When we went shopping yesterday, I picked out two bunches of mini carnations and a spray of baby’s breath for accent. I like the two shades of pink against the green and white of the stems and little flowers. Click on the image to enlarge.
Home & Garden
Bishop’s Cap Bridal Bouquet
I have never seen this many open flowers on our Bishop’s Cap cactus. My first thought was that the array of flowers resembled a bridal bouquet.
I think that this cactus is very happy in the courtyard of our Arizona home. Originally, we bought it in Arizona before we were married in the late 1990’s. It was in California for most of that time until we brought it here in 2011. Now, it produces flowers (lots of ’em) all summer long, many more than ever seen in California. Click on the image to enlarge.
Sunflower
I bought some more sunflower stems at the flower concession in the supermarket today. I have had several of these over the past couple of weeks as they seem to be in season now. They tend to last in the vase for a few days and then fade away. This one was very pretty in this face-on view. Click on the image to enlarge.
I looked up sunflower season on eHow:
The common sunflower (Helianthus annuus) is a warm-weather, summer-blooming annual characterized by large, showy flower heads, a stiff green stalk and broad green leaves. Flowers typically appear from May to October, or until the first frosts of autumn arrive. You may propagate sunflowers outdoors in the garden as soon as frosts have finished for the year. Sunflower seeds are mature and ready to harvest about four months after planting.
Fourth of July Cereus Cactus Flower
The monsoons started last evening. I guess the rainfall prompted one flower on my protected* cereus cactus to open during the night. I was fortunate enough to get this photo before the flower wilted a couple of hours later. Click on the image to enlarge.
Happy Independence Day!
* Protected because I keep the pots surrounded with fine wire mesh to keep the desert critters from eating the flower buds before they have a chance to open.
Decorating for Independence Day
With the Fourth of July just around the corner, I decided to do our usual thing and decorate the mailbox for the holiday. The mailbox is the first thing one sees when approaching our driveway along the road from the east.
I went to the dollar store and got some red, white and blue flowers. I also got a few little American Flags to scatter around, two of which are on the mailbox. The mailbox already has a patriotic cover. Click on the image to enlarge.
Curve Billed Thrasher Eating Saguaro Fruit
This is a curve billed thrasher helping itself to the fleshy fruits growing on our giant saguaro in the front yard. We were walking the dogs and heard the bird’s distinctive “weet-witt-weet” call, which made us look up to the top of the saguaro where the bird was feasting. I did not have my camera, so Bob grabbed the little pocket camera and got this shot. Click on the image to enlarge.
We found a reference (sorry, no link) to the saguaro and seed propagation:
The saguaro is the largest columnar cactus found growing naturally in the US and bears the state flower of Arizona. This magnificent cactus represents the botanical symbol of North American deserts for many people around the world. These unique plants are tall, long-lived cacti that occur naturally and only in southern Arizona, northwestern portions of Sonora, Mexico, and sparsely near the lower Colorado River in California. Saguaros can live to be 200 years old, grow 50 feet tall and weigh as much as 20,000 lb. Saguaro roots radiate out from the base up to 50 ft and close to the surface of the ground. The shallow roots allow saguaros to absorb as much water as possible, especially from light precipitation events, which they store for several years if necessary. Flowers bloom in late spring (late April through early June) and fruits ripen about 37 days after flowering. Saguaro flowers are large, elongated, and bloom nocturnally allowing both night (bats and insects) and day foragers (birds, bees, and other insects) to feed on the nectar and aid in pollination.
“Movie Star” Roses
We had occasion to do some shopping today and while we were in the supermarket, I noticed they had lots of pretty roses including this salmon-colored variety called “Movie Star.” I got a dozen of them and put them in a vase with some baby’s breath on the sofa table. They have a light, rosy fragrance and should last the three days before our regular shopping day on Thursday. Click on the image to enlarge.