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Spring Flowers 2020.. Dawn of a new decade


Silas_Sancona

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..Sunny, 70, and perfect on this final Saturday afternoon of January.. Kind of surprised just how fast the month has flown by..  and how quickly spring is moving in..

After being confined to the house most of the week, thanks to a surprise visit from some flu-like ailment, was nice to get back outside earlier.. After the .12" of rain earlier in the week, combined with relatively milder temps the last couple weeks, weeds..and other season openers are rapidly getting themselves ready for their time on stage in the front yard..

While not quite as generous as last year, rain that has occurred this year has been good enough to ensure the season ahead should be another head turner, although the actors "on stage" this time around are a bit different.. For one, and to my surprise.. Poppies spread much further away from where i'd seeded them last year.. Will dominate a good %'age of the yard, inc. areas that were open / un-colonized last year.  Desert Bluebells ( Phacelia campanulata ) coverage this year looks a bit hindered by the poppies.

On the other hand, both spread into areas i'd wanted to cover, both for color.. and as a way to try and keep the feral and seemingly unstoppable Bermuda from spreading more than it tries.. Seems wherever there are annual / perennial flowering things, the Bermuda seems to dwindle.. or, is at least easier to pull /control.  Unless i re- dig a sizable chunk of the yard ( and all the established plants located there ) again, I'll never fully get rid of it. best i can do until i move is keep it pulled, and try and put other things in that might out compete it.. or at least be better at taking resources away from it..  Regardless,  a great lesson for all to never plant the stuff..  never liked the way it looks as a Lawn, anyway..

Some pics of spring 2020 openers as January comes to a close, days start getting longer.. and we, at least here in the desert, start waving goodbye to winter 2019-2020.. Not quite done, but not much opportunity left either..  and getting warmer by the day..

Long view of first hill, my nic-name for the mound that parallels the sidewalk, about a week or so after we'd gotten soaked on Thanksgiving. 12/06/2019. Still a few Summer Poppies ( Kalstroemia grandiflora ) flowering at that time.. Not something you see every year.. usually dried up / long gone to seed by the end of October..
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How it looks now, 01/25/2020. Might be tough to tell but unlike last year, poppies/ etc have filled out the entire mound, and spread further out into the yard this year compared to last spring. Some might pass at the moment thinking the yard looks a little over grown, shaggy..  Just wait another week or two.. Some of the Poppies are already budding. Anyone passing will likely slow down as they walk by, like last year.. especially the families w/ kids that walk the neighborhood.  Might be the last year there's any sort of display too since the next people who rent here might spray it all next winter..  Love my gravely yard, but also like seeing something different, at different times of the year too..  A barren yard, is a boring yard..
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Angelita Dasies popping up through a sea of green Poppy foliage
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Desert marigold, and a nice example of how they spread into open areas when left to themselves..  Like the region's more common native Cassia, these will flower on and off all year if happy..
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Desert Bluebells (Phacelia campanulata ) just starting to take the stage.. Again, this year's showing, at least out here will be a bit tempered.. but still good.. other, more open areas they spread into this year look good. Hard to tell but this view is looking between two separate mounds..
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One of a few surprise guests this year.. this one welcome, lol. 

Sometimes referred to as "Skeleton Weed / Flat Topped Buckwheat"  Eriogonium deflexum is a sometimes weedy native, pioneering annual Buckwheat that often is one of the first natives to start re-colonizing barren areas. While not all that much to look at, a flat-topped, umbrella like mass of stems and flowers will arise from the basil rosette of hairy, silver colored leaves you see here. While small, flowers are often numerous and interesting up close.  ..like all other Buckwheats, it is extremely important to bees and other pollinators. As long as it isn't allowed to dominate, other native plants will fill in and slowly displace this Eriogonium over time out in the desert.
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 'Couple more weeks.. Or is what budding poppies are saying.. Guess spring is coming, perhaps maybe a little earlier than last year..
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More later,  of course..:winkie:

Enjoy..
Nathan
 

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A few pictures on:  Superbowl.. / Ground Hog's Day / Palindrome Day..  Sunday..

