Sprig » cactus

Cactus Flower

via Email — Sun, 16 Jan 2011 06:00:24 +0000

I came back from holiday to find this beautiful cactus flower. How nice!

Cactus in bloom

Niall — Tue, 21 Dec 2010 13:56:53 +0000

One of the scaffy cacti I rescued a while back has returned the favour by providing a crown of purple flowers, just in time for Christmas!

Cactus in bloom

Cacti Rescue

Niall — Wed, 10 Nov 2010 06:00:56 +0000

My mom was getting rid of this box of scaffy cacti and, as I hate to see a pot plant go to waste, I decided to rescue them. A pair of gloves, some cheap ceramic pots (R16.00) and a bag of gravel later, they were as good as new!

Cactus cacti

Niall — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 08:08:03 +0000

I was up in Vryheid over the weekend, staying at the Natal Spa. They have some really great hot springs there and a very cool, old-school garden. Situated in the centre of this garden were these two interesting cacti. I’m guessing they’re not indigenous to South Africa but are quite beautiful.

Cactus cacti

How does her garden grow?

mol-d — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 09:50:53 +0000

No cockle shells here, some stones.. When we think of gardens (particularly here in Durban) we often think luscious green… On the contrary, my mother, Helen, has created a unique and interesting garden mainly using stones, pot plants, succulents and cacti… I think the pics speak for themselves. Isn’t it cool?

Cool Garden 1

Cool Garden 2

Cool Garden 3

Cool Garden 4

Naboooooom!

Niall — Thu, 30 Jul 2009 12:41:13 +0000

I planted this tree (known as Naboom or umPapha) a few years back not knowing how big it would get. Turns out, its going to be huge and near impossible to cut down due to its poisonous sap. Luckily it has room to grow and I find its flowers and berries rather beautiful. Birds are also very fond of the green fruits.

The plant is traditionally used to treat warts and chronic ulcers.

Naboom branch.

Naboom berries.

International First Love Day

Niall — Fri, 15 May 2009 12:53:14 +0000

Today is the first International First Love Day over at BridgetMcNulty.com. As this is a gardening blog, I’ll stick to the first plant I loved and the first plant which got me into gardening, a little cactus I blogged about a few months ago.

What were the first plant(s) that got you interested in gardening?

How to kill a cactus

Niall — Sat, 04 Apr 2009 09:05:20 +0000

In an earlier post, my mom asked for help identifying a cactus she has in her garden. Ross came to the rescue, pointing out that it is a Cereus peruviana and a category 1 invader! Needless to say, she now wants it out of her garden but if we cut it down with a panga we’re worried we’ll spread it around the garden and make the matter worse.

We also don’t want to use anything too toxic that would damage the environment and could get into the water table. I’ve heard that you could use diesel but I’m not sure of the application and what the implications would be. Any suggestions would be appreciated?

Gardening at night…

mol-d — Mon, 16 Mar 2009 11:23:45 +0000

These cacti are a fairly common occurrence in Durban and other parts of South Africa. They have an amazing flower that only opens at night and early morning. Commonly known as the Princess / Queen of the Night, the nightblooming cereus, which I have in my garden and had always assumed was indigenous, does in fact originate from Central America, the Caribbean and northern South America.

And as bev18 from Port Alfred comment on this blog:

“We in South Africa regard this plant as an alien invader. It grows all over the place and although I admired it for many years, it was not until a friend of mine showed me the edible portion that I really began to appreciate it. The flower, in the correct conditions, grows into an interesting fruit which when chilled and sliced, is delicious. Not unlike a Kiwi fruit.”

Aesthetic and delicious. Should I chop it?

Queen of the Night 01

Queen of the Night 02

Fleeting flower

Helen — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 10:18:22 +0000

Here is a picture of my cactus flower which only lasted a day. It had a slight fragrance. Does anyone have more details on the plant or flower? I am interested to know if it is indigenous.

Fleeting flower.

Cactus flower