May 9
Boyce Thompson Arboretum offered tours of Picket Post Mansion, aka Castle on the Rocks, as a fundraiser this weekend and last. Tipod in hand, I hoped for some interesting HDR possibilites. With its tin ceiling and stained glass windows, this room was my favorite.
May 8
Not to be outdone by the other cactus, my Christmas Cholla (Cylindropuntia leptocaulis) is absolutely loaded with blooms…the most I’ve ever seen! The 1 inch blooms prefer late afternoon light which, coincidentally, so do I 🙂 Captured late yesterday (hand held) with my Canon 100mm Macro lens.
May 7
Desert Willow (Chilopsis linearis) is an Arizona native tree. It’s deciduous which means many don’t like it in their yard because it’s so messy but I think its gorgeous Orchid-like blooms are worth the trade-off!. These were captured at the Desert Botanical garden.
May 6
There is nothing more exciting for this wanna-be botanist than to find a species I’ve never seen before. It doesn’t happen much anymore because I’m exploring in the Preserve so often but I was lucky this past Saturday. While looking for another species, I came across a Violet Snapdragon (Sairocarpus nuttallianus) growing right next to the one I had been looking for! Of course I had no idea what it was so I went to my main source, Steve Jones, and he came through as always. Thanks Steve! And thanks to Chris for helping me hike back up to get a better look yesterday. (It’s a very steep trail)
What look like hairs all over the plant are actually tiny tack-like glands. Very cool.
May 5
Ocotillo (Fouqueria splendens) is also blooming like crazy now too. Like Saguaro blooms, though, these blooms are tough to photograph because they’re typically too high but this specimen is a youngster I planted just last year. I was so happy to see it bloom for the first time! I used a Lensbaby to achieve the really soft background.
May 4
Blooms are numerous on our cactus this Spring! This gorgeous orangy-red specimen is another of the non-natives in my yard. Capturing a fast moving native bee is always a bonus!
May 3
During a hike yesterday morning, I met a couple who told me about a Great Horned Owl and 3 babies in their neighborhood. I was over there that afternoon! Mother Owl wasn’t there and the three Owlets waited 2 1/2 hours to become active. It was getting dark but I upped my ISO and hung in there for this shot. A little help from Photoshop to open up the shadows on the two in the back. (Canon 60D, 70-200 at 200mm. ISO 1250, 1500th sec @ f/6.3)
May 2
Teddybear Cholla (Cylindropuntia bigelovii) are described as having green flowers but when fully open, the color is mostly cream. This particular cactus is in my yard and is loaded with dozens of blooms at the moment. Canon 24-70mm at f/5.
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