Here is the Pencil thin Cereus that sits out front and you can see that there is a little whispy white something, just beginning...this was in May....and below, another view of a fuzzzy whisp that is forming now....and this will become a Night Blooming Flower.
And so will this one, too...this is a bit later in the month. And it is hard to believe, that from this little bit of fuzz a big amazing flower will grow....but, I assure you, it will....
It is hard to tell exactly how long each of these little Fuzz Balls will take to grow into the beautiful amazingly huge flower it will become....
And above, this is the plant as it looks before there were almost any fuzz balls, at all....and just below is a closer look at the plant with some teeny tiny fuzzy's showing....
When these Night Blooming Flowers finally do open, I will probably post these pictures again...just so you can see the contrast....But, back to more Fuzz Balls....
Another couple of arms of this plant with some tiny fuzzy's....think of the size of a pea...and then imagine fuzz on it and that's about the size of these here above....
And this one in this picture above is starting to have a slight shape to it....I find this process so amazing that I wanted to document it as best I could from the start through to the Blooming Flowers...and hopefully I will catch some of these baby's wide open on whatever Midnight they actually do open....There have been years where 22 or more flowers opened in one night, all at the same time...streetside and also, inside on my patio...it's the same plant that has grown intertwining itself inside and outside on the Patio Wall....So here is a fuzz ball on the Patio side near some pretty Bouganvilla...
The other thing that you can see is, each one of these fuzz balls has it's own time clock...so that little one closer to the bottom of the picture will no doubt open a day ot two or even three, after the somewhat larger fuzzy...but they have to get quite a bit bigger before that will happen...Here are a few pictures from a later date...and the fuzz balls are growing....
And a few more of the fuzzy's....
And another view of three more....
And a few more little fuzzy's in different growth sizes...
And then below...we have another one taken on July 11th, that is somewhat bigger....more formed...looking more like the flower it will eventually become....
And outside on the streetside, we have this much growth as of 7/12...
It is thrilling to see the magical growth of these flowers...and here is another phenomenol fuzzy...on it's way....
And here is one last amazingness as of 7/12.....these two big ones are on the street side....
And of course, the smaller ones, too....in this picture alone, there are at least 7 other potential flowers at different stages of growth...like I said, amazing....More will be forthcoming....
- had this to say:
What an amazing series of photos, Naomi! Love seeing Cerus just beginning and would be great to see Cerus become a Night Blooming Flower. The fuzz balls are just amazing, too! I am looking forward to see more photos. Have a nice day!
- Thursday, July 13, 2006 at 4:50:00 AM PDT
- had this to say:
You are soooo good at taking these photo's and following the progress for your blooming cactus!!..
I wish I had your camera!- Thursday, July 13, 2006 at 5:58:00 AM PDT
- had this to say:
It's nice to see your cactus photos again. Looks like they are all about to bloom.
Happy Thursday!- Thursday, July 13, 2006 at 6:04:00 AM PDT
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had this to say:
What an odd looking creature? But I like it in a strange way. I am sure it would be fun to watch.
A friend just gave me some moon blooming plants. They say you go out at night and watch them open. I hope they survive....I would love to see them in action!- Thursday, July 13, 2006 at 6:27:00 AM PDT
- had this to say:
And how many more days until they bloom? It is so hard to wait and watch. Mom's 4 o'clocks are loaded with blooms, closed blooms. I think it is the heat or these varieties, but the flowers aren't opening at 4pm or 8pm but if you're lucky they might open at 10pm or midnight. By the time the sun comes up they are closed again. Last week we had a "cold" spell with temperatures dipping down to the low 60's and highs only in the 70's and very low humidity. The blooms opened about 6pm and are lovely. The nights must be a tiny bit cooler in Roanoke than along the coast here because she swears they had these flowers blooming all summer there.
I can see you now, camped out in the middle of the night to catch that picture and can hardly wait for the result.- Thursday, July 13, 2006 at 7:05:00 AM PDT
- had this to say:
Loved all these fuzzy ball pictures!! Very interesting. That last one it looks like two little bird heads all looking towards something!! I know when they open these will be lovely flowers only to last one night and be gone. Nature is amazing.
