Even if, because of our yearlong drought, barely anything is blossoming this spring, the cacti – of course, they’re more than well-adapted to this climate of ours – are the exception. Meanwhile they’re in full bloom:
Mesquite & Cacti
Both Mesquite and cacti [here prickly pear] are considered more or less some kind of weed by the farmers/ranchers hereabouts. But it’s (nearly) impossible to get rid of them. Mesquite e.g. starts growing again if only the smallest piece of its root(s), which on the one hand can reach to a depth of 150 feet or more, or, on the other hand, may widely spread just under the surface, is left in the soil. On top of that, Mesquite is quite resistent against a lot of herbicides.
Cacti, on the other hand, are a kind of a last resort food for cattle in times of extreme drought and thus can be a boon to ranchers. After the thorns have been torched off, the hungry cattle can eat the leaves.
Whatever one thinks of the cacti and their usefulness, they’re pretty to look at wgen they’re blossoming:
Cacti in Bloom [1]
Cacti in Bloom [2]
Cacti in Bloom [3]
Cacti in Bloom [4]
Cacti in Bloom [5]
Um diesen Artikel in Deutsch zu lesen, hier klicken.
Related articles
- South Texas ranchers feeding cactus to keep from liquidating herds (southeastfarmpress.com)
- Flat and Jointed Cacti (cactuslovers.wordpress.com)
- Hedgehog Cacti Are In Bloom (kenneturner.com)
- Drought: Why the Dust Bowl may be coming back (thestar.com)
- Cacti & Thorns (Spines): Why? (swittersb.wordpress.com)
- Shiner’s Brewers Pride Series – Prickly Pear (samplingcraft.wordpress.com)
- Red Grapes and Prickly Pear (pddblog.wordpress.com)
- Strange fruit: prickly pear (crunchyurban.wordpress.com)
Lovely pictures, especially the lighting. Well done!
Thanks! 🙂
schoene kakteen. du ich wuerde gerne mit dir tauschen, ich ziehe nach Tx. und du kannst hier hoch kommen nach Oh. ich kaeme schon allein wegen den temperaturen zu euch runter.
heute hatten wir mal ausnahmsweise 26 grad, aber das muessen wir auch gleich schon wieder mit regen und gewittern buessen.
schoene wochenendgruesse zu dir
Sammy
Hallo Sammy,
danke, dass Du Dir die Zeit genommen hast, hier in meinem Blog vorbeizuschauen und auch einen Kommentar zu hinterlassen. Die Kakteen finde ich auch sehr schön, wqenn sie blühen … und wenn ich mich nicht reinsetze. 😉
Was die Temperaturen angeht: ich kann Dich ja verstehen, denn Ihr habt ja nun dieses Mal wirklich genug Winter gehabt. Es kann aber auch manchmal zu viel werden hier mit Hitze [im Sommer 3 bis 4 Monate “am Stück” mit Temperaturen von 35 Grad und mehr] und extrem hoher Luftfeuchtigkeit. Und dazu kommt die nun schon über drei Jahre andauernde Dürre. Trotzdem: mir gefällt es hier.
Liebe Grüße aus dem südlichen Texas,
Pit
So little rain, so much beauty, thanks!
Thanks for stopping by at my blog and leaving a comment. 🙂 With more rainm, we’d have more beauty, btw:
– https://pitstexasexpatblog.wordpress.com/2012/05/24/cenizo/
– https://pitstexasexpatblog.wordpress.com/2012/03/28/spring-pictures-1/
Best regards from southern Texas,
Pit
I wonder how beer made from cacti will taste. great pictures
Hi Charles,
Thanks for taking your time to stop by and visit my blog. 🙂 I must admit, I don’t really care for cactus beer, as I said in my posting about Shiner’s Prickly Pear. I tried it once when I got it in a sampler, but I’m nit going to buy it again. It’s too much like a lemonade.
Thanks for the praise as to the pictures.
Best regards from southern Texas,
Pit
Lovely, lovely cactus photos! It is my favorite plant.
Hi MQL,
Thanks for taking your time to stop by and visit my blog. 🙂 I do like cacti, but they’re not my favourite plants – especially not when I come into too close a contact. 😉
Best regards from southern Texas,
Pit