Category Archives: Flowers

Is it a bird? Is it a plane? No, it’s bat plant

Bat plant is the common name for Tacca nivea, a tropical evergreen from Malaysia. The name comes from its appearance. Large white petals stand above dark flowers and long bracts and together these make it look like a bat face.

In this photo the two petals are not standing up, but are lying on top of the flowers so the look is different, but still striking. I’ll have to go back again at a different time to catch it with standing petals.

This one was at Hawaii Tropical Botanical Garden. For more information about Hawaii Tropical Botanical Garden, go to htbg.com.

Japanese white-eye on Japanese aloe

This week’s Friendly Friday challenge theme is ‘Mood.’ See more responses here. For me, mood elevation often comes in the form of interactions with nature. Anything from bugs to birds, fish to flowers, can leave me in a better mood.

I had been watching Japanese white-eyes visiting Japanese aloe flowers on a daily basis. But I was really happy to capture one, perching on a stem, with purple bougainvilleas in the background.

Spathiphyllum ‘Power Petite’

Spathiphyllum ‘Power Petite’ is one of the spathiphyllums better known as peace lilies. These aren’t true lilies. Instead, they’re members of the Araceae family.

Peace lilies are popular houseplants because they’re easy to grow and they’re great air cleaners, filtering out a number of pollutants from the air.

Gecko on a bird of paradise flower

Near the entrance to Upolu Airport there is a clump of bird of paradise plants. When the plants are in bloom I make a point of checking out the flowers as they are a favorite of the geckos. I’ll often see geckos on the flowers, especially if they have not yet begun to fade.

In this case, I saw this smaller gold dust day gecko licking nectar off a flower. The gecko noticed me after a few moments and fixed me with its gaze. It never took its eyes off me, but neither did it stop feasting on the nectar.

Tropical mystery plant

Yesterday, I posted about a visit to Hawaii Tropical Botanical Garden with Terri, from Second Wind Leisure Perspectives. These photos are of one very interesting plant we saw toward the end of our tour. The spectacular pink bloom sprouted from the end of a single stem. This was definitely something I hadn’t seen before. I took several photos, including these two.

A few steps farther up the path, was a shaving brush tree (thanks for ID Terri) and on the ground around it were numerous pink blooms, remarkably similar to those of this mystery plant. Across from the shaving brush tree, a different shrub altogether sported the same bloom.

Someone had been having an entertaining visit, placing shaving brush blooms on an assortment of plants, but it had been well done and I thought it appropriate for today’s post.

Coconut orchid

A coconut orchid at Hawaii Tropical Botanical Garden
A coconut orchid at Hawaii Tropical Botanical Garden

Coconut orchids (Maxillaria tenuifolia) are originally from Central America. They’re noteworthy for their flowers’ blood red color and a coconut scent. I admit, I didn’t detect much scent, but my sense of smell is not exactly acute. The flowers bloom in spring for a week or more.

I saw this orchid at Hawaii Tropical Botanical Garden during a visit with Terri, from Second Wind Leisure Perspectives, who was visiting the Big Island for a week. Terri hosts the Sunday Stills challenge and her theme this week, coincidentally, is ‘Tropical.’ See more responses here.

We had a good stroll around the garden taking the usual slew of photos. Though I’m a regular visitor to the garden I always see new things, and this coconut orchid was one. For more information about Hawaii Tropical Botanical Garden, go to htbg.com.

Also posted in response to this week’s Friendly Friday challenge on the theme of ‘Feelings of Spring.’ See more responses here.

Bees on haole koa

Bees on a haole koa flower
Bees on a haole koa flower

Haole koa is the local term for Leucaena leucocephala. It means ‘foreign acacia koa.’ Acacia koa is a native hardwood tree that has been used in building everything from guitars to canoes.

Haole koa got its name because it looks similar to young acacia koa trees. It also looks similar to kiawe, but lacks the vicious thorns of that tree.

This is the time of year that haole koa trees flower and their white flower heads look like puff balls. These are popular with the bees, which were swarming all over a small group of haole koa trees just a few days ago.

Posted in response to this week’s Sunday Stills challenge on the theme of ‘Spring has Sprung.’ See more responses here.