Have you noticed a patchy beard of buds on some of the saguaros in your neighborhood?
You’re not imagining things.
Cactus experts are tracking an unprecedented outbreak of “side blooms†on saguaros across Southern ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ and beyond.
Typically, the giant cacti sprout flowers only around the tips of their arms and trunks, but this year a large number of them are also pushing out buds farther down their stems.
Research ecologist Bill Peachey said he has received reports of saguaros blooming in strange places from the Phoenix area to as far south as San Carlos, Mexico.
“And there are examples all over the ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ valley,†he said. “It’s a big phenomenon.â€
The exact cause is unclear, but the experts agree that the rare display is almost certainly a sign of distress.
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“I’ve been thinking a lot about that,†said Ben Wilder, director of the University of ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥â€™s Desert Laboratory on Tumamoc Hill.
His “back-of-the-napkin guessâ€: Last year was the driest on record in ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥, and he suspects this year’s strange bloom is a response to that. “Essentially, the monsoon failed,†Wilder said.
A plot twist
Peachey thinks the trouble goes back further than that.
Though he can’t prove it, he said, what’s happening now could be fallout from a run of record heat in 2017 that damaged many of the cacti, disrupting their development. Drought since then has only made things worse.
“The last several years haven’t been good for saguaros, so they haven’t grown much,†Peachey said.
As a result, the plants have fewer new spine clusters — known as areoles — from which flowers typically sprout, so they are “reactivating†old, unused budding locations farther down the stem.
Peachey has been studying the same, 2-acre grove of saguaros near Colossal Cave since 1997, and he’s never seen anything like this.
In addition to the side blooms, some saguaros on Peachey’s plot are sporting crowns of flowers that are more tightly packed than usual.
The same thing is happening at Saguaro National Park, where visitors have been asking a lot of questions lately that staff members can’t answer just yet.

An unusual line of blooms runs along the side of a saguaro arm in the Red Hills outside Colossal Cave Mountain Park. The exact cause is unclear, but experts agree that the rare display of side blooms is almost certainly a sign of distress.
Other columnar cacti like the organ pipe and the Mexican giant cardon regularly sprout flowers along the sides of their stems. Saguaros almost never do — at least until recently.
Long-time park biologist Don Swann said the park launched a multiyear study of the unusual blooming activity after some limited reports of it in 2020.
“It’s just an interesting phenomenon that people had noticed but (that) hadn’t really been studied,†he said. “I don’t have data yet. We’re just sort of in the process of collecting data.â€
Flowers in fall
On Tumamoc Hill, Wilder has also noticed a number of saguaros with stems that are bulging at the top and thinner down below, suggesting the plants are forcing what little water they have left upward to support the production of flowers and fruit.
He’s worried about the toll this could be taking.
“We’re already seeing the loss of some older individuals,†Wilder said. “Another failed monsoon could be catastrophic.â€
This year’s strange bloom comes on the heels of another unexpected event: a rare crop of autumn flowers that sprang up last year on scattered saguaros around ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥.
At the time, researchers called it the largest offseason bloom they’d ever seen.
What’s happening now is much more widespread and “much more significant,†Peachey said.
Saguaros generally produce flowers in early May and bear fruit in early summer. Their waxy white blossoms only stay open for a single day — just long enough, if they’re lucky, to be cross-pollinated by a honey bee, bat or bird.
Peachey said the seeds with the best chance for success tend to come from fruit produced during the last week to 10 days of June, “just in time to catch that first monsoon.â€
Seeds dispersed at almost any other time of the year are unlikely to germinate and grow into a saguaro capable of surviving its first winter or two.
“You want to have seeds on the ground when the rain comes,†he said. “That’s the key to the whole thing.â€
The side blooms are the saguaro’s “hokey workaround†to not having enough new budding locations up top, but Peachey predicts all the extra effort won’t amount to much.
In his experience, flowers that sprout from the sides of stems rarely develop into fruit. “I expect to see flowers dropping off like crazy,†he said. “It looks showy — and it is showy — but it’s not helpful to the plant in the long run.â€

