Opuntia aciculata
Encyclopedia
Opuntia aciculata, also called Chenille Prickly Pear , Old Man's Whiskers and Cowboy’s Red Whiskers , is a perennial dicot and an attractive ornamental cactus native to Texas
, North America
. It belongs to the genus Opuntia
, consisting of various cactuses. It is also widespread in Nuevo Leon
, Tamaulipas
(North Mexico
) .
It was reported from Nuevo León, Mexico, according to D. Weniger in 1970 .The species name "Aciculata" derives from many sources: the Latin word “acicula” which means “a small pin for a headdress”, and the adjectival suffix for nouns "atus" , meaning possessive of or likeness to something (with, shaped, made), while for verb participles it means a completed action. 'Chenille Prickly Pear', one of its vernacular names, comes for the fringe of spines around the edge of the pad..
The specific name also means "covered with small pins".
and ephemeral
. The aeroles are often spineless and there is symmetrical regularity of them on the body . They are large, widely separated.It has numerous glochids or micro-spines, 3-12 mm long, acicular
, slender, spreading, forming a dense cluster. They're normally golden yellow to dark red in colour. It has often no spines, rarely 1-3 which are reflexed. They are of a yellowish or toasted colour with a brownish base, up to 3 centimetres in length. They are often folded and seemingly deciduous. It has broad, point-tipped blossoms colored golden yellow, orange or red and of diameter 8-10 cm. Several sources report the flowers as being yellow in colour. But the plants in cultivation usually have bright red-orange flowers, and sometimes the centre is greenish. Petals are broad-rounded or retuse, filaments
are yellowish and the stigma
dull yellowish with 8-10 green lobes. They mostly flower in early summer or spring. The plant's fruits are usually pear-shaped, covered with fine spines and glochids, and purple.
(Arizona
), Hereford
(Arizona
), Phoenix
(Arizona
) , Tucson (Arizona
), San Diego (California
), Spring Valley
(California
) and Molino
(Florida
). It is widespread in south of North America
, rear to the Isthmus of Panama
. . However, it is actually native to Chihuahuan Desert
(Texas
) and North Mexico..
, which helps it to survive by conserving water in the hot climate of Texas
, in southwestern United States
, and North Mexico. This adaptation
also helps in defending itself from being consumed by any herbivores there . It has the special ability to propagate from woody or softwood stem cuttings . It can even propagate by cuttings of leaf pads at any time in the growing season, allowing to cut surface to callus over before planting. This cactus can survive healthily and produce good many flowers only if it is fully exposed to the sun. They can also tolerate much cold like temperatures from -5° to -12° C .
, mumps, swelling and in veterinary it is used to treat bruises. After burning of spines the joints can serve as a good food for cattle.
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
, North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
. It belongs to the genus Opuntia
Opuntia
Opuntia, also known as nopales or paddle cactus , is a genus in the cactus family, Cactaceae.Currently, only prickly pears are included in this genus of about 200 species distributed throughout most of the Americas. Chollas are now separated into the genus Cylindropuntia, which some still consider...
, consisting of various cactuses. It is also widespread in Nuevo Leon
Nuevo León
Nuevo León It is located in Northeastern Mexico. It is bordered by the states of Tamaulipas to the north and east, San Luis Potosí to the south, and Coahuila to the west. To the north, Nuevo León has a 15 kilometer stretch of the U.S.-Mexico border adjacent to the U.S...
, Tamaulipas
Tamaulipas
Tamaulipas officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Tamaulipas is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided in 43 municipalities and its capital city is Ciudad Victoria. The capital city was named after Guadalupe Victoria, the...
(North Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
) .
It was reported from Nuevo León, Mexico, according to D. Weniger in 1970 .The species name "Aciculata" derives from many sources: the Latin word “acicula” which means “a small pin for a headdress”, and the adjectival suffix for nouns "atus" , meaning possessive of or likeness to something (with, shaped, made), while for verb participles it means a completed action. 'Chenille Prickly Pear', one of its vernacular names, comes for the fringe of spines around the edge of the pad..
The specific name also means "covered with small pins".
Physical description
The stems have segments partly rounded at apex. They are faded and dull grey-green more or less glaucous . They measure 10-20 cm in length. The leaves are acicularLeaf shape
In botany, leaf shape is characterised with the following terms :* Acicular : Slender and pointed, needle-like* Acuminate : Tapering to a long point...
and ephemeral
Ephemeral
Ephemeral things are transitory, existing only briefly. Typically the term is used to describe objects found in nature, although it can describe a wide range of things....
. The aeroles are often spineless and there is symmetrical regularity of them on the body . They are large, widely separated.It has numerous glochids or micro-spines, 3-12 mm long, acicular
Leaf shape
In botany, leaf shape is characterised with the following terms :* Acicular : Slender and pointed, needle-like* Acuminate : Tapering to a long point...