Just for Jon, @Fusca, Brittle Bush starting to flower again, Encelia farinosa, and one of a few seedlings that popped up around the yard this year from last year's seed. Same plant ( 1 of 2 i put out there ) that blew over and partially uprooted itself last spring. Doesn't seem to have set it back at all.
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First Poppies of the year..
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Penstemon parryi, offering some early season nectar for neighborhood Hummingbirds. Have several first year plants bolting atm. Should start seeing flowers on them in the next 2-3 weeks.  These also are seeding into new areas this year ( a good thing ) Even without flowers, darker purplish maroon newer foliage is attractive.  I'd had planted 3 sp. of Penstemon out here back in 2017 but P. parryi is the only species that has endured and returned. Echinocereus to the right is E. engelmannii ..i think. It and Echinocereus stramineus look a bit similar. This one wasn't labeled when i picked it up. Kind of a slow poke compared to another Hedgehog near by.
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A wider view of "first hill" and some random closer- ups of a couple of the denser drifts of Phacelia campanulata.. Desert Blue Bells.
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'Couple more random shots w/ Opuntia basilaris, Beaver Tail Prickly Pear and Phacelia campanulata, Desert Blue Bells ...And some Washingtonia R's in the background ( Pic. # 2).
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First indications of Flowers forming on both Opuntia basilaris and my Echinocereus coccineus ( or triglochidiatus ) Buds/ flowers on all Echinocereus break through the epidermis adjacent of the Areole ( Where the spines are clustered ) rather than forming flowers the way many other Cacti do.
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Enjoy,
Nathan

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Nice, we spread Bluebonnet and another variety of seeds in the beds at our old house. If the weather was right they would sometimes try to come back and flower a second time in November or December.

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39 minutes ago, Meangreen94z said:

Nice, we spread Bluebonnet and another variety of seeds in the beds at our old house. If the weather was right they would sometimes try to come back and flower a second time in November or December.

I'd actually planned on  trialing Bluebonnets, just never got around to picking up seed... They'll grow in California, just not sure how they'd do here.

 Eventually want to attempt crossing Bluebonnets with another, similar looking annual species from CA. Flowers on that one are intensely fragrant and am curious if that trait would carry over to any crosses between the two..

Threw seed of another Texas Bluebonnet sp. ( from the Big Bend ) out there and may have a few coming up.. Seed was older and i'd acquired/ sowed 2 of our native Lupinus species at the same time as well so i'll have to wait until they flower to determine which seed came up since the foliage on the Big Bend species, and our most common native one look similar.

Biggest surprise has been the Poppies, didn't think they'd re-seed as aggressively as they did.. especially since Doves love the seed.. Since this will likely be the last "Spring" here, i decided not to thin anything this year.

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Once you go into the high 80’s/ 90’s,  they start to rapidly wilt and die off. Maybe if you time it right and get a good year. I think seeds are recommended to go in the ground November or December. The first year we didn’t drop seeds until mid/late January and still had success in March/April.

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1 hour ago, Meangreen94z said:

Once you go into the high 80’s/ 90’s,  they start to rapidly wilt and die off. Maybe if you time it right and get a good year. I think seeds are recommended to go in the ground November or December. The first year we didn’t drop seeds until mid/late January and still had success in March/April.

Sounds about right.. Most of the native annuals here ( and in CA, except maybe right at the coast in some places ) are on their way out once temps exceed 80F consistently. By that time, most native perennials, cacti, and trees are in flower, or greened up again.  Most places recommend seeding spring flowering stuff no later than mid- November here. Like you mention, In good years though, you can seed up until mid- Jan. and still have some color later into the Spring, as long as it isn't too hot.

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  • 2 weeks later...

