GREEN Craftivist

What plants made your garden look vibrant and alive during the hot summer days? March to May are summer months or hot dry season in the Philippines when temperatures rise from 30 degrees Celsius or higher.  It is not an ideal time to start growing a new plant but it is bloom time for some flowering plants and fruit-bearing trees that can withstand the scorching heat of the sun. BOUGAINVILLEA Bougainvillea flowers signal the onset of the dry season.  Classified as a thorny vine, the bougainvillea plant comes in different colors of red, pink, yellow, violet, white or a combination of white and pink among others. Bougainvillea plants can be expensive depending on the extent of its growth and variety, and yet they are very easy to source and grow from stem cuttings. For a start, you can buy a small pot of the plant and cut one or two stems for planting. Take a walk in the park or around the neighborhood and you may chance upon someone trimming their bougainvillea. A visit to the m...

Have you heard about blue tea?  Blue tea comes from the flowers of Clitoria Ternate plant also known as Butterfly Pea. The blue color is retained even after drying of the flowers and can change to dark violet when mixed with lemon, lime or calamansi.  What's in the Blue Tea? The growing demand for blue tea came as a result of studies indicating its beneficial effects to health when taken on a regular basis. This includes the prevention of memory loss, cancer and inflammation, lowering blood pressure and promotion of good skin and digestion among others. Just seeing the blue color of the tea already creates a feeling of peace and slows you down from the usual hurried pace - a classic example of the psychological effects of cool colors affecting and changing  one's mood for the day. Blue tea can give a feeling of relaxation after a hard day’s work and can bring you to a good night's sleep. How to Make Blue Tea You can make Blue tea out of the blue flowers in two ways. FRE...