Easter Lily cactus flowers – Echinopsis multiplex

When I went to the cabin in the garden I was surprised to see this pot of cacti was flowering again. I've learn't over the years to treat them rather poorly which apparently suits the production of flowers. The pot is in direct sunlight for a large part of the day within the cabin which is not only insulated and has double-glazed windows, but also has low-level heating throughout the winter. It seems to work for them and a few other varied cacti.

I brought the pot out onto the patio table to photograph the flowers more closely. I didn't have much time and so it was a hand held job. But they are amazing flowers and they probably only bloom for one day before withering quickly. You can see two other shoots with flower heads on what look like asparagus stalks, which are about to open in the next day or two.

A fully open flower is about six inches in diameter to give you a sense of the size of them.