A few shots from the yard over the weekend and earlier today.. Nice .28" of rain we had Monday Night/Tuesday morning should help some spots that have started to dry out perk up a bit. With a stretch of 70-75F' -ish afternoons forecast Friday-Monday or Tuesday, Poppies should really start moving. Established Globe mallow is also gearing up.

Random around the yard shots. Desert Bluebells now at peak flowering. Bees everywhere.
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Interesting perspective here.. If you didn't know before hand, you might assume you were looking up a low hill somewhere out in the Desert,  or at least not in the middle of Suburbia w/ a 6 lane road directly in front / Medical office park across the street. Other stuff in the shot, beside the Washingtonia r's in back, and annual Bluebells: Beavertail Prickly Pear, ( Opuntia basilaris ) mostly dormant Santa Rita Acacia, ( Mariosousa millifolia ) Caliche Globemallow ( Sphaeralcea laxa ).. There's also a small Mexican Tree Ocotillo ( Fouquieria macdougalii ) and Lady Finger Hedgehog Cactus ( Echinocereus pentalophus ) hidden in there somewhere.
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Random odds and ends..

Yellow Bird of Paradise ( Caesalpinia mexicana ) starting to flower
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One of a few African Daisies that popped up this year. No idea where they blew in from.
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Surprise Bladderpod ( Genus Lesquerella ** or Physaria** ) Possibly Gordon's Bladderpod, the most common of the 3 or so locally native species here. .. Again, no idea where the seed came from. 40713018_0212201156a1319.thumb.jpg.f614cce19de50b0de222d98a9b3370d0.jpg


And a rather sad looking, way out of season AZ Summer Poppy ( Kallstroemia grandiflora ) a ...summer.. Annual  still flowering, ..in late winter. 
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Sun Rays, and another magnet for Bees this time of year..

Angelita daisy ( Tetraneuris, **formally Hymenoxys**  acaulis )
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Desert Marigold ( Baileya multiradiata )
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Enjoy,
Nathan

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Front yard steadily getting closer to the start of peak bloom. With temps in the mid/upper 70s all week.. possibly topping out in the low 80s ( 80-82 or 83 forecast for Thursday )  before some showers on Fri/Sat., Would anticipate things to kick into high gear shortly after the start of March.  Signs of Spring appearing out back also..

View out the front door:
Shrubby things in the Street Island are Callistemon " Little John"  Look great this time of year, full of flowers as well. City butchers them in May every year, why i don't know.. They don't get tall enough to obscure traffic.
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Calliandra californica, Baja Fairyduster.. As attractive as this sp. is, there's a nice cross between this species and C. eriophylla that produces more/ slightly larger flowers a tad earlier. Just as tough as both parents. Can flower for several months. 
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Cacti and succulent stuff awakening out back:

Aloe longistyla
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Mammillaria ( also listed as Mammalopsis ) senilis
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Stenocactus sp. Hard to see but flower buds developing rapidly in pic. # 2

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In light of current plans ahead,  trying to resist germinating lots of stuff this spring but figure it is time to get some of the cacti seed i produced back in 2018 started.. Will be a few years but will be interesting to see what turns up among the Echinopsis i'd cross pollinated, and seed produced from crosses i attempted between distinctly different  Echinocereus dasyacanthus and Echinocereus leucanthus..  E. dasyacanth. as the mother in one cross attempt, E. leucanth. as "Mom" in the other.. Because cacti seed is small and can be germinated in small community pots, Will be easy to pack them in a box when time. Fingers crossed....
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6 minutes ago, Meangreen94z said:

 Nice. I should be out in Arizona beginning of March, hopefully everything is still flowering then.

:greenthumb: Good to hear your trip is still on track..

Yes, as long it stays mild,  ( still looking that way forecast-wise right now..maybe a quick cool down right around the end of the month, for a day or two.. ) should be many places where native stuff should be flowering at some level.. Haven't made it out to any local spots i'd visited last year yet, and with less overall rainfall compared to last year, peak displays might be more scattered/ maybe a tad later this year. That said, wildflowers should  at least be decent. 

