The gardens of Costa Rica are filled with many colorful tropical plants and flowers. Bougainvilleas (Bougainvillea species) are very common there, and quite a few of the flowers were this lovely lilac-pink color.

The flowers are not the only things that are colorful, the buildings often are as well. This is the Orquideas Inn in Alajuela, Costa Rica, where I stayed on my first night in the country.

Many different species of Heliconias are grown in Costa Rica, and these plants have a wild variety of exotic-looking tropical flowers. These Parakeet Flower or Parakeetflower (Heliconia psittacorum) below are quite attractive and can come in various colors.

Tropical Hibiscus (Hibiscus rosa-sinensis) shrubs are always a popular choice for tropical gardens because of their large, lovely flowers. Besides being beautiful, Tropical Hibiscus flowers are also popular with Costa Rica's many hummingbirds.

When backlit by the sun, the leaves of red-leaved Ti Plants (Cordyline terminalis) are at their most beautiful. Ti Plants are native mainly to the South Pacific and Hawaii, but ornamental varieties are grown in tropical gardens throughout the World.

Wildly colorful Garden Croton (Codiaeum variegatum) plants are common in Costa Rican Gardens. In non-tropical areas, Garden Crotons are commonly grown as houseplants. These brightly variegated plants are in the Spurge Family (Euphorbiaceae).

These beautiful Palicourea (Palicourea species) shrubs with their flame-like flowers are very popular with Sara Longwing (Heliconius Sara Theudela) butterflies. There are about 200 different species of Palicourea in the New World tropics.