One of the things that always fascinates us in the Arizona desert is the Saguaro cactus.
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The Saguaro blossom is the Arizona state flower. The Saguaros grow exceedingly slowly --- a ten-year-old saguaro may be only an inch or two high. An "average" saguaro is 125 years old, 30 feet tall, and will have five arms. Some grow to 50 feet or more, and weigh over five tons.
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Some experts believe some saguaros are near 200 years old. (One of the problems is that the saguaros live longer than the experts, so nobody ever ends his study of an individual saguaro from birth to death.)
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A saguaro produces "a profusion of blossoms" at about age 35; each blossom containing around 2000 seeds, and may produce 40 million seeds during its lifetime. However very few of them will survive to become a seedling, and fewer still to become an adult, due to drought, freezing, and animals eating them.
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These (sometimes) huge cacti are everywhere in the desert, growing in many different modes. We wonder for instance:
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Why do some of them grow straight and tall with no arms?
Why do some have arms only near the bottom? Or only near the top? Or both?
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Why do some have many arms, and some have only one or two?
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Depending on which "expert" you believe, Saguaros do not grow any arms until they are 40 or 70 (pick one) years old. We were once told that the arms didn't grow arms, but that theory was quickly dispelled.
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All in all, a rather enigmatic and interesting plant. Makes you want to get right up close and hug one. Or not.
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Here are a few of our favorites:
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| Arms at one level |
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| Arms at multi-levels |
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| The Octo-mom Saguaro |
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| The Cell Tower Saguaro courtesy of Verizon |
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| The Gumby Saguaro |