Keep an eye on Desert USA's wildflower update pages for the area as your trip here gets closer. Picacho Peak State Park / Saguaro Nat. Park seem to light up first down around Tucson, followed by Catalina St. Park, east section of Saguaro N. P., and the Higher elevation areas around Mt. Lemmon, mountains/ other areas of far southern, & S.E. Arizona

Also, depending how long you're going to be in the area, several plant sales coming up next month also. 

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Spring blooming today at my place (top to bottom):
Rhipsalis rhombea ('Copper Branch') - an epiphytic cactus
California natives: Dendromecon harfordii ('Channel Islands Bush Poppy') and
Arctostaphylos densiflora 'Howard McMinn'

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Some pics on a cloudy but warm final Friday in February...

Recent rain has really kicked everything into high gear.. Phoenix actually set a daily record after receiving 1.04" of an inch from this last storm. Oddly ( and sadly ) enough, that is only  .05" less than San Jose ( CA. ) has seen since   ..October..  Crazy winter across the southwest and CA. for sure..

Poppies have been steadily building toward peak bloom since. Other stuff is quickly budding also atm. Chose to wait for a somewhat cloudy day to take pictures since the camera on this old phone of mine likes to mess up the color balance when i take pictures when it is sunny.. Even playing around with settings, pictures taken in full sun generally end up unacceptable by my standards. Anyway..

Wider view of the front yard this morning..
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Shots from various spots around the yard..
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Really nice "penciled" form of CA. Poppy. mixed in among regular 'ol standard Orange. Even taken under cloud cover, pictures still don't capture the colors well.
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Front walkway looking out to the street.
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Bigger Caliche Globemallow really starting to pop.
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TorchGlow Bougainvillea, Cove's Senna, ( lower left ) Brittlebush, and Poppies
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Emory's Rock Daisy, Perityle emoryi.. another "Where did it blow in from" native. Commonly seen growing straight out of cracks in large rock faces. Some interesting new finds within the Genus itself recently.
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Cacti getting real close to flowering..  roughly 4 weeks ahead of last year in the case of Opuntia basilaris ( pic #1 ) Other Opuntia  i planted around the yard are also budding up atm.
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Echinocereus  ( Trig. or coccineus ) getting real close.. Maybe by the middle or end of next week, especially with the forecast calling for 80-85F between next Thursday/ Sunday.. Still keeping an eye on the clumps of Lady Fingers ( Echinocereus pentalophus ) just in case either clump decides to do something this year... Noticing some of the Echinopsis/ Trichos out back starting to bud up also.. 
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Possible Showers aside next Monday, Spring has arrived in the Desert..
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Enjoy,
Nathan

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As advertised, a little more rain, plus some heat brought out the Poppies 'en Masse. While usually just behind some of the season opening Cacti, buds on the Echinocereus Trig/ coccineus started opening this morning. With a few days of mid/upper 80 heat + more rain forecast for mid week next week, Beaver Tail Prickly Pear scattered around the yard should start opening shortly.

Few more shots of my "blooming mess" from this week.. Another 3-4 weeks, and this seasons show will conclude. Noticed the Sonoran Lignum Vitae ( Weepy/ wispy looking tree in training to the upper right of the Plumeria in Pic. #3 ) is starting to wake up.  
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Echinocereus triglochidatus ( ..or coccineus ). Functional female ( Male parts reduced / non functional on this specimen )
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Some spring color ahead of this weeks rain..

Brittlebush
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One of the smaller Coves' Senna.. Seems these double in size after the second winter.
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Sweet Acacia starting to pop around town..
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Echinocereus trig./ coccineus just about fully ablaze.. Always looks nice with some Parry's Penstemon in the background ( pic.#2 )..
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Flashes of pink and scarlet during a lull in the rain.. 

First Opuntia flowers of 2020. Opuntia basilaris.
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Perry's Penstemon at peak bloom. There's at least one Hummingbird watching over them atm.
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More flowers opening on the hedgehog ( Echinocereus not sure on ID )
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Back side ( north facing ) view of the same specimen.

