attn: AZ and SW people...

[pawlee]

the CNN wxguy commented this AM about how recent rains will be bringing the desert to life in the way of greenery and flowers. with that in mind (and on behalf of those not in the desert SW), i propose that you all head out and snap pics so as to share with us and also because a "lush desert" is not something too common in recent years. open a webshots album, open a Yahoo photo album, find someone with an image host... JUST DO IT!!! p

(cmon S2Ker's, egg those SW flatlanders to visually share with us their weather and world!)


S2Ker's... hmmm... how about we throw an S2Kegger?

[azsnowman]

You got it! Of course, I don't have any desert scenery near me, just plain ole Alpine Mountain climate and Rocky Mountain hills "LOL!"

Dennis

[Aslkahuna]

the CNN Guy needs to come out here and see what really happens. Although grasses (particularly in the savannah grassland area SE of Tucson where I live) will grow and the Black Eye Susans are already out, wildflowers don't generally bloom here late in the Summer-they are a Spring affair. To have a good wildflower bloom in the Spring here requires good Fall and Winter rains which in recent years have fallen into the "what are those?" category (hence the Drought). In the low deserts, the Summer rains come hard and fast and run off fast and what moisture that soaks into the ground is quickly baked out by the hot Sun. Rainfall falls off as one heads west in AZ peaking in the mountains and in the SE corner and dropping off sharply once one leaves the Tucson area. As far as I know, all of the cacti have already bloomed as have the night blooming Cereus so there may be no flowers to photograph. As far as the grass is concerned, we see it every year around here. In fact, before the arrival of the White Man the San Pedro Valley was a lush grassland.

Steve

[pawlee]

the CNN Guy needs to come out here and see what really happens.

Steve

i dunno, he said it so for a flatlander out in IL surrounded by miles of dull greenery in the agricultural sense, it still would be most delightful to see what's happening down your way... p

[M2]

the CNN Guy needs to come out here and see what really happens.

Steve

i dunno, he said it so for a flatlander out in IL surrounded by miles of dull greenery in the agricultural sense, it still would be most delightful to see what's happening down your way... p

Hi Pawlee - Steve is correct; the only thing that will bloom this late in
the season when it rains is ocotillo - the dead-looking sticks with huge thorns
which will sprout little 1/2" waxy leaves and a red flower on top a few hours
after it gets water....but that's it. No fields of flowers or anything in July.
What does it look like down in SE AZ...looks like the African Serengeti
Plains under Mt. Kilimanjaro. Here....minus the zebra & elephant...

[Aslkahuna]

Kilamanjaro-though we do have Mt. Hopkins (10000 ft) and Miller Peak (9466') overlooking our Serengeti of Sonoita-which is really green now-however, I was out storm chasing and not photographing grass.

Steve

[pawlee]

i dunno, these days ya' just might find a couple of zebras and elephants floating around down your way!

(thanks for painting a beautiful picture if only in the mind!)

[M2]

Yes you're both correct; no Kilamanjaro -but just as
picturesque. And the storms during 'Soon time rival Oklahoma, so we've
got the best of several worlds in our backyards. Pawlee you would love
the colors and the light during early morning/evening. Simply gorgeous.
And BTW, 'under' the ground is just as great as we have World Class caves
down there too: Kartchner Cave, Onyx Cave, Cave of the Bells.... Kartcher
was on Nightline on Friday if you happend to catch it. The scenery was as
those above...and better.