A carpenter bee heads for a side bloom on a saguaro. The waxy white blossoms only stay open for a single day — just long enough, if they’re lucky, to be cross-pollinated by a honey bee, bat or bird.
No end in sight
Peachey has more saguaro experience than just about anyone.
He has been surveying the cactuses on his Red Hills Saguaro Plot for so long that he can call out their assigned numbers without consulting the map on his clipboard. Plants he used to be able look down on now tower over his head with multiple arms clasping fleeting bouquets of blossoms.
During the annual bloom, he walks his rocky patch of state land off Old Spanish Trail every other day, usually in the company of longtime friend and volunteer Steve Smith and Smith’s wife, Ann Hollis.
“I count every blossom,†Peachey said.
Thursday’s count was 324 blossoms on 143 flowering saguaros with 411 individual stems. At least six of those cactuses were blooming for the very first time.
Peachey said there’s a “nasty rumor going around†that ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥â€™s iconic cactuses are pumping out all these flowers as a “last gasp†before they all die.
He insists the situation is nowhere near that bleak, though saguaros are facing a growing threat.
He can see it in some of the plants on his plot: scars, discoloration, drooping arms and sagging trunks — cumulative damage from a recent run of hard freezes and record heat waves.
“I can’t say it’s climate change, but the weather events exactly match the pattern of climate change,†Peachey said. “There’s more bad things happening in a shorter period of time.â€
The good news is saguaros are built to last a long time, even in harsh conditions.
And in a reproductive life that can span a century or more, “chances are you’re going to have some really bad years and some really good years,†Peachey said. “I’m not too worried because this is just one year.â€
Photos: Saguaro National Park through the years
Saguaro National Park

The Saguaro National Monument cactus garden in 1955.
Saguaro National Park

The Saguaro National Monument visitors center in 1955.
Saguaro National Park

The Saguaro National Monument visitors center in 1955.
Saguaro National Park

The Saguaro National Monument visitors center in 1955.
Saguaro National Park

The Saguaro National Monument West visitors center, left, with two rangers' apartments under construction in 1966.
Saguaro National Park

Saguaro National Monument East unit loop drive in 1958.
Saguaro National Park

Saguaro National Monument East, ca 1950s.
Saguaro National Park

Saguaro National Monument in 1935.
Saguaro National Park

Snow at Saguaro National Park East (then called Saguaro National Monument) on Dec. 23, 1965.
Saguaro National Park

Undated photo (probably 1950s) of tourists enjoying picnics and hiking at Saguaro National Monument.
Saguaro National Park

Saguaro National Monument visitors center ca 1940s.
Saguaro National Park

Home Shantz, a plant scientist and president of the University of ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ in the 1920s, was instrumental in establishing Saguaro National Monument in 1933.
Saguaro National Park

Panorama of cactus forest in Saguaro National Monument, 1931.
Saguaro National Park

Dr. Alice Boyle applies Penicillin to a Saguaro cactus at Saguaro National Monument. Dr. Boyle’s studies of saguaros included treatments with penicillin that were somewhat successful. Later research showed that the loss of old saguaros was a result of age and periodic freezes, not a “blightâ€!
Saguaro National Park

The Freeman family in Saguaro National Monument in 1936.
Saguaro National Park

Freeman's adobe home in Saguaro National Monument in 1934.
Saguaro National Park

A park ranger with visitors on the loop drive in Saguaro National Monument in 1961.
Saguaro National Park

Centennial Saguaro cactus outside the Saguaro National Monument visitors center.
Saguaro National Park

Saguaro National Monument cactus
Saguaro National Park

Snow storm in Saguaro National Monument in 1937.
Saguaro National Park

A view looking south from Signal hill at the ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ Mountain Range in Saguaro National Park, ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ Mountain District in 2016.
Saguaro National Park

A view looking east from Saguaro National Park, along Picture Rocks Road in the ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ Mountain District in August, 2016. In the distance, cloud rise over the Santa Catalina Mountains.
Saguaro National Park

A Saguaro carcass framed at the Saguaro National Park, West, The ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ Mountain District (TMD) in 2015.
Saguaro National Park

A southerly view out the window of a picnic shelter built by the Civilian Conservation Corps in the 1930s that was built with surrounding rock in the Ez-Kim-In-Zin Picnic Area at the Saguaro National Park, West, The ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ Mountain District (TMD) in 2015.
Saguaro National Park

