The Blue Mountain

“Away, away, from men and towns,

To the wild wood and the downs-

To the silent wilderness

Where the soul need not repress

Its music, lest it should not find

An echo in another’s mind,

While the touch of Nature’s art

Harmonizes heart to heart.”

          (The Invitation-P.B.Shelley) 

The Nilgiris or the Blue Mountains, spreading across the three states of Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Karnataka, are an extension of one of the oldest mountain ranges, the Western Ghats. Its peaks and mountain tops seek refuge behind the blue sky as they continue an incessant game of ‘I spy’ with mortal eyes, along with their faithful accomplices, the mists and the clouds, which keep rolling in and out from nowhere. No wonder the mountain tops take on a grayish-bluish hue at any time of the day in this eternal game of hide- and- seek.  Besides, every twelve years in the summer months, the Neelakuranjis or the purple wild flowers bloom on its slopes and that is when the entire mountain appears swathed in blue.

Pine Forest

While going up its winding slopes from the foothills, our attention is drawn to the endless flora and fauna which have found their homes in the Blue Mountain. The Bandipur, Mudumalai,  Nagarhole and Wayanad National Parks are all part of the Nilgiri Biosphere  which is known for its semi -evergreen, dry and moist deciduous trees- teak, Indian kino , gooseberry, rosewood, sandalwood,  axlewood,  and eucalyptus trees  interspersed with clumps of bamboos and acacia, and grasslands or sholas. Two well known flowering trees, the Flame of the Forest and the Golden Shower, along with the wild lantana shrubs are found in abundance. In full bloom, they can turn the entire forest crimson and gold.

Wild Lantana

African Sausage Tree

In the forests of Bandipur, two trees stand out- the leopard tree and the crocodile trunk tree. The leopard tree or axlewood, which seems to be very common and is locally referred to as dindal , provides the perfect hideout for the predator. The sole leopard, we spotted, was found resting on one of its branches. This leopardess, along with her two cubs, had chosen this tree near the local water tank as her temporary home on the outskirts of the Bandipore Tiger Reserve. The mother was zoomed in by our guide through powerful binoculars.  The cubs, however, were so well hidden by  over-protective maternal instincts that even the local people, living on the periphery of the forest, who had spotted the mother on  multiple occasions,  had not been able to lay eyes on them. Her spots merged so well with the mottled bark of the tree trunk and were perfectly concealed by the round edged green-brown leaves that she was truly invisible to the naked human eyes and could be spotted only through zooming lens. Every part of this tree, from its wood, bark, leaf and fruit, is useful to the inhabitants of this forest, both human and animals.

Peek-a-boo: Crocodile Trunk Tree & The King
Courtsey Nithin Nirmal

The Indian Laurel, commonly called crocodile bark tree or matti , has a bark that, as the name implies, looks just like the skin of a crocodile. The trunk of this tree is supposed to be fire resistant as it can store water, and wild silkworms which spin ‘tussar’ for us feast on its leaves. A third tree that seems worth mentioning is the African Sausage tree whose fruits dangle like massive ready- to- eat sausages!

Silver Oak

Leopard Tree and the Tusker

As we make our way up, the Nilgiri trees or eucalyptus (three types of oil are extracted from its green leaves, dried leaves and roots) give way to the cypress and pines. Eucalyptus is a tree that is considered to be economically beneficial but ecologically hazardous. It is a tree that was imported from Australia in the times of Tipu Sultan and first planted in his palace garden near Mysore. In fact, Tipu Sultan, has been attributed with bringing in lots of plants and trees from different parts of the world. The garden cities of Mysore and Bangalore owe many of their trees to this ruler from Srirangapatna. In the upper regions of Kotagiri, Coonoor and Ooty, the tea gardens which cover the mountain slopes like thick green carpets are a sight to behold. The silver oaks will always be found interspersed among the rows and rows of tea bushes. These trees are a must in tea gardens as they not only regulate the water content in the soil but also help in anchoring the same, and thereby, prevent landslides.

Agapanthus: Lily of the Nile

Bottle Brush Tree

Two places where we can find a great collection of flora from all over the world are the Botanical Gardens in Ooty and Sim’s Park in Coonoor. The gardens are very well maintained by the horticulture department and a paradise for the lovers of flowers and trees. One can spend hours in these gardens laid out in steps and inside the glasshouses for different species of season flowers, orchids, ferns, succulents and cacti. The moment you enter, you are greeted by a host of red salvias which skirt the perfectly maintained lawns. All around are the blue, pink and white hydrangeas, the sempervivums which are colloquially referred to as “hens and chicks”, and the different species of flowering aeoniums and echeverias . Among the ones I liked best were the ball shaped clusters of blue and white tuberose like flowers known as agapanthus or the Lily of the Nile, the brightly coloured cinerarias and the bluish white and lilac rose like flowers called lisianthus. A bouquet of lisianthus carries a powerful message of gratitude and appreciation. In Tagore’s poems we hear him speak of rhododendrons and the camellias, both of which are to be found in these gardens.

Rudraksha Tree

Fossil Tree

For the first time here, I saw a fossil tree that was a 20 million years old. Among my other firsts were a Rudraksha tree, a turpentine tree and a swamp mahogany tree which stood out with its sheer size and magnificent black-brown trunk. But my favourites were the red bottlebrush tree, whose flowers indeed looked like bottle brushes, and the monkey puzzle tree, a native of South America and Australia. It is indeed a puzzle since the fruit of this tree is poison only for monkeys, so no monkey can ever be found around this tree. Another tree which you cannot miss in these gardens is the dragon tree, a native of the Canary Islands, with its reddish brown spiky sword-edged leaves. Possibly, a red resin extracted from its leaves and bark is used in making ‘dragon blood’ which has uses in traditional medicine, dyes, varnish and incense. As you walk around these gardens you can find innumerable species of birch, cedar, oak, conifers, willows, peepal or the sacred fig, and banyan.

Monkey Tree

Dragon Tree

Apart from the predators that we look out for in all our safaris, the Nilgiris and its surrounding forests are home to various species of fauna. Among them the ones we saw at close range were herds of chitals,  sambars, gaurs, elephants, grey langurs, the crested serpent eagles,  brown fish owls, painted storks, parakeets, peacocks , a monitor lizard and even a mongoose.

Matchstick Flower

Aeonium

Lastly, but certainly not the least , are the plethora of wildflowers growing on the mountain slopes, in the valleys, in the houses of the locals, hanging from the ledges and the boundary walls, winding their way up the hedges and shrubs , sprouting from every nook and corner, from every crack and crevice. Though these flowers have no names, they come in infinite varieties, shapes and in the brightest of hues- red, blue, yellow, pink, orange, purple. I raise a toast to these unknown, uncared, unnamed flowers which only exist to add to the beauty of the place and give joy to the passerby.

“Sweet Flower! for by that name at last

When all my reveries are past
I call thee, and to that cleave fast,
Sweet, silent Creature!
That breath’st with me in sun and air,
Do thou, as thou art wont, repair
My heart with gladness, and a share
Of thy meek nature!”

           (To The Daisy- W. Wordsworth)

DS