There is a very vivid childhood memory of my little brother hollering and crying in fear and anger, as he lay across my grandmother's knees -- her wielding a pair of pliers, attempting to remove the prickly pear objects of his discomfort.

Then, there is another very memorable memory of the sight monster with wild and many arms waving at me in the blackness of night -- that of course was a nightmare, born of camping at the Joshua Tree National Park.

Both of those, tell nothing of the beauty that anyone who has spent a lot of time in the desert knows when the desert is in bloom. Of the desert blooms, my memories are long and clear, no matter how many years it is between visits.

I am particularly fond of prickly pear cactus, ordinary yucca and Joshua Tree, and the Desert Mariposa Lily.

The Cacti are really most at home in the desert, and are most numerous in the arid parts of the Southwest, here in the United States. However two or three have ventured far to the north and are plentifully scattered over the plains, even into Montana and as far north as Saskatchewan.

They are curious plants in which the leaves are often completely absent and the leaf-work is done by the thick succulent stems.

Perhaps the most abundant variety is the Prickly Pear (Opuntia), with broad flat stems developed in joints that are about an inch across and two or three inches long.

These joints, when young, have a few needle-shaped leaves, but they soon drop off.

Stout spines are scattered over the stems in great abundance -- spines so sharp and strong that they easily pierce through a leather shoe. Water is stored in the stem, so that the plant is able to flower in the hot, dry summer.

The flowers are cup shaped, composed of many bright petals surrounding numerous long stamens. The most abundant prickly pear has bright yellow flowers tow inches across, but red and purple varieties may also be found.

The fruit is pear-shaped, fleshy and edible, some of the larger ones from Mexico finding their way into fruit markets and grocery stores, very commonly seen in parts of the U.S.

The prickly balls of the Pincushion, or Ball Cactus are also found scattered in the short grass of the plains of the Midwest. At times single spiny balls rather larger than an egg are found, and again dozens are heaped together in a prickly mass.

Here the flowers are composed of long lancelote purple petals. New Mexico and Arizona have each selected a cactus as their state flowers.

In the same dry portions of the plains of the West and parts of the American Midwest, where cactus grows, also grows the Yucca. In bloom, it forms a rosette of dagger-like leaves, and from the center of the barricade sends up a great spike of creamy white flowers.

The leaves are often more than a foot long, and the stem rises to a height of two to six feet, with drooping bell-like flowers over an inch long. So sharp are the leaves, that the name Spanish Bayonet is quite appropriately applied to the plant.

Six white perianth leaves form from the drooping flower, while within are six stamens and a long style. The pollen, which is quite sticky, is carried from the stamens to the stigma at the tip of the long style by a small white insect known that used to be known simply as the as the Pronumba moth.

Today, it's known that several moth species preform this task. One of them is the Tegeticula masculata. Another known pollinator of the Yucca is the Tegeticula yuccasella.

Some of the other moths are of the species Prodoxus, but actually do not pollinate the flowers and they are known as bogus yucca moths.

During the evening, when the Yucca flowers are most widely open, the moth gathers a ball of pollen from one flower and flies at once to another.

Here she pierces the wall of the ovary and lays an egg. Then, going to the stigma, she forces the pollen ball between its lobes and her work is completed.

The developing pollen fertilizes the ovules and they develop into seeds. At the same time, the egg of the m hatches, and the tiny worm, or larva, begins to feed on the developing seeds.

When full grown, the larva eats its way out of the pod that has now become upright, and drops to the earth.

It usually happens that the larva has left untasted enough ripe seeds to pay for the food that it has eaten. Flowers not visited by the Pronumba remain unfertilized and produce no seeds, so the existence of the plant and the insect both depend upon the curious visits and labors of the Pronumba mother moth.

Known Uses For The Yucca Plant - Today and Yesterday

The Yucca has been long known to Native peoples as a food source, with the fruits, seeds, flowers, flowering stem, and occasionally the roots being used. Many people take the young tender flowers and eat them raw (sweet tasting). Others stuff them with vegetables, then steam of bake them.

Medicinally the plant is sometimes used as an anti-inflammatory for pets and for humans. It's been used topically as a first aid suave.

Other Native uses have been:

• Clothing
• Shoes
• Baskets
• Blankets
• Spice

The common name Joshua Tree doesn't betray the fact that it is a Yucca (Yucca brevifolia) and a member of the plant family,Agavaceae. It is also known as the Yucca palm, Palm Tree Yucca.

Like most trees, the Joshua tree is made up of small fibers, but unlike most trees, it doesn't have annual growth rings to mark it's true age. It can grow to be over thirty-five feet tall and some specimens are believed to be hundreds of years old (with a few living to be a thousand years old).

Surprisingly, Joshua trees can be grown from seed, but most are grown from the rhizomes that surround any Joshua tree beneath the soil.

Shaped like bayonets, the leaves are dark green and have a wicked sharp point.

Joshua Treesflower from February to the end of April. The flowers stand erect, with six tepals that are both creamy white to green in color. With each blooming period, the Joshua Tree sends out new branches. Joshua Trees do not bloom every year due to the fact that they must have three conditions to spur flowering:

1. Rain
2. A winter freeze
3. Pollination by the Yucca moth (Prodoxidae) to insure blooming fruit

The fruit of the Joshua Tree is filled with flat seeds.

One interesting fact is that the Joshua Tree is selective about the eggs of the Yucca moth. Should the insect lay too many, it will abort some of them. Another bit of trivia is the many uses that the trees were used for in the past:

• Native Americans used it for sandals, baskets, and food
• Fencing
• Fuel for Steam Engines

The pads of the Prickly Pear Cactus are known as Nopalitos and along with the fruit of this cacti are widely used as vegetables at the dinner table by Mexicans on both sides of the border.

Usually, they are grilled or broiled, but care must be given to not over-cook them (makes them slimy like over-cooking okra).

Other dishes have them in eggs, soups, or in tortilla fillings. Most recipes include olive oil and lime juice. It is currently popular to grill them with portabello mushrooms.

Perhaps one of my favorite desert blooms is the Desert Mariposa Lily. The trouble with them is that it's hard to choose which is prettier -- the orange or the yellow. They also can be found in white varieties.

You'll often find them near Joshua Trees, or on the slopes of mountains (at elevations of two thousand to under seven thousand feet). They bloom between April and June.

The Desert Mariposa Lily's scientific name is (Calochortus kennedyi). The leaves are waxy and somewhat grass-like. They don't bloom every year, conditions have to be just right in terms of temperature and rainfall.

At the heart of the flowers, in the dark spot, closer examination will yield a very beautiful purple. It is a perennial and usually when it blooms you'll see them in full color between March and May.

It takes three to five years before they reach maturity to even bloom.

There isn't much hope for home cultivation, but some gardeners have been successful raising them from seed.

However, they often have to go to great lengths to get them to bloom (i.e. keeping them completely dry from mid-summer to late fall.

Native American tribes roasted their bulbs and ate them.

Note: They are a favorite food of both gophers and moles.