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After the rain, some nice color..  and a not o pleasant surprise when checking on things this morning..

Apparently sometime late last night/ very early this morning, someone ( ..or something ) decided to take a swipe at the really nice Beaver Tail Prickly Pear specimen out closer to the sidewalk by the driveway.. Knocked about half the plant off. Wasn't thrilled, to say the least.. especially since the plant had achieved a really nice overall form, and was loaded with buds/ opening flowers.. Still is, but is gonna take time to get it not looking a bit lopsided.. Instead of just throwing away all the broken off pads, took them out back, cleaned them a bit/ trimmed off all the developing flower buds:(, and planted them in other spots around the yard. For an Opuntia, these offset/ add growth pretty quick so they'll only add to the overall display out there in a year or two.  Always better to find the positive in something like that then waste energy getting upset i guess.. I'm sure who ever ..or whatever felt the need to act like a moron regretted it when they took off their shoes / started feeling thousands of Fiber Glass like Glochids in their skin.. No, these aren't the worst of the Opuntias but still 'real irritating when they get ya.  Anyway..

Poppies are just about done for the season, but still putting on a nice show for the moment. Another week or two and it will be time to start thinning/ cleaning everything out. Started removing some from around some of the other Opuntia which  basically got buried by the poppies this year. Pretty amazed how tall they grew in spots while barely doing much in others.

While Orange is typical, had a few White flowered Poppies show up this year. Kind of like this color more than the standard orange myself.
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Better quality shots of Emory's Rock Daisy and a ' still trying to properly ID ' "Tansy" Daisy.. There are at least a couple native sp. in a couple Genera locally.
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Desert Marigold, and Angelita Daisy with some spring guests.
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Caliche Globemallow hitting their peak, and a close up..
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Wild African Daisies.
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Beaver Tail P. P.  yesterday, before getting beat up.. err..
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Some extras as things out back start to awaken, and continue on into the new season.. Lots of buds forming on various cacti out there, inc. the Trichocereus X that hasn't flowered since i'd purchased it from the Huntington, back in 2013. Lots of Cacti seed sprouting atm also.

Rosary Babybonnets, ( Coursetia glandulosa )

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Swainsona formosa, still going strong..
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Enjoy this final weekend of winter,

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Nathan

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26 minutes ago, Meangreen94z said:

A few from my recent trip to Arizona

file.php?id=69171file.php?id=69170file.php?id=69169file.php?id=69168file.php?id=69167file.php?id=69166file.php?id=69165file.php?id=69164file.php?id=69163file.php?id=69162file.php?id=69160file.php?id=69159file.php?id=69183file.php?id=69180file.php?id=69177file.php?id=69175file.php?id=69174file.php?id=69173

Very nice!   How was your trip?

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Thanks. It was great. I thought once I was west of San Antonio I wouldn’t see rain again. It ended up being the opposite, but it did make for cooler weather while hiking. That and a few unique photos .

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7 minutes ago, Meangreen94z said:

Thanks. It was great. I thought once I was west of San Antonio I wouldn’t see rain again. It ended up being the opposite, but it did make for cooler weather while hiking. That and a few unique photos .

Good to hear. Yea, lol.. have to admit,  part of me was thinking " He  ( ..and his family ) are coming out here to visit / check out areas, and it's supposed to rain, most of the week.. At least you had the opportunity to experience what a cooler and wet winter can look like in the desert.. and yes, perfect  time for some hiking, or walk in a garden or two when it isn't raining. No concern w/ the heat..  Which garden(s) were you able to check out? Assuming you were primarily in/around the Tucson area?

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Thanks. We went to both sections of the Saguaro National Park, Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum in Tucson, the Desert Botanical Garden in Phoenix, and Organ Pipe National Monument. 

