NOEL ELLIS' GOOGLE BLOG

  LT COL NOEL ELLIS   07/III/2025   A garden can spring surprises at any time. The seeds which never germinated after you planted them can crop up unexpectedly. Thinking that the seeds/bulbs must have died, one tends to use that soil for other pots. Delayed sprouting happens at times.   Weeds are very common. Regular hoeing keeps them under check. Uprooting them from time to time helps. Where did they come from? Methods of their propagation are umpteen. It is for you to decide what to do with them.   A few months back I found a very unique simultaneous phenomenon in all hibiscus pots. New life was emerging from the soil. Leaves were light green and shiny, a little different from common weeds. It was intriguing because one had never seen such a thing before. Could they be some flower seeds? It was time to investigate.   The mystery got resolved when I plucked one out of the hundreds that had sprouted and tasted it. When the taste hit ...

  Bombax Ceiba/Cotton Tree/Sembal in our colony ❤ DIL KHUSH 🧡

  LT COL NOEL ELLIS   05/III/2025   I had a good tête-à-tête with my new friend of this season, the “Yellow Footed Green Pigeon” and her partner yesterday. I took the liberty of nicknaming her Greeny. I didn’t ask the name of her partner though.   They came, they sat, they posed, they plucked twigs and dropped some, groomed themselves, exchanged notes and even shooed a pair of doves away. I was expecting them to return today.   Just before the sun was up, I was in the garden awaiting their arrival. Birds were already in action. Many of them sounded the “rouse” around the trees of our home.   The canopy of the tree had just been lit by the first rays of sunlight when I saw Greeny flutter in. Moment, she landed, she whistled. Hi! I waved back to her. She acknowledged my presence with a stretch of her wing.   “Greeny would you like to see the photos I took?” “Would you mind waiting a little while”, she said. “Take your time, let me tend to the garden in t...

  Lilies make my 💛 Dil Khush 🤍

  LT COL NOEL ELLIS   03/III/2025   A gardener can never be satisfied with the number of plants in his garden. Given a choice he/she can bring a whole nursery home. Every time a thought passes his mind that there is no space left. Then he gets more plants. Space gets created out of thin air. I speak from my own experience.   We are grateful to our neighbours who have allowed us to use their garden space as they stay in the US. All my planting and manure making activities happen there. Besides, all plants which go into dormancy are shifted with their pots into their ‘Hathaa’ as they call it here. That space is also running out fast.   Well, the trigger to this article is my new “Shagufa”.   The other day I went to pick up Neem Khali at a fertilizer store. To visit that store, one has to go on a bike due to chaotic traffic and congestion. On the way back there is a nursery. Prices of plants are very reasonable. Now that I know the owner, he gives me a handsom...

  A combination of clouds, sun, green and dry trees, its shadow, green grassy carpet and stones. Perfect!