Nature Trivia | 100 facts & trivia about plants and flowers (part 3)

Plants and flowers are really beautiful, and nice, and sometimes they even have some “magical” and healing powers.

If you want to learn more about them, read part 1 and part 2. Otherwise, keep on reading and dive into their amazing world!

1. The gardenia flower is the national flower of Pakistan.
2. The gardenia was named after Dr. Alexander Garden.
3. He was a famous botanist, who was also a zoologist and physician.
4. The fruit of the gardenia is sometimes used in Chinese medicine.
5. If water touches gardenia flowers, the flowers will turn a coffee-colored brown.
6. Flowers of the gardenia are typically white or pale yellow.
7. grow between 1-15 meters (3.3-49 feet) tall.
8. 142 species have been discovered in the gardenia family.
9. Gardenia is native to Africa, Australasia and Oceania tropics.
10. Gardenias belong to the coffee plant family, ‘Rubiaceae’.
11. Gardenia flowers have a strong, pretty, sweet smell, often used to create expensive fragrances.
12. The cactus is a type of plant called a succulent., which means that it can store water in its stems, roots, and leaves.
13. So, even if it doesn’t rain for a long time, the cactus still has water saved up to help it grow.
14. Cactus can live over a year without rain.
15. There are about 2000 types of cacti, and they come in different shapes, sizes, and colors.
16. Green may be the most common color for cacti, but they can also be bluish or brown-green.
17. Some cactus plants are very round, and others are flat like a pancake.
18. The largest type of cacti can grow to be 66 feet tall
19. Also, it weighs up to 4800 pounds. That’s as heavy as a car!
20. Cactus grows… flowers!
21. Cactus flowers can be yellow, red, pink, white, orange, or blue.
22. Some cactus flowers bloom for only a day, while others last for weeks.
23. Many of these flowers are nocturnal, meaning they bloom only at night.
24. The cactus plant has spines instead of leaves, and these spines help the cactus plant survive.
25. Most cacti grow in the desert or in very dry areas because they like dry, rocky soil.
26. However, some cactus plants have been found in the rainforest.
27. They have been also found in northern countries like Canada.
28. Cacti the flowers are blooming between the months of March and May.
29. Petunias are ornamental plants that have showy flowers, that attract insects and hummingbirds.
30. There are 35 species in the Petunia genus and they belong to the same family with tomatoes, potatoes, tobacco, and eggplants.
31. Petunias are commonly hybrid annuals, with many different sizes and forms and some will flower all year.
32. Petunias are native to South America and are best grown in tropical areas.
33. Petunias are available in two main types, ‘grandiflora’ and ‘multiflora’, with grandifloras having larger but fewer flowers, and mulitfloras having plentiful but smaller flowers, and millifloras are also available which are mini plants with mini flowers.
34. The word ‘Petunia’ is from a native South American word ‘petun’.
35. It is actually the name for ‘tobacco, of which it is a close relative.
36. Petunia plants range from 15 cm (6 inches) up to 120 centimeters (4 ft) in height and are generally grown from seed.
37. Petunias flowers can be white, yellow, pink, purple, red and blue in color, as well as bicolor, and can be used as cut flowers.
38. Petunia flowers can have flowers as large as 10 cm (4 inches) in diameter, and they have five-lobed petals, with varieties including double flowers and ruffled petals.
39. Petunias can be grown in the garden or in pots, and prefer sunny conditions, and to keep them flowering, dead flowers should be removed regularly.
40. Carnation is also called grenadine or clove pink.
41. It is probably native to the Mediterranean region but its exact range is unknown.
42. It is extensively cultivated for the last 2,000 years.
43. The carnation is an herbaceous perennial plant.
44. It grows up to 80 centimeters.
45. Carnations are among the most popular commercial cut flowers, being used in floral arrangements, corsages, and boutonnieres.
46. All carnations symbolize love and affection, the color of the flower also carries meaning.
47. Red is for deep Love and Admiration.
48. White is for pure Love and Good Luck.
49. Pink is for Mother’s Love.
50. Yellow is for disappointment or Rejection.
51. Purple is for capriciousness.
