Just one day of flowers (Floral Retrospective)
Saturday, May 21, 2011 at 03:23PM When it rains here in Tsavo, the flowers bloom very quickly and, equally quickly, they fade and disappear. Often, you have a period of just 24 hours where everything is on fire, and if you miss that day, you have missed the greatest blossoming of the season.
This year, the perfect day was 10th April, and this array of incredible flowers is just a smattering of what Ian and I found on a four-hour flower drive. (Ian also found endless supplies of patience as I asked him to stop the car every few meters for a new sighting, and I thank him for that!)
I'm not going to get too caught up on classification here, for this is just meant to be a visual feast, but every now and then I'll make a comment or two. For interest's sake, I'm going to note the approximate sizes of each blossom, for without anything to give the flowers perspective, it is difficult to know how big or small they are. This also will give you an idea of the flowers' incredible variety - not just in colour and shape, but in size too. I apologize for the excessive length of this exposé, but I wanted to really impart the magnificence of the post-rain days in Kenya's dry country, when the grey-brown bushland turns into this incredible garden of flowers....a short sojourn before the starkness of the grey-brown beauty takes over again.
In no particular order, therefore, I give you a few flowers from just one day in Tsavo:
All above: The prolific Commelina...but benghalensis or petersii? Never mind, their fragile beauty is staggering. Each flower measures just 20-25mm across.
The equally prolific Ipomoea mombassana (above and below), 50-55mm across - the creeper that coats the dry earth and allows other plants to take root in its welcome shade.
10-20mm across, these small flowers above are Hibiscus (but micranthus or pycnostemon?) of the family Malvaceae. By evening, the flowers have turned pink (below) and by daybreak the following morning, they will have withered and fallen from the stem.
This tiny, tiny shrub was hiding its beautiful flowers in amongst the grass. Each flower head is only 10mm across, but what an extraordinary colour!
One of the Malvaceae family too, I think (my guess is it's a Pavonia), this 25-30mm wide flower's petals obviously taste good to this green-headed bug (munching away in big close up, below).
The same type of bug also seems to have a penchant for Anthericopsis sepalosa flowers, each just 25mm across (above and below).
Tiny red Indigofera flowers (above), each just a few millimetres in size.
Grewia lilacina flowers are irresistibly photogenic. While the bush is two metres high, each flower is just 18-20mm in size and very popular with bees of every size and description, including this small, turquoise-eyed variety.
This tiny grasshopper, just 10mm long, was also keen on the Grewia.
Like clusters of blue cushions, these flowers are utterly delightful. They are pentanisia ouranogyne, of the Rubiaceae family and each individual flower measures 12-15mm across.
Indigofera schimperi, above, each individual flower just millimetres across, making up a gorgeous pink-red candle.
I know I once discovered what these hairy white-flowered creepers are called, but for the life of me, I cannot remember their name... Anyway, they're about 20-25mm across and very furry!
Who would have thought that the Erythroclamys spectabilis that covers large swathes of bushland with purple after the rains (above) actually boasts such intricate detail on its tiny flowers (below), each less than 10mm in size.
The prickly blue Blepharis linariifolia, above, each petal about 30mm long.
Ravaged by insects but still ravishing, above, the giant Hibiscus calyphyllus, each flower measuring at least 100mm across. It's amazing to think that this large flower is a close relative of the tiny white Hibiscus shown near the top of this flower listing.
More and more Hibiscus calyphyllus...as beautiful in big close up as they are when viewed dotted in amongst the lush surrounding vegetation, dwarfing the other flowers.
This one, above, is a Hibiscus trionum, 30-40mm across and as beautiful as its larger cousin.
Pavonias are closely related to Hibiscus - both belong to the Malvaceae family (along with Abutilon too - including Abutilon mauritianum, which I have discussed in this journal many times under our nickname "Four o'clock flowers"). This remarkable looking specimen is Pavonia glechomifolia, 30-40mm wide and with lovely leaves too (above and below).
Another Pavonia (possibly propinqua?) has a softer pastel tone to its 25mm wide flowers.
The Gutenbergia and Vernonia species are closely related...and I have not a clue which one these startling pollen-dusted purple flowers belong to (above and below). Each flower head is less than 10mm in size.
Clitoria ternatea - these 35mm flowers hang from creepers that decorate the bushland with their delicate blue and yellow colours, above.
The 40-50mm flowers of Astripomoea hyosycamoides look almost identical to Ipomoea, but these flowers belong to an upright shrub, while the Ipomoea is a creeper.
Tiny, blue and pretty, Ecbolium revolutum (aka e. hamatum) can easily be missed because each flower is only 10-20mm in size.
Ruellia patula, seen above and below in pastel purple, are found in several different shades of blue and white. The flowers are 20mm across.
A tiny white flower with no name (that I know of, anyway)...just 10-12mm across and rather square and angular in shape (above).
The 25mm long bracts of Dalechampia scandens at first glance make it look like a green flower, but in fact the flowers are contained within the green leaf-like appendages (above and below).
Like a helicopter when seen from above, these tiny, exceedingly delicate flowers (each one just 15mm long) belong to the Becium species, I believe.
I don't even know where to start in attempting to identify this tiny flower, in total less than 10mm across (above and below). The strange pale orange colour of the petals contrasts sharply with the bright lilac stamens...a beautiful creation without a name...
The same flower, seen from a different angle, below.
It's that Pavonia again, but this time highlighting the beauty of its "sugar-dusted" leaves - the tiny hairs shining in the bright sunlight.
Caked in mud and looking innocuous, this plant I believe belongs to the Ocimum species (possibly o. kilimandscharicum?) and each of its tiny white flowers (below) are only 5mm long.
Solanum incanum, the Sodom Apple, its flowers each 25mm long and a little muddied after the rain, above.
Possibly a species of Sphaeranthus, this tidy compact flower head is less than 10mm in size.
A festival of pink...even more Hibiscus (this one known as species D)...I have included several images, because their beauty is almost beyond comprehension...
Green flowers, 30mm wide, of the Acanthaceae family: Ecbolium amplexicaule (above and below).
Barleria argentea, just 15-20mm in size, above, yet with such delicate markings on the throat.
Above, a tiny, tiny, tiny mauve flower, less than 5mm wide, and (for me anyway) still nameless.
And the final hurrah, the curling inflorescence of Heliotropium steudneri, each individual flower just 5mm in size.
And that's quite enough for one day...
Reader Comments (3)
Goodness - Did not know this variety of flowers exist in my OWN country?! Very well taken pictures and love the details too. Being a quilter, wished I could stitch some of them.
Please keep more rolling!
Hi.I came across these pics while looking for Pentanisia ouranogyne (I was just seeing who else in the world was interested in Kenyan flowers) and this page is a real treasure chest. I'm in the UK but I've been to Kenya 4 times, twice to photo flowers, including in Tsavo along the mombasa road. I have seen about half of these you show, not all from that region, but the Ecboliums from there were a real treat to find back in 2008/9. There's a nice yellow Justicia flava you should look out for. Keep up the admirable work.
yours
colin (derilicon is an anagram I'm using on Flickr where half my pics are)
Hi Colin. Great to hear from you. I will check out your Flickr albums - it's hard to find detailed information about Kenyan flowers...I go crazy trying to identify some of them...someone ought to revise the existing flower identification books...