Cactus Blog

Pachypodium saudersii

Shrubby, spiny, caudex-forming – what’s not to like? White flowers with pink edges? Red buds? You like it all, I can tell.

Any ideas what to do if you live in an urban area of Michigan? The Detroit News says you should, “Perk up your outdoor space.” I agree.

Trick it up with accents…. Start with easy-to-maintain plantings like succulents.

That is an easy place to start. But don’t stop there…

Add some:

The coolest, quirkiest, must-have piece of art at Mesa’s (AZ) Pita Jungle is a wall mirror framed by cactus skeletons. It’s got a great organic quality that speaks to our desert heritage without screaming, “Get yer Scottsdale kitsch here!”

I vote for kitsch.

Edithcolea grandis

Election Day! Carrion Flower! Go vote or else!

50-47 Obama, with 325 Electoral votes. You heard it here first. I should be a pundit. 

Ferocactus hamatacanthus

These large barrels have thin hooked spines, yellow blooms and greenish fruit.

I can’t decide between the bud photo with bloom in the background or the bloom photo with the buds nearby:

Such choices will have to be made.

In the meantime, I’m posting a video later today that includes this very plant a couple days later in full bloom. Look for it!

Here’s something that’s listed as a “Knitty Cactus” for only $24. Truly a bargain. But is it a cactus?

I don’t understand this headline on an article from KTAR Phoenix.

Master gardener sees if cactus grows in Mohave Desert

Really? A “Master Gardener” doesn’t know if cacti grow in the desert? They have to go “see” if it’s true?

Maybe I should read the article and make sense of this. Maybe I should just click that little link and follow where it goes. Maybe.

What do you care about, anyway? We want to know.

What are you doing to solve these intractable problems in your hometown? We want to know.

Did I mention we have a hybrid car? A 2001 Honda Insight with carpool lane sticker! You can see it behind the Calindrinia blooms in this post over here.

Water When Dry has a very nice Astrophytum myriostigma in bloom. It’s got a lot of character, which means it’s old.

Old enough to bloom, and Aiyana has the photo to prove it. Can you guess what color it is? Here’s a poll for you to give it a try. I love polls! Then click through and check it out, dude.

<script type="text/javascript" language="javascript" src="http://s3.polldaddy.com/p/331181.js"></script><noscript> &lt;a href =&quot;http://www.polldaddy.com&quot; &gt;surveys&lt;/a&gt; – &lt;a href =&quot;http://www.polldaddy.com/p/331181/&quot; &gt;Take Our Poll&lt;/a&gt; </noscript><br /><br />