Hand-painted scientific illustrations compiled in a booklet, which presents two species of variegated plants–Codiaeum variegatum and Cordyline fruticosa–and all that lives and breathes on and around them. The illustrations were painted by looking at actual specimens as a part of a college course called 'Botanical Folio' in 2015. Layout and typography were kept minimal.
Variegation is both the absence and presence of pigments – absence of green, and presence of other pigments from one or more chemicals responsible for photosynthesis. Sometimes, it is just air filled between the epidermis and chlorophyll-containing cells, and the visible colours are play of light!
Besides being ornamental and appealing to the eye, there is a whole ecosystem that exists around these plants as the colourful magnificence of these leaves attracts various visitors, even as the flowers fail to match their vibrancy. A chain of life-forms builds around them in view of the food web. While some take refuge in these plants, others serve them while performing necessary bodily functions. An adult lacewing is a carrier of pollens while the young larvae prey on mites and small insects.
Besides being ornamental and appealing to the eye, there is a whole ecosystem that exists around these plants as the colourful magnificence of these leaves attracts various visitors, even as the flowers fail to match their vibrancy. A chain of life-forms builds around them in view of the food web. While some take refuge in these plants, others serve them while performing necessary bodily functions. An adult lacewing is a carrier of pollens while the young larvae prey on mites and small insects.
PLANT 1: Codiaeum variegatum
Variant 1 in the leaf
Variant 2 in the leaf
Fauna around/on the plant
PLANT 2: Cordyline fruticosa
Flora and fauna on the plant
Flower of Cordyline fruticosa and its different parts (left); flora and fauna on the plant(right)
