Pincushion protea flowers pictures.

 This flower is known as Leucospermum in the scientific world. It is part of the Proteaceae family. In addition, this family of plants has over 100 species. This diverse family includes trees, and shrubs. Moreover, majority of these species can be found in South Africa. The climate there is perfect to grow these delicate and intricate flowers. Since they are highly utilized in flower arrangements, many cultivate this plant all year round for steady supply. Even though certain species bloom on a particular season, there are still others species to choose from.

 The Pincushion Protea is a very unique plant having distinctive flowers. Special care must be given to them in order to maintain their elegance. The most important part of their care regimen is regularly changing their water. Also, removing foliage that has been soaked in water is imperative. It is also a god idea to cut off around half of an inch from the stem�s tip every time you change water. Cut the tip under water for best results. Conditioning of the flowers is best achieved by incorporating floral preservatives and floral food before it is used in arrangements or before it is stored.

This very special plant requires special attention. Without the right care, the Pincushion Protea will lose it appeal. But more than that, its health will deteriorate and die. Providing them with their basic requirements not only makes them beautiful, it also ensures their survival.

 Greek legend tells us that protea were named after Proteus, the son of Poseidon. A sea god who had the power to know all things past, present and future, Proteus was defiant and preferred to nap on the island of Pharos rather than prophesize. To deter those seeking his insights, he would change his shape at will, and it said that the protea flower was named after him because it,     

 Pincushion Protea is actually a Leucospermum that is closely related to the popular "Safari Sunset" which is used as a green. The floral industry has adopted the name "Pincushion Protea" for this wonderfully exotic flower. Shelf life of this exotic mass flower is exceptional... ranging between 2 to 3 weeks. Pincushion Protea can be safely kept in the cooler with other flowers providing the temperature is at or above 36 degrees.
In their natural South African habitat, the seeds produced by the Pincushion Protea are gathered up by ants and buried in the soil.  Only after a fire has killed the overgrowing plants, and returned their nutrients to the soil, do the seeds germinate to produce more of these spectacular blooms!

The majority of proteas flower in spring and summer, with fewest species flowering in autumn. This pattern may relate to the abundance of pollinators, optimal conditions for nectar secretion, or the need for myrmecochorous species to synchronize seed release to the season of maximum ant activity.A feature of protea pollination is that pollen is deposited by the anthers onto a modified tip of the style (called the pollen presenter). Flowers usually remain closed until triggered by a visiting bird, mammal or insect, when they snap open releasing the style which rubs pollen onto the visitor. If no visitors arrive, flowers may open during the heat of day (or late afternoon in mouse-pollinated species). Pollen falls off the pollen presenter after a few hours of exposure to air.

The stigmatic grooves of proteas are closed when flowers open, but open maximally after 24 to 36 hours. The stigma is then ready to receive pollen brought by visitors. Thus proteas are protandrous: the male organs mature before the female and prevent self-pollination. Most Protea species seem incapable of self-pollination (i.e. are self-incompatible), although certain Serruria and Leucospermum species do set seed when pollinated with pollen from the same plant. Dioecious proteas (i.e. Leucadendron and Aulax with separate sexes) are obviously unable to pollinate themselves.

Flower-heads may remain open for a few days up to several weeks. Flowers almost always open from the outside towards the middle of a flowerhead. However, when flowerheads are grouped into conflorescences, inner heads may open before the outer.

There are four main syndromes of pollination in our proteas:

