Fiore di Cacti~

On By cindy knokeIn Conservation, Flowers, GARDENING AT THE HOLLER, HOLLER HAPPENINGS, MY PHOTOGRAPHS, REVERIES

Cactus blooms, (click/tap to enlarge)

celebrate,

the winter rains,

with spring blossoms,

in exuberant,

fiery hues,

and pristine white,

with pale pastels.

The Holler is,

a blooming,

glory!

Cheers to you from The Holler’s prickly beauties~

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255 thoughts on “Fiore di Cacti~”

  1. Thank you Cindy. I needed that. Still recovering and this helps. In a world full of crazy people it’s nice to know you can see it for what it truly is. Beautiful.

    Reply

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  7. Hi Cuz,
    We had prickly pear on FL but blooms were only white or light pink, never the profusion of color that you posted. They’re almost as beautiful as you are 🤩

    Reply

    1. Ahhh…. cuz! Always such a treat to hear from you my friend. I have never seen prickly pear with multi-colored flower on one plant so it was new to me as well. Hope all is well with you dear cuz and take good care დ

      Reply

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    1. I have tasted it, but never made it. Yummy! I have also eaten prickly pear in Mexico and loved it. I just planted Santa Margarita Prickly Pear which has yellow flowers but the plant turns lanvendar in winter. Love it!ღ

      Reply

    1. Thank you Brad. I hope all is going well with you my friend. I know you are going through hard times with the death of your mother and my thoughts and prayers are with you. Stay safe & well დ

      Reply

  25. Do different colored flowers bloom on the same cactus? These pictures are so pretty! How wonderful that all that rain is resulting in such beauty!

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    1. Good question Kathy! I have never seen color variations like these before. I was fascinated. Prickly pear plants can have colors that change from yellow, to pink to red. But these plants had yellow, pink, red, orange and beige all blooming at the same time and they were wild, not cutlivated. It is possible that multiple species of prickly pear were planted by someone in this cluster long ago, and bloomed up a storm after the intense winter rains. The area where I live used to be covered with orchards for the past 100+ years. The people that worked the orchards also lived in them, and they knew plants, how to grow them, and clearly loved them. They planted so many exotics that are now growing wild and thriving at The Holler, wild Almond trees, wild camillas, coral trees, passion fruit, recurring watermelon patches, lots of individual fruit and citrus trees, roses, pomengranates, avocados, matilija poppies, the list is endless, many species I don’t know. This beautiful prickly pear group may be another example. I don’t really know დ

      Reply

      1. That’s so interesting! We used to live near orchards, and I know that those who know how can graft in limbs from other types of apples to different kinds.I’m not sure if it’s done much or is helpful, but it’s certainly an illustration of how we are grafted into Christ! I wonder if some of those people at the Holler grafted different kinds of prickly pears onto one plant?

        Reply

  26. Glorious indeed. I have one cactus here, which I haven’t looked at recently… I wonder if it will bloom sometime… maybe it is doing so right now!

    Thank you, Cindy!

    Reply

  27. Cactus flower are so in odds with their host’s spiny bodies. Lovely images of them, Cindy. I grow cacti in our yard and overwinter in a greenhouse window but they rarely flower like those you’ve shared.

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    1. Yes cacti are fascinating plants, defensive yet delicate. Wonderful that you are able to grow and get them to flower. The bloom this year was stunning due to the prolonged drought followed by torrential rains all winter long. The wild plants loved it and the blooms proved it დ

      Reply

  33. These were incredible photos, Cindy, thank you so much. I loved seeing the close-ups of the vibrant, open flowers. But I also liked seeing the overview of the cactus with the flowers, to give the overall beauty. And the little cactus buds were also incredible. Truly a joy to see this.

    Reply

  37. While you might not consider the Appalachian Mountains as having desert environments… our county in West Virginia has two unique features. First, we have no coal. Second, we have two native cacti, a variant of yucca and prickly pears. This is because we are in the rain shadow of two higher ranges, the Allegheny to the west and Blue Ridge to the east. And, we are a shale barren, with plenty of underground water, but layers of acidic shale-clay which dries hard. Thus, we have planted lots of yucca around our place, and I am nurturing a few patches to prickly pears around our gardens. – Oscar

    Reply

    1. This is just so amazing Oscar! I had no idea WV had native cacti. So fascinating. You epitomize one of the most rare and wonderful aspects of our human spirit, taking time and care, to nurture potential, when help is needed to survive. You stay safe & well my friend დ

      Reply

      1. While my inclination is to learn through reading and study, I have over the years come more to observe. Yes, reading may begin a course of observations, and reading my confirm what I have absorbed through other senses, but if we observe, we learn. Oh, yeah, I have read a lot of Leonardo Di Vinci and John Muir… go figure. Take up that walking stick and sketch pad…

        Reply

    1. Yes! Delicate, defensive beauty. I am quite partial to this natural dicotomy. I so love hearing from you Leslie. Your paintings hang in our foyer. My grandsons look at them all the time and ask about ‘the lady from from Canada who painted them.’ I tell them about your sons. They would like to meet you. So would I. Stay safe and well my friend დ

      Reply

      1. I would love to meat you all as well. Maybe some day that will be possible. At the moment travel is less than a pleasant experience so we’ll have to take a rain check on that. Your grandsons must be growing up fast. My younger grandson is approaching 6’2. My two other grandsons are both over 6′. Take care Cindy and God bless you all.
        Leslie

        Reply

        1. Yes. I am very glad I traveled extensively when I did. There are so many problems now. That is amazing about your grandsons! I hope I live to see this! I remember the pediatrician telling me my son would be over 6 feet. Since he weighed 7 pounds, I couldn’t comprehend it. He is a bit over 6’2! The grandsons turn 5 soon and we are taking them to Hawaii. It is all they are taking about. Take good care and blessings to you Leslie.

          Reply

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