She was here
Gekkabijin —in moonlight
Summer treat
*
Shy Cinderella
Gone before the sun steals a kiss
One night queen
*
This Magnificent flower that graces the night for only a few hours is known as Dutchman’s pipe cactus (Epiphyllum oxypetalum), night-blooming cereus, queen of the night.
It is native to Arizona and the Sonora Desert, and generally grown as a houseplant in all but the hottest regions of the United States.
A dear friend of mine managed to obtain a plant to raise here in Japan and has had the great honor of seeing it bloom twice in the seven years he’s has the Queen in his yard: a tricky thing, as the flower blooms but once a year between July and October.
This year it bloomed in September and he tells me that at almost 18cm. across, the large white flower borne off the tops of the stems is breathtaking and that it produces a heavenly scent.
It will only open at night. The Gardening Know How Website informs me that it is pollinated by a moth, and that if pollinated the plant produces large juicy red fruit— small details I have yet to share with my 85 year old friend.
The Gekkanbijin (月下美人) —beautiful lady under the moonlight, as it’s called here in Japan —begins to bloom at 9 or 10 pm and are fully open by midnight. The photo I share with you at the bottom was taken by him at 9 pm on September 9th, 2021, after which he went to bed promptly.
By sunrise the following day, he was left with only the lovely memory of the night before as its white petals are known to wilt before the first rays of the sun ever get a shot at a kiss.
Main Photo: This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license. Thank you.
Second Photo: Compliments of Mr. Akira used with his permission.
Thanks for reading. I wish you miracles.
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Hi Selma
Yes, fully opened at midnight. Lovely share to it. Beautifully love of white flower. I like.😍
Glad you thought it so, Raj. 👏 💕
Thanks lot.Happy!💘
Such a beautiful gorgeous flower Selma! Simply stunning 😍
It is indeed, Daphny. Shy and introverted, methinks but a joy to those who know what to watch for.
We bloom where we are planted, no matter the audience. 👏 💕
Thats actually the beauty of introverts, quite but simple and stunning 😉😁❣️
I thought you’d see that. Great insight. Yay! We don’t need an audience for us to be the best we can be. Keep going 💕
Yes we are enough for ourselves 😊❣️
Looks like an art! Which it is. Beautiful!
Thanks for reading. We’re all a piece of art. May we bloom where we’re planted 👏
Rightly said!
Wow! That’s stunning! I have a few small mistletoe cacti on a window sill, that I’m hoping will bloom eventually but they’re modest small-flowered varieties.
But just as lovely, I bet. Thanks for reading. Show me a picture when they bloom. 😘
Wow, Selma! That is beautiful and fascinating! I knew nothing of this beauty!
<3
David
The photography was really nicely done on the first picture, other than the second one. Your line of interest seems a little bit different and uncommon than others. Brilliant piece of work.
Hey, Sebastian. So glad to get your comment. I appreciate it.
Yes the photos: first is very nice and second is kinda blurry. My friend (85y.o) took the second one.
Thanks for reading. 👏