Cylindropuntia leptocaulis

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

Cylindropuntia leptocaulis
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Order: Caryophyllales
Family: Cactaceae
Genus: Cylindropuntia
Species:
C. leptocaulis
Binomial name
Cylindropuntia leptocaulis
Synonyms

Opuntia leptocaulis DC.
Opuntia frutescens Engelm.

Distribution

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

Description

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.[1]

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. [2]

gollark: Okay, that was easy, it just needed to be power cycled.
gollark: I'm going to be absent for this briefly while I investigate the mysterious nonexistence of one of my """servers""".
gollark: Oh, the long now clock thing, it's neat.
gollark: I mean, they have use, barely, but mostly use which just reduces to funlolz.
gollark: Yachts and vast mansions and such are *somewhat* wasteful.

References
  1. Anderson, Edward F. (2001). The cactus family. Portland, Or: Timber Press. p. 210. ISBN 0-88192-498-9.
  2. Moerman, Daniel (1998). Native American Ethnobotany. Portland, Oregon: Timber Press. p. 367. ISBN 978-0-88192-453-4.
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