Spring is in full swing, trees have turned green in the cities, flowers have blossomed and many ornamental plants are in bloom.
Residents of Ashgabat admire the amazing beauty of the trees, on the branches of which clusters of bright pink flowers bloomed. The people called these trees “Turkmen sakura”, but what is this amazing plant species actually called?
For clarification, GA correspondents went to the Botanical Garden of the Turkmen Agricultural University. S. A. Niyazov, where in these spring days there is a peak of flowering of various trees, and among them is the crimson - Griffith's cercis or "Judas tree". In Turkmenistan, the flowering of the purple rose occurs at the end of March, the beginning of April and lasts about a month.
The genus Cercis includes 7 main varieties. In our country, as well as in the territory of Central Asia, Griffith's crimson is common. However, thanks to scientific work and biological research in the Ashgabat Botanical Garden, one can also meet European cercis, Chinese cercis and introduced Canadian.
In the Botanical Garden, these plants have been planted and cultivated since 1937. Over the years, they continue to bloom profusely and delight with their beauty.
Violet-pink corollas are odorless, but they provide a large amount of nectar to bees and birds. Fruits in the form of bean pods remain on the tree throughout the year and serve as an additional decoration in autumn and winter.
Chinese cercis in the Ashgabat Botanical Garden blooms with white flowers. Corollas of white buds resemble small moths fluttering with every breath of wind.
An interesting fact is that the Arabs and Druze of Galilee eat cercis flowers for food, and also use them in folk medicine for problems with the liver and respiratory organs, for chronic rhinitis, eye infections, etc. Jam is made from cercis flowers and is even used in the preparation of some dishes.
Very soon, the flowering period of the cercis will end, so if you have not yet managed to capture this wonderful time on your smartphone camera, be sure to go for a walk in the city gardens.