1. Rodent pollination: Several species of gerbils, mice, rats and shrews visit flower-heads of some Protea species and Hook Pincushions. Rodents are attracted by a strong musty odour, and a reward of syrupy sugar which is secreted in large quantities. In order to prevent birds and insects from stealing this nectar, rodent-pollinated (therophilous) proteas have inconspicuous brown or black involucral bracts. Flower-heads are usually hidden inside the bush at ground level, where they are accessible to rodents. The insides of the involucral bracts may be pale white and the tips of the flowers may be shiny red - both serve to guide the rodent to the nectar in the dark. The nectar is contained within the tepal tube, and the distance between the pollen presenter and the nectar is the same as the length of the rodents snout (about 10 mm) allowing pollen to be deposited on the head. The nectar is rich in cane sugar (sucrose). Since most therophilous proteas flower in spring, nectar is available during the rodents' breeding period.
2. Bird pollination: In contrast to therophily, flower-heads of bird-pollinated (ornithophilous) proteas are often brightly coloured. Many Mimetes, Protea and Leucospermum species are ornithophilous. Because bird and human vision is similar, ornithophilous flowerheads are aesthetically pleasing to us. The bright red, orange, yellow, green and pink colouring on involucral bracts and styles serve as visual attraction. The colours are relatively inconspicuous to many insects which cannot see red and orange. Since birds do not rely on smell, ornithophilous proteas have little odour. A perch may be provided by stems, unopened florets, and awns, whereas, in some species, birds have to sit on the ground. Copious quantities of easily digested glucose-rich (fruit sugar) nectar are secreted. The most important bird visitors are the Sugarbirds, which can truly be considered Protea-birds, and the Sunbirds.
3. Insect pollination: Many of the "bird-pollinated" proteas are visited by large numbers of beetles - up to 2000 insects may occur in a single flower-head. Among the most important of these are the Scarab Beetles (Scarabaeoidea: e.g. Protea Beetle Trichostetha fascicularis and Monkey Beetles) and Rover (Staphylinid) beetles. The relative importance of birds and insects in pollinating these species is unknown. Although insects in Protea flower-heads often end up as bird-food, they adequately pollinate flowers when birds are absent. Another feature of "bird-pollinated" proteas is the occurrence of thousands of itch mites (Proctolaelaps vandenbergi) in flower-heads. These mites are phoresic (transported) on birds and beetles and feed on nectar and pollen. Although absent on young flower-heads, mature Protea flower-heads may contain over 6000 breeding mites. Whether these mites might play a role in pollination is not known. Because bird-pollinated flower-heads are relatively odourless itch mites may provide endless entertainment: merely watch the reactions of someone smelling a bird-pollinated Protea flower-head too closely! However, certain proteas are exclusively visited by insects: Smaller Protea (the Shale Proteas) and Leucospermum species are insect pollinated, mainly by bees and wasps; Leucadendron species are visted by a number of beetles; and most of the smaller genera are visited by a variety of beetles, flies and wasps. These species can usually be distinguished by their production of sweet, spicy or sour odours, and relatively meagre production of nectar. They tend to be pink, cream or yellow in colour, and are usually considerably smaller in size than bird-pollinated species.
4. Wind pollination: There are only 10 wind-pollinated proteas in southern Africa: all are Leucadendron species. These are characterized by not secreting nectar - most do not even have nectaries - and being odourless. The females have large stigmas for filtering pollen out of the air. In the males the pollen does not adhere to the pollen presenter, but is scattered in large showers on opening, from whence it drifts in the wind.

Mini carnation flowers pictures.

Common Name: Miniature Carnation, Mini Carnation, Minicarn

Botanical Name: Dianthus caryophyllus (dy-AN-thus ka-ree-AHF-i-lus)

Decorative Life: 7-21 days.

• This species almost always responds well to under water cutting. Water stress symptoms are often hidden even though the flowers are being damaged. Should be treated with an anti-ethylene product such as STS or MCP. Results of these treatments are often variable because flowers are of differing ages on one stem.
• Cycloheximide is an antibiotic that works by inhibiting protein synthesis. It also happens to extend the life of carnations and other flowers like iris. Unfortunately, cycloheximide is not available for use in the floral industry and is only mentioned here in hopes that it will stimulate someone into finding a similar protein synthesis inhibitor that could be used by growers and/or florists.

Harvest Instructions: Harvested flowers are graded, mostly by size. Miura et al. (2000) showed that lower grade (smaller) flower bunches generally did not last as long as higher grades with the most likely reason being that the smaller stems in the lower grades have less stored food at the time of harvest. Preharvest factors like greenhouse covering (glass is better), plant age (older is better), cultivar and time of year (fall is best) all can have significant effects on postharvest flower life. Red colored flowers can be 20F warmer than white colored ones when both are exposed to direct sunlight.

Family Roots:

• Member of the Caryophyllaceae (pink family).
• Native from Southern Europe to India.
• Common relatives include baby's breath, lychnis, silene and sweet William.

Personality:

• Flowers up to 1 inch in diameter.
• Usually grown as a spray where several flowers occur on branched stems.
• Plant is classed as a dicotyledon, leaves not parallel veined.
• Some cultivars have a clove-like fragrance.

