Purple Pricklypear
@purpleopuntia.bsky.social
Las Cruces, New Mexico. Fan of plants & critters of the Chihuahuan and Sonoran desert. Yoga for all, Chihuahuas, podcasts, art, documentaries, true crime. Gen X woman who has had enough of everyone's shit.
#NMBLUE
#NMBLUE
Found a new #nativeplant source in #Tucson, along with a giant Pricklypear #cactus that reminds me of the ones in the Galápagos. They employ adults with disabilities & have a great selection of native trees, shrubs, cactus and succulents with helpful descriptions. Sad that we didn't have our truck!
November 20, 2025 at 7:54 PM
Found a new #nativeplant source in #Tucson, along with a giant Pricklypear #cactus that reminds me of the ones in the Galápagos. They employ adults with disabilities & have a great selection of native trees, shrubs, cactus and succulents with helpful descriptions. Sad that we didn't have our truck!
I'm sure these are fine where they're native, but we had Bird of Paradise (strelitzia reginae) in our LA-area yard growing up, and it was traumatizing. Pointy, dripping sap, and infested with rats. I hate this plant. #odiousplants #crimes
November 17, 2025 at 10:33 PM
I'm sure these are fine where they're native, but we had Bird of Paradise (strelitzia reginae) in our LA-area yard growing up, and it was traumatizing. Pointy, dripping sap, and infested with rats. I hate this plant. #odiousplants #crimes
Wee bee on my Brittlebush (Encelia farinosa). Another one of my Tucson finds. Hopefully it won't be too upset about our winter here in the Chihuahuan desert. I saw these all over at our resort, and couldn't resist. #nativeplants
November 6, 2025 at 7:16 PM
Wee bee on my Brittlebush (Encelia farinosa). Another one of my Tucson finds. Hopefully it won't be too upset about our winter here in the Chihuahuan desert. I saw these all over at our resort, and couldn't resist. #nativeplants
😢 thank you for all the great #podcast episodes @marcmaron.bsky.social ❤️ love you and my President.
October 13, 2025 at 6:22 PM
😢 thank you for all the great #podcast episodes @marcmaron.bsky.social ❤️ love you and my President.
Thanks to everyone who came out to the Native Plant Society of New Mexico statewide conference hosted by the Las Cruces Chapter. Our silent auction raised a lot of money for student grants! #nativeplants
October 5, 2025 at 1:52 PM
Thanks to everyone who came out to the Native Plant Society of New Mexico statewide conference hosted by the Las Cruces Chapter. Our silent auction raised a lot of money for student grants! #nativeplants
I just saw the largest bee I've ever seen on my Black Dalea. Fat Bee Week.
September 27, 2025 at 1:29 PM
I just saw the largest bee I've ever seen on my Black Dalea. Fat Bee Week.
Follow up to my Black Dalea post! I live in the northern area of Las Cruces, and mine is full of small bees (I assume european honeybees). Today, I went to a home in the Valley, and hers was almost all bumblebees. #nativeplants #bees
September 25, 2025 at 1:00 AM
Follow up to my Black Dalea post! I live in the northern area of Las Cruces, and mine is full of small bees (I assume european honeybees). Today, I went to a home in the Valley, and hers was almost all bumblebees. #nativeplants #bees
I'm back to posting my #nativeplants now that it's cooled off and my garden isn't a hot mess. Black dalea (Dalea frutescens) is full of bees this morning! #bees
September 23, 2025 at 1:42 PM
I'm back to posting my #nativeplants now that it's cooled off and my garden isn't a hot mess. Black dalea (Dalea frutescens) is full of bees this morning! #bees
#lascruces LWVSNM hosts 2 forums for November local elections! Board of Education is 9/24 6:30 in LCPS Chamber; City Council is at Las Cruces City Hall, 9/30 6:30. In early October, see www.Vote411.org, a LWV site that provides nonpartisan information with comprehensive election information.
September 16, 2025 at 4:16 PM
#lascruces LWVSNM hosts 2 forums for November local elections! Board of Education is 9/24 6:30 in LCPS Chamber; City Council is at Las Cruces City Hall, 9/30 6:30. In early October, see www.Vote411.org, a LWV site that provides nonpartisan information with comprehensive election information.
