This miniature version of the ever-popular “Jade Necklace” is a bouquet of flowers all in one. No need for anything else. I mean, look at how those stems hold those little blooms up in the air. You don’t need to cut the stems and prop the cut blooms up in a bud vase. Oh no, you can just leave them there, as they are, potted up and everything. And you can enjoy the little bouquet for weeks. I say you should get one for your mother, if her birthday is this month. You’ll thank me later.
A full bloom of prickly pear cactus flowers paints the hills of Fort Richardson State Park with hues of red, yellow and orange.
They go on to tell their readers how they can grow the plants indoor or outdoor, in hot weather or cold, in good times or bad, when the Rockets are doing well or even when they lose their first game to the Celtics.
It’s Friday Whippet Blogging, Special Election Tuesday Edition
Benjamin supports Obama, and wants you to go out and vote no matter who you’re voting for; unless you’re writing in Clinton and then you should stay home. Hey, Benjamin, that’s not nice! Nobody ever said whippets were nice dogs.
Whoever is training their babies to vote for Obama must know that they are not old enough to vote! I believe this should be looked into by the Bush DOJ. Vote fraud by babies is still vote fraud.
I have no idea who this Edith person is and why she has a carrion flower named after her.
The flower only last for a day, maybe a bit of a 2nd day at most. The stems are sprawling. It’s easy to get it to bloom, and is not as stinky as other carrion flowers. Look deep into the center, for tomorrow is election day and I can think of nothing better than getting right into the middle of a carrion flower to encourage you to vote (I mean I’m going to have a closeup of the flower tomorrow, but only if you promise to vote.)
A whole bunch of the lithops are starting to bloom at the nursery. They’re all white flowers. Maybe I should post a picture. Here’s one from last month.
Who knew when I started posting political quotes that I would be able to post a political quote about cactus! Certainly I never imagined such a thing was possible. But here it is, a quote comparing a presidential candidate to a cactus:
The stately saguaro cactus is a fitting symbol of the southwestern desert state of Arizona, found on license plates and front lawns and state flora registries, cutting a pitchfork profile both defiant of and shaped by the elements around it. It is also a good symbol for the Arizona senator who hopes to lead the nation, Republican presidential candidate John McCain. He, too, is sometimes considered prickly…
I guess it makes sense since McCain is from Arizona and all.
Mummy Hand, Magdalena de Cao, El Brujo, Peru, 2004
Photograph by Ira Block
A close-up shows the desiccated hand of a remarkably preserved woman from Peru’s ancient Moche culture. The discovery of her elaborately wrapped remains at a ceremonial site called El Brujo puzzled archaeologists, who were surprised by what appeared to be a female ruler among the male-dominated Moche.
Well, it turns out that you can leave your succulents outdoors this winter after all! Let DIY tell you how.
Led by the russet-colored (Sedum) ‘Autumn Joy,’ the many varieties of drought-tolerant sedum are wonderful choices in the fall garden, providing blooms from pink to red with green, bronze, or variegated foliage. Instead of cutting them back after frost, many gardeners leave these tough succulents standing for winter interest.
What to do when a barrel cactus topples over? Let’s ask the Arizona Republic, shall we?
Q: We have a very tall barrel cactus (fishhook?) that is about 4 feet tall and 18 inches in diameter. It also has 3 large “bulbs” on the top, each of which is about 10 inches in diameter. Unfortunately, it recently toppled over, and it looks like the cause was old age . . . . Can we save some of the beautiful piece of flora?
– Paul Cechovic,
Cherry Hill, N.J.
A: Yes, you can save pieces of your barrel cactus. Those bulbs are stems that grow from the mother plant. They naturally fall from the plant, root themselves and start a new plant.
They are known as offsets or pups. Cut off the pups and let them air dry for a week in a cool dry place away from direct sunlight. The cuts need to heal, or callus, before replanting.
Transplant into a pot containing a well-draining soil made for cactuses. You can mix your own by using equal parts potting soil, pumice and sand or decomposed granite. Water and allow the soil to dry out completely before watering again.
