June is almost here and I found my Peanut Cactus in bloom. This photo is from the first year of growing the cactus. It must have gotten it’s name from the peanut like stems.
As it grew out, the stems starting to stretch out. So for the longest time I thought it was named “Rat Tail Cactus”. But from looking at the bloom, it’s very much a hybrid type of peanut cactus. The blooms usually last a few days and start to wither off. For the next few weeks they will be flowering in succession.
In some ways the flower reminds me of the mini Orchid cactus (epiphyllum).
Most of the year it’s just a container full of scary spiky cactus. But when it starts to bloom, the color of the flower is spectacular.
Another interesting thing about this cactus is how easy it is to grow and propagate. I barely touched one of the stems and they fall off and start growing new stems. And of course it doesn’t need much watering.
9:01 pm on July 14th, 2013
It’s amazing to see the flowers, it made me think of ‘beauty and the beast’, not the Disney movie Beauty and the Beast, but to look at the plant itself when it flowers.
11:31 pm on July 25th, 2013
I can only imagine how the desert comes alive with all these bright flowers. It truly is a beauty amongst the beast of a harsh desert environment.