Night-blooming cereus cacti [OC]

These bloomed outside my house last night - luckily I was up early enough to get some pictures before they closed up! Not stunning pictures but I always enjoy AZ cactus flowers :) The third picture is rotated the wrong way for some reason; it works fine on my computer but it's rotating back to landscape on here. Sorry about that.

No related links added yet. Be the first!

Add Related Link

Join the Discussion

Auto Tier
All
1
2
3

Post Comment

[Deleted Profile]
[This comment was removed]

9 years ago
Link
5 Replies
- thinkerbell
  +3
  
  Yeah, what do they smell like? I don't think I've ever smelled a cactus flower before.
  
  9 years ago
  
  Reply
  Link Save
  3 Replies
  - rigel (edited 9 years ago)
    +1
    
    Can't speak to this particular one as I totally forgot to give it a sniff (well, and, still getting over a cold so I might not be able to smell much anyway), but some other cactus blossoms can smell really nice. We have a lot of prickly pear cacti around here. The fragrance from the blooms isn't particularly strong, but it's nice. Also the fruits taste really sweet; we make lemonade out of them.
    
    Saguaros have nice blossoms too but I'm afraid I've never been up high enough on one to smell it. :)
    
    9 years ago
    
    Reply
    Link Save
    3 Replies
    - thinkerbell
      +3
      
      Wow, prickly pear lemonade? That sounds amazing- I will definitely have to put that on the bucket list. Do you have a recipe for that? It might make a nice snap. (if you do end up doing that tag me so I can get the recipe!)
      
      9 years ago
      
      Reply
      Link Save
      2 Replies
      - rigel (edited 9 years ago)
        +2
        
        I don't have my own recipe as I haven't done it for quite a while, but this pdf looks to be about the right procedure. I'll see if there's a good tribe for it tomorrow when I have some more energy.
        
        edit: also found this more extensive overview
        
        But yeah, basically you just harvest the fruits with gloves and tongs, rinse, cut open and take out pulpy stuff, blend, strain, refrigerate. Then you can make lemonade with it. If you're ever down in the Tucson area be sure to hit up Tohono Chul Park as they always have great prickly pear lemonade there. You can also buy jams and syrups from local artsy folk usually, as well as from gift shop type places.
        
        I think you can buy the prickly pear concentrate online if you're interested in giving it a shot!
        
        9 years ago
        
        Reply
        Link Save
        1 Replies
        
        thinkerbell
        +1
        
        Thanks for all the cool info! I guess having never lived around cacti, it hadn't dawned on me that you could make so many things from the fruit. I'm gonna look into it!
        
        9 years ago
        
        Reply
        Link Save
- rigel (edited 9 years ago)
  +1
  
  I'll be honest, in my desire for pictures I completely forgot to smell it! I have a feeling there will be more that bloom tonight since there are a few other cacti out there. So I will go out in the morning and get back to you on that provided my cold is all better and I can properly smell again. :)
  
  9 years ago
  
  Reply
  Link Save

Gozzin
+3

I also want to know how they smell and did bats show up to pollinate them?

9 years ago

Reply
Link Save
1 Replies
- rigel
  +2
  
  Just looked it up and it looks like you're right, it would have been either bats or moths. It would have been interesting to watch that happen!
  
  But also I know this morning when I was out there, there were definitely some bees and smaller little insects that were able to get into the flowers before they closed up.
  
  9 years ago
  
  Reply
  Link Save

ekyris
+3

Hey if you're interested, I've started /t/BotanicalPics and we'd love to have submissions like yours! OC submissions are always enjoyed.

9 years ago

Reply
Link Save
1 Replies
- rigel
  +1
  
  I am interested but it appears I've run out of tribe slots. If I level up and get some more soon I'll be sure to add BotanicalPics into the list! Thanks for the suggestion!
  
  9 years ago
  
  Reply
  Link Save

fanficmistress
+2

Those are awesome photos especially the first one.

9 years ago

Reply
Link Save
1 Replies
- rigel
  +1
  
  Thanks! I have a bunch of other pics on my phone still, maybe I'll add a few more to the snap tomorrow.
  
  9 years ago
  
  Reply
  Link Save

babymeta1
+2

Up close and personal.

9 years ago

Reply
Link Save

melanoleuca
+2

Would you mind terribly to post this in /t/plants? We welcome content like this!

9 years ago

Reply
Link Save
1 Replies
- rigel
  +2
  
  Sure, just posted it over there too. Thanks for the suggestion!
  
  9 years ago
  
  Reply
  Link Save

Welcome to our invite-only web community!

Thank you

Help spread the word about Snapzu:

Night-blooming cereus cacti [OC]

Wikipedia page on the cacti

How they're pollinated

Join the Discussion

Here are some other snaps you may like...

Check out our front page for a lot more stuff!

Echinopsis Cactus Flowers Seem to Explode Like Fireworks

Death Valley Is Covered In Flowers