In the film “Crazy Rich Asians,” the Singapore family hosts a viewing party for their cereus, the night-blooming cactus that only blooms a few nights each year. I recently attended such a party.

Snapshot: Torch cactus, also known as night blooming cactus or golden torch cactus, is a slow-growing, long, lean and beautiful cactus native to South America. Characterized by a columnar body ...

We offer a pictorial on the night blooming cereus, a cactus that is anything but pretty for 11 months of the year. But when it does finally bloom, the flowers last for just one night.

Actually, it was a “cereus” party, named for a night-blooming cactus. This party was called at the spur of the moment to coincide with the plant’s blooming, which occurs for just a few ...