The above is a Flash® slideshow depicting some of the flowers and other things we see in our little corner of the desert during the spring months. All photos taken on or near our Wickenburg, Arizona homestead. Click on the image to advance (this is 1 of 6 frames).
Slideshow subject matter: Prickly Pear Flower, Ocotillo Flowers and buds, Tiny Mesquite Flower Clusters, Lemon Blossom, Cholla Flower and one Pituophis catenifer . . .
This evening, after having showers and clouds most of the day, turned out to be quite colorful, thanks to the weather in the area. Damsel and I went out into the courtyard this evening to watch as the sun illuminated the clouds with warm colors.
I took this photo from the courtyard which was one of several I might have posted, the colors and textures were so nice. Tomorrow is supposed to be a bit sunnier, but with clouds and potential showers to return on Sunday and Monday. “April showers bring May Flowers,” my Mom (and zillions of others, I’m sure) used to say in mid-spring to us kids when rains would happen in my native California. Click on the image to enlarge.
It is springtime, which is a very good time of the year here in the Sonoran Desert. The trees are green, the weather is getting warmer and there are lots of flowers blooming. I post pictures of cactus flowers because they are beautiful and (mostly) limited to appearing only in the spring and summer months. No two are exactly alike and it gives us great pleasure to see them.
On the left above, is an image of a pink hedgehog flower open on a little cactus down the road from us. On the right, is a lovely yellow prickly pear flower, also down the road, open for beesness (pun intended). Click on either image to enlarge.
While we were walking the dogs this afternoon, Damsel called me over by the mesquite tree across the road to show me a swarm of bees that were hanging from a branch. I already had my camera and long lens since I was going to take a photo of a project with the travel trailer. I took the photo of the bees in the top image.
I called one of our neighbors to see if he knew if there was a bee keeping service in town. He just happened to have a friend that kept bees and would be interested in harvesting this swarm.
Shortly after dusk, they showed up with all the equipment, bee suits and whatever and proceeded to knock the swarm, queen bee and all out of the tree and into a bucket with a lid (of course). The whole process took about half an hour, but the bees are gone, to our neighbors’ and our mutual relief. They have kids and we have dogs, neither that mix well with a beehive in the vicinity.
Click on either image to enlarge.
Bob and I went to a local nursery today looking for replacements for some failed sage brush in the courtyard. We finally bought some bottle brush bushes in five gallon pots that we will put in the ground in the days to come.
While we were there, I (of course) took some photos of the flowers that were opened on various cacti and other xeriscape flowering plants. I have been posting photos of pink flowers here this spring, since the pink ones seem to open first. At the nursery, there were other colors, too, most noticeably the red Claret Cup Hedgehog flowers and some bright yellow flowers on a barrel cactus that had neither its nickname nor a binomial designation, so it is a generic yellow-flower-producing barrel cactus at this point. Click on either image to enlarge.
We also bought another echinocereus cactus similar to hedgehogs that we have, that will produce red flowers. There are numerous flower buds on the cactus that will likely open soon. We need to pick a place to plant this cactus but will probably wait until after the flowers com to put it in the ground.
Prior to setting up the tools and dumpster on the driveway for some yard work today, this smallish Sonoran Gopher Snake (Pituophis catenifer affinis) appeared on the driveway near the garage door that I had opened shortly before. It seemed to be headed toward the garage, but when I called Damsel out for this photo op, the snake suddenly decided to head off to the rosemary patch giving her a loud hiss before disappearing from view.
These snakes can be up to six feet in length as adults, but this one was barely two feet long. It had to be a youngster in snake years.
We like having these guys around the area because they prey on rats and other undesirable desert rodents. Sonoran Gopher Snakes are plentiful in the southwest. We have seen as many as ten of these in the five years of living here and only one rattlesnake, which I think is a good ratio. Also, only one Gila Monster sighting.
Easter blessings to everyone on this beautiful Easter Sunday . . .
Cap’n Bob & the Damsel
