Christmas cholla

Cylindropuntia leptocaulis

Summary 5

Cylindropuntia leptocaulis, the desert Christmas cactus, desert Christmas cholla, or tasajillo, is a cactus.

Description 6

The shrubby Cylindropuntia leptocaulis plants reach .5 to 1.8 m (1.6 to 5.9 ft) tall, reaching the extreme height when supported within desert trees. Branches are narrow, 3–5 mm across. Spines 0-1 (occasionally as many as 3) at each areole. Flowers open in the late afternoon and are pale yellow or greenish yellow, with occasional red tips.

Around December, the plant grows red berries that when consumed, can have an intoxicating effect. The fruits are crushed and mixed with a beverage by the Apache, Chiricahua, and Mescalero to produce narcotic effects.

Distribution 6

Cylindropuntia leptocaulis is widely distributed in deserts, grasslands, chaparral, and woodlands in the Southwestern United States and several states in Northern Mexico.

Fontes e Créditos

  1. (c) Cat Chang, alguns direitos reservados (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Cat Chang
  2. (c) Ken-ichi Ueda, alguns direitos reservados (CC BY), uploaded by Ken-ichi Ueda
  3. (c) Tony Iwane, alguns direitos reservados (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Tony Iwane
  4. (c) Alan R Lusk, alguns direitos reservados (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Alan R Lusk
  5. Adaptado por Jeny Davis de uma obra de (c) Wikipedia, alguns direitos reservados (CC BY-SA), https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cylindropuntia_leptocaulis
  6. (c) Wikipedia, alguns direitos reservados (CC BY-SA), https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cylindropuntia_leptocaulis

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