Big Bend State Park 1

Claret Cup Cactus - Echinocereus triglochidiatus

Prairie Verbena and Miscellaneous Cactus Blooms

Glandularia bipinnatifida, Purple Prairie Verbena, a great attractor of butterflies, abundant one year and almost completely missing the next.  This year the tiny seeds must have had the specific conditions of sunlight, moisture, and heat to assert their dominance. 

Claret cup cactus, seems that digital cameras struggle with the representation of red, this shot comes pretty close to the true color.

April 4 - Claret Cup Craziness

Echinocereus triglochidiatus - Claret Cup Cactus - This Central Texas native may be my most favorite cactus of all.  Strikingly brilliant long lasting red blooms, cold hardy to 5 degrees Fahrenheit, tolerant of full sun, soil is optional actually it prefers to grow in cracks of rocks, several specimen can be seen blooming in late March on sheer cliff faces along Interstate 10 west of Sonora.  Sadly this plant is more well known and appreciated in France and Germany, few Texans have made note of its disappearing presence in rocky portions of the Texas Hill Country and parts further West.

April 2 - Claret Cup Cactus