Dendrophthoe pentandra: Malayan Mistletoe

Dendrophthoe pentandra is a dicotyledonous plant species in the genus Dendrophthoe and family Loranthaceae.

Malayan Mistletoe [Dendrophthoe pentandra] a very common parasitic plant in Singapore that attaches to the branches of many trees.

Many birds, insects and aboreal mammals build their nests among mistletoes. Also, a very wide variety of animals feed on the leaves, shoots, fruits [called pseudo berries as they lack true ovules], flowers and nectar of mistletoes.

Malayan Mistletoe [Dendrophthoe pentandra] is host plant of Painted Jezebel [Delias hyparete metarete] butterfly.

Photos taken from 8th storey flat about 20m above the ground.

Photos: Sembawang Road, Yishun, Singapore [20160401]

Source: The Tide Chaser

Hymenachne sp.: Marsh grass

Hymenachne is a genus of widespread wetlands plants in the grass family. They may be known commonly as marsh grasses. They are distributed in tropical and subtropical regions of Asia, the Americas, and the Pacific Islands.

Wetland grass provides a food source for cattle and other wildlife because it has protein.

Hymenachne aquatic plants frequently found in marshes and other wet habitats. Their stems are spongy with aerenchyma tissue. The longest stems can reach 4 meters. They are perennial, sometimes with rhizomes.

Photo: Yishun Pond, Singapore [20160218]

Source: Wikipedia

Daucus carota: Queen Ann’s Lace

Daucus carota [common names include wild carrot, bird’s nest, bishop’s lace, and Queen Anne’s lace) is a flowering plant in the family Apiaceae, native to temperate regions of Europe, southwest Asia and naturalised to North America and Australia. Domesticated carrots are cultivars of a subspecies, Daucus carota subsp. sativus.

The wild carrot is a herbaceous, somewhat variable biennial plant that grows between 1 and 2 feet [0.3 and 0.6 m] tall, roughly hairy, with a stiff solid stem. The leaves are tri-pinnate, finely divided and lacy, overall triangular in shape. The flowers are small and dull white, clustered in flat, dense umbels. They may be pink in bud and there may be a reddish flower in the centre of the umbel. The dried umbels detach from the plant, becoming tumbleweeds.

Like the cultivated carrot, the Daucus carota root is edible while young, but quickly becomes too woody to consume.

Daucus carota, when freshly cut, will draw or change color depending on the color of the water in which it is held. Note that this effect is only visible on the “head” or flower of the plant. Carnations also exhibit this effect. This occurrence is a popular science demonstration in primary grade school.

This beneficial weed can be used as a companion plant to crops. Like most members of the umbellifer family, it attracts wasps to its small flowers in its native land; however, where it has been introduced, it attracts only very few of such wasps. This species is also documented to boost tomato plant production when kept nearby.

Photo: Dublin, Ohio, USA  [201400809]

Source: Wikipedia

Taraxacum officinale: Common Dandelion

Taraxacum officinale, the common dandelion [simply “dandelion”], is a flowering herbaceous perennial plant of the family Asteraceae [Compositae]. It can be found growing in temperate regions of the world, in lawns, on roadsides, on disturbed banks and shores of water ways, and other areas with moist soils.

Taraxacum officinale is considered a weed, especially in lawns and along roadsides, but it is sometimes used as a medical herb and in food preparation. Common dandelion is well known for its yellow flower heads that turn into round balls of silver tufted fruits that disperse in the wind called “blowballs” or “clocks” containing many single-seeded fruits called achenes. Each achene is attached to a pappus of fine hairs, which enable wind-aided dispersal over long distances.

Photos: Atlanta, GA [20060405]

Source: Wikipedia

Silene regia: Royal Catchfly

Silene regia is a species of flowering plant in the pink family known by the common name royal catchfly. It is native to the central United States.

This plant is native to the tallgrass prairie of the American Midwest. It occurs in grassland and woodland. It has been found on roadsides and outcrops, and in pastures. It is found in open, sunny spots.

The main threat to the species is the loss of habitat to agricultural use. Its native prairie habitat has been reduced so that now the plant mainly grows on roadsides and rights-of-way.

