One Thing, Three Ways: Saguaro Cactus
The tall, definitive saguaro cactus seems synonymous with Arizona, although it is found throughout the Sonoran Desert that stretches into parts of California and Mexico. No 365 Project Year that included a trip to Arizona would be complete without some photos of this cactus, so here it is three ways.
Saguaro Cactus Photo #1. Saguaro cactus can grow to be over 70 feet tall. Holes inside the saguaros (like what you can see in the image above) are home to Gila woodpeckers, purple martins, and other native birds.
Saguaro Cactus Photo #2. The saguaro blossom is the State Wildflower of Arizona and is in bloom from April through June.
Saguaro Cactus Photo #3. The two-inch spines of a saguaro cactus direct rainwater into the depressions of the plant, help cool the outer skin of the cactus, redirect the wind, and insulate the plant.
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All great, but the first shot is spectacular!!!
Great shots! Excellent perspective in the first one. 🙂
Superb!
That looks HUGE!!! What a cool (and spikey!) shot 🙂
anne
Let me tell you, those were some serious spikes! 🙂
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Anne
I love the angle of the first one! I haven’t seen many like that 🙂 Very cool!
I´m deeply in love with saguaros!! Great pics!! Silke#
Thanks, Silke! I was so excited about how these turned out!
I like your perspective. Did you take these at the Desert Botanical Gardens? When I was there 2 weeks ago, they had not started to bloom. I think I’ll go back in the next few days.
I’m not entirely sure where I took them, but it was along a long, dusty road with a lot of saguaro somewhere in the Gilbert/Chandler area. My sister was driving and I was looking for the cactus I wanted, without a fence to climb, and with the sun in the right spot. 🙂
Dramatic images! Really nice! 🙂
Thanks so much! It’s hard to believe those photos were taken almost a year ago. I’m so excited to share new photos of cacti I took last week over the next several days.
#1. Mighty King of the Desert!