to the farm this afternoon after sending my worker off from work, I pushed the brake pedal hard to stop next to an allamanda shrub which was in full flowering and enjoyed a moment of life's precious offering. I took the secateur ( which I always keep one in my car just in case) and right away made seven cuttings.

Back at the chalet I took a brown clay vase and carefully pushed them into its large mouth. There you are. No pretense. Plain yellow flowers and a matching round short vase did the trick. Much pleased  with the presentation, today's title shortly zapped across my grey matter.......Golden Brilliance. 

Further notes:

There are four kinds of yellow-flowered  allamandas in Malaysia and one special kind that has mauve flowers( allamanda violacea) To me allamandas make great cut flowers especially when their leaves are kept intact, thus providing much freshness to the display and green contrast to the bright yellow flowers.  They are very easy to propagate. Just make a cutting from its woody branch.  Plant them at sunny locations of your garden.