Photo: Georgia Perimeter College, Atlanta, GA [20060419]

Source: Wikipedia

Pennisetum cv.: Fountain Grass

Pennisetum is a genus of grasses in the family Poaceae, native to tropical and warm temperate regions of the world. They are known commonly as fountain grasses.

They are annual or perennial grasses. Some are petite while others can produce stems up to 8 meters tall. The inflorescence is a very dense, narrow panicle containing fascicles of spikelets interspersed with bristles. There are three kinds of bristle, and some species have all three, while others do not. Some bristles are coated in hairs, sometimes long, showy, plumelike hairs that inspired the genus name, the Latin penna [feather] and seta [bristle].

The genus includes pearl millet [Pennisetum glaucum], an important food crop. Napier grass [Pennisetum purpureum] is used for grazing livestock in Africa. African fountain grass [Pennisetum setaceum] is used as an ornamental plant.

Photos: Gardens by the Bay, Flower Dome, Singapore [20140630]

Source: Wikipedia 

Crocosmia cv.: Coppertips

Crocosmia is a small genus of flowering plants in the iris family, Iridaceae. It is native to the grasslands of the Cape Floristic Region, South Africa.

They have colourful inflorescences of 4 to 20 vivid red and orange subopposite flowers. The terminal inflorescence can have the form of a cyme or a raceme.

They are commonly known in the United States as coppertips or falling stars, and in the United Kingdom as montbretia. Other names, for hybrids and cultivars, include antholyza, and curtonus. The genus name is derived from the Greek words krokos, meaning “saffron”, and osme, meaning “odor” – from the fact that dried leaves of these plants emit a strong smell like that of saffron [a spice derived from Crocus – another genus belonging to the Iridaceae] – when immersed in hot water

Photos: Gardens by the Bay, Flower Dome, Singapore [20140630]

Source: Wikipedia 

Papaver rhoeas: Flanders poppy, Field poppy

Papaver rhoeas [common names include corn poppy, corn rose, field poppy, Flanders poppy, red poppy, red weed, coquelicot, and, due to its odour, which is said to cause them, as headache and headwork] is a herbaceous species of flowering plant in the poppy family, Papaveraceae. This poppy, a native of Europe, is notable as an agricultural weed [hence the “corn” and “field”] and as a symbol of fallen soldiers.

Papaver rhoeas sometimes is so abundant in agricultural fields that it may be mistaken for a crop. The only species of Papaveraceae grown as a field crop on a large scale is Papaver somniferum, the opium poppy.

Papaver rhoeas is a variable, erect annual, forming a long-lived soil seed bank that can germinate when the soil is disturbed. In the northern hemisphere it generally flowers in late spring, but if the weather is warm enough other flowers frequently appear at the beginning of autumn. It grows up to about 70cm in height. The flowers are large and showy, 50 to 100mm across, with four petals that are vivid red, most commonly with a black spot at their base. The flower stem is usually covered with coarse hairs that are held at right angles to the surface.

Photos: Flower Dome, Gardens by the Bay, Singapore [20140503, 20140509]

Source: Wikipedia

Nelsonia canescens: Blue Pussyleaf

Nelsonia canescens belongs to the group of annual and biennial plants, is a species in the genus Nelsonia which contains approximately 4 to 6 species and belongs to the family of the Acanthaceae [Genus: Nelsonia; Family: Acanthaceae;  subfamily: Nelsonioideae]. Perennial herb with several trailing stems from a central taproot or rootstock, a ground cover.

Nelsonia canescens is a weedy species. The fresh leaves have a sour lemon-like taste and are often reported to be eaten.

Native: AFRICA.

Naturalized: naturalized elsewhere.

Photo: Gardens by the Bay, Singapore [20140122, 20140305]

Source: Hortipedia

Medicago polymorpha: Toothed Bur Clover

Medicago polymorpha is a plant species of the genus Medicago. It is native to the Mediterranean basin but found throughout the world. It forms a symbiotic relationship with the bacterium Sinorhizobium medicae, which is capable of nitrogen fixation. Common names include California burclover, toothed bur clover, toothed medic and burr medic.

Being a member of the Leguminosae family, the flowers are clover-like, lipped and clustered. Flowers, 3-6 mm long,  are small, bright yellow, and cluster into flower heads of 2 to 10 flowers at the stem tips.

Photo: Atlanta, Georgia, USA [20130910]

Source: Wikipedia