🇮🇳 The flowers of India

261 pages from India: its flowers, the things made with them and the places to see them, across 60 cities and regions.

India’s flowering plants are among the most varied on Earth, with over 18,000 species thriving across its many climates. From Himalayan conifers to tropical rainforests and dry plains, each region supports its own mix of wildflowers and trees. India is also known for its wealth of medicinal plants and high number of unique native species.

India has over 18,000 species of flowering plants.
Eight main floristic regions divide the country’s plant life.
More than 3,000 species are used in traditional medicine.
The Andaman Islands are known for mangrove forests.
About 1,336 plant species are threatened by habitat loss.

The plant life of India

India’s plant life is shaped by its wide range of climates, from tropical to alpine. The country supports more than 18,000 species of flowering plants, making up a significant share of the world’s total. Forests cover about a fifth of the land, with broad-leaved deciduous trees like sal and teak common in many areas. Conifers such as pine and deodar grow in the high northern mountains, while tropical rainforests are found in the Andaman Islands, the Western Ghats, and the northeast. Each region’s unique conditions have led to a remarkable diversity of flowers and trees.

From region to region in India

The flora shifts dramatically from one part of India to another. The Himalayas are home to conifers and alpine flowers, while Assam and the northeast have evergreen forests. The Indus plain is drier, supporting tough, drought-resistant plants. Central and southern India feature dry forests dominated by teak, and the Deccan and western Gangetic plain have thorny vegetation. The Andaman Islands are noted for their mangroves and rainforests, and the Malabar region supports both lush woods and plantations.

Flowers to know in India

India is rich in endemic flowering plants, with many species found nowhere else. Sal and teak are two of the most widespread and important trees. Pines, junipers, and deodars are typical in the Himalayas. The country also has a long tradition of using over 3,000 plant species for medicine, and more than 800 are used by tribal communities. The Andaman Islands stand out for their unique mangrove species.

How flowers are used in India

Plants have been central to Indian life for centuries, especially as sources of traditional medicine. Thousands of species are officially recognized for their medicinal value, and many are still used by tribal groups. Plantation crops are important in regions like Malabar. Ethnobotanical research continues to document how people use native flowers and plants.

Threats and protection in India

Habitat loss threatens over 1,300 plant species in India, with about 20 possibly extinct. Conservation efforts include the publication of a Red Data Book by the Botanical Survey of India, which lists endangered plants. Forest cover remains below the national target, and protecting rare and endemic species is an ongoing concern.

Where this page comes from

The facts in this overview come from the Wikipedia article "Flora of India", written by its contributors and used under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence. Phool rewrote the text in its own words, with AI assistance, and compares every page with the article to make sure no passage is copied. It may be reused under the same CC BY-SA 4.0 licence with a link back.

Flower experiences in India

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🇮🇳 Mumbai · All yearDadar flower market at dawnMumbai's wholesale flower market beside Dadar station, at its busiest before the city has had breakfast.

🇮🇳 Kolkata · All yearMullick Ghat flower market under Howrah BridgeA crowded riverside flower market on the Hooghly, in the shadow of Howrah Bridge.

🇮🇳 Bengaluru · All yearKR Market flower hallBengaluru's old city market, where the flower floor is best seen from the stairs above.

🇮🇳 Chennai · All yearKoyambedu wholesale flower marketThe flower block of Chennai's vast Koyambedu wholesale complex, busiest before sunrise.

🇮🇳 Madurai · All yearMadurai malli at the Mattuthavani flower marketThe wholesale market that sets the daily price of Madurai malli, the jasmine the city is famous for. 🇮🇳 Delhi · All yearGhazipur phool mandiDelhi's wholesale flower market in the east of the city, where the capital's bouquets and garlands begin.

