It's pronounced Oh-Kuh-TEE-Yo, in case you were pronouncing it some other way. :) For most of the year, ocotillo plants look like dead sticks poking up out of the ground in clumps. Like dead blackberry vines (for those of you in the PNW) or like bent rebar (for those of you in construction). When it rains, little leaves pop out all along each stick (like the stem on the left) and given enough rain, the plant will flower, with bright orange blooms covering the tip end of the stems. Those straight sticks start to droop from the weight of the leaves and flowers, and they are the most graceful looking things in the desert. You can learn more here: Ocotillo The most interesting thing I learned was regarding transplantation. They have orientation issues. Each plant has a south-facing side, and if you move the plant and don't put that side facing south, the plant probably won't make it. Who knew?