I enjoy hearing friends talk about the plants that they’ve seen on walks or hikes and when we share our enthusiasm the jabbering is so sweet. The flowers on manzanitas look like small porcelain bells. These are on pointleaf manzanita (Arctostaphylos pungens) and the photo was taken when we went out to gather firewood in the foothills of the Chiricahua Mountains. The small holes you see on the flowers are made by a few species of bees and wasps…nectar thieves. It’s fascinating and I intend to learn more about them. Stay tuned. 
The photo of the heart shaped prickly pear pad (stem!) was taken on a hike when Ms. Mesquitey had me photographing every heart shape pad we came across. Who knew there were so many heart shaped cactus pads out there in the hills to be photographed? 
The common name Chocolate Flower refers to the morning fragrance of the flower. Another common name I came across is Lyreleaf Greeneyes and that...
House finches are pretty darned cute and that’s why pet stores back in New York City in 1939 were selling them as “Hollywood Finches”....
While weeding and cleaning his greenhouse Petey finds a nifty native Salvia sp. and tells us all about it.