Availability: Year-round.

Flower Color: White, pink, red, yellow, salmon, bicolor, frosted.

Storage Specifics: Bud-harvested flowers can be stored for up to 4 months at 31-33 F. Normal storage is best at 32-34 degrees F. Flowers should be treated with STS, MCP, AOA, or AVG propr to storage.

Tidbits:

• Ingestion may cause minor illness, frequent handling may cause dermatitis, calyx splitting is an occasional problem.
• The name carnation is from the Latin "carnis" meaning flesh, alluding to the pale pink color of the flower. In Greek Dianthus means the flower of Jove.
• Carnations are said to have sprung up from the tears of Mary as she made her way to Calvary. The pink carnation became the symbol of mother-love and of Mother's Day, created in 1907 in Philadelphia.
• The scientific name is from the Greek "dios" (divine) and "anthos" (flower).
• Carnations are graded according to stem length and flower number for spray types. While they seemingly never wilt, they do suffer from water stress with a resulting increase in ethylene sensitivity and/or production and the damage induced by this gas.

Recent Findings: While genetic engineering claims all of the headlines, Onozaki et al. (2001) showed that time-tested plant breeding activities resulted in less ethylene sensitive cultivars that have about twice the vaselife of traditional ones. Schade et al. (2001) found that flower fragrance levels were higher when flowers died naturally compared to those that died prematurely due to ethylene. Byun and Kim (1998) showed that the tighter the flowers are harvested, the higher the sugar level should be in the opening solution and the higher the light levels in the opening room. Verlinden and Garcia (2004) showed that treating carnations with 2 or 5% sucrose continuously or with a 10% pulse treatment for 24 hours increased flower life, decreased ethylene production and decreased flower sensitivity to ethylene.

Red ginger flowers pictures. ALPINIA

The Red Ginger Alpinia purpurata is also called Ostrich Plume. The attractive bright red bracts contain small, insignificant , white flowers. The Red Ginger is the native of Malaysia and the national flower of Samoa. After the flowers have been pollinated, small plant lets appear at the end of the bract. The stem slowly bows and reaches the ground, where the baby plants take root. Alpinias are very showy and fragrant flowers, which are botanically an inflorescence forming a gigantic ball of flowers. Alpinia can be found in colors from light pinks to deep reds. Alpinias are originally from Malaya, and found throughout the tropical Pacific region.

Kingdom

Plantae

Division

Magnoliophyta

Class

Liliopsida

Order

Zingiberales

Family

Zingiberaceae

Genus

Alpinia

Alpinia or Tahitian Ginger has tubular flowers in droopy clusters. Alpinia plant does not produce flowers for the first 3 years, but when they grow, they show huge football sized flowers, blooming all year around.

Varieties of alpinia include Alpinia Purpurata (Red), Alpinia Purpurata (Pink), Alpinia Purpurata ?Jungle King? (Red), Alpinia Purpurata ?Jungle Queen? (Pink), Alpinia Purpurata ?Kimi Ginger?, Alpinia Purpurata ?Tomi Pink?, Alpinia Zerumbet, Alpinia Coerulea ?Blue Berry Ginger?, ?Hanging Pink?, 

• Flower arrangements.
• Alpinias have gorgeous leaves with a striking tropical look. These leaves are very popularly used as a foliage in floral arrangements.
• An alpinia plant can reach up to 15 feet tall, but usually they are 6-7 feet.
• One of the features of Alpinia plant is that the new plants grow in the middle the old flowers, which weigh the flowers down to the ground.
• Alpinia flowers tolerates long distance shipping and lasts longer.
• Alpinia flowers are primarily pollinated by bees.

Growing Alpinias

Alpinias can be propagated by rhizomes, tubers, corms or bulbs (including offsets).

• Alpinias prefer bright, indirect light or filtered sun.
• Alpinias require moist soil.
• Alpinias should be planted with 2 feet apart.
• For the best growth, see that the minimum temperature for the plant is 68 F.
• Feed the alpinia plant with a balanced water soluble fertilizer after flowering.
• Alpinias are not susceptible to serious insect or disease problems. Hence, alpinias are easy to be grown and taken care of.

Caring Alpinias

• Alpinias need Rich, fertile, organic soil. See that the soil is not soggy.
• Give alpinias a regular feeding.
• Pruning the plant is necessary, as it controls the size of the plant.