Monday, September 23, 2013

night blooming cereus



A week ago, Sunday last, I noticed that my night blooming cereus had put out a bud.


I acquired this plant a year ago last spring at the library plant swap and it was a little piece of leaf, about 3” x 4”, stuck in a pot. It has grown considerably in the year and a half I have had it but it's been sitting directly on the ground and the snails and pill bugs, of which we have plenty, pill bugs that is, have riddled it with holes and munched on edges.


I thought I would miss the bloom because we went into the city on Monday and didn't return til Tuesday. I was delighted to see Tuesday evening that the bud had not opened.

Wednesday and Thursday it continued to get fatter.



And then Thursday evening it started to open.




I brought it inside for a while for better pictures. The flash was too bright and totally washed out the petals.




It smelled so good, kind of a lemony fragrance.


Eventually I put it back outside for the night fearful that the artificial light would trick it into thinking it was day and it would close up. And also to let it attract whatever moths it could or would.





14 comments:

  1. Isn't that gorgeous? I have GOT to get one of those.

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  2. I just love Cereus plants. They certainly are worth the wait for the blossoms. Oma Linda

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  3. truly awesome. the tendrils around the bud made me think of little shop of horrors. :)

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  4. OH ELLEN what a fabulous trip through flower life with you! Stunning, yummy looking, bud, and blossom, glad it is feeding someone (pillbugs) ...Spectacular! Thank you for the photos of it blooming! What luck!

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  5. I want to stick my face in it! Gentle... just to drink in the scent. Maybe get some pollen on my nose. What a perfect bloom!

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  6. What an amazingly beautiful flower. Great photography too.

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  7. Beautiful! When I worked in Sarasota I often drove past a house with a huge cereus plant growing up a tree in the front yard.

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  8. What a spectacular weird plant, unfolding itself as if to welcome you. Fragrant?

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  9. Wow. I am so glad you did not miss this.

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  10. It’s glorious. How long will it/has it flowered?

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  11. Wow.. what a beautiful bloom. I've never heard of these. So cool that it blooms at night.

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I opened my big mouth, now it's your turn.