His nibs

Appendages begin to sprout.

Prickly pear fruit

The edible fruit of the prickly pear cactus. We've had some interesting salsa made with this fruit.

There are many places named for this cactus, my favorite being an island off Anguilla.

Prickly pear blossom

Flower today, fruit tomorrow

Graceful

A grove of cholla cacti ready to "jump" at the first opportunity.

Ouch!

Another unadorned cholla.

Transformation

While the Teddy Bear Cholla is always attractive in the light, other cholla specimens can be a bit disappointing -- until they burst into bloom. 

Teddy bears

I love how the Teddy Bear Cholla catch the light in their fine, dense spines. Tomorrow, a different cholla specimen.

Cuddle up

From afar, the Teddy Bear Cholla looks fuzzy and cute, but Marjorie was surprised at prickly its segments are up close. I can't remember how long she held on to this small branch, but in discarding it she may well have begun a new planting.

"Jumping Cactus"

This Teddy Bear Cholla is nicknamed the "Jumping Cactus" because segments of its branches hook onto the clothing or fur of passers-by, appearing to jump on for a ride to a new spot. There the segment may take root. The stems also may drop near the mother plant and root, so that a grouping of cholla springs up, as it has here. I'm guessing "Teddy Bear" is not the proper Latin name, either.

Caribbean cactus

We didn't expect to find cacti on the lush tropical island of St. John, but there they were on the leeward side of the island. The rain forests of the windward side apparently soak up most of the moisture. Bob's on a dry path that looks like the desert in this 1990 photo.

Guardians

Familar theme

Tucson, Arizona. Again, it's an icon. My guilty wish is to have a pair of those margarita glasses with a stem in the shape of a Saguaro. Tacky, but fun. I do have a set of Saguaros in my collection of salt and pepper shakers. I'll pop a shot of them in sometime, but tomorrow's blog will go back to the real McCoy.

Fuzzy

Lovely texture in a small cactus.

Corraled

Cacti in a planter in Superior, Arizona, which has a great old-fashioned main drag. It was the setting for a really weird Oliver Stone movie, "U Turn."

The gang's all here

The forests of the Arizona desert are be quite different from the shady stands of deciduous and evergreen trees found in temperate regions, but they are considered forests nonetheless. Here we see a Saguaro forest.

First encounter

Aidan gets his first close look at a cactus in the wild during our cross-country drive in summer 2002. He was disappointed that this specimen was so different than the iconic Saguaro. We didn't visit the region where Saguaro grow on that trip.

I appreciated Aidan's reaction, having been disappointed with my first glimpse of cacti out west years before. I had seen this same medium-sized, branched cactus along the highway and pulled over to see if it was, in fact, a cactus. It was many years later that I saw my first Saguaro, and obviously, I'm hooked on these characters. However, I also appreciate the great variety of other cacti out there. I'll try to dig up and scan a shot from that earlier trip.

Rocky roost

Another cactus that's sprung up among rocks. The red and gray stone on the left reflects the subtle tones found in this red hook cactus. See a red hook cactus in bloom.

Ring of flowers

The flowers on this pincushion cactus are outsized compared to the cactus itself. They provide a surprising accent of color to the rocky desert floor.

Majestic

A heroic angle on a spectacular Seguaro. Thanks again to photo contributor Bob Connolly. He's heading back to cactus country this month, so we may be seeing more of his photos.

Lighten up

It's wonderful how the cholla cactus captures the light. Thanks to Bob Connolly for this photo, closing in on the cacti featured in his long view in the Usery Mountains, published yesterday.

Going my way?

Cholla cacti in the foreground, but let's face it, this photo (from guest photographer Bob Connolly) is about the sign on the side of this mountain in the Usery Mountain Regional Park, east of Phoenix. The sign was created in the '50s as a navigational aid to pilots. More photos from Bob over the coming days.

Subtle tones

There's nothing showy about the fruit of this cholla.

Sunny

Casting a spot of brightness on a bleak winter season.

Sallow

Closeup of Saguaro with unusual patches of yellow bark.

All Yellow

Continuing a series of cactus variants: The pigment of this young Saguaro appears to be a bit off, with large patches of yellow. Closeup tomorrow.

Ripple effect

Closeup of red hook cactus with strange bulges.

Misshapen

Something must have happened with water supply, insects or disease to cause the unusual rippling of this red hook cactus. Closeup tomorrow.

Burnt out

The remains of this barrel cactus are blackened as though burned. No flesh remains, but this may only be the way this cactus decays in the dry desert heat.

Fluffy

The "spines" of the Hairy Sentium cactus appear benign when compared to those of its cousins.