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Fragrant shrub
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With a little care, Clerodendron fragrans bears sweet-smelling flowers
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EVEN IF you have just a single Madras malli (Clerodendron fragrans) shrub in your home, its flowers will spread their fragrance to the entire neighbourhood. That's the specialty of these pink-tinged white flowers that grow in a cluster.
Belonging to the family Verbenaceae, Clerodendron has 70 species of ornamental plants, all of which have terminal panicles (flower head at the end of a stalk). The flowers have extended stamens and style and comprise five parts.
The shrubs have a lot of lush green foliage and the flower head nestles in between the leaves, with individual flowers taking turns to bloom. Each bloom stays up to three days before withering. The flower head throws up flowers for a fortnight before another takes its place.
Easy propagation
In South India, flowering is profuse in January and February. A few late bloomers stay on, but wind up by mid-March, when they start looking like any plant with big leaves.
Propagation is very easy. All you need to do is take cuttings of the stem or side branches, insert them in soil and water at regular intervals. Very rarely, the Clerodendron also puts out seeds.
The shrub, which can spread out when planted on the ground, can also be trimmed without harming its flowering, making it an ideal potted plant.
Spray soap water
Clerodendron also has its share of bugs, especially the mealy bug. Get rid of the bugs by spraying soap water or an insecticide. Re-pot the plants once they have grown a few inches.
Clerodendron is also called Honolulu rose or witches tongue. One problem common to this plant is that it puts out numerous roots, taking over the garden over a period of time. So, prune the sides at regular intervals.
Clerodendrons can look jaded once the flowering season is over. So, ideally, plant them behind plants that maintain a low profile or at the rear of a border. That way, their flowers are best displayed and the bare stems don't show.
SUBHA J RAO
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