- Thursday, July 13, 2006 at 7:32:00 AM PDT
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had this to say:
So that's what a night - blooming cereus looks like? Wow. I've never seen one before, but watching them evolve from fuzzy tufts to proto-flowers is interesting.
- Thursday, July 13, 2006 at 8:04:00 AM PDT
- had this to say:
Well now I'm going to have to go look at my cereus and see what IT is doing...lol!
- Thursday, July 13, 2006 at 10:42:00 AM PDT
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had this to say:
Very interesting. I'm reminded of snakes looking at that winding cactus.
- Thursday, July 13, 2006 at 11:11:00 AM PDT
- had this to say:
Those look likje creepy crawly snakes.
I've got the willies!!
The fuzzies are very neat.
The development at each stage is amazing.- Thursday, July 13, 2006 at 5:28:00 PM PDT
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had this to say:
Wow! Amazing photo's and very strange but cool plant. Can't wait to see the flower!
Thanks for visiting my site at the beginning of the week... I couldn't see your comment until today (thanks to commenting problems with my host ((don't let that stop you from visiting & commenting again))!- Thursday, July 13, 2006 at 7:24:00 PM PDT
- had this to say:
Neato. If you touch them, are the fuzz balls prickly?
- Thursday, July 13, 2006 at 8:00:00 PM PDT
- had this to say:
From fuzz to flowers, amazing!
Have a wonderful day!
*^_^
(=':'=) meow hugs
(")_ (")Š from da Raggedy one- Thursday, July 13, 2006 at 8:30:00 PM PDT
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had this to say:
Truly amazing photos, Naomi. Those early photos look like something out of Star Wars. But then the blooms are kind of out of this world, aren't they? Not too many cactus here in NYC!
- Thursday, July 13, 2006 at 9:17:00 PM PDT
- had this to say:
It looks like snakes, Naomi! I enjoy following the process of the cereus' blooming. It is probably the only way I will ever get to see that happen. Thanks for posting it.
- Thursday, July 13, 2006 at 9:25:00 PM PDT
- had this to say:
I have been thinking of you as my cactus gets these beautiful white flowers which only last a day...will show you pics :)
- Thursday, July 13, 2006 at 10:57:00 PM PDT
- had this to say:
i always enjoy your photo series
can't wait to see the actual flower- Thursday, July 13, 2006 at 11:08:00 PM PDT
- had this to say:
Hello, Michele sent me.
your photo series of the fuzzy's growth was quite exciting. A midnight flowering look to be worth the wait.- Friday, July 14, 2006 at 2:12:00 AM PDT
- had this to say:
They look a bit dfried up, don't they, but I imagine the flowers will be fabulous. I have been reading your "100 things" post - very interesting.
Here from Michele's- Friday, July 14, 2006 at 3:51:00 AM PDT
- had this to say:
I love the fuzz ball plants! Amazing that those turn into flowers!
Michele sent me this time! :-)- Friday, July 14, 2006 at 10:59:00 AM PDT
- had this to say:
Darling Naomi, your pics are always wonderful. Michele sent me this time. Only to tell you I'd love more pics of the Parks brothers ... :D
- Friday, July 14, 2006 at 1:33:00 PM PDT
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had this to say:
These are even more amazing! Stranger than fiction, aren't they?!
- Friday, July 14, 2006 at 4:12:00 PM PDT
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had this to say:
They look so lovely. Very nice pictures as usual Naomi!
- Saturday, July 15, 2006 at 3:16:00 AM PDT
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had this to say:
This is absolutely amazing! Talk about nature at it's finest.
The process is truly magical. Thank you so much for sharing all of this with us.
But have two questions....is there a scent to these flowers when they bloom? And did you plant these yourself or were they there when you moved it?
You are so fortunate to be able to witness all of this.- Saturday, July 15, 2006 at 2:39:00 PM PDT
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had this to say:
oh lord you live in what I would consider paradise..
I have spent many a new years night in your hills...
with a bottle of champagne ..
just toasting my adopted city with my wonderful husband...- Saturday, July 15, 2006 at 9:40:00 PM PDT
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