Clearwing humming bird in Lawrence gardens

Here i am again with another edition of macro monday. Because of my coverage with annual spring flower show (see below post) i could not take much macros but still those i got were worth posting.

This one was shot at lawrence garden lahore. I am not sure what it is but it seems to be a hummingbird moth. Though we do not have hummingbirds here but sunbirds. Lovely sight though.
update: This is some species of clearwing hummingbird moth.

 Stock is the most fragrant annual of spring. And bees love them too. This one shot at my terrace.

This bee seems to be too involved in california poppy. Again captured on my terrace.

For more macro monday posts, visit Lisa's Chaos

Annual Spring Flower Show Lahore - Part 1

This year's annual spring flower show was held at bara dari in lawrence garden aka jinnah bagh lahore. It was 152nd annual flower show and lasted for about a week. The special feature of the show was that it was collaborated with iran's culture centre, they are also celebrating their spring these days. There was a special corner for iran's flowers and their floriculture. I must say they had one of the beautiful flowers i have ever seen which i will share in next part. So here goes the flower show:
This was joint flag of pakistan and iran.
Helichrysum also known as paper flowers planted in groups. Very pretty indeed.
Geraniums, and these seemed to be geraniums not pelargoniums.
These are the cranesbill geraniums.
Another beautiful plant whose name i am forgetting right now but but very pretty in masses.
There were many stalls and few were selling bonsai at very high cost. Although personally i do not like bonsai but people seemed to be interested in them.
succellents were also displayed and people bought them with interest.
There were many mass plantings of petunia but this one just caught my eye.
This iris was about 3 feet high probably raised from bulb.
Statice are becoming popular at cut flower shops as well due to their lasting capabilities.
Many types of roses were displayed. This one is miniture rose.
This is hybird tea rose.
The floribunda rose.
Another mass planting of these beautiful yellow flowers i was unable to identify at first glance.
Many types of gladiolus were also displayed including imported ones and local ones. This one was gem of all.
Although digitalis foxglove do not grow very well here in plains, the sellers do manage to get them bloom and sell at high prices. This one was one example. I discourage buying high altitude plants in plains, ahhm okay i admit aquilegia is an exception.

What do you think a spring annual show can be complete without mums? here they go. By the way here is exclusive coverage of chrysanthemum flower show few months back.

Sparaxis, Freesia, gazania in my garden

It is a pleasure to be part of another Booming friday hosted by Katarina at roses and stuff. There are lots of blooms in my garden, Spring at the peak. First comes this beautiful freesia. I planted lots of freesias this year as they are sure to bloom in our weather and adapt very well to our hot climate. I have never seen such lovely color before. And do i need to tell you the fragrance is just outstanding.

I also planted sparaxis bulbs but not all of them showed the blooms. This one did send up some awesome blossoms. A treat to watch if you have planted them in masses. Another warm climate bulb from south africa. so here goes the Harlequin Flower.

Here comes another heat tolerant dazzling bloomer, gazania. Even in this 90F temperature, they will endure drought. What a tough plant it is. And what a splash of colors they provide.

Pink ranunculus blooming in clay container. I grew them from the corms/tubers.

Dianthus and shirley poppy flowers

For more Wordless Wednesday posts, visit Wordless Wednesday

blue petunia,oriental lily and tricolor daisy in my garden

Katarina at Roses and stuff hosts blooming friday every week, i am glad to be a part of it. Right now the spring is at peak in lahore and we are all waiting impatiently for the annual spring flower show although i did held in karachi but not in lahore yet. here goes some pictures from my garden and some from others i captured.

This is my first bee of spring i got in my terrace. She drank from almost every single flower blooming on my terrace including this iceland poppy.

This oriental lily i grew from bulb in winter and what a pretty flower it is. The fragrance fills my whole terrace. you can see my post on how did i grow it here

I love these pink petunias,  grew lots of them in pots. They are not as heat tolerant as gazanias or california poppies but beat them by the color range.

Can you believe that i am growing this tricolor chrysanthemum, painted daisy in raised beds? well i have very limited space and even there is a patch with no soil beneath, i make it a raised bed. .This one is only 1 feet deep and then it is all concrete. I hope they will survive our harsh summer heat. I have mulched them with leaf mold.

I love freesia for their toughness, ability to bloom in diverse conditions and of course the enchanting fragrance. of course i will do a separate post on them but here goes the one in my soil bed the yellow fragrant ones.

I love iceland poppies, they are have the most delicate flowers after aquilegia. this is one is neither orange nor pink nor white but some yellowish touch. a touch of elegance. growing in another raised bed too. It is just 6 inches soil above the cement slabs.

What about these blue petunias? they are happily blooming in the lawn of my office building the aiwan-e-iqbal complex. what a splendid view it is.

California poppy,primula,painted daisy in my garden

Yeah i am late for Garden blogger's bloom day but here it is anyway. And yes don't forget to go to Carol's May Dream Gardens for other bloom day posts.

I love anemone and this blue one is my all time favorite blooming happily in company of chrysanthemum tricolor. This is my first year growing this tricolor pained daisy and what a wonderful colors they provide.

Don't you think anemone and iceland poppy are an excellent duo. Here they go:

What about this pink one? looking so lovely but way behind the blue one above.

And this red one? i grew all of them from tubers/corms. Did you miss my early post on how to grow them? here it goes: Growing flowering bulbs in warm climates - anemone coronaria

What a wonderful yellow daisies these are. But these are not blooming in my garden. I shot them at Lawrence garden lahore. I wish i had that mush space!!!!

California poppy are my favorite as they are heat tolerant which is a must property of a bloomer. I have planted lots of them in a large container but they did not bloom all at once instead one by one.

Chrysanthemum tricolor comes in wide range of combinations. I wish if they could survive our hot summers and become perennial but ah this might not be possible with possible 110F in summer:(

 

Primulas come on various colors. I think this might be primula vulgaris. There is another species of primula with 6 inches height and multiple bracnhes more flowers than his one but small flowers. i grew them in 6 inches plastic pots.

Petunias, okay they are not as heat tolerant as i want them to, but just look at the colors and their elegance.This one growing in a plastic pot on my terrrace.

                                          

This one just rocks na? very lovely color. growing in clay pot in my container stand.

 You know what this is? i know this is a blue star petunia but guess what!! i have under planted it in passion flower vine. To utilize more space and to grow lots of flowers in less space, i under planted them in various large containers such as this one. ahh the dilemma of small space gardeners!!!

 I am still trying to assess whether these two are flowers are from same plant or not. mostly two different plants.

 Now this is interesting. Can you guess where on earth is this container placed? Outside my terrace, 15 feet high in air, just on support of some invisible threads from inside.you can also see the painted daisy plant along side it in a plastic basket. Ah the inventions of small space gardeners.

 Now this is some unknown flower i have seen very first time. blooming happily in lawrence garden lahore. Any help regarding Id will highly be appreciated. Updated: This is sweet sultan / cornflower.

Layia platyglossa,iceland poppy and ranunculus flowering

Iceland poppies are my favorite as far as delicacy is concerned. We had few rains last week and weather was just superb, chilly to be precise. This made our spring last few week more.

 

Isn't  she loaded with pollen?

This ranunculus i grew from tubers/corms and what a wonderful display it is. There are 5 more buds coming and i will post separate on them.

  

Just love the color of this seed raised dahlia.

  

Tidy tips (Layia platyglossa) is a popular annual here.I love the bicolor flowers. Local name is desi gendi.

For more macro monday posts, visit Lisa's Chaos.