CRIMSON IXORAAt a bus station in the Gulf lowlands, maybe in Ciudad Victoria, one hedge- producing plant drew attention by producing handsome clusters of bright red flowers, and it was a species I knew, for it also is much planted in the Yucatan. It was the Crimson Ixora, IXORA COCCINEA, of the opposite-leaved, inferior-ovaried Coffee Family, the Rubiaceae. You can see the pretty flowers below:
Though much planted in the tropics worldwide, this plant is from India and China. It's been grown in gardens for so long that several varieties have been produced, including a yellow-flowered one and one with much larger, fuller flowers. |
