Bloom Night 2024
Saturday afternoon was filled with anticipation. At noon when Chris carefully checked the buds, they were soft, signaling that they were ready to go! The evening that followed was a […]
Bloom Watch #3 | A Royal Growth Spurt
Monsoon Magic Last Friday morning as Chris Kibler, Senior Gardener here at Tohono Chul, made his rounds on the Desert View Trail, he noticed that the buds on the Queens […]
Bloom Watch #2 | Beneath the Surface
Tohono Chul Gardeners Chris Kibler and Shauna Smith, along with dedicated volunteer Tammy, have been diligently watching over the Queens and measuring their progress. Shauna and Chris recorded measurements of […]
Bloom Night Recap | The Queen’s Monsoon Magic
Last Sunday was an eventful one. Chris says that early that morning, the buds were still closed tight, but by afternoon some were already showing the white of their petals! […]
Bloom Watch #9
Bloom Night is Coming… Movement! As Chris suspected, the Queen’s buds are growing after the rain we had on July 17. The Queen’s are growing 20 mm a day now, […]
Bloom Watch #8
An Extrafloral Moment As of Tuesday morning, the buds are stalled between 40 and 55 mm. Thanks to the rainstorm that came through last night we expect movement in the […]
Bloom Watch #7
Another rogue player … “It looks like we have another rogue cactus on our hands!” said Chris on Monday morning. Queen of the Night #379 is at the head of […]
Bloom Watch #6
Blooming Secrets Our persistent Garden Manager, Chris Kibler, says the Queen’s buds have grown very little over the past week, with the biggest just a tad over 50 mm. However, he’s noticed changes that hint at something to […]
Bloom Watch #5
Cruel Summer This is when we remember why it’s called the desert. The insects in the trees seem to imitate the sizzling Sonoran heat. Critters take refuge in the shade […]
Bloom Watch #4
Rebel Flower Are you serious?! Oh, it’s cereus all right! Gardens Manager, Chris Kibler, was taken aback with astonishment this morning when he discovered that one of the Peniocereus greggii […]
Bloom Watch #2
Slow & Steady Garden member Beverly’s, Queen (pictured below) surprised her when it bloomed last Friday night; a few weeks earlier than last year. She says she’s going to watch […]
Bloom Watch #1
The Queen is Coming Chris Kibler, Gardens Manager at Tohono Chul, is watching the Queen of the Night cacti and measuring the flower buds at least twice a week now. […]
Bloom Watch #3 – Waiting Patiently
This week has been interesting, if not unusual. Although most of the buds are still in stall status, the Queen has pulled a few surprises. First of all, as of […]
Bloom Watch #2 – Slow, but Steady
This week has been overall pretty slow. There have been a few new buds and a few that gave up and went away. This is normal for her and she […]
Bloom Watch #2 – A Blooming Queen’s Court
Hello Everyone, The Queen is doing her thing, her way, as she always does. This week she has decided to drop some buds that she determined are not supportable. The […]
Bloom Watch #5 – Keeping Us Captivated
I just got back from talking with the Queen and she is displaying her usual attitude. She has let me know that Bloom Night will happen when she is darn, […]
Bloom Watch #3 – A Few Bloomed Too Soon
Sorry for the delay in this update I’ve been busier than a one armed paper hanger. I have however been making daily checks on the Queen and she is up […]
Bloom Watch #1 – Hope Awakens
Hello everyone. Hope you all had a good fall and winter. Now that spring is giving way to summer the Queen is waking up and preparing for another season of […]