In lines 26-49 Kingsolver develops the central idea that the desert cannot be flowered, the idea just cannot be explained. She says that many people don't even know the desert blooms at all. Then she draws comparison to the predictions of Punxsutawney Phil. It is a groundhog predicting the end of winter. And despite the best efforts of the experts to make scientific predictions, everyone is surprised when the desert starts blooming.