University Greenhouse, Part II

Here's the next round of greenhouse pictures. In this episode, we start in the succulent/flower room and move into the corridor, where there are also plants growing.

First off is Euphorbia obesa, also known as the baseball plant. This stout fellow looks like a barrel cactus, minus the spikes of course. This species contains poisonous sap, but it's perfectly safe to touch. The striping pattern was my favorite part--it's hard to imagine that this pattern occurs naturally.

I am continually amazed by the Euphorbiaceae family. It has produced the baseball plant, poinsettias, spurge, the Jatropha japonica from the other day, and crown of thorns (I saw one of these at the greenhouse too, but my camera had some serious trouble capturing it clearly), just to name a few. Those plants look nothing alike. If one family can be unfathomably diverse, think about how diverse the entire plant kingdom must be! It breaks my brain.

Cousin of poinsettias and candelabra trees.

Next are a couple of blooms on plants that weren't identified. These I photographed just for their aesthetic value.

Now here's a fun flower: Justicia brandegeana, or the shrimp plant. I think you'll understand how this Mexican native got its name.

Just give me some cocktail sauce and I'll be set!

The next selection doesn't have crazy-showy flowers, but it was exquisite just the same. There is a lot of variation from leaf to leaf: some are mostly purple, some are just striped purple, some are just striped red, and some are almost wholly green. This creates lasting visual interest because if you've seen one leaf, you haven't seen them all.

This shot lets you see the flowers a bit better.

The next two flowers wish to remain anonymous.

This nameless beauty wins my hottest pink of the day award, for the stems if not for the flowers. Glamorous!

These flowers are in the Antirrhinum genus, meaning they are very closely related to snapdragons. This species doesn't snap, but the resemblance is clear, and I think these are more attractive.

Hope all these inflorescences have brightened your day! If you can identify any of the anonymous flowers, feel free to drop a line.

Next post: Greenhouse Pictures III: The Revenge of the Succulents.