cactus guide.pdf

7/27/2019 Cactus Guide.pdf

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ARIZONA CACTUS

A Guide to Unique Varieties

Jeanne Broome Giant Barrel Cactus

A RENAISSANCE HOUSE PUBLICATION

Copyright 1988 by Deborahann Smith. Printed in the

United States of America. All rights reserved.

This book or any pans thereof, may not be

reproduced in any manner whatsoever without

written permission of the publisher.

ISBN: 1-55838-092-2

RENAISSANCEHOUSE PUBLISHERS

A Division of Jende-Hagan. Inc.

541 Oak Street - P.O. Box 177Frederick, CO80530

Cover photo Teddybear Cholla and

Hedgehog Courtesy Jeanne Broome

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WELCOME

hen the desert stirs, there is a lot more thanmeets the eyenot the least of which are

flowering plants. There are approximately 3,800

species of plants in Arizona, one third in the desert and

foothills. Of these, more than 70 species are cacti,

some of which can be found nowhere else. There are

more cacti in Arizona than in any other state except

Texas. Cacti vary incredibly in size, ranging from thetiny two-inch high Pincushion cactus to the great

Saguaros, as tall as five-story buildings and weighing

as much as 15 tons. They come in a cornucopia of

shapes and in a rainbow of spectacular blossoms. But

please respect the rulesit's illegal to pick cacti or any

other wildflowers in Arizona. Unfortunately it is

impossible to include all Arizona cacti in this volume.Our purpose here is to present a wide range of species

most unique to the area and most commonly seen. We

would like to thank Gene Joseph, who assisted with the

selection, and contributed his expertise for a final

reading of the manuscript. Gene also provided many of

the photographs.

For further reading on cacti and other plants in the

southwest desert, we offer this selection:

The Cacti of Arizona, by Lyman Benson

Check List of Plants of Organ Pipe Cactus National

Monument, by Norman C. Cooper Flowers of the

Southwest Desert, by Natt N. Dodge The Natural

Vegetation of Arizona, by A.A. Nichol

To identify an Arizona bird, or mineral, or find out

more about interesting places to visit around the slate,

try these other Arizona Travelers:

BIRDS OF ARIZONA: A Guide to Unique Varieties

PARKS & MONUMENTS OF ARIZONA: A Scenic

Guide GEMS & MINERALS OF ARIZONA: AGuide

to Native Gemstones GHOST TOWNS OF

ARIZONA: Remnants of the

Mining Days DISCOVER ARIZONA: The Grand

Canyon State

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CONTENTS

Welcome . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2Cactus Country . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

Saguaro . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

Prickly Pears . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

Pancake Pear . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

Santa Rita Prickly Pear . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

Beavertail Cactus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

Grizzly Bear Cactus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17Chollas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

Teddybear Cholla . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

Buckhorn Cholla . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

Staghorn Cholla . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

Jumping Cholla . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

Cane Cholla . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23

Life Zone Chart . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24-25Diamond Cholla . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26

Pencil Cholla/Whipple Cholla . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

Desert Christmas Cactus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28

Night-Blooming Cereus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29

Organ Pipe Cactus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30

Senita Cactus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32

Strawberry Hedgehog . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33

Fendler's Hedgehog/Comb Hedgehog . . . . . . . 34

Arizona Rainbow Cactus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35

Claret Cup Cactus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36

Fishhook Barrel Cactus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37

Spiny Barrel Cactus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38

Many-Headed Barrel Cactus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39Cream Cactus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40

Pincushion Cactus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 1

Beehive Cactus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42

Johnson's Pineapple Cactus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43

Arizona-Sonora Museum . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44

Desert Botanical Garden . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45

Arizona Arboretums . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46Cactus Cultivation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47

Addresses & Telephone Numbers . . . . . . . . . . . . 48

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PRICKLY PEARS

Prickly Pear is exactly that: a pear-shaped plantcovered with spines. Recognized easily by its

gray-green flat pads which serve as cactus "water tanks,"

it is the best-known cactus in the west. Native to most of

the western hemisphere, there are many species across

the United States, but they reach their maximum size

and elaborate growth in the Southwest, where

conditions are optimum. Among the fastest-growingcacti, they reach their full size and strength in five to

ten years, particularly in the warm climate of southern

Arizona. Prickly Pears carpet dry, rocky, desert flats or

slopes in large clumps, sometimes 10 feet in diameter.

They frequently position their joints with the flat sides

facing east and west, so that the broad part of the pads

are protected from the midday sun. These cacti are

prevalent in areas where heavy grazing has given them

an advantage over plants that are more appetizing to

livestock. Being the hardiest and most adaptable of all

cacti, they can survive in poor soil. Their efficient

shallow root systems drink rapidly after a storm. Some

species are so adaptable that their roots take over thewater-storing capability of the pads in winter, to keep

the pads from freezing. The widespread network of

roots on a species called the "starvation Prickly Pear" is

said to be the savior of erosion from mighty desert

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winds that would otherwise sweep away the soil.