A desert tortoise makes its way down Kinney Rd. in the Saguaro National Park West, Wednesday, August 10, 2016, ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥, Ariz. Kelly Presnell / ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥
Saguaro National Park

A Saguaro cactus off Golden Gate Rd. holds a top full of flower buds at the Saguaro National Park, West, The ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ Mountain District (TMD) in 2015.
Saguaro National Park

A view looking south from Signal hill towards Wasson and Amole Peaks from left in Saguaro National Park, ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ Mountain District in August, 2016.
Saguaro National Park

Visitors take a look at trail maps on the patio of the Red Hill Visitor Center at the Saguaro National Park, West, The ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ Mountain District (TMD) in 2015.
Saguaro National Park

Visitors from Denver stroll one of the many trails off Golden Gate Rd. at the Saguaro National Park, West, The ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ Mountain District (TMD) in 2015.
Saguaro National Park

Panoramic view from Spud Rock, including the city of ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥, from six images, ranging from southeast at left to northeast at right, near Mica Mountain on the western slopes of the Rincon Mountains in the Saguaro National Park on June 2, 2016.
Saguaro National Park

A hawk watches from his perch at the Saguaro National Park, West, The ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ Mountain District (TMD) in 2015.
Saguaro National Park

A zebra-tailed lizard (Callisaurus draconoides) perches on a rock near the Signal Hill Picnic Area at the Saguaro National Park, West, The ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ Mountain District (TMD) in 2015.
Saguaro National Park

Panther and Safford Peaks in the ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ Mountains North of Saguaro National Park, West, The ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ Mountain District (TMD) in 2015.
Ha:san Bak, Saguaro cactus fruit harvest

Stella Tucker uses the sharp edge of a stem of a Saguaro fruit to slice the husk to get to the sweet meat inside as she harvests the fruit in the Saguaro National Park in 2005.
Ha:san Bak, Saguaro cactus fruit harvest

Stella Tucker uses a kuipaD to harvest saguaro fruit in the Saguaro National Park 2005. During the early summer Tucker camps out in the park to harvest and cook the fruit just as her Tohono O'odham ancestors did. Tucker died in 2019 at age 71.
Ha:san Bak, Saguaro cactus fruit harvest

Bob Martens uses a kuipaD, lengths of Saguaro ribs topped by a small limb of creosote, to knock down ripe Saguaro cactus fruit as he helps Stella Tucker during the Tohono O'Odham harvest at Saguaro National Park in 2005.
Ha:san Bak, Saguaro cactus fruit harvest

Under the early morning sun, Jerry Yellowhair strengthens the joint where a small creosote branch is attached to a length of Saguaro rib to make a kuipaD, used to reach the Saguaro fruit.
Saguaro National Park

1907: Prominent ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥an Levi Manning and his family spent the summer at a get-away log cabin high in the Rincon Mountains.
Saguaro National Park

Manning Camp in the Saguaro National Park East, in 2016.
Saguaro National Park

Some of the pots, pans and iron skillets used by the staff during their stays at Manning Camp in the Saguaro National Park on June 2, 2016.
Saguaro National Park

Next generation ranger Ryan Summers, left, and wilderness ranger Shannon McCloskey look over the camps visitors log shortly after arriving at Manning Camp 8,000 feet above sea level in the Saguaro National Park, on June 2, 2016.
Saguaro National Park

Horse shoes on one of the logs making a wall in the cabin at Manning Camp in the Saguaro National Park on June 2, 2016.
Saguaro National Park

Next generation ranger Ryan Summers splits wood for the evening's fire at Manning Camp in the Saguaro National Park on June 2, 2016.
Saguaro National Park

The view east over Reef Rock, lower left, from Rincon Mountains near Manning Camp in Saguaro National Park, June 2, 2016
Saguaro National Park

Wilderness ranger Shannon McCloskey, left, and next generation ranger Ryan Summers prepare to do some upgrades to the facilites at Manning Camp in the Saguaro National Park on June 2, 2016.
Saguaro National Park

Sid Kahla, left, and Thor Peterson get a pannier balanced on Goose while packing seven mules for a resupply of Manning Camp ranger station in 2016.
Saguaro National Park

