Bloomin' Tuesday Cactus Blooms!

Most of the year the cactus just sit there, not doing much of anything.  If there is a little growth, one has to look fairly closely to see it.  There are no lush green leaves and sometimes the cactus looks discolored and shriveled and looking more dead than alive until....

(click for the wow effect)

One bloom on this snaky cactus that seems to thrive but rarely bloom.  I did catch a picture this time- the stamen remind me of those translucent rice noodles...

You have to look closely for the bloom in the golden barrel cactus. The bloom is the same golden yellow as the spines that cover the top of the cactus.

This "was" the first bloom on a new night-bloomer in my yard. I missed the actual bloom but even the shriveling bud is gorgeous.

Happy Bloomin' Tuesday!  Please visit Ms "Green Thumb" Jean's for more Bloomin' Tuesday Delights!

Yellow Bells for Bloomin' Tuesday

I thought I would share some pictures of my "Yellow Bells" plant, also called a Trumpet Flower. This plant is quite common in Arizona. It seems to do well with our dry climate, producing gorgeous yellow blooms, and bright green leaves. Mine is still small- I planted it last Spring.

Happy Bloomin' Tuesday!!! To see other "Bloomin' Tuesday" posts from around the world please visit Ms "Green Thumb" Jeans.

Early Morning wander

Come take a wander around my garden and see what is going on this early August morning. It is very early, the sun is barely up and a light sprinkling of rain (Yes-RAIN) is coming down. I wish the day could freeze and I could hang onto these moments.
The barrel cactus is budding out- soon those amazing red flowers will be here. I see these in all stages of bloom around town and in the desert area near where I work. Mine must be late bloomers.

The "Natchez" Crepe Myrtle I planted last summer is hanging on in the heat and even puts out a few little flowers now and then.

And the night blooming cactus is getting ready to bloom again. Here are 3 of the 6 buds...looks like tonight will be the night.

In the backyard the grape vine is growing nicely- not sure if it will give me grapes anytime soon but it sure puts out the green.

The tangerines are gaining a little size.

And the little Pomegranate tree only had 3 fruit. One of them showed up in my bedroom this morning, fairly well eaten, a gift from Miss Moo dog, which is what prompted this wander to begin with. So now there are two- are they not the cutest?

Hope you enjoyed this early morning wander as much as I did. Happy Bloomin' Tuesday! To see what is blooming in gardens around the world please visit Ms "Green Thumb" Jeans.

The Bishop for Bloomin' Tuesday!

Since it has been hotter and drier than normal in Tucson it has been depressing waiting for rain that does not seem to come. However even with the higher temps, and little rain, many of my cacti continue to put out blooms. I have these cacti in a semi shaded area, so they get filtered sun most of the day with a little direct sun in the afternoon. I happened to catch my ever-blooming Bishops Cap the other day putting out a lovely little bloom!





Late afternoon the flower closed up- gaining a lovely peach shade to the petals.

Happy Bloomin' Tuesday! To see other amazing blooms from around the world please visit Ms. Green Thumb Jean's and join in yourself!

Under the Olive tree- the land of the lost succulents

The area beneath my Olive Tree is ever-changing. I've tried quite a few different plants in this bed that didn't work out. Here are some pictures of what the area looks like today. The tumbling pots that I learned to make from my fellow bloggers are in the first picture below. I bought the plant in the top pot- I think it was labeled a rainbow plant. The second level is a little string of pearls succulent and at the bottom is my Mother of thousands..which I actually got way back when it hitchhiked along with another plant I bought. It has really grown. I hope it spreads into the area below and takes over the half bare spots in this bed.

I like to think of the one side of the bed as the "land of the lost succulents" as it is where I stick the little succulents that seem to be on their way out. More than once they have taken on a whole new life. They seem to like having their roots all crowded out be Olive tree roots- which seems to ruin the whole experience for other plants.

These are all Stapelia- given to me by a fellow Tucson gardener. I can't wait for stinky blooms!

And this next picture was a surprise- I had planted some Callidium bulbs in this area last year, but never pulled them out before it got cold last winter. I thought that anything under 50 killed these guys-but one hardy little guy made it through and is just coming up now.

One of the perils of being planted under the olive tree- being tasted by a Cactus Wren or a Curved Billed Thrasher. I have families of both in my yard and the young birds seem to love this area. They poke around and pull out the little plants quite often. My little living stone plants have had bites taken out of them more than once.

I hope you enjoyed the little tour of my Olive tree bed- not much blooming there these days but if you visit Ms Green Thumb Jean's you are sure to see many lovely blooms from other parts of the world. Happy Bloomin' Tuesday!

A perfect Green Envy Zinnia and puppy dog tales

Remember those Green Envy Zinnias I planted? Well I have lots and lots of blooms but only ONE of them looks like a Zinnnia...and wouldn't you know the birds went and pulled the bloom right off the stem...I stuck it in the cactus wood for a picture since it really is the only one that looks like a Zinnia should look!


And a Bishops Cap bloom! I love this little plant- it always has a bloom in some stage or another.

Remember the little wash tub pond my son set up for my aquatic Canna?


Well I have bigger plans... I purchased a stock tank to turn into a pond...now to find the time to actually get it done!

It is always pretty entertaining just hanging out inside watching the pooches. Miss Blue Eye Moo Dog was one of these little babies not too long ago. We won't even go into how she came to live at my house when I already had more than enough furry friends, but she did and it has been quite interesting watching her grow up with the others. It wasn't too long ago she was just the same size as Miss P and look at her now. She may be about 5 times as big as Miss P but they are still the best of friends.

Happy Bloomin' Tuesday!!! To see what is blooming around the world please visit Ms "Green Thumb" Jeans...

Sunflower Bloomin' Tuesday

Not all of my experiments with planting flowers from seeds have been a failure. A few have actually done fairly well considering how hot it has been. The sunflowers I planted are just starting to bloom.

And I have to show my Brugmansia bloom just ready to pop! This will be the very first bloom of the year! I am so ready to smell heaven on my front porch!

Happy Bloomin' Tuesday!

To see what is blooming in gardens around the world please visit Ms "Green Thumb" Jeans.