FLOWERS FOR ONAM POOKKALAM

FLOWERS USED FOR MAKING A POOKKALAM          

While preparing this article, my mind travelled back to the good old days of 1946-47, when we were staying in Cannanore, presently spelt as Kannur. I was a boy of 8 or 9 years. I and my friends in that small colony of 15 houses, got up at 5 O’Clock in the morning and carrying a bamboo basket around the beck, we ran to the other side of the railway tracks to the bushes where the plants bore a variety of flowers fit for a flower decoration, called pookkalam, in front of our houses. After a bath, we started to prepare the pookkalam. Mother kept a small ball of cow-dung in the middle of a circle and planted a pumpkin flower vertically on it. Then, we all placed different flowers around, like the picture given here. All the houses co-operated in completing the circles, exchanging flowers one another.

Pumpin flowers	Mookkutti flower	Jawanthi
Chendumalli flower	Kolambi flowers	Kanikkonna flowersNot blossoming during Onam
Kasithumba	Arali Poo Pink	Naalumani Poo
Chembarathi double colour	Chembarathi Red	Cemparathi
Aralipoo, White varuiety	Nithyakalyani	{ Chembarathy white
Thechipoo	Chethipoo	Mantharappoo
Pavazhamalli	Pichakam	Nandiyarvattai
Sanghupushpam White	Sanghupushpam Blue	Sampangi or Rathrani
Til flowers	Kanakambaram	Konkinippoo or Arippoo
Chembagam	Chembarathy 2 more types
Pookkalam	Kaikottikkali	Feast on plantain leaf