Bloom bright, so bright
I noticed something the other morning, just by chance as I was walking past the cactus bed.
Yes, one of the blooms looked like it was getting ready to open soon -- and it's a cactus that I don't think has bloomed for me before!
So I snapped a couple of photos, thinking that in a few days when this actually opened I'd take more to get the whole sequence.
A couple of hours later though, it was open!
So vibrant, so camera-blindingly pink!
It's almost the same color as the Salvia 'Wild Thing' just 24" (60cm) away...
...but it's deeper, more intense color. It may not show up well in the photos.
There is a second flower bud that has not started opening yet, and a couple other Opuntia that have buds which appear to be getting close to opening.
Cactus flowers are so exciting, at least for me!
(I think this is Opuntia aurea 'Coombe's Winter Glow' -- can anybody confirm?)
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A cactus that looks like a rose!
Oh! When I wrote that comment . . I hadn't realised not all the pictures had come up on my screen. Now I know it's a cactus that looks like a rose that turns into a poppy!
Wow, this one super saturated cactus flower! On my computer is looks more magenta than pink. The fact it's so ephemeral makes it even more special.
I have never seen a pink flowering opuntia. I it a large one?
Jenny: In my climate, it will probably get quite wide, but very few keep their height. I'm not certain of its mature size, but it was one of my more vigorous ones while it was still in a pot. (It's only been in the ground for about a year.)