Spring in the Desert

It’s Springtime in the Sonoran Desert. The flowers and the cacti come alive with colour again, as they do every April. Spring has been a little later than usual this year, but it’s definitely here and we’ll continue to see the vibrant colours emerge.

My first shot is a close-up of a cluster of small cactus globes, one plant called the  Echinocactus grusonii cluster. I focused my shot on the gap between two of the globes emphasizing the mesh of spiny prickles emerging from its ridges.

This is a different cactus, actually a very small version of the Organ Pipe Cactus that can grow very large. This genus is intended for garden use; its larger cousin is a desert dweller. This close-up captures the top of one arm, with a longer arm extending beyond to its left.

The next photograph features the Bougainvillea, a very common shrub that thrives in arid climates in many places around the world. It’s vivid red flower is very eye-catching and it would be difficult to find a yard in our neighbourhood without one!

The Prickly Pear cactus is another ubiquitous plant found in people’s gardens and living wild in the desert. There are several different varieties, all with colourful flowers. Some versions of the Prickly Pear bear fruit that is used in preserves, as an extract and for making candy. This one, growing in our garden has produced this one bloom and as you can see, there are more to follow.

This flower is growing on a Yellow Trumpet Vine, hanging from  the wall bordering our backyard.

This is a very delicate, paper-like flower growing on a Texas Olive shrub in our backyard.

I’ve waited almost four days since beginning this post for my last selection, my favourite, the Echinopsis Cactus flower. It’s a big blossom, this one measuring 9″ (23 cm) in diameter. There are many varieties of this flower, known by a variety of nicknames. I don’t know if any one of them is more widely recognized so I choose to apply my own moniker to this gorgeous flower: “Queen for a Day”. It’s an obvious choice and I’m surprised the flower world hasn’t seen that. I would describe it as regal and it has a lifespan of only one day! Oh well, here’s the flower.

Today’s photographs were taken using a 100mm macro lens, designed to focus at distances very close to the subject, in this case 6″ from the end of the lens. It’s ability to focus so close to the subject with good magnification makes it an excellent choice for close-up shots.

Enough for today. There remain many plants yet to blossom. I’ll be back with any very nice ones that may emerge.