52. Striped is for rejection or Regret.
53. According to a Christian legend, carnations first appeared on Earth as Jesus carried the Cross.
54. In South Korea, ed and pink carnations are used by children for showing their love and gratitude toward their parents on Parents Day.
55. In France, it is a traditional funeral flower, given in condolence for the death of a loved one
56. At Oxford University, carnations are traditionally worn for all examinations.
57. White for the first exam, pink for exams in between, and a red for the last exam.
58. The carnation is the national flower of Spain, Monaco, and Slovenia.
59. It is also the state flower of Ohio.
60. It is also the birth flower for those who were born in January.
61. Queen of the Night is a species of tropical flowering cactus native to forests in Mexico.
62. The plant can also be found further south in Central and South America.
63. The ‘Queen of the Night’ is also known as ‘Dutchman’s pipe cactus’, ‘fragrant orchid cactus’, ‘lady of the night’, and ‘night-blooming cereus’, though the latter term can refer to a number of different plant species.
64. The scientific name of the Queen of the Night is Epiphyllum oxypetalum and it belongs to the family of cacti.
65. Queen of the Nights typically has large white-colored flowers that are usually 12 to 17 centimeters (5 to 7 inches) in diameter.
66. They bloom in summer.
67. Each flower of the Queen of the Night usually opens during the evening, and will typically last until dawn, after which it is spent, though it can produce many flowers over a season.
68. Queen of the Nights appear to have green ‘leaves’, but rather they are flattened stems that can grow quite long, with a plant height of 2 to 3 meters (6.6 to 9.8 feet).
69. For optimal growing and flowering conditions, Queen of the Night plants are best grown in a spot where they catch the morning sun and are shaded in the afternoon.
70. The flowers of Queen of the Night plants have a strong, sweet-smelling fragrance.
71. The flowers can be picked at night and brought inside to enjoy their perfume.
72. Queen of the Night plants is commonly grown ornamentally.
73. Also, they can be manipulated to climb or can be grown in hanging baskets.
74. New plants of Queen of the Night are easily propagated from cuttings that can be taken from the stem, and planted in soil.
75. The beautiful water lily is an aquatic plant.
76. It is usually recognized by its unique shapes of leaves, eye-catching blossoms, and fragrances.
77. These flowers are highly symmetrical and display white or pink petal flowers.
78. The colors of the flowers also vary in different types of flowers.
79. The flower bloom over a heart-shaped leaf.
80. The leaves are usually glossy and green.
81. They grow from large rhizomes and are spongy and soft.
82. The small flowers have small leaves except for one type of dwarf lilies which has its eaves bigger than its size of flowers.
83. The vigorous lilies have very huge eaves that are turned up at the corners.
84. Pansy flowers are edible.
85. They are mostly used for cake decorating and cocktail garnishes.
86. for cake decorating and cocktail garnishes, and natural dyes.
87. In Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream, the juice of a pansy was used in a love potion, referencing the Ancient Greeks’ and Celts’ use of the flower in herbal remedies and love potions.
88. Both Laertes and Ophelia mention pansies in Hamlet.
89. In general, pansies are known as a symbol of love and loving thoughts.
90. Pansy varieties have flowers in one of three color patterns.
91. There are pansies with single colors without patterns—these are often yellow or blue.
92. Another basic pattern has black lines radiating from the center.
93. The last type is the most well-known and complex—dark splotches from the center create a face-like appearance, and these varieties are often tri-colored.
94. Pansies don’t always have a scent.
95. Yellow and blue pansies seem to have the strongest scent.
96. The legendary Knights of the Round Table looked for omens and signs in the petals of pansies.
97. If a pansy petal had four lines, there was hope for the future.
98. If the lines leaned to the left, someone’s life was at risk.
99. Line thickness, leaning, and number all had different meanings that supposedly foretold the future.
100. Pansy is the birth flower of the people who are born in February.