I just wanted to take a moment to introduce an interesting plant called the night-blooming cereus. If you've seen a large 6-8" (15-20 cm) red fruit in the grocery store that looks like it's covered with dragon scales, you've probably seen it's fruit (commonly called dragon fruit).
The plant is actually a cactus and it may grow well in sub-tropical areas as well as the tropics, but it seems to thrive here. They grow with almost no care, and do best when they have a tree or something similar to climb.
They are segmented and will often branch when cut. They put out 'air roots' that assist them in climbing as they grow, but need soil at their base.
We have several near our deck, and one started to bud last week.
The first picture is when I first noticed the buds (on the 22nd) and the second shows how much they've grown in just one week (on the 29th).
I'll try to be diligent and add pictures as they grow (and hopefully I'll be lucky enough to catch them on their only night of blooming).
If they produce fruit, I'll post additional pictures as the fruit grow and mature.
The plant is actually a cactus and it may grow well in sub-tropical areas as well as the tropics, but it seems to thrive here. They grow with almost no care, and do best when they have a tree or something similar to climb.
They are segmented and will often branch when cut. They put out 'air roots' that assist them in climbing as they grow, but need soil at their base.
We have several near our deck, and one started to bud last week.
The first picture is when I first noticed the buds (on the 22nd) and the second shows how much they've grown in just one week (on the 29th).
I'll try to be diligent and add pictures as they grow (and hopefully I'll be lucky enough to catch them on their only night of blooming).
If they produce fruit, I'll post additional pictures as the fruit grow and mature.