A flower of the Beavertail Prickly:
A Beavertail Prickly doesn’t have spines on its pads like the Engelmann’s Prickly:
This is an Engelmann’s Prickly. Its spines are prominent. Its flowers have given way to the this season’s pears. I’ll keep my eye on these pears to see when they ripen. One purple, ripe pear remains from last season:
I harvested pears from this clump last January. I plan to enjoy these when they ripen. As I wrote, I have yet to know when these pears will ripen:
A couple of days before when the flowers were fresher. The wind was blowing, and the camera’s shutter speed wasn’t fast enough:
I pass this Agave every day, but I first noticed the spike on last Wednesday (May 20). Buds lined the spike. When I passed by it on Thursday afternoon, the flowers were spent, and seed capsules were swelling. It probably flowered at night. It’s not unusual for desert flowers to bloom one day or night and then go to seed. In this case, the blooming was not staggered over a number of days. Instead, all the buds opened at the same time:
Close-up of the towering spike. Notice the seed capsules and spent flowers:
Another Agave. Its flowers are spent. I hadn’t walked down this street for awhile:
A Cereus cactus:
Close-up of its flowers:
I want to call this a Hedgehog cactus:
Close-up of its flowers:
Red Yucca. Many of its flowers have given way to seed capsules:
These are three species, A, B, and C. B goes by several names. C is a Golden Barrel cactus. I’ve posted both of these for comparison with A.
Only cactus A is flowering right now. It also resembles a barrel like B and C. Other species in the Ferocactus family flower during the summer, though. What is this cactus’s name? I haven’t found a picture of it yet, and the Desert Botanical Garden here in Phoenix is closed because of the COVID-19 virus.
A:
B (below):
Wikipedia calls this a Fishhook Barrel cactus — species name Ferocactus wislizeni. The entry Compass Barrel cactus redirects to Ferocactus wislizeni. Its spines resemble fishhooks. The University of California at Berkley also calls this a Compass Barrel.
Other names for it are Candy Barrel, Southwestern Barrel, and Arizona Barrel cactus —
C — Golden Barrel cactus (below):
Its growth habit reminds one of a barrel. Thorns have a yellow cast, especially the new ones. The spent flowers have been on the plant since last year. Cottony clumps show where new flowers will blossom. It’s native to Mexico, but it grows well in Phoenix landscaping —
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Photos of a common bird and animal in Phoenix not long after sunrise. Wildlife abounds here, but these are the two that stood still for the camera. Bobcats prowl at night, as do the Javalinas (Peccaries). Coyotes howl and yip and sound like they’re fighting with each other as their nightly “parties” begin. These animals are nocturnal. Birds are abundant. Lizards hide from people. I’ve even seen a non-poisonous snake waiting for the sun to heat it up. But no squirrels.
Mourning Dove. This bird in Phoenix looks and sounds exactly like the Mourning Doves I’m used to in the Midwest:
Rabbit:
Flowers of the Saguaro (SWAH roh) cactus:
Flowers of the Saguaro blossom at the tip of the plant:
Birds perching at the plant’s top. Perhaps they are feeding on flies that feed on the flowers’ nectar:
The fourth-quarter moon appears framed by two Saguaros (or is it called the half moon? There was a quarter of the lunar month left.):
I don’t yet know the name of this cactus. When it drops its leaves in the Fall, it looks like dead sticks with thorns:
A close-up:
I don’t yet know the name of this flowering shrub either:
A close-up of its flowers:
This could be an ornamental cactus that is not native to the region:
A close-up of its flowers:
This wildflower looks like it could be in the pea family:
These Gladiolas have escaped cultivation. They’re growing in the dampness of a wash — an intermittent stream:
A nearby clump of Gladiolas:
An expanse of groundcover in the shade. I don’t yet know the name of this landscape plant:
A close-up:
Cereus Cactus in bloom:
Close-up of the Cereus’s flowers:
A Day Lily in a raised, irrigated bed:
The Rose Bush and Petunias hearken back to a more temperate climate. The Day Lily clump is growing on the right. The yellow flowers on the left belong to the versatile Lantana:
Yucca:
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