Hello there!
While I visited my parents’ home last month, I found myself in the garden going around and getting some much-needed fresh air since the pollution can be a bit much back in Bangalore. It’s always a treat to find yourself amid greenery, away from hustle of a metropolitan city and in an independent home as compared to a tiny apartment.
Since the last two years, my grandparents have decided to stay with my parents due to their health issues given their advanced age. My grandma has always loved flowers - even in their own home, the front yard would be surrounded by all varieties of flowering plants. Since they now live with my parents, my grandma took on the task of beautifying our front yard. I have to applaud the acumen with which she collected seeds and saplings- each time she visited a relative’s home and liked a flower, she just asked if she could have it. Good luck finding someone who could say no to a charming old lady😂
As I was strolling in the yard, these flowers caught my eye, and I began capturing them in all their colorful glory. The sun rising was the perfect backdrop and allowed their beauty to shine through in all these pictures.
Since my grandma only knew the name of the flowers in our native language, I had to ChatGPT my way to find the names of these flowers. In case I’m mistaken, I apologize in advance!
Double Red Hibiscus
These beautiful double-layered petaled variety of Hibiscus was the first flower that caught my eye. Delicate and oh so beautiful. Since Hibiscus is widely found in the tropical regions, these varieties of hibiscus thrive in my hometown.
Radiating Hibiscus
This massive hibiscus piqued my curiosity due to their one unique feature, blooming at dawn and closing at dusk with their big dark red petals. Another variety of Hibiscus which thrives in the tropical regions and was in its full glory here.
China Rose or Miniature Rose
A quiet popular type of rose plant I’ve seen in many houses. They are easy to grow, blooms often and is of course pretty. These petals are usually soft pink in color and are delicate. These flowers bloom for a few days before wilting away.
A great plant to have if you stay in a tropical region and wish to beautify your house or apartment.
Easter Lily
What I thought looked like a lily was indeed a lily when I asked my dad who planted this in our yard. Unlike the few others which are planted in pots, this plant was just planted at the end of the compound wall since they require very minimal maintenance. As we approach the monsoon season, we’ll be seeing a lot more blooms happening.
Hibiscus
The good old hibiscus was also present along with its fancier varieties. The plant had quite a lot of blooms, and the sun lent a gentle light to enhance its color. Even these flowers have the same trait of radiating hibiscus where they open and close everyday but since the flowers are smaller, it isn’t very noticeable.
Dwarf Rose
These small roses are even smaller than the China roses and are a treat to the eyes since the plant blooms multiple buds at once and usually have a vibrant pink hue. These are my favorite type of roses among others in this yard.
Vinca
The most common type of plant - I can find this one in almost every house in my city! They are easy to maintain and grow almost anywhere. The flowers are usually white, pink or red, but my mom likes the white ones best and hence the white variety are planted in our house. Although the sun was shining in its maximum capacity, the plants had multiple flowers and it was indeed a pleasure to watch the blooms.
Double Hibiscus
This variety of hibiscus looks a lot alike the double red hibiscus and had a few flowers on it. This flower also reminded me of the carnations which are also pretty in its own unique manner.
Firecracker Flower
These are another common variety of flowers that I come across in Mangalore and these plants requires minimal to almost no maintenance. These plants can bloom all-round the year which makes them an excellent garden plants and they bloom a lot if you water them regularly.
Water Lily
Planted recently by my dad in our tiny pond, what I thought was a lotus turned out to be a water lily (again clarified by my dad). The flower was blooming for a few days and was doing so with such grace. Since many do not have ponds in their home, these flowers are a little hard to find but it’s a great ornamental plant nonetheless!
As I spent my time around in the garden, my mom’s cat came by to say hello and get some morning sun as well. A quick photo of her and I moved on since she does not like to be disturbed during her sun time (you can understand through her expressions).
I then went on with my day and I realised that the time spent in the garden is what I miss in my apartment-life in Bangalore. It refreshed my mind and body and got me ready for the day in an amazing way, and I would highly recommend starting your slow mornings like this!