Cholla Fruits

The mountains in the background are the Sandias; the prickly stuff in the foreground is a cactus called cane cholla (also known as walkingstick cholla). The yellow parts of the cholla are the fruits -- they're the cups left from last year's blossoms.

Cholla is pronounced CHOY-a, and cane cholla is a close relative of Tucson Jim's jumping cholla -- though it's not quite as vicious. Cane cholla blossoms are a bright fuchsia (at least in these parts), and they usually bloom at the end of May and into June.

The Sandia Mountains are just east of Albuquerque, where I live. They, and a chain of mountains just to the south -- the Manzanos -- are considered the southern tip of the American Rockies. Sandia means "watermelon" in Spanish; Manzano means "apple" (this area was originally settled by the Spanish). On good days, both mountain chains turn a beautiful dusky red at sunset -- thus their respective names.