Echinopsis chamaecereus

[Fandyus]

Equipment [Sony a600 full spectrum + Soligor 35mm f/3.5]

 

Reference: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Echinopsis_chamaecereus

 

Comment: This cactus that my mom owns for hobby purposes started blooming today. It was also quite sunny so I decided to do a quick photoshoot to observe the difference between visible and UV.

 

Visible Light [f/11, ISO 100 in Sunlight with a QB39 Tangsinuo filter]

 

Ultraviolet [f/11, ISO 100, sunlight with ZWB2 and QB39, color balanced on PTFE]

 

Ultraviolet [detail of flowers, first image in broad sunlight, second one I stood in front and cast a shadow on the flower, to observe how the reflected pattern in the flowers changed.]

[colinbm]

What a good plant for UV

[dabateman]

Very interesting reflectance pattern by the petals of the flower.

Much more interesting than the cactus I used to have.

Hopefully my Aloe vera plant will bloom one day. Those flowers look nice.

[Fandyus]

31 minutes ago, colinbm said:

What a good plant for UV

You think so? I find the black plants rather boring, though it is true the flower shape is pretty ideal. My favorite flowers are the ones that are UV green, they're rare but I've seen one or two.

21 minutes ago, dabateman said:

Very interesting reflectance pattern by the petals of the flower.

Much more interesting than the cactus I used to have.

Hopefully my Aloe vera plant will bloom one day. Those flowers look nice.

Thanks! Good luck with the aloe.

[Andrea B.]

This cactus is very happy in your Mom's care. Those red flowers are spectacular.

It looks as though the newest bloom on the lower right is UV-darker than the others.

[Fandyus]

9 minutes ago, Andrea B. said:

This cactus is very happy in your Mom's care. Those red flowers are spectacular.

It looks as though the newest bloom on the lower right is UV-darker than the others.

Thanks, my mom sure does take good care of her flowers, she owns many. She may not be a botanist like you but gardening is her main hobby.

I noticed that darker color too, perhaps it's some sort of process akin to how some insects fresh out of the pupa are very light but over the course of a few hours, their body gets darker?

[Andy Perrin]

Very nice!

[Doug A]

They look great. Agree that sometimes dark flowers are tougher to appreciate. Once in a while, they really work. The white cactus areas offset the dark blooms nicely. 

 

Thanks for sharing,

Doug A

[Andrea B.]

I noticed that darker color too, perhaps it's some sort of process akin to how some insects fresh out of the pupa are very light but over the course of a few hours, their body gets darker?'

 

Red cactus flowers have some type of betalain pigment which is UV-absorbing. Flower pigments often fade or change as the flower ages and begins to dry out. So the older flower petals are not as deeply red and not as UV-absorbing. I don't know the mechanism of the change. It could be some kind of oxidation or other chemical change. Or it could be that the surface of the flower begins to deteriorate and the pigments are not as visible.

[Fandyus]

17 hours ago, Andrea B. said:

I noticed that darker color too, perhaps it's some sort of process akin to how some insects fresh out of the pupa are very light but over the course of a few hours, their body gets darker?'

 

Red cactus flowers have some type of betalain pigment which is UV-absorbing. Flower pigments often fade or change as the flower ages and begins to dry out. So the older flower petals are not as deeply red and not as UV-absorbing. I don't know the mechanism of the change. It could be some kind of oxidation or other chemical change. Or it could be that the surface of the flower begins to deteriorate and the pigments are not as visible.

That's an interesting detail, thanks for telling me.

22 hours ago, Andy Perrin said:

Very nice!

 

21 hours ago, Doug A said:

They look great. Agree that sometimes dark flowers are tougher to appreciate. Once in a while, they really work. The white cactus areas offset the dark blooms nicely. 

 

Thanks for sharing,

Doug A

Thanks a lot!