What's this plant?
UPDATE: Echium Fastuosum, related to Pride of Madeira, I guess there are variations. could even be Echium pininana
UPDATE 2: even better info "Echium pininana - Single tall stalk - blueish to puple spires from 6 to 18 feet tall. "
Note purple flowers up top.
In my backyard, kinda prehistoric, ain't it?

I think this is a Pride of Madeira. Nice looking specimen! They are hardy and drought tolerant.
Posted by:Julia | May 14, 2007 at 03:50 PM
I'm not really a flower guy, but I think we have a few of those in our yard.
Here's one silhouetted by the tonight's overcast sky - http://www.komar.org/faq/rainbows/2007_05_14_flower1.jpg ... and I got my son Kyle to pose for this second picture - http://www.komar.org/faq/rainbows/2007_05_14_flower2.jpg
Since the browser will probably resize these moderately large images, be sure to click on it to see the full-res versions.
Posted by:alek | May 14, 2007 at 06:40 PM
Looks sort of like the Crystalline Entity.
Posted by:tom sherman | May 15, 2007 at 06:32 PM
That looks like an echium to me, the 'tower of jewels' variety, but I call them oompa loompa plants!
Posted by:ChrisD | May 18, 2007 at 05:32 PM
seems like there should be a brontosaurus head rising above the vegetation.
Posted by:missmobtown | May 23, 2007 at 10:43 AM