Ocotillo

If you've never been to the desert after a  rainy spring then you've missed the the transformation of the skinny, almost dead looking, Ocotillo.  Most of the year it has brown, stick like branches reaching upwards to 20 feet in the air.  But after a rain, brigh greem leaves sprout along the entire lenght of the each branch and at the tips, these bright red-orange flowers pop out.  Just be careful of the sharp spines under those deep green leaves.


"Ocotillo"    © Kathy Dunham 2010