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Sunday, December 23, 2012

Rerun: LOL Cactaceae

This was the hiatus announcement photo two years ago. Every year, I intend to do another one -- last year was going to be the bromeliad family (Bromeliaceae), but I didn't have a good place to set up for the photo, and wasn't sure what I'd do to make them festive (having done bows already, in 2008). This year, it was going to be the fig/mulberry family (Moraceae), and we had the decoration part of it covered, because we threw lights on the giant Ficus benjamina. But, the lights are "white" LEDs, and actually photograph kind of blue,1 and not particularly clearly, and we don't have lights for all the Ficuses in the house, and so it was just not possible this year. Again. Even though I'd started thinking about it in, like, September.

Therefore, a repeat.

Back row, L-R: Schlumbergera x buckleyi, Pachycereus marginatus, Echinocactus grusonii, Pilosocereus pachycladus, Astrophytum ornatum, Myrtillocactus geometrizans, Stenocereus pruinosus.
Middle row: Epiphyllum oxypetallum, Stenocereus thurberi, Isolatocereus dumortieri.
Front row: Cereus peruvianus, Rhipsalis teres var. heteroclada (?), Schlumbergera x 'Caribbean Dancer,' Browningia hertlingiana (?), Leuchtenbergia principis.

For the record, all the plants in the photo are still with me two years later, except for the Schlumbergera x buckleyi, which may or may not be (it was one of four or five plants, of which I still have two: the others have been sold or traded away, and I have no way to know which one was in the photo), and the Echinocereus grusonii, which just couldn't hack the low light, and I couldn't provide it with more light, so I wound up throwing it away in May. All the rest are still here, and a few of them are doing so well lately that you'd hardly recognize them, even. So.

Unlike in 2010, this isn't a hiatus announcement: there will be an orchid on Christmas. I just don't really have anything very interesting happening with the plants right now, so this was the best I could come up with for a blog post.

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1Though it sort of coordinates nicely with the new blog colors:
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8 comments:

  1. Ginny BurtonDecember 23, 2012 at 4:43 AM

    The lights on the ficus make it look sort of extraterrestrial. Very pretty.

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  2. LizaDecember 23, 2012 at 7:05 AM

    Dang, that's a healthy Ficus! Gorgeous!

    I'm probably going to take a hiatus after tomorrow. I've been sooo busy in December, a break would be nice.

    I hope you have a great Christmas, mr_s!

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  3. PaulDecember 23, 2012 at 7:20 AM

    The ficus almost looks like the Pleiades.

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  4. AnonymousDecember 23, 2012 at 6:02 PM

    I like both. The ficus looks great lit up. Ficus was sort of a standard holiday tree back in my university/apartment days. They worked for a lot of college students. They take decoration pretty well. Along with Norfolk pines. But that was decades ago.

    Texas Anon

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  5. AnonymousDecember 23, 2012 at 6:25 PM

    I could see that Cactus family photo every year and never get bored of it.

    Happy holidays, Mr. S!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Plowing Through Life (Martha)December 24, 2012 at 5:43 AM

    Wow, what a beautiful Ficus! Happy holidays, Mr. S!

    ReplyDelete
  7. Paul VADecember 24, 2012 at 6:16 AM

    I can't tell if your ficus is haunted or the aliens are coming.

    ReplyDelete
  8. MelodyDecember 24, 2012 at 5:41 PM

    Happy Holidays and Happy New Year! I love the lit up Ficus, xmas lights make anything festive, they're good like that.

    ReplyDelete