We rescued globe mallow plants from a construction site and didn't have high hopes because a lot of native plants don't like to be moved. They turned dead-looking, and then I was surprised to see new growth! These are some of the first to bloom in spring, so they're a favorite. #nativeplants
July 10, 2025 at 10:24 PM
We rescued globe mallow plants from a construction site and didn't have high hopes because a lot of native plants don't like to be moved. They turned dead-looking, and then I was surprised to see new growth! These are some of the first to bloom in spring, so they're a favorite. #nativeplants
I bought this at a plant sale last fall and forgot what it was supposed to be... Hooker's evening primrose (Oenothera elata). Ta daa! #nativeplants
June 18, 2025 at 1:54 AM
I bought this at a plant sale last fall and forgot what it was supposed to be... Hooker's evening primrose (Oenothera elata). Ta daa! #nativeplants
Ok, here is a strange thing on my Texas Mountain Laurel: Fasciation, a relatively rare condition of abnormal growth - the growing tip produces flattened, ribbon-like, crested, or elaborately contorted tissue. Saguaros do this too! My other TML tree doesn't have it. #nativeplants #themoreyouknow
June 12, 2025 at 12:31 AM
Ok, here is a strange thing on my Texas Mountain Laurel: Fasciation, a relatively rare condition of abnormal growth - the growing tip produces flattened, ribbon-like, crested, or elaborately contorted tissue. Saguaros do this too! My other TML tree doesn't have it. #nativeplants #themoreyouknow
This Prickly Pear #cactus pad has been in a Home Depot bucket with no dirt for a few weeks, and it's blooming. #nativeplants
June 9, 2025 at 3:54 PM
This Prickly Pear #cactus pad has been in a Home Depot bucket with no dirt for a few weeks, and it's blooming. #nativeplants
Thanks to everyone and all the state and local elected officials who showed up to support Organ Mountains Desert Peaks National Monument today! #notforsale #publiclands
June 7, 2025 at 5:06 PM
Thanks to everyone and all the state and local elected officials who showed up to support Organ Mountains Desert Peaks National Monument today! #notforsale #publiclands
2 years ago this week, we moved to NM from TX. We love the weather, outdoor activities, and lower cost of living. The best part is having a govt that, while imperfect, is not actively trying to other, harm, and even kill people. It takes a lot to improve well-being, but folks here are trying. 1/2
June 3, 2025 at 11:31 PM
2 years ago this week, we moved to NM from TX. We love the weather, outdoor activities, and lower cost of living. The best part is having a govt that, while imperfect, is not actively trying to other, harm, and even kill people. It takes a lot to improve well-being, but folks here are trying. 1/2
Not native, but I appreciate these Yellow Bird of Paradise (Caesalpinia gilliesii) that do very well here in the desert.
June 3, 2025 at 6:27 PM
Not native, but I appreciate these Yellow Bird of Paradise (Caesalpinia gilliesii) that do very well here in the desert.
First time one of my cacti has bloomed! It's a relatively new Purple Pricklypear, a pad gifted by a friend. #nativeplants
May 31, 2025 at 7:52 PM
First time one of my cacti has bloomed! It's a relatively new Purple Pricklypear, a pad gifted by a friend. #nativeplants
Beautiful Soaptree Yucca near my neighborhood! #nativeplants #lascruces
May 27, 2025 at 7:49 PM
Beautiful Soaptree Yucca near my neighborhood! #nativeplants #lascruces
Celebrated the 11th anniversary of Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks National Monument with wonderful volunteers & elected officials who want to save these lands for the American people. The current administration has put it on the short list to be handed over to private interests. #handsoff #publiclands
May 22, 2025 at 3:12 AM
Celebrated the 11th anniversary of Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks National Monument with wonderful volunteers & elected officials who want to save these lands for the American people. The current administration has put it on the short list to be handed over to private interests. #handsoff #publiclands
I learned at the #nativeplants Society Conference in Taos that the piñon–juniper ecosystem is called "PJ" and I think it's adorable. At our house I planted one NM Piñon and one Alligator Juniper. We are not quite high enough elevation for it, but I'm trying.
May 17, 2025 at 11:07 PM
I learned at the #nativeplants Society Conference in Taos that the piñon–juniper ecosystem is called "PJ" and I think it's adorable. At our house I planted one NM Piñon and one Alligator Juniper. We are not quite high enough elevation for it, but I'm trying.
Beautiful Bernalillo Yucca in various stages of bloom! I have to complement the City for their unusually nice campground.
May 15, 2025 at 4:18 PM
Beautiful Bernalillo Yucca in various stages of bloom! I have to complement the City for their unusually nice campground.
City Hall has some nice Palo Vede trees and a purple prickly pear. The bees are happy! #nativeplants #cactus #lascruces
May 12, 2025 at 6:44 PM
City Hall has some nice Palo Vede trees and a purple prickly pear. The bees are happy! #nativeplants #cactus #lascruces
What a treat today to see bird banding at Organ Mountain Desert Peaks National Monument! #publiclands #norforsale #birds
May 10, 2025 at 8:17 PM
What a treat today to see bird banding at Organ Mountain Desert Peaks National Monument! #publiclands #norforsale #birds
I thought we'd planted around 10 trees in less than 2 years on our new construction lot in Las Cruces. I counted 22! The biggest is this honey mesquite. It has a handsome habit without blocking the view, and a nice smell when it's blooming. #nativeplants
May 8, 2025 at 5:13 PM
I thought we'd planted around 10 trees in less than 2 years on our new construction lot in Las Cruces. I counted 22! The biggest is this honey mesquite. It has a handsome habit without blocking the view, and a nice smell when it's blooming. #nativeplants