7.05.2008



oh stenocereus thurberi!

What comes of having a very good monsoon season in the Sonoran Desert and a loving gardener (aka the husband?). Here are some photos from our backyard, for your examination.




The organ pipe cacti, particularly those which have become more pampered and domesticated, seem quite sensitive to extreme cold. Their deep green skins are seemingly softer, more tender and less leathery than perhaps, say, the saguaro.



The susceptible top tips of each “pipe” need to be covered with paper coffee cups in the winter chills (yes, it really does sometimes get down as low as 32 degrees in certain desert winter months), in order to see the gorgeous proliferation of flora once the warmer (100 degrees plus) temperatures arrive in mid summer.



Much like a huge satellite dish, the blossom sits atop each pipe, proportionally much larger than the body of this fascinating succulent. The floras appear waxy as buds and then expand into a massive white bloom whose petal texture explains the richness associated with silk flowers.



The blooms of the organ pipe cacti are particularly responsive to sunlight and temperature, proclaiming the opulence of life with each new morning in which they are privileged to exist.






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1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Nice to see the blog from here...