Saguaro National Park trails supervisor Nick Huck, left, and chief of maintenance Jeremy Curtis split up a box of paper towels, distributing the weight evenly among the panniers while preparing for a pack mule resupply of Manning Camp on April 14, 2016. Seven mules were in the supply train and each mule can carry between 100 and 120 pounds.
Saguaro National Park

Wasson and Amole Peaks at the Saguaro National Park, West, The ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ Mountain District (TMD) in 2015.
Saguaro National Park

Monsoon clouds gather over the cactus forest in the Saguaro National Park West, Wednesday, August 10, 2016, ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥, Ariz. Kelly Presnell / ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥
Saguaro National Park

Saguaro cacti backlit by western sun at the Saguaro National Park, West, The ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ Mountain District (TMD) in 2015.
Saguaro National Park

A horizontal sliver of sun catches a stretch of cactus in front of the Rincon Mountains just off the Mica View Trail in Saguaro National Park East, Friday, August 12, 2016, ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥, Ariz. Kelly Presnell / ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥
Saguaro National Park

This old stone building was constructed in the 1930's by the Civilian Conservation Corps at the Cam-Boh Picnic Area at Saguaro National Park West.
Saguaro National Park

In the aftermath of an evening summer storm, lightning arcs through the night skies over the Saguaro National Park West in 2012.
Saguaro National Park

Saguaro National Park trails supervisor Nick Huck, left, and chief of maintenance Jeremy Curtis split up a box of paper towels, distributing the weight evenly among the panniers while preparing for a pack mule resupply of Manning Camp on April 14, 2016. Seven mules were in the supply train and each mule can carry between 100 and 120 pounds.
Saguaro National Park

A Harris' antelope squirrel, a year-round resident of the Sonoran Desert, comes out of from under a bush for a look-see near the Golden Gate Road at the ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ Mountain District of the Saguaro National Park in 2010.
Saguaro National Park

A jack rabbit munches on some greens near the Broadway Trial Head at Saguaro National Park Rincon Mountain District in 2015.
Saguaro National Park

Hikers in Saguaro National Park, like these on the King Canyon Trail in the park's unit west of ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥, can pay park entrance fees at trailheads using a smartphone.
Saguaro National Park

Loop of connected trails at Saguaro National Park East, made up Shantz, Pink Hill, Loma Verde, Cholla and Cactus Forest trails in 2012.
Saguaro National Park

From atop an outcropping under the Rincon Mountains, Next Generation Ranger Ryan Summers points out the ancient fault line that shifted and formed the ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ valley to a group of visitors during a geology tour of Saguaro National Park East on April 26, 2016.
Saguaro National Park

Saguaros stand on a ridge line as massive storm clouds drift in the distance along the Hohokam Road at the ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ Mountain District of the Saguaro National Park in 2010.
Saguaro National Park

Chief of maintenance Jeremy Curtis gets the strap as tight as possible with the help of trail supervisor Nick Huck while preparing a 70+pound propane tank for a pack mule resupply of Manning Camp in the Saguaro National Park, Rincon District on April 14, 2016.
Saguaro National Park

Saguaro National Park ─ Sunset can be a colorful time along a network of trails near the eastern end of Broadway.
Saguaro National Park

Ranger Donna Gill points out cactus flowers and birds during the Twilight Glow to Moon Shadows hike on the Sendero Esperanza Trail at Saguaro National Park West in April, 2016.
Saguaro National Park

Hedgehog cacti are in brilliant fuchsia bloom at many sites around ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ from Sabino Canyon to ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ Mountain Park and Saguaro National Park in 2015.
Saguaro National Park

Russell Jones takes a picture at the Saguaro National Park West Red Hills Visitor Center in 2009.
Saguaro National Park

Poppies were blooming profusely at Saguaro National Park West on February 23, 2015
Saguaro National Park

Mike Ward of Saguaro National Park, left, and volunteer LaDeana Jeane observe a Saguaro cactus while conducting a census at the east section of Saguaro National Park in 2009.
Saguaro National Park

