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Saguaro Cactus
Saguaros live 200 years or longer, and can reach heights
of up to 40 feet or more! They are
often protected early on by "nurse" plants, such as palo verdes. They
sprout their first "arms" at about age 75. Woodpeckers
and flickers carve out holes in the cactus to build
their nests. These
holes are re-used by other birds. White flowers bloom in the
spring; each flower
blooms for
only one day, and only at night. Red fruit
appears in early summer.
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Organ Pipe Cactus
Although not nearly as
imposing as the
Saguaro, the Organ Pipe cactus, like the one pictured
here, is nevertheless impressive, reaching heights of up to
25 feet. Unlike the Saguaro, they are not found everywhere in the
Sonoran, only in a small area of SW Arizona down into Western Sonora,
Mexico.
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Cholla Cactus
The Cholla cactus comes in many
varieties; such as, teddy bear, staghorn, jumping, and chain
fruit. The ones pictured in the photo are Teddy Bear chollas. Our
puppy had a run
in with one of those, and trust me, they are
NOT cuddly!
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Palo Verde
Meaning "green stick," the
Palo Verde blooms with small brilliant yellow flowers in the spring. It
grows as a multi-trunked bush when left unattended, but with trimming
and training, can become a beautiful shade tree.
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Barrel Cactus
There are several kinds of
barrel cactus, all with long sharp tough spines. They produce beautiful
flowers in the
spring and fruit in the summer. They tend to lean toward the sun,
sometimes falling over
onto the ground, feeling foolish.
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Ocotillo Plant
Most of the time,
ocotillos look like bouquets of skinny dead brown twigs sticking up in
the air. But after it rains, they green up beautifully with hundreds of
small leaves and produce bright red-orange blooms at the top.
The branches (canes) can be cut and used to produce new plants, or made
into living fences. Cool, huh?
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Prickly Pear Cactus
There are many types of prickly pears; the one in
the photo is
called a Beaver Tail. They all
have flat pads which are edible, as well as the fruit, which can
be
made into jelly. Pads can be broken off, stuck in the ground after
drying, and grow into new plants.
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Other Desert Plants
The Sonoran Desert is
among the
most highly vegetated of all deserts, with more than 2,500 different
plants growing here. In this photo you can see brittle bush,
prickly pear cactus, and ocotillo plants.
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