The Bouganvilla- the hardy creeper plant of all weather

Greetings
In the early 1980s I was on Tour of Gujarat Ports doing a series of  "On Location"  Training programes-
We used to travel all across to branches from Kandla to Jamnagar, Verawal Porbander- .In some place the local office would provide us with a local tour in the evenings and two  such were the famed Temple of  Dwarka  and the Somnath Temple.At Dwarka I had a surprise that I have always recalled-
In keeping with  traditions taught, I asked the temple shopkeeper  for flowers and Tulasi- He looked at me quite incredulous and asked : Kahan se ayee Bhai Saab (Where are you from ? ).
Finally I went to a nearby shop and received the Flowers viz,-A few sprigs of Bougainvilla as they were the only Flowers re sold there ..at least at that time!!

Then as I reflected--I recalled the great statement of Srimad Bhagavad Gita: 

What ever you offer; "Pushpam, Patram Phalan Toyan"---offer with Pure Bhakti and all  Heart.

 In Bloom -at  entrance to our " Mahalakshmi"- house-

So it is with Bougainvilla- as I have the Blooms in my garden -pic taken at Vasant Panchami time 2011.
Mother Nature really smiles to us in this season -Vasant -ritu

 

Some gems from Sri Ishwaranand Giri Maharaj , Samvit Ashram, Mt. Abu   

quote from “Autumn Leaves”

v      In the Samvit (Spiritual) view point, the entire creation, every pulse of life is a revelation of the self.  India has 6 Seasons (Northern Part especially).Vasant (Spring) and Sharad (Autumn) are considered the “Eyes” of Time (Kaala) – Sparkling eyes, beautiful and expressive and are the Seasons of flowers  and the new upsurge of life;  the former follows winter and the latter the season of rain. But Vasanta is considered as the King of Seasons.

Unquote

      Vasant Panchami announces the arrival of  spring season in the Hindu calendar 
During Vasant Panchami, the arrival  of spring is seen and felt in the air as the season undergoes much change. Everything is green and fresh with all vivid colours -Nature Smiles on us.       
     New leaves and blossoms appear in the trees with the promise of new life and hope.Some trees bear fruit only once a year and February is the time to see this -
      A Tree Tour orWalk of 2-4 hours  is highly recommended anywhere in India.  

Try it please--

Rgds
TR
Details of Bougainvilla from sites:

The tree that derived from the family of `Nactaginaceae` and quite famous as a garden tree is named as the `Bougainvillea Tree`. It is also called as `Paper Flower` in English. This tree is one of the most prominent and colourful features of Eastern gardens. They can make marvelous boundary hedges and fences. People clipped the tree to suitable dimensions and they also make perfect pot plants by the tree. They are a beautiful sight over an arch or spectator area.
http://www.indianetzone.com/5/bougainvillea_tree.htm

Their colours vary from magenta and purple to crimson. They can also take the colours of brick red, pale pink, salmon and yellow. A white variety has recently been found in India. 

The tones of the magenta varieties are rather clamorous. They are suitable enough to clash with other flowers and remain at their best against a background of green, or even better against a clear blue sky. The segments of the tree that we think to be the flowers are in fact trios of bright coloured bracts that surround the true flowers. These flowers usually stay in threes. They are small and like tubes in shape. Each of them partly adheres to the base of a bract. The long and ridged calyx tube is greenish or cream-coloured. It is often traced with the colour of the bracts and opens at the end into a little, ruffled flower. The flower is either white or yellow in colour.