Sunday 12 July 2009

Flower Power

We've done a couple of posts on the fauna of Cambodia (and there's more to come...) but, this time, it's the turn of the flora. Being tropical, Cambodia doesn't really have a flower 'season' and different plants bloom throughout the year. That means that you never really get fields of blossoms but, on the other hand, there's usually something stunningly lovely just around the next corner.

For those of you who love the beasts, there are a couple to be found in amongst the flowers...



The water lilies are among the most spectacular flowers here, and can be found just about everywhere. They're sometimes a bit difficult to get up to for a close-up shot, though.



The bloom below isn't a flower: it's a tree blossom.



Just to upset any horticulturalists among you, the orchid below is a wild one. They're just weeds, really...



The flower below is to be found in the deeper reaches of the jungle and looks horribly like it's about to reach out and grab you. Fortunately, it's only a few inches across.



Of course, it's the flowers that are the reason for all the butterflies.



There are all sorts of different tree blossoms, and they're often quite large.



And this one below really needs to wait for the development of scratch-n-sniff internet before you can fully appreciate it. Sleeping near a bed of these is just heavenly.



There are even the most delightful little blooms among the undergrowth. Even the preview of this one is about twice real size.



For those who have struggled to get lilies to bloom in their gardens, they just grow wild here.



Some of the trees are simply stunning. Shame they're also full of spiders (before you wear your eyes out, there isn't one in this shot. As far as we know, anyway).



And you sometimes get extraordinary variety even in what seems to be a single plant.



And now we're running out of things to say, so just enjoy.

















Don't worry, the bugs will be back soon. And we've got some good ones!

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