LOCUST WITHOUT A “L” LT COL NOEL ELLIS 14/IX/2024 They say if you wish for something with a noble heart, it gets fulfilled. Had I asked for the moon, I would have got it today. Was it a coincidence? I am not sure. To find out please read on. A friend of mine had asked me about ‘good’ and ‘bad’ insects in a garden, on which I wrote an article. In that, I had mentioned a kind of grasshopper called the ‘Locust’. It is a bright yellowish green insect. It is sometimes seen in our garden. They create havoc if found in swarms, but one or two do not harm much. After writing the article, I wished I had a photo of the Locust. Digging it out from the archives could add colour but that would have been time consuming. Having posted the article, I walked out of the house to check on the blooms of the day. There was a large variety with vibrant colours gracing the garden. A treat to the eyes and soul. Just then my eyes fell on a bamboo stick supporting a vi
ALTERNATE SOURCE OF ENERGY LT COL NOEL ELLIS 25/IX/2024 Solar Energy fascinated me since childhood. It was unbelievable at first that electricity could be produced from the sun. It took me back to my school days, when we were introduced to ‘photoelectric cells’ and how they work and how will it be beneficial to the earth and society. Water energy we had witnessed first hand during a school educational tour to the Bhakra Nangal Dam in Punjab. Harnessing wind energy was also interesting. This we practically experienced during a bike hike to Lonavala from NDA Khadakwasla, Pune. We were tired, exhausted, and still short of our destination and still pedaling our way up those steep curves of the Ghat. Suddenly, it started to rain and the wind too joined the fun. We quickly pulled out our ‘raincapes’ to avoid getting wet. Cycling with a raincoat on is a big pain but then something happened. The storm pushed us from behind and the raincoat became our sail. Raindrops hid our sweat
FLOATING WATER PLANTS LT COL NOEL ELLIS 03/IX/2024 Slowly and steadily our collection of plants is growing. They have reached the maximum limit we can manage, including the aquatic plant collection which too has reached its saturation point. It is when you get to work on them, you realise that it takes a lot of time and effort. However, the passion for gardening keeps one occupied. We win some & we lose some but the hobby has to go on. As I was scrolling through social media, I saw a plant which is well adapted to grow both in water and soil. We already had one planted in a hanging pot. It was time to experiment with the water part. It is called the ‘Penny Wort’ or ‘Dollar Plant’. As the name suggests, the leaves look like a ‘coin’ or ‘penny’. Someone would have changed the name to the currency they were dealing in to call it a ‘$ plant’. It is also called the ‘Chinese Money Plant’. The botanical name being ‘Hydro cotyle Umbellate’. Hydro is obvi
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