Tulip in the Sky

Tulip in the Sky 

(African Tulip Tree -  Spathodea campanulata)

“I set out to find my peace in the skies and the tulips, in the howling 

of the winds, in the rain under the shed and it was right there residing within me.” ― Suyasha Subedi

Dr Abe V Rotor
  

African Tulip tree growing at Angels' Hills on Tagaytay, Batangas

Cloudless sky on a sultry day in summer,

     the parched earth awaits shower;

rises above me a simple and humble tree

     whose flowers are Nature's confetti.

African Tulip tree. Spathodea is a monotypic genus in the flowering plant family Bignoniaceae. The single species it contains, Spathodea campanulata, is commonly known as the African tulip tree, fountain tree, pichkari or Nandi flame. The tree grows between 7–25 m tall and is native to tropical dry forests of Africa. Wikipedia

African tulip trees are extremely harmful to native stingless bees, and a public safety hazard (when these trees are planted along footpaths, their dropped flowers can create a slippery walking surface).

NOTE: The African Tulip Tree is not related to the ground tulip Tulipa of the Family Liliaceae to which lilies and the onion are member species. Tulipa is a genus of spring-blooming perennial herbaceous bulbiferous geophytes. The flowers are usually large, showy and brightly colored, generally red, pink, yellow, or white. They often have a different colored blotch at the base of the petals, internally. Wikipedia                     

 A field of tulip in Netherlands 

The word tulip is derived from a Persian word called delband, which means turban. sciencekids.co.nz ~