Cactus needlepoint

Renée called me the other day and told me she had a great idea. "I want you to do a coffee table book of great cactus in Fallbrook." 

People planted a lot of cactus here in the sixties and seventies and there are some magnificent specimens around. Many of them are blooming right now.

I appreciate her for alloting my time and the good suggestion but my plate is very full right now and I am not exactly a cactus expert. If the project gets done, I am afraid somebody else will have to do it.

But I started to think about the cactus on my property. They are all pretty, if you like that sort of thing. I wandered around with my phone this morning and grabbed a couple shots.

I have two types of opuntia, Luther Burbank's favorite. While I have a pretty vast lexicon of botanical names, my knowledge of cactus is practically nil. I call the picture on top my "Mickey Mouse" opuntia for it's round paddles.

Then I have the standard variety, which is common all over the west coast and even Hawaii.

The opuntia pears are beautiful from a color perspective.

I have a huge stand of San Pedro and columnar cactus behind my property but didn't even wander there this morning.

And a phenomenal rare cactus of the most intense blue variety.

Maybe tomorrow?

It was buried beneath an echium but we trimmed it back to give it some light.

My tall whatchamacallit cactus threw its first flowers ever this morning.

Nice to see, it has been a few years. 

Took the picture before the sun was up but the flower is indeed really pretty.

What else?

I have a nice fat golden barrel, beautiful in a geometric sense but fairly lethal to caress.

I've known people like that.

Not much else to share today, some assorted hangers on. 

Fractal magic.

I'll keep my eye out if I get anything else worthy to share.