ASDM: Cacti with dog food bags and other curious sights

When I woke up in my downtown Tucson hotel room on New Year’s Day, I saw a slight dusting of snow on the cars in the parking lot. An hour later I was in the Tucson Mountains snapping one photo after another: The mountains had become a winter wonderland, and even the locals seemed giddy with excitement.

When I arrived at the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum (ASDM) on the western edge of the Tucson Mountains, the air temperature had climbed into the high 30s and what little snow had fallen there was beginning to melt. Still, I was able to get many good pictures of the desert the way I’d never seen it before.

The original car in which Hal Gras, the first public relations director of the Desert Museum, brought animals to schools, hospitals, etc. to spread the word about the the new institution

As you can see below, the vintage station wagon parked at the entrance still had snow on the hood and windshield:

The Desert Ark is now a permanent fixture at the entrance to the Desert Museum

This clump of cactus in a shallow bowl looked amazing with just the spines poking out:

Fresh snow on cactus…

…both weird and wonderful

The strangest sight, though, was the way many cacti at the Desert Museum were protected against the freeze. Kudos to the Museum staff for being so creative. Coverings ranged from dog food bags and Styrofoam cups…

…to bird seed bags and plastic nursery containers.

Tarps were used to cover entire beds.

From previous visits I knew there were aloes under these tarps

The snow proved to be very ephemeral. Most of it was gone in a matter of hours, but it was glorious while it lasted.

Teddy bear cholla (Cylindropuntia bigelovii)

Teddy bear cholla (Cylindropuntia bigelovii)

Teddy bear cholla (Cylindropuntia bigelovii)

Opuntia gosseliniana var. santa-rita with deep-purple coloration. I’ve never seen color this intense on my own specimen. It must be the cold and generally very dry climate.

Western coral bean (Erythrina flabelliformis)

Opuntia engelmannii

 

LEFT: Dying cholla    RIGHT: Saguaro skeleton

Fallen agave flower stalk

I felt bad for the folks who wanted to see the Cactus Garden. Many specimens were covered. Check this post from September 2012 to see what the Cactus Garden looks like in all its summer glory.

Here are more random pictures from my New Year’s Day perambulation:

Not a great photo, but I wanted to show you that the Desert Museum is also a zoo with many animal exhibits. I usually walk right by them, but for many visitors they are the main attraction. Without a doubt, this Mexican gray wolf is a beautiful animal, but my eyes immediately went to the agave behind him :-).

Mountain yucca (Yucca schottii)

Queen Victoria agave (Agave victoria-reginae)

Queen Victoria agave (Agave victoria-reginae)

Agave colorata

Astrophythum ornatum

Dioon edule with a ripe seed cone, split open to reveal the seeds inside

Candelilla (Euphorbia antisyphilitica). In Mexico, its white sap was used to treat syphillis, hence its botanical name.

Ocotillo (Fouquieria splendens) looking splendid against a purple…

…and an apricot-colored stucco wall

Agave colorata with an emerging flower stalk

Warden Oasis Theater (left) and Priscilla V. Baldwin Building & Library (right)

Totem pole cactus (Lophocereus schottii forma monstrosus)

Tender elephant tree (Bursera microphylla) getting a boost from a heat lamp

Baja fairy duster (Calliandra californica)

Bloomed out agave and Opuntia macrocentra

I had two major plant crushes on this trip. The first one was the palo blanco (Mariosousa willardiana, previously Acacia willardiana), a small tree from Sonora, Mexico with peeling white bark, wispy branches, and small leaves. The overall look is airy and lacy. The only downside is that it’s quite tender; temperatures much below 25°F can cause severe damage. That’s why siting it against a wall or structure is best. I saw palo blancos in quite a few places and will do a separate post on it.

My goal was to bring home a 5-gallon plant, but I couldn’t find anything smaller than 15-gallon plants, which were much too large for my car. Next time!

My other plant crush was the slipper plant (Pedilanthus macrocarpus). Superficially it looks like a larger version of the candelilla (Euphorbia antisyphilitica) above, but I think it’s much more elegant. Its pale blue stems, which fade to green in strong light, are mostly leafless. In the summer, orange-red flowers resembling a slipper appear (hence the common name). Pedilanthus macrocarpus hails from the Sonoran desert of northwestern Mexico and is a bit wimpy when it comes to the cold, so planting it against a wall is a good idea.

I was able to find a slipper plant to bring home and put it in a square terracotta container under the front porch, against the wall of the garage.

Pedilanthus macrocarpus is closely related to euphorbias (it’s sometimes listed as Euphorbia lomelii). It, too, contains a white sap that some people find irritating. Pedilanthus macrocarpus needs very little water, even in a container, which makes me love it even more.

I left the Desert Museum in the early afternoon. By that time the snow was melting so fast that I first thought it was raining as I stepped out of the Mountain House Gift Shop near the entrance. I usually enjoy sitting at one of these tables with a coffee or iced tea from Phoebe’s Coffee Bar, but not this time!

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