, slender, spreading, forming a dense cluster. They're normally golden yellow to dark red in colour. It has often no spines, rarely 1-3 which are reflexed. They are of a yellowish or toasted colour with a brownish base, up to 3 centimetres in length. They are often folded and seemingly deciduous. It has broad, point-tipped blossoms colored golden yellow, orange or red and of diameter 8-10 cm. Several sources report the flowers as being yellow in colour. But the plants in cultivation usually have bright red-orange flowers, and sometimes the centre is greenish. Petals are broad-rounded or retuse, filaments
Stamen
The stamen is the pollen producing reproductive organ of a flower...
are yellowish and the stigma
Stigma (botany)
The stigma is the receptive tip of a carpel, or of several fused carpels, in the gynoecium of a flower. The stigma receives pollen at pollination and it is on the stigma that the pollen grain germinates. The stigma is adapted to catch and trap pollen with various hairs, flaps, or sculpturings...
dull yellowish with 8-10 green lobes. They mostly flower in early summer or spring. The plant's fruits are usually pear-shaped, covered with fine spines and glochids, and purple.
Distribution and habitat
It grows in dry hills mainly on stony outcrops, often in small colonies usually to the exclusion of other plants. This species has been reported to be found in ChandlerChandler, Arizona
-Demographics:As of the Census of 2010, there were 236,123 people, 86,924 households, and 60,212 families residing in the city. The racial makeup of the city was 73.3% White, 4.8% Black or African American, 1.5% Native American, 8.2% Asian, 0.2% Pacific Islander, 21.9% Hispanic or Latino, and 8.3%...
(Arizona
Arizona
Arizona ; is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States. It is also part of the western United States and the mountain west. The capital and largest city is Phoenix...
), Hereford
Hereford
Hereford is a cathedral city, civil parish and county town of Herefordshire, England. It lies on the River Wye, approximately east of the border with Wales, southwest of Worcester, and northwest of Gloucester...
(Arizona
Arizona
Arizona ; is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States. It is also part of the western United States and the mountain west. The capital and largest city is Phoenix...
), Phoenix
Phoenix, Arizona
Phoenix is the capital, and largest city, of the U.S. state of Arizona, as well as the sixth most populated city in the United States. Phoenix is home to 1,445,632 people according to the official 2010 U.S. Census Bureau data...
(Arizona
Arizona
Arizona ; is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States. It is also part of the western United States and the mountain west. The capital and largest city is Phoenix...
) , Tucson (Arizona
Arizona
Arizona ; is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States. It is also part of the western United States and the mountain west. The capital and largest city is Phoenix...
), San Diego (California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
), Spring Valley
Spring Valley, California
Spring Valley is a census-designated place in San Diego County, California. The population was 28,205 at the 2010 census.The name "Spring Valley" may also refer to a wider area including the Spring Valley CDP, La Presa and part of the neighborhood of Casa de Oro...
(California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
) and Molino
Molino, Florida
Molino is a census-designated place in Escambia County, Florida, United States. The population was 1,312 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Pensacola–Ferry Pass–Brent Metropolitan Statistical Area.-Geography:...
(Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
). It is widespread in south of North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
, rear to the Isthmus of Panama
Isthmus of Panama
The Isthmus of Panama, also historically known as the Isthmus of Darien, is the narrow strip of land that lies between the Caribbean Sea and the Pacific Ocean, linking North and South America. It contains the country of Panama and the Panama Canal...
. . However, it is actually native to Chihuahuan Desert
Chihuahuan Desert
The Chihuahuan Desert is a desert, and an ecoregion designation, that straddles the U.S.-Mexico border in the central and northern portions of the Mexican Plateau, bordered on the west by the extensive Sierra Madre Occidental range, and overlaying northern portions of the east range, the Sierra...
(Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
) and North Mexico..
Ecology
Like its other cactus relatives, this deciduous and succulent species also has it leaves reduced to spines in order to check excess transpirationTranspiration
Transpiration is a process similar to evaporation. It is a part of the water cycle, and it is the loss of water vapor from parts of plants , especially in leaves but also in stems, flowers and roots. Leaf surfaces are dotted with openings which are collectively called stomata, and in most plants...
, which helps it to survive by conserving water in the hot climate of Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
, in southwestern United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, and North Mexico. This adaptation
Adaptation
An adaptation in biology is a trait with a current functional role in the life history of an organism that is maintained and evolved by means of natural selection. An adaptation refers to both the current state of being adapted and to the dynamic evolutionary process that leads to the adaptation....
also helps in defending itself from being consumed by any herbivores there . It has the special ability to propagate from woody or softwood stem cuttings . It can even propagate by cuttings of leaf pads at any time in the growing season, allowing to cut surface to callus over before planting. This cactus can survive healthily and produce good many flowers only if it is fully exposed to the sun. They can also tolerate much cold like temperatures from -5° to -12° C .
Uses
The fruits are edible and the soft joints can be cooked as vegetables. It also has an ability to treat dyspepsiaDyspepsia
Dyspepsia , also known as upset stomach or indigestion, refers to a condition of impaired digestion. It is a medical condition characterized by chronic or recurrent pain in the upper abdomen, upper abdominal fullness and feeling full earlier than expected when eating...
, mumps, swelling and in veterinary it is used to treat bruises. After burning of spines the joints can serve as a good food for cattle.
External links
- Page in the Spanish Wikipedia