Wednesday, June 26, 2013

A Little Bit about the Saguaro Cactus

I was recently in Arizona and some family members were sharing stories.  I shared one about birds building nests in a cactus and putting a kind of tar in the hole that fire proofed it, I thought.  They joked with me about it.  I knew I had information on this somewhere.  So for those "Doubting Thomases," here is what I found from a previous trip to Arizona.  I thought some readers might enjoy these facts, too.

We were on a jeep trip to the desert and saw a lot of the large Saguaro cactus.  When the cactus gets wounded, like the top gets knocked off, baby plants grow from the stump.  When birds make a hole and a nest in  the cactus, the hole gets covered with a stuff like tar to completely surround the hole.  (This whole thing can come out and it looks like a boot.)  The rest of the cactus is sealed and retains moisture.

Cactus don't even get to branch out till they are 70 years or older. 

I got my facts mixed up a bit and the tar is to retain moisture, not for fire prevention.  When I get an image in my head, it stays there.  I was sure I heard about the tar in the bird's nest.

It's amazing.  God certainly put a lot of time and effort into seeing that a Saguaro cactus servives, even though it may be way out in the desert and never seen.

Surely, He will care for us, His children.  We have protections, too.  Think how marvelous our bodies are - their healing properties.  God is certainly an awesome God.