This week I came across several interesting examples of the cactus on our property. By far, the most common one is the the prickly pear, followed by the lace cactus. Quite rare are the strawberry hedgehogs; what a great name!

Here’s a close up of a lace cactus. These plants are quite small, only a few inches tall. I love the geometric patterns formed by their needles and spherical or cylindrical bodies.

Lace Cactus

Here’s a strawberry hedgehog. At least, that’s what we call it. I’m not sure what the botanical name is. They have beautiful red, strawberry-like fruit, which leads to the name. They also look like squat, compact, little hedgehogs. This one is about 8 inches in diameter, but only about 4 inches tall. I only know of two on our property. Part of the problem is that in addition to being rare, they’re quite hard to see.

Strawberry Hedgehog Cactus

I’m not sure what this next one is. It’s similar to the strawberry hedghog, but it’s not that. In one spot, I found this larger one, and a couple of smaller ones. I’ve got to work on identifying it. Any help?

Unknown Cactus

I took this photo last weekend and went out again this weekend looking for it. I thought the flowers would be open by now. I couldn’t find it! I’ll have to add it to my list of things to be on the lookout for.