PARADE OF THE DESERT FLOWERS 65 



so carefully and select such forbidden haunts that It takes a 

 long time to find them. 



California Hedgehog Cactus (Echinocereus 



mojavensis) 



Southeastern California, Southern Utah, Southern Nevada, 

 and Northwestern Arizona 



The California Hedgehog Cactus, or the Mojave Hedge- 

 hog, we espy first, and how could one miss seeing the scarlet 

 bloom suffused with nopal red of this strange and beautiful 

 Strawberry Cactus? The flaming blossoms, two or three 

 inches long and an Inch or so across, with short broad thick 

 petals, borne singly though many grow on a single stem, re- 

 main open for several days at a time, and cause the California 

 Hedgehog to become one of the most brilliant of the Straw- 

 berry group. The massive mounds of white-splned stems, 

 two to six or seven inches long, often several hundred In a 

 clump, covered with flashes of crimson flowers form a 

 bright-colored zone which in full blossom is a splendid sight, 

 and at a distance suggests a fire burning, with nothing to 

 burn and sans smoke. This species Is called the Desert-Afire, 

 or Burning Cactus, or the Mojave Hedgehog as it was dis- 

 covered on the Mojave Desert, and the name Echinocereus or 

 Torch Cactus was first given to it. A close cousin is the 

 Crimson Flowered Hedgehog Cactus of northern Arizona 

 and New Mexico and Utah. 



Golden Spined Strawberry Cactus (Echinocereus 



chrysocentrus) 



Southeastern California, Western Arizona, 

 and Northern Mexico 



Here in Southern California thrives the Golden Spined 

 Albino, a foot or so in height; the two-inch stems are fur- 



