Beautiful Blooming Cacti

 I am getting some major cactus flower action! My Echinopsis subdenudata produces enormous beautiful ethereally white (they almost look like they are glowing even in the daylight) flowers. They open at night, and by morning's end they are closed and wilted. As if they aren't stunning enough, they have the most wonderful sweet, citrus-y scent. 

As a colorful contrast my gymnocalycium shows off pink blossoms. I have another gymno. variety which will be ready to bloom in a week or so.

It's Hot--Like it or Not

It's a scorcher here in Wisconsin! This was the scene before we got the air conditioner fixed late last week. Poor babies! They were so hot, they were both napping laying on their backs! Cute, but sad!

Unlike the cats, however, my plants are LOVING the heat, inside and outside the house. My Euphorbia Quadrangularius that I've had maybe a month and a half has sprouted several branches--one of them almost 7 inches long! I think if I looked hard enough I could see it growing!

I can't believe I haven't posted photos of my garden yet this year! It's really looking nice and everyone seems to be very happy and healthy.

I found this fun hippo planter at an antique store recently. How cute is he?!

One of my favorite plants is this fan aloe. It's been doing very well, despite frequent re-pottings to find a good fit.

A shot of most of the garden. Adler loves to come out and chew on the catnip growing in pots.

I have an absolutely beautiful cactus bloom that just started to open last week.

Amazing--I love cactus flowers!!

In-between taking care of all my plants, I've had a little time for thrift shopping :) These are my finds over the last weekend. My favorite is the pair of vintage owl mugs I got for $.69 each. I found a really great hand-woven wool table runner, a cool book on houseplants from the '70's, an interesting book about the desert (I adore the cover design), a roll of funky paper that I can frame, and a pair of brand-new baskets that can be hung on the wall. What a haul--and it all looks so pretty together!

Roadrunners & Aloes

Here is my first succulent dish garden! I finally put my Haeger red planter to good use. Towards the back of the planter is a small Haworthia, an aloe variety, and in the front is a lovely little succulent (possibly Kalanchoe?) with interesting leaf shape and color. The aloe is very sensitive to heat/light, and I'm wondering if it will be ok with these other plants in the long run. We shall see!

I found these super awesome ceramic cups with a very cool roadrunner (and little cacti) on them! I just love them! As a bonus, they fit several of my tinier plants, like this unusual aloe I picked up a few weeks ago from my friend Mark at the farmer's market.

Speaking of aloes, these two beauties are my newest additions. The plant on the left is a Blue Aloe "Elf" which needs to be re-potted and cleaned up a bit, and I'm really at a loss as to what kind the plant on the right is. It's not an Aloe Vera (it is growing little sprouts along a stem, which Veras don't have), it's not variegated, and it looks similar to a mini aloe I have which is red, but this one is pure green. It can't be that rare; I got it at Home Depot!

You may remember a very similar photo I posted not too long ago--this little cactus was blooming when I bought it, then a couple weeks ago it bloomed again! When the blossoms were just opening, they were a darker, more vibrant pink and after they were a day or so old, they faded to this lovely soft pink. So pretty!!

Plant News

Happy Spring! Although we have robins hopping around and the bulbs are showing their green sprouts, it still feels like winter around here. It has been quite cold and grey and we've had lots of sleet and freezing rain. However, plant fever has begun, and I'd like to share some new things that have been going on.

I cannot take credit for these beauties. Last weekend, I went plant shopping with my sister, and we spotted a large cacti display with these gorgeous white-spined plants with tiny pale pink blooms. I snapped one up and have been enjoying the plant and flowers all week. Hopefully I can get it to bloom next year!

During the same shopping trip, I noticed a small purple Prickly Pear cactus had lost one of its paddles, which was lying wedged between two pots. I picked it up and saw it had small roots starting, so I quickly and gently put it in my bag. What?! I couldn't just let it sit there to dry up or get tossed into the garbage! So when I got home, I planted it in some soil with gravel to prop it up. At least now it will have a fighting chance.

It may have been my very first post on this blog--my Euphorbia Trigona cutting I stole from the Catholic chruch last spring. I can't believe it's been a year already, but the cutting is growing nicely and has developed some red coloring on the new growth, which leads me to believe it is a Trigona Red Form. I have really been experimenting with this plant. Being such a young cutting, I have been reluctant to leave it in direct light, where it would be warm for the majority of the day; or in indirect light, where unfortunately it is quite cold due to the drafty windows in our apartment. So I have been moving it around quite frequently. It seems to have developed the red streak after being in our brightest window for a few days, but it also looked a little shriveled even with regular watering. So, I have been keeping it in the kitchen, away from the window but still getting daylight--I am hopeful this is sufficient. Warm weather can't come soon enough!

Cool Plant Happenings

While doing a little plant maintainance today, I noticed a few interesting things. First, my epiphytic cacti seems to have some flower buds. I've had this plant less than a year, so I don't really know what it's winter habits are. I've been leaving all my succulents quite dry, as it is winter, and there is no shortage of cold drafty windows in our apartment, so I'm thrilled that my plants are blooming--a sign I'm doing something right!

Several weeks ago, I noticed my Echeveria sprouting this long clump of little pod-like forms. I assumed it was just an off-shoot and was growing a new plant. I went to water it today, and saw this beautiful pink flower emerging! I've only been growing succulents for a few years, so I feel like getting them to bloom is a real victory.

Also, this interesting little form has grown from Matt's mini palm tree. I'm not sure what it is. A seed pod of some kind? Very neat, whatever it is!