Kolambi poo

Kolambi in Malayalam means vessel used to spit. Earlier 'Vettila murukku' was a routine in life style of Kerala. Vettila(beetle leaves), Arecanut and pukayila are the main items. A vessel for spitting was necessary in that time. Kings and other eminent personalities have servants to take their Kolambis. The flower is in the shape of that vessel. That may be the reason for that name. During Onam this flower is widely used in flower arrangements. In 'Athapoo' floral decoration in the courtyard during Onam to welcome the great king Mahabali we used to put 'Kuda' in the midst of the Pookkalam. Kuda is made of flowers, flowers will be arranged in an 'eerkili'. This 'eerkili' will put straight on a banana stem fixed at the centre of the pookkalam. There will be a lot of 'kudas' in one pookkalam. Kolambi flowers and chembarathi(hibiscus) are mostly used to make 'kuda' for atha pookkalam. In that days Kolambi flowers are mostly seen in waste lands or in play grounds. But now they are the main ingredient of gardens. We used to pluck these flowers from small shrubs.
Now 'Vettila murukku' was replaced by Pans. We can see small pan stores even in front of schools.