Learning Plants

I had to leave my minor plant collection in my hotel yesterday, but I am delighted that I was able to identify many using Dr. N. Logonathan's book on medicinal plants. It is written in Tamul, but has pictures and latin names!

These are all familiar plant groups from tropical regions: Fabaceae (bean family), Sterculiaceae (cocoa/chocolate), Clusiaceae (Hemiepiphye typical of tropical forests), Moraceae (Ficus/Fig family, Banyon tree), Araceae (palms), Rosaceae (Rose, apple), Rubiaceae (Coffee), Euphorbiaceae (poinsetia), Meliaceae ( Eucalyptus), among others.

We have now left the south with it's familiar and relentless heat, and the plants with which I am most familiar, and gone north to Jaipur where it feels as if everything has changed! We landed in the dark so I am excited to see what today brings--unlike Tamul Nadu, I can hear birds from my window. I think the lack of birds may be an after effect of the hurricane or the aggressive nature of the Common Grackle (crow) which, as we have seen, often predates nestlings of other birds.

Later today I will post more about the flora and fauna.

From Cats India Trip