Succulent Sunday: Mammillaria hernandezii,

These small hemispheres... these tiny Mexico cacti, Mammillaria hernandezii... these jewels of the Oaxacan desert -- imagine them in full, purple bloom. Imagine violet flowers rising, expanding until they rival the whole mother plant. Forget the flowers... look at the spines! arrayed like dozens of harmless, strange, multi-legged creatures which have been killed, bleached, and hot-glued upside-down on deep-green mounds.

Mammillaria hernandezii,  strange desert jewel

Succulent Sunday: Mammillaria Magnimamma

mammillaria magnimamma

Mammillaria magnimamma, also known as "Mexican pincushion" is actually a cactus. This is a flowering specimen on my deck.

This is what The Other Half (who is the succulent expert in the family) says about this plant:

To get a better feel for this native of Mexico (near Mexico City), notice the spines borne on tubercles typical of genusMammillaria, named for its mammillae or nipple-shaped protuberances. The tubercles are green with a characteristic pink blush, and in between them, you can observe classic tufts of white fuzz. Flower color varies in M. magnimamma -- this individual shows blooms in a typical magenta shade.

I just think it looks purty.