Prickly pads (detached joints) are usually fleshy and

comprised of a series of cylindrical, club-shaped, orflattened stem joints. The pads are covered with

areoles which produce long reddish-brown sheathed

spines in clusters, from 1/8 to 1/4-inch. These spines

are irritating but not painful as some cactus varieties.

More troublesome is a series of tufted bristles called

glochids (GLO-kids) which surround the spines.

Glochids are found only in Prickly Pear and Chollacacti. Short and barbed, glochids have a way of working

their way into the skin. Each areole of a season's new

growth is protected by a leaf which falls away when

the joint reaches maturity. Rodents often carry off loose

Prickly Pear pads to "pad" their nests.

Large flowers of varying colors appear in late spring

and darken inconspicuously from one day to the next.The large, juicy, reddish or purplish fruits are edible

and are some of the most delicious of all cactus fruit.

Valued by Native Americans and animals for years,

they are also sometimes sold in exotic urban grocery

stores. A sweetish red syrup can be boiled from the

fruit to add to cold drinks. Joints tossed into a desert

fire will emit a rich odor, similar to tequila. PricklyPears are popular for ornamental cultivation and are

easily propagated.

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PANCAKE PEAR

rickly Pears are among the most mountain-dwelling of all cacti, and this altitude-loving

Prickly variety is a good example. It often grows into a

tall shrub or small tree, three to six feet high. Its short

trunk is covered with spines and it branches copiously,

spreading to several feet in diameter. Each branch is

composed of five to ten joints, six to eight inches long

and 3/4 inch thick. The joints resemble a pancake

(without syrup)--mostly circular, smooth and flat.

Areoles produce one to six light yellow or straw-

colored spines which are flexible and turn downward.

These are one inch long and surrounded by several

3/16-inch glochids. Late spring blossoms are light

yellow. The fleshy fruit is purplish-gray, smooth and

about 1-1/2 inches in diameter.

Pancake Pears favor sunny, rocky ledges of grassy

desert areas, ranging from 2,500 to 6,000 feet in

elevation. They are also found in the lower part of oak

belts. The Kaibab Forest, Sonora, west-central Mohave

County, and the Santa Rita Mountains are abundant

with Pancakes. Organ Pipe Cactus National Monumentis also a Pancake haven. "Serious" specimens on the

low, grassy flats of Aquila are more than six feet tall

with as many as 200 joints.

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SANTA RITA PRICKLY PEAR

oted for its purple coloration, this is one of themost ornamental Prickly Pears. This variety has a

trunk and grows treelike, two to five feet high. It is

doubly striking in late spring when large yellow flowers

grace the purple stems. Each stem is a series of four to

eight smooth rounded joints, six to eight inches in

diameter. Infrequent needle-covered reddish spines rise

singly from an areole along the upper border of a pad,

1-1/2 to 2-1/2 inches long. Fleshy fruit follows the color

and shape schemepurplish-red or lilac, and oval.

Santa Rita Prickly Pears grow in small quantities in

Arizona. Their generic name means "violet," giving rise

to an alternate name: Purple Pears. Santa Ritas aren't

tolerant of grazing, drought or excessive moisture.Named for the Santa Rita Mountains near Tucson

where they were discovered, they are restricted to

foothills or desert grasslands, 3,000 to 5,000 feet in

elevation. They are most often found in sandy or

gravelly soils in the southern part of the state. Young

plants of a similar variety turn purple with drought or

cold weather, but return to green during the nextgrowing season. Older plants are purple year-round.

Several specimens grow in the Twin Buttes to Sierrita

areas in Pima County.

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BEAVERTAIL CACTUS

he "tail" of the Beavertail is an erect joint, smoothin appearance but composed of finely haired and

velvety wrinkles. Each joint is gray or blue-green, five to

eight inches long, with red-edged areoles. These bear

white, light brown or yellowish down, and many

reddish-brown glochids. Only areoles along the top

may have short spines. Light crimson or purplish-

crimson flowers about 2-1/2 inches wide appear fromApril to June, depending on the altitude of the plant.

Cherry-sized fruits are tan or light gray, dry, and full of

round white or gray seeds.

Beavertails are six to 12 inches tall. Their species

name, basilaris, refers to their habit of branching from

the base, sometimes as wide as two yards. Sandy,

gravelly or rocky soils in or near the desert are their

preference. They sometimes grow to 9,000-foot

elevations, but are most commonly found between sea

level and 4,000 feet. They range over the Northern

Sonora, in Mohave to Yuma County, and in La Paz

County. These Prickly Pears are frequently cultivated

commercially and residentially for their color. They are

tolerant of low desert temperatures and can be

propagated by removing and rooting the pad-like

joints. There are a few different Beavertail varieties in

Arizona.

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