Bloomin' Cactus

Well, I was going to share another "sunset photo", but it rained all night and is raining again today and it just didn't seem to fit. I am not sure whether my alternative fits either but, I'll try to explain. With all this rain we are having the wildflower and cactus blooming seasons should be spectacular. So, I thought maybe if I shared a prickly pear cactus blooming it would perk up our spirits with something to look forward to. If you have not visited the Sonoran Desert in late March, April, and May you have missed the desert in all its grandeur. Wildflowers come first, then hedgehog cactus, and then the prickly pear. Prickly pear cactus is everywhere, it grows like a weed. Often Round Tail Ground Squirrels (also referred to as "pack rats") make their home under the cactus. Over time, this results in the "death" of the cactus which is not the most pleasant -- to put it another way, you would never want a photo. However, in April, they bloom. Each pad of each prickly pear may have anywhere from three to ten flowers the size of a rose. Easily a hundred flowers per cactus. Multiply that times the number of prickly pear cactus and you've got a beautiful flowering "garden." Next to bloom are the agaves and aloes. We have hundreds on the property. They shoot up stalks with colorful yellow, orange, or red flowers. These plants may bloom well into the summer. In June and July come the Saguaros. The saguaro flowers are white and form a "crown" at the end of each "arm." Then come the barrel cactus with a crown of red or orange flowers on top. All in all a photographers dream. All in your back yard. Thank you, rain!!!