I think Rob used up all our good luck this weekend.

[cactuswatcher]

Mine is not as bad a disaster as Masq's lost files, but it's still a pain.

I went out watering, and looking for flower buds among the cacti. Found a flower bud in the wrong place. See that little splotch of light color in the top of the lower plant in the icon? That's a bloom stalk. Great right? Wrong. Agaves die when they bloom and I've only had this little one for a year. There are a couple of suckers so it's not a total loss, but most of the plant you see is doomed.

Comments

[mamculuna.livejournal.com]

Now that's a careful cactus watcher!

It's really sad to see a plant do something like that, especially if you've been working on it to keep it alive. Hope it goes out with a blaze, at least.

You have to watch them closely.

[cactuswatcher.livejournal.com]

If there are lots of bees around to pollinate the cactus flowers, they may only last one day. You have to be ready to see them or wait a year. The agave flowers are usually pretty tough and long lasting.

Re: You have to watch them closely.

[mamculuna.livejournal.com]

My father liked interesting plants--grew a lot of orchids--but one of my favorite memories was staying up late one night and inviting all the neighbors over to see the night-blooming Cereus. It was gorgeous. I think it's a desert plant, right? But don't know if it's a cactus.

Night-blooming cereus

[cactuswatcher.livejournal.com]

Yes it's a cactus, and a strange one at that. I don't have any because you really need something like a tree for it to grow under. As you say the blooms are gorgeous, incredible considering what the rest of the plant looks like. It's the prize of many a garden here in Phoenix.