Kerala: Neelakurinji flowers bloom after 12 years in Idukki's Shantanpara Shalom; WATCH

With the onset of the monsoon season, the rich flora of Kerala’s Idukki is blossoming, under the misty weather. Idukki is renowned for its rich biodiversity. On Monday, it witnessed a beautiful sight of the blossoming of Neelakurinji flowers. The valley was swamped with beautiful blue flowers that blossom only once in 12 years. 

Rare blue flowers that blossom once in every 12 years

The Neelakurinji flowers, which are found in Idukki's Shalom Hills, also known as (Shalomkunnu) under the Shantanpara Shalom Hills, Panchayat, blooms once every 12 years. These flowers are the reason why Nilgiri Hills, are called Nilgiri. The hill has got its name from these blue flowers.

The scientific name of the blue flower is- Strobilanthes Kunthiana. In south India, it is known as Neelakurinji and Kurinji in Malayalam and Tamil. It is a famous shrub with cultural relevance. It is also found in the Shola forests of the Western Ghats in Kerala and Tamil Nadu.

 As per an ANI report, the Kurinji flowers have spread across 10 acres and have covered the Shalomkunnu area. Owing to the COVID-19 pandemic, these hills are not open for tourists to visit the place."This time owing to Covid, tourists are not allowed to visit the hills. The flowering of Neelakurinji known as Strobilanthes Kunthiana is special for people in Idukki. But along with it, efforts must be taken to conserve such rich biodiversity," said Binu Paul, a native who studies keenly on the biodiversity of Idukki.

The complete blossoming of these flowers after 12 long years comes after isolated flowering was reported last year from Anakara Mettu Hills of the Western Ghats bordering Tamil Nadu, Puttady near Thondimala and the border village of Shantanpara Shalom Hills, Gram Panchayat. Isolated flowering happens in various areas in the western ghats during different seasons. 

Why do Neelakurinji flowers only once in 12 years?

As per the information available on Kerala tourism’s website, Neelakurinji flowers are monocarpic and they only once in their lifetime, set seeds and die. The next generation of the plants are established from these seeds and the cycle is repeated. The time taken to mature varies in different species of Kurinjis. So different species of Kurinjis have different intervals of flowering. Neelakurinji matures in 12 years time and flowers gregariously every 12 years.

(With ANI inputs)
(Image: ANI)