TulipTulipa Spring-blooming bulbs with showy, cup-shaped flowers in many colours 🇳🇱 Netherlands and 7 more · Wildflower

MarigoldTagetes A group of bright annual and perennial flowers known worldwide as marigolds 🇲🇽 Mexico and 7 more · Wildflower

ChampakMagnolia champaca A tall tree with fragrant yellow to orange flowers, prized in South and Southeast Asia 🇲🇲 Myanmar and 7 more · Flowering tree

Scarlet jungleflameIxora coccinea A dense evergreen shrub with year-round scarlet flower clusters 🇮🇳 India and 6 more · Flowering shrub

Aztec marigoldTagetes erecta The golden-yellow flower of Mexican altars and Day of the Dead offerings 🇲🇽 Mexico and 6 more · Wildflower

Kashmir IrisIris kashmiriana A fragrant iris from the western Himalaya, often planted on graves in Kashmir 🇮🇳 India and 4 more · Wildflower

White garland-lilyHedychium coronarium Tall, fragrant white flowers from the ginger family, grown and loved across continents 🇮🇳 India and 7 more · Wildflower

Arabian jasmineJasminum sambac A small white jasmine with a strong, sweet scent, treasured in Asia for garlands and ceremonies 🇨🇳 China and 7 more · Flowering shrub

Cleome houtteana Tall annual with pink, purple, or white flowers and long, whisker-like stamens 🇦🇷 Argentina and 5 more · Garden flower

Elegant zinniaZinnia elegans A bright annual garden flower from Mexico with many colourful forms 🇲🇽 Mexico and 5 more · Garden flower

Vandaवन्दाका A tropical orchid genus prized for its vivid, long-lasting flowers 🇮🇳 India and 5 more · Wildflower

Damask roseRosa × damascena A fragrant pink rose grown for oil, water, and sweets in West and South Asia 🇮🇷 Iran and 6 more · Garden flower

Common jasmineJasminum officinale A climbing plant with white, fragrant flowers grown in gardens and for perfume 🇵🇰 Pakistan and 7 more · Garden flower

Garden dahliaDahlia pinnata A showy perennial with pink to deep purple blooms, grown in gardens worldwide 🇲🇽 Mexico and 4 more · Garden flower

Golden wattleAcacia pycnantha Australia's national flower, with fluffy golden blooms and sickle-shaped phyllodes 🇦🇺 Australia and 7 more · Flowering tree

Madagascar periwinkleCatharanthus A pink-flowered herb from Madagascar used in medicine and gardens 🇲🇬 Madagascar and 2 more · Herb or useful flower

Boat orchidCymbidium A genus of long-lived orchids with boat-shaped lips, grown worldwide for their sprays of blooms 🇮🇳 India and 6 more · Orchid

Blanket FlowerGaillardia aristata A drought-tolerant wildflower with yellow and maroon daisy-like blooms 🇺🇸 United States and 6 more · Wildflower

Silver cock's combCelosia argentea A tropical annual with feathery, vivid flower spikes 🇨🇳 China and 4 more · Garden flower

Weeping bottlebrushMelaleuca viminalis A red-flowered Australian tree with weeping branches and bottlebrush blooms 🇦🇺 Australia and 5 more · Flowering tree

Photo credits on this page

The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.

Concrete (perfumery): Kurt Stüber [1], CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Blanket Flower: Alvesgaspar, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Weeping bottlebrush: Geoff Fox, CC BY 3.0, source
Champak: Francisco Manuel Blanco (O.S.A.), Public domain, source
Scarlet jungleflame: UpstateNYer, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Tulip: John O'Neill, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Marigold: Pohled 111, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Aztec marigold: HitroMilanese, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Lotus: Peripitus, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Kashmir Iris: Yercaud-elango, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
White garland-lily: Forest & Kim Starr, CC BY 3.0, source
Arabian jasmine: Taken by Fanghong, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Cleome houtteana: Wiki Farazi, CC0, source
Elegant zinnia: Simon Koopmann, CC BY-SA 2.0 de, source
Vanda: The original uploader was Lithiumscream at English Wikipedia ., Attribution, source
Common jasmine: Dinesh Valke, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
Garden dahlia: W. Bulach, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Golden wattle: Melburnian, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Madagascar periwinkle: J.M.Garg, CC BY 3.0, source
Boat orchid: Rohit Naniwadekar, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Silver cock's comb: Quadell ( talk ) ( Uploads ), CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Kr Market Bengaluru: Pp391, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Dadar Flower Market Mumbai: Swaminathan, CC BY 2.0, source
Mullick Ghat Flower Market Kolkata: Pradip paswan, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Koyambedu Flower Market Chennai: Sudhamshu Hebbar, CC BY 2.0, source
Madurai Jasmine Market: எஸ்ஸார், CC BY-SA 3.0, source