Babies and Spikes

Last night two of my grandsons were spending the night with me, their two brothers were next door spending the night at my sons house with his three kids.  Brayden, Hunter and I were getting ready for bed when I heard thunder.  I told the kids I was going outside to watch the lightening and asked if they wanted to go with me.  We all went outside to hang out and watch the lightening show.  After a little bit, I went out in the yard with my flashlight to look at my cactus.  I have two cactus that my husband got for me in August 1992.  Both of these cactus have been in the house since I got them.  I was always afraid that if I put them outside they might die and I loved them so I never took them out.  In March I broke down and put the tallest one outside.  When I put it out by the fountain I measured it and it was exactly 31 inches tall. 


My beautiful 20 year old cactus

When I looked at that cactus last night, I noticed something on the top of it.  I thought it was a grasshopper and I leaned over to knock it off.  To my stunned amazement, it was a new little branch growing on my cactus.  I looked again and noticed another one, and another one.  I couldn't believe it, in almost 20 years that cactus has never grown anything except three inch long spikes, now, all of a sudden, it has three babies.  This morning I decided to measure that cactus to see if it's grown taller since March because it just seems like it's bigger than it used to be, and now it's 35 1/2 inches tall.  SHOCKING!!!  In March it was 31 inches tall, that's 4 1/2 inches it's grown in THREE MONTHS!  I'm so proud of the new growth and how tall it's grown that tomorrow I'm putting my other 20 year old cactus outside too.  Apparently, if I'd put them outside 20 years ago they'd be humongotoid godzillacactus by now.


My beautiful 20 year old cactus and its
very first little baby branches

The spikes all over the whole cactus have ALWAYS been brown. Now, the spikes all around the crown of the cactus are green at the base and they're longer than they've ever been before.  You should have seen me carrying this cactus from the living room to the fountain.  It was so scary.  The pot is about 18 inches tall and wide and VERY heavy.  The cactus was 31 inches tall with 3 inch long spikes.  While carrying it to the fountain I was poked by the spikes so many times, and let me tell you, it hurt bad.  I'd swear poison was in those spikes.  I dread fall when I have to carry it back in the house because apparently, It's gonna be taller than ever with branches full of spikes, eee-gads!  I think when that time comes, I'll find some man-power to help me.  Better someone else to get stabbed this time around, as I've been stabbed by that cactus for 20 years.  But if worse comes to worse, I'll pick that sucker up myself before I let the cold weather have it, because it is my baby, after all.