Gavin Youngstrum drives a roller along the bed of the new Mica Springs Trail, work which will make it ADA compliant in Saguaro National Park East on April 22, 2016, ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥, Ariz. Power tools and motorized equipment is used very rarely in the park. The trail is not in a wilderness area so the prohibition on the use of power tools and machinery doesn't apply.
Saguaro National Park

A blue ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ lupine mixed in with a handful of yellow bladderpod along the Ringtail Trail in Saguaro National Park ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ Mountain District in 2013.
Saguaro National Park

Park Ranger Ann Gonzalez watches the campers in her group as they go over a map during Junior Ranger Wilderness Day Camp at the Saguaro National Park in 2009.
Saguaro National Park

Petroglyphs are among the many wonders at Saguaro National Park West.
Saguaro National Park

Runners top the first climb as the sun rises at 6:30am, during the annual 8K Saguaro National Park Labor Day Run at Saguaro National Park East in 2007.
Saguaro National Park

A saguaro under the stars, including a smudge of the Milky Way, at the Broadway Trail Head at Saguaro National Park Rincon Mountain District in 2015.
Saguaro National Park

Sunset reflected in a mud puddle left over from heavy rains a few days earlier at the Broadway Trail Head of the Saguaro National Park Rincon Mountain District in 2015.
Saguaro National Park

The moon hangs high over Wasson Peak as Ranger Donna Gill leads hikers during the Twilight Glow to Moon Shadows hike on the Sendero Esperanza Trail at Saguaro National Park West in April, 2016.
Saguaro National Park

Volunteers help yank out the nonnative, invasive buffelgrass at Saguaro National Park East.
Saguaro National Park

Using a laser, amateur astronomer Joe Statkevicus points out a few interesting objects in the night sky to Landon George and Vickie Miller at a Saguaro National Park East Star Party in 2010.
Saguaro National Park

A bee works through a patch of baldderpod in the Saguaro National Park ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ Mountain District along the Ringtail Trail in 2013.
Saguaro National Park

Trail worker Brad Duffe redistributes material as he and his trail crew lay down a bed for a new surface, part of remodeling the Mica Springs Trail to make it ADA compliant in Saguaro National Park East on April 22, 2016.
Saguaro National Park

Riders maneuver their mounts down a hillside just north of the Douglas Spring Trail in the Saguaro National Park Rincon Mountain District, Friday Nov. 27, 2015.
Saguaro National Park

Tim and Connie Phillips, from Salt Lake City, look for photo angles during the Twilight Glow to Moon Shadows hike on the Sendero Esperanza Trail at Saguaro National Park West in April, 2016. The retired couple sold their home and are "following the weather" across the country in their RV.
Saguaro National Park

A few items, photos and brief entries in tiny notebooks from an unofficial shrine at Mica Mountain in Saguaro National Park on June 2, 2016.
Saguaro National Park

The sun sets over the Saguaro National Park Rincon Mountain District on Oct. 8, 2015.
Saguaro National Park

Scarlett Gates and the rest of the tour group watch the last few minutes of daylight from a rock outcropping along the Tanque Verde Ridge Trail during their guided sunset hike in Saguaro National Park East on April 16, 2016.
Saguaro National Park

Gold poppies stand out against a backdrop of cacti and blue desert sky at Saguaro National Park west of ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ on March 11, 2019.Â
Saguaro National Park

Rainbows pop up over Saguaro National Park East, as the first major monsoon storm of the season begins to roll into the valley, ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥, Ariz., July 11, 2020.
Saguaro National Park

A half rainbow arcs over Saguaro National Park East as a highly localized cell of monsoon rain sweeps through a small band of the eastern valley, ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥, Ariz., July 28, 2020.
Saguaro National Park

A light coating of snow remains on the Rincon Mountains seen nearby the Broadway Trailhead in Saguaro National Park in ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥, Ariz. on January 27, 2021.
Saguaro National Park

A cactus in the Saguaro National Park East stands in front f the snow in the higher reaches of the Santa Catalinas, ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥, Ariz., March 13, 2021.
Saguaro National Park

A lighting strikes hits in the Saguaro National Park, east of ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥, Ariz., July 29, 2021, one of several storm cells that skirted the city.
Contact reporter Henry Brean at hbrean@tucson.com or 573-4283. On Twitter:
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