Contrail

Coyote Hills

A view of Coyote Hills in Fullerton, California, 27 December 2008. Photo by travisk at Wikipedia.  Note the abundance of nopales (Opuntia)!

Christmas cactus

The Christmas cactus, Schlumbergera bridgesii, also found as S. buckleyi and Zygocactus truncatus, has arched, drooping branches of curiously flattened and jointed sections, growing as much as 3 ft. across (1 m), with long tubular and many-petalled blooms of purplish-red, red, pink, white, and even yellow, depending on the variety.  It can be grown outdoors in Sunset zones 16-17, and 21-24 in half-shade, or indoors in a cool but bright spot out of direct light.

I hesitate to jinx my luck by saying so, but I do almost nothing to this plant -- I don't feed it, I don't keep it in a dark spot in November to set its blooms for December, and I usually forget to water it regularly -- and yet it still rewards me with scores of blushed-white blooms in early December, and even here and there at other times of the year.  It is also absurdly easy to root new plants -- pinch off a section of stem and put it in water for a few weeks, or plant directly into a pot.

This photo was taken from underneath the plant, which sits on top of a bookcase near a north-west facing window.

December clouds