Hello everyone. Glad to be back and enter again this wonderful contest, the Steem Plants Contest Week 16, hosted by @strawberrry. Check out the contest post here. Read up and join us in the fun.
This is a plant that grows in our garden. It's actually more like a thick vine than a plant and has been in our garden for as far as I can remember. My wife planted this when it was still a seedling years ago. She did not know what the flowers would look like and we were really surprised and excited to find out how pretty and unusual and numerous the blooms turned out to be.
I call them the hairy flowers. Indeed there are these long red strands in each flower that look like red hair. More like unshaven beard.
I looked this up in the internet. Apparently this known as the Corkscrew Flower. Other names are Medusa Flower, Poison Arrow Vine and Spider Tresses Wikipedia has to say about this.
Strophanthus preussii. This is a semi-evergreen tender vine . . . and prefers to be grown under full sun. The flowers have 5 curled petals that are a very light . . . with a reddish-brown base. The tips of the petals become narrowed and elongated, forming twisting, sticky strings that dangles down from the flower. Wikipedia
Did you know this flower was used in making poison arrow tips that can stun preys. The milky latex that ooze out when stems and leaves are broken are quite toxic and can cause skin irritations in humans. But the latex and young leaves were also used for treatment of gonorrhea, sores and wounds.
This plant or vine is a very prolific bloomer but the only issue my wife and I have is that the growth of plant is positioned in such a way that the flowers are all blooming on the other side of our fence. Meaning, we don't get to see the flowers inside our garden. We have to go outside the house to see them.
Photos above and below show the flowers blooming outside our garden. These pictures were taken from the other side of the fence.
And that it for this post. I am happy to be able to join in this contest again. Wishing all the participants the best of luck in the competition. Stay safe everyone and may peace be with you all.
(All photos are mine.)