Amaryllis

The biological name is Hippeastrum Vittatum Hybrid from the Amaryllidaceae family, is a large bulb producing spectacular trumpet-shaped blooms on hollow stalks. The large strap shaped leaves reach up to 0.9 m tall by 7.5 cm wide. They are very easy to grow and make spectacular house plants.

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Calathea Warszewiczii 2

Another capture of this beautiful Calathea warszewiczii flower. Its ornamental leaves with a velvety feel are the major attraction of this Calathea. The flowers are white, but the colour of the bracts ranges from white to deep pink. It was named for Jozef Warszewicz, a Polish-Lithuanian plant collector who worked in South America and later became Inspector of the botanic gardens in Krakow.

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Calathea Warszewiczii

Its ornamental leaves with a velvety feel are the major attraction of this Calathea. The flowers are white, but the colour of the bracts ranges from white to deep pink. It was named for Jozef Warszewicz, a Polish-Lithuanian plant collector who worked in South America and later became Inspector of the botanic gardens in Krakow.

Copyright DonaldChen Photography

Buddha Belly Plant

Native to Guatemala. All parts of the plant are poisonous if ingested. The seed oil is used to reduce swellings, for pain relief and to detoxify snakebites.

The stem is swollen into vasculum at the base and filled with thin sap. The plant bears bright red coral-like flowers throughout the year. The plant contains the toxic curcin, making it poisonous.

Jatropha podagrica is also known for its incredible ability to attract a variety of butterflies wherever it is grown.

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Hibiscus mutabilis flower

Also known as "Cotton rosemallow" from the Malvaceae family, it is native to Southern China.

Traditionally, the leaves and flowers are used to treat swellings and skin infections. Mucilage (a thick, gluey substance produced by nearly all plants) extracted from the leaves and flowers are used to ease childbirth.

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Yellow Frangipani (Plumeria Stenophylla)

Yellow frangipani or plumeria stenophylla flower. Plumeria's are a tropical flowering tree, sometimes called "frangipani" in the plant family APOCYNACEAE, Though tropical by nature, when protected from frost, they are well suited to subtropical or temperate climates.

Plumeria are valued as landscape plants, ornamentals, and for their flowers. The flowers come in seemingly endless variety of color, size and fragrance.

The Plumeria flowers are more fragrant at night in order to attract pollinators. Plumeria species can propagated by taking a cutting of leafless stem tips in spring, letting them "scab over" and then inserted into soil. They can be propagated by tissue culture or from germinated seeds.

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Pink Frangipani (Plumeria rubra)

Pink Frangipani (Plumeria rubra).  Plumeria commemorates Charles Plumier, a 17th-century French botanist who described several tropical species. Plumeria rubra is a tree that grows in a “candelabrum” shape typical of Plumerias with a single trunk and multiple branches of a similar length that support an open spreading canopy. The tree can reach a height of 9m, though they are generally much smaller. Most plumerias in gardens are hybrids. Plumerias are very salt tolerant.

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Philippine Ground Orchid

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Scientific Name: Spathoglottis plicata
Common Name: Philippine Ground Orchid

The flowers have 5, oval-shaped, pink, purple, or white tepals (2 side petals and 3 petal-like sepals) and a similarly colored, spade-shaped labellum. The flowers are followed by 6-ribbed seed capsules that split open to release the minute, dustlike seeds into the air. The leaves emerge from pseudo bulbs and are bright green, linear-lanceolate, and distinctively plicate (having fanlike folds along their length).

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Royal Pink Orchid

Some pretty royal pink orchids at the Sentosa Flowers Show 2013.

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Pink Orchid

 

A blooming pink orchid. Taken in the morning when the morning dew is still lingering on the flower buds.

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Happy Valentine's Day Flower

A pretty pink flower from Sentosa to celebrate Happy Valentine's Day !!

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Glencoe Lochan @Scotland

Glencoe Lochan in Scotland is the ideal place to enjoy stunning Highland scenery in a tranquil setting. Embark on a gentle walk, take in the fresh air and nature's sight and sound around the water's edge to a more challenging hill walk or a relaxed afternoon's picnic. Smell the many varieties of flowers as you walk around the lake.

In 1895 Lord Strathcona created this beautiful lochan and woodland for his Canadian wife Isabella, who was of Native American descent. Unfortunately recreating a bit of the wild Pacific Northwest in Glencoe didn't help the homesick Isabella settle there, but it did leave a beautiful landscape for all to enjoy.

The lochan is also stocked with rainbow trout. The four easy-access fishing platforms make it an ideal fishing spot for fishing enthusiasts to spend a lazy afternoon fishing and appreciating the scenic landscape.

This picture was taken with a Canon 7D using the 16-35mm F2.8 wide-angle lens.

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