Opuntia engelmannii - Web page Navigation - Cactus Apple Page

[ edit ] Description Opuntia engelmannii var. lindheimeri The Opuntia engelmannii overall form is generally shrubby, with dense clumps up to 3.5 m high, usually with no apparent trunk. The pads are green (rarely blue-green), obovate to round, about 15-30 cm long and 12-20 cm wide. The glochids are yellow initially, then brown with age. Spines are extremely variable, with anywhere from 1-8 per areole, and often absent from lower areoles; they are yellow to white, slightly flattened, and 1-6 cm long. The flowers are yellow, occasionally reddish, 5-8 cm in diameter and about as long. The purple fleshy fruits are 3-7 cm long.

[ edit ] Description Opuntia rastrera can be found in bajada , hill-