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Last  harrah for the Poppies.  Have already started the thinning process around the yard, just as the next set of actors gears up for their turn on stage. Sacred Datura that decided to flower late last year, rather than die back are already getting ready to put out flowers again. Figured the colder mornings / wet and cool conditions on and off thru winter would have caused them to die back.. has been the complete opposite in the yard, at least for the bigger plant. Other two are also responding to warming days with a burst of growth also..

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Caesalpinia mexicana starting a spring flowering cycle.
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Cove's Senna backlit by the morning sun after a rainy night.
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Interesting oddities this year:

White verbena.. Had only a normal, purple flowered plant turn up last year.  Most plants that came up this year have also been Purple, except two..
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Interesting color variation in a drift of Desert Bluebells ( Phacelia campanularia ) that popped up out back.. While the standard color is blue, some of the plants that came up here expressed flowers that ranged from bright blue to washed out light blue w/ dark blue "blotching" ( Pic#1  ) ..as i call it.. To a color id call Plum, lavender ( Pics # 2-3 ).. Very different. pictures don't entirely capture just how different though you can see some " normal" flowered plants in the background in both pics # 2 & 3. Not sure what caused this as there was no variance in color last year. Kind of neat however. Plan on collecting some of the seed just to see if perhaps the color difference is stable ( carries on in future plants ), or caused by some other factor in the soil.
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Beaver Tail Prickly Pear specimen, ..whats left of it, vibrant after some sunrise showers today
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Stenocactus sp. finally fully open out back
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Edited by Silas_Sancona
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A few pics on a warm Tuesday afternoon..

As noted before, a not so commonly seen duo of plants flowering simultaneously.. Spring flowering, cool season  Annual ( here ) CA. Poppies, alongside warm season, Perennial Sacrad Datura.. Plant ( Datura ) is loaded w/ additional flowers to come.
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Additional Cactus season openers:

Mamillopsis ( Also referred to as Mamillaria ) senilis.
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Tiny flowered, but interesting Mamillaria geminispina, or was labeled as such by Monterey Bay Nursery..
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First time surprise-ers gearing up:

Yucca Pallida.
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Brachychiton bidwilli. Considering my specimen is under 2' in height currently, surprised it is trying to flower at all. We'll see how well it holds onto buds as they continue developing.
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  • 3 weeks later...

Parting shades of Spring, and harbingers of the summer ahead...

While the weather might not feel like it yet.. ( kind of chilly 71 today, w/ a sprinkle here, ...from the same storm that soaked Southern Cal all week ).. Signs of hotter days ahead are taking to the stage.. As somewhat reluctant to leaf out Mesquites play catch up, Palo Verde season is opening as the last of the Sweet Acacia fade across the street.

Even with most of the poppies now cleared out, still plenty of color out in the yard. With the weather here stuck between " a few days in the 80s / few days back in the 70s"  kind of pattern for now,  Spring annuals are hanging around a little longer. At the same time, Sacred Datura and Thornless Bougainvillea are enjoying not being tortured by the heat just yet.., while some of the later season Opuntia planted out there are starting their show. 

Last of the bluebells alongside Bougainvillea and the giant Cove's Senna specimen ( Cut back in December.. might be bigger than last year atm ).. With a few street island Washingtonia thrown in..
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 Torch Glow Bougainvillea..
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Last of the Orange and Yellow wild African Daisies, Dimorphotheca sinuata
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Baja Ruella ( Petunia ) Ruellia peninsularis. 
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Sweet Almond Bush, Aloysia virgata adding it's scent to recent evenings out back.
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Fragrant Mimosa, Mimosa borealis.. As tough as it is spiny.
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Still no conclusive ID on this annual Aster/ Daisy.
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Verbena and Desert Marigold
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Sacred Datura.. Keep waiting to get a shot of the entire plant ( biggest specimen of the 3 planted ) in flower, but most flowers that have opened at once is 5. Other two plants managed to flower this year also..
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Opuntia X " Pina Colada" First flowers.
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Edited by Silas_Sancona
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