This flower is one of my favorites here in the Southwest.  El Paso, Texas is located in the Chihuahuan Desert, where both "green" and "blooms" are rare, so this plant is a double treat.

It is called by many names:  Red Bird of Paradise, Mexican Bird of Paradise, Peacock Flower, Dwarf Poinciana, Pride of Barbados, or Flamboyan-De-Jardin (Caesalpinia pulcherrima).

I found out that it is a shrub growing to 8 feet tall native to tropical areas of the Americas. The divided leaves that are about 8 to 15 inches long, consist of 6 to 10 pairs of broad leaflets along the stem. The flowers grow on 8-inch long stalks and the seeds are borne in 6-inch pods.

This particular plant is fast becoming a popular addition to our city, since it is fast-growing and drought hearty.

:o)

 Red Bird of Paradise_1 (Caesalpinia pulcherrima) 

 Red Bird of Paradise_2(Caesalpinia pulcherrima) 

 Red Bird of Paradise_3(Caesalpinia pulcherrima) 

P.S. I'm not liking the one-story-a-day rule. If it was instituted in any way because of some previous multiple posts on my part, please forgive me, and I promise to be good in the future!
Sometimes you want to post a couple of different themes in one shot, and you may not have the chance to come back around 24 hours later.

What are everyone else's thoughts about this?