SLC31-W5 | THE GREEN JOURNEY | Wild Creativity

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I am here to find and discover creative beauty in nature and express it in my own way with my limited knowledge. As you said this week is all about finding artistic inspiration from the nature which is not easy despite the fact that Nature has so much to offer but then you need to have time and opponent to explore them.

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You know what, when I read about your contest's theme I was wondering what should I write about and wanted to let go but yesterday I chanced upon something which kept me spellbound. Incidentally I happened to cross through Hotel Island in my nearby locality and saw a few Palm plants.

Their formation was little strange as most of the plants in this hotels. lawn area were similar or almost similar. That arose my curiosity so I captured some of them and asked the guard who said he was not aware why the owner had decided to plant palm or selected this theme of plants for his lawn.

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However later I searched and researched them and found out the first plant was that of Sago Palm, or Cycas revoluta. And what surprised me even more that it was not a true palm at all but it is an ancient cycad, which grows very slowly. And what hit me to the core was this plant has survived since the age of dinosaurs.

Then I walked and saw more similar plants, their stiff, glossy fronds and cone-like reproductive structure which gave them a prehistoric look, maybe that's the reason people call them a “living fossil”.

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For instance, Washingtonia palm, that he said is a Mexican fan palm, that grows tall fast but he wanted to have it in his collection. I loved it for its slender trunk and wide fan-shaped leaves. It can grow as tall as 60 to 80 feet in height but this loves full sun, and has a dramatic look at this roadside lawn, nice for landscaping.

It grows 10 feet in height, but remains green and also customizable according to to your garden or lawn. A nice plant I guess.

I was curious so went deeper and found out that in the old stories, cycads are popular in Japan because these plants are associated with endurance and mystery.

My further research revealed that in Japan’s Ryukyu islands, Cycads is associated with sacred landscapes and cultural meaning, while in other traditions cycads is linked with ceremonial power, rainmaking, and the border between life and afterlife.

I was so curious to know why the owner of this hotel was so impressed with this ancient culture and valued them as useful, symbolic plants that he had them as a theme in his lawn.

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Then I saw this beautiful plant which appears like common hand fan palm, is the Sabal palmetto. He said this palm is easily recognizable by its large, fan-shaped leaves and it can grow tall but it needs care and requires regular watering, especially during in younger age.

ᴬ ᵖˡᵃⁿᵗ ᵗʰᵃᵗ ᶜᵃᵘᵍʰᵗ ᵐʸ ᵉʸᵉ

I was a bit taken aback when I saw this plant and thought it to be a palm variety but he smiled and said this was a variety of bamboo which is a clumping plant, suitable for creating compact privacy. He said he intends to grow more of these in future to decorate borders of his lawn.

I have seen this palm plant commonly as it looks beautiful and definitely for ornamental landscaping and of course the shade they provide.

I visited him this afternoon and talked to him. He offered me a cup of tea and told me during his visit to Japan he was so fascinated that he carried some of them for the sake of beauty as they offered him a sense of endurance even if they had both, the beauty and danger, because some of these cycads plants are toxic.

Whatever his reason but the formation of these plants attracted me or to say In simple words, the different palm felt like survivors from a forgotten world.

ᴬ ᵖˡᵃⁿᵗ ᵗʰᵃᵗ ⁱˢ ʳᵉᶜᵒᵛᵉʳⁱⁿᵍ

They stand here quietly in this lawn, but their roots reach back to deep time, when dinosaurs still walked the earth. The owner said he could not bring the statues of dinosaurs but these plants motivate him to live a long life like them even if they are no more in existence. Then a question came to my mind, will they disappear like dinosaurs disappeared from this earth?

He also said that along with these plant he has couple of other toxic plants some of them are household plants like Sago Palm which are lethal to pets and children yet he loves them.

ᴬ ᴾᵃˡᵐ ᵖˡᵃⁿᵗ

​He made me even more usurious so I compared Sago Palm which are no true palm plants with true palms which he has grown side-by-side. He says these palms not only look beautiful but true guide for climate zones, that take care physiologically or used for medicinal purpose.

​Here I saw a couple of long-leaf palm plants for instance:

ᴬ ᴾᵃˡᵐ ᵖˡᵃⁿᵗ

Areca Palm, with feathery, arching fronds which is supposed to be a popular indoor as well as outdoor palm. it adds a soft tropical look and grows best in bright, indirect light.

Look at this Lady Palm which is a clumping palm with fan shaped, deep green leaves. I think it is really so elegant, hard, which I have seen in homes, offices, and shaded garden spaces. So this one is common but yet a plant with its own uniqueness.

I was wondering if these plants have so long life why these palms develop brown tips and how watering and humidity can prevent this issue?

ᴬ ᵖˡᵃⁿᵗ ᶠʳᵒᵐ ᵇᵃᵐᵇᵒᵒ ᶠᵃᵐⁱˡʸ

But its size and design goes well with his palm plants for sure. I liked this one.

​Maybe these are best indoors so the light requirements for these Areca Palms is beyond their need and they turn into this shape and design goes well with other plants in the lawn.

A Morpnkhi plant

Then I saw this plant which is commonly known as the Oriental Arborvitae or what we know it as Morpankhi plant. I had them in plenty in my home as it grows dense and even high. Once I saw a Morpankhi plant in Canberra which was almost 40 feet high although 10-15 is a common size there. I am presenting it here just for its design which reminds me of the feathers of a peacock.

I saw few more small and big such plants in this lawn which tempted me to bring them here.