Say it: foo-kee-AIR-ee-uh SPLEN-denz. Common names: ocotillo (oh-koh-TEE-yoh), coachwhip, candlewood. Not a cactus, though it lives alongside them.
Where it grows
Across the Sonoran and Chihuahuan Deserts: southeastern California, Arizona, New Mexico, west Texas and northern Mexico. Common on rocky slopes around Blythe.
Size and growth
A fan of whip-like, spiny canes rising from a short trunk, 10–20 feet tall. Most of the year the canes look dead, but within days of rain they leaf out in small green leaves, then drop them again when the soil dries — a cycle that can repeat several times a year. Seedlings grow fast in their first year.
Flowers
Clusters of tubular scarlet flowers at the cane tips in spring, timed for migrating hummingbirds. Plants bloom whether or not they have leaves.
Care
- Light: full sun.
- Water: occasional deep water in summer; dry in winter. Leafing out after watering is a good sign.
- Soil: rocky, fast-draining.
- Cold: hardy to around 10°F.
- Patience: transplanted canes can take a year or more to root. Seed-grown plants establish with a proper root system from the start.
From seed
Easy. Germination in 7–14 days, and seedlings shoot up quickly in warm weather. Pot them deep; the taproot develops early.