14 January 2012

Somebody's Whiskers!

It is called Cat Whiskers.
I featured this before. Click HERE.
It does not grow in our garden
but it grows profusely in our neighbor's
who told me he uses the leaves
to make his healing tea.
I was cautioned against this tea (taheebo)
because it is a diuretic and for people with kidney problems.
But I don't think I have kidney problems
and I am now careful at anything natural and organic
because some of them may do harm for your health!
Anyway, I prefer leaves from the malunggay (moringa)
because it has proteins and I get it fresh and free!
But I am featuring this taheebo plant again
because I was looking for white flowers
as a tribute to my alpha dog Sumo
who is celebrating his 12th birthday this Sunday!
Sumo was a gift from my Tito Sario (my late Mama's only brother and sibling) in 2000. All the litters were taken except Sumo who was all black. And when it was offered to us I immediately said "yes" justifying the decision to have another dog by saying that our other dog Pica was getting old (she was 9 then) and so were the cats (we were feeding stray ageing cats) . . . And in a year Sumo and Pica became a mate, producing 30 puppies in a span of 4 years which included the adorable Sweepy and the late Bogart!
This is such an interesting whiskers plant
and such a handsome and exotic one
much like my adorable black one with the whiskers!

Happy Birthday, Sumo!


Macro Flowers Saturday badge 1

22 comments:

Ann, Chen Jie Xue 陈洁雪 said...

In Malaysia ans Singapore, they use this to treat cancer.

The Chair Speaks said...

Happy Birthday Sumo! Purrs from all of us here.

CameraCruise said...

Beautiful shots!
Happy Birthday to Sumo!

Maia said...

Happy birthday to Sumo!
The the white whiskers are very pretty, especially when fully opened, in the last shot.

Modern Mom said...

They're lovely!


Pink Bougainvillea

Unknown said...

Beautiful photos. happy birthday Sumo!

Viola said...

Beautiful plants! And a funny name :))

HAPPY BIRTHDAY to SUMO!! =) ^^) from me and Pusa! (a little late, but..)
It was so nice to hear about the parents to Sumo! Of course I remember good Bogart! Do you have a picture of Pica?

Have a peaceful and great weekend to you and the 2 S's!! :))

Viola said...

Oh.. it is the coming Sunday his birthday!! I'll be back then!! :))))

Kim, USA said...

Hehe beautiful whiskers! ^_^

Orchid

Gattina said...

The last photo really shows cat whiskers, lol ! Never seen a flower like that !

Cecilia Artista said...

Beautiful flowers!
And Sumo is a beautiful dog! Happy birthday to him!

Luna Miranda said...

hugs to Sumo!
it's a beautiful flower---it reminds me of a flowering tree we once had that blooms in December.

SquirrelQueen said...

Happy Birthday to Sumo!
The beautiful white flower is a great way to celebrate. It does look like it has whiskers.

Kanak said...

The blooms look spectacular! Love your photos and I loved reading about your pets. Happy Birthday to Sumo!

Karen @ Pieces of Contentment said...

I can see why it's called Cat Whiskers!

Anonymous said...

lovely and informative post.

DeniseinVA said...

Happy Birthday Sumo! He's a handsome dog with a beautiful smile :) I also enjoyed your photos of Cat Whiskers. It's a very pretty and interesting plant. Have a great week my friend.

Jeanne said...

Dear Lui! Just stopping by to say that I love all of your flowers on todays post, especially this whiskers plant. What an interesting flower this is. Also, very happy birthday to your wonderful SUMO!!!

lotusleaf said...

Lovely flowers. Does it have a scent?
Happy birthday to Sumo.

Ann, Chen Jie Xue 陈洁雪 said...

I knew I had to investigate harder to find out the name.

Thank you Luna and Squirrel Queen. You gave me a name to research on. I am posting a new photo of a bush. I googled and perhaps it is a Bolivian Fuchsia. I was familiar only with the big body type which I used to grow. It is amazing how much we learn from our fellow bloggers. Taking walks in the neighbourhood becomes more interesting.

Thru Pink Curtains said...

i just love your web page, it is always so interesting, have a good week!

Andrea said...

Nice photos Lui, who is not dead yet, haha! I really smiled when i read your sidebar. I posted this flower too, it is common throughout the year in our country. But ours is not as lush because they thrive on neglect.