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Cylindropuntia ×neoarbuscula
Scientific Name: Cylindropuntia ×neoarbuscula
Family: Cactaceae
Category: Dicot
Growth: Shrub
Duration: Perennial
Other Names:
Pencil Cholla (Cylindropuntia arbuscula)
The Pencil Cholla, scientifically known as Cylindropuntia arbuscula, is a distinctive cactus species native to the southwestern United States and northern Mexico.
Considerations for Pets
- This plant has spines.
Taxonomy and Nomenclature
- Scientific Name: Cylindropuntia arbuscula (Engelm.) F.M. Knuth
- Family: Cactaceae
- Order: Caryophyllales
- Synonym: Opuntia arbuscula Engelmann
- Species Authority: (Engelm.) F.M. Knuth
Common Names
- Pencil Cholla
- Arizona Pencil Cholla
- Branched Pencil Cholla
- Bush Cholla
- Tasajo (Spanish)
Distribution and Habitat
- Native to the Sonoran Desert.
- Found in south-central Arizona at elevations of 1000 to 3500 feet.
- Also found in the Mexican state of Sonora.
- Grows in sandy soils of alluvial fans and gravelly desert soils.
Morphological Characteristics
- Densely branched, shrublike cactus.
- Grows to a height of 0.5-3 meters (approximately 1.5 to 10 feet).
- Stem segments are green, sometimes with a purple tinge, and are 6-10.5 cm long and 0.5-1.3 cm in diameter.
- Tubercles are narrowly elongate.
- Leaves are reduced to spines.
- Small flowers, approximately 1 to 1.5 inches wide, bloom from late April to June.
- Flower colors include chartreuse, pale reddish-orange, or mixtures with bronze.
- Spines are yellow (sometimes reddish) and often bend.
Ecology
- Heat tolerant and requires little to no water.
- Hardy to 15°F (-9°C).
Further Information
- Information can be found in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.
- Specimen data available at Arizona State University.
- Additional details and photos can be found on Wikimedia Commons.
- Classification information can be found on iNaturalist.org and NatureWatch NZ.