Daytime moon over the desert

A stand of Saguaro under a blue sky, with the moon above

Storm coming

Saguaro under a threatening sky at the foot of the MacDowell Mountains

Survivor

Strange that I should return to this blog on Dec. 25, then the very next day notice a cactus growing on a wall in Brookline, Mass. Here it is. I see cactus growing in the Boston area every now and then, but it's fun to spot one in the snow. This looks a lot like one Marjorie gave me as a Christmas gift. She said that it can survive in the cold but can't tolerate an ice storm, so I'd best keep it in a pot and bring it inside when the weather gets too nasty.

Christmas Cactus

It's been a very long time since I posted here. I ran out of interesting (to me) photos of cactus, and I don't get to cactus country as often as I'd like. However, I thought this would be appropriate for today, and I have a few new photos from Marjorie, Bob and me. Soon I hope to pick up the blog again and perhaps branch out into other areas. Guess I can no longer call it "A Cactus a Day."

Massive

This Saguaro was posted before as an example of a cactus soaking up water after rainfall. I asked Bob to go back and see if it looked different during a dry spell, but, as it happens, he was able to get to it after another rare day of Scottsdale rain. We'll try again, but , in the meantime, compare this photo by Bob on a sunny day with my shot in the rain.

Classic

Looks like the Arizona license plate come to life! Photo by Bob Connolly

Soft & brittle

The springtime bloom on this cactus contrasts with the sunlit barbs surrounding it. Photo by Bob Connolly

Micky Mouse

The pads on either side of this Beavertail's "head" bring to mind Disney's famous rodent, which has a tie to Arizona: The Arizona State Sun Devil logo is said to be modeled after Walt Disney. Yesterday we showed a Beavertail that had a pinkish tinge. Photo by Bob Connolly

In the pink

The flesh of this beavertail cactus has a pinkish tinge, although this specimen is more often green. Photo by Bob Connolly

Tender fingers

No doubt the spikes on this cactus are sharp, but clustered together, they look like soft down. Photo by Bob Connolly

Incalculable

I've seen a lot of Saguaro, but never one with this many appendages. Look closely between the branches on the lower right to see what appears to be straw from a nest built within the sheltering arms. Photo by Bob Connolly

Welcome spring

Bob's back from Arizona with some new beauties to add to the blog.

Little star

A view from the top of a small potted cactus.

Sun-soaked

Marjorie painted this potted cactus in fourth grade.

Resignation

 Is this cowboy ready to draw or putting his "arms" up in surrender?

A challenge

Amazing how frequently the Saguaro seems to take on a belligerent stance.

Stages

Saguaro in this scene range from relative youth to death and decay.

Silhouettes

Saguaro backlit against the mountains.

A bolt into the blue

Wormy

A cluster of cactus "fingers" at the State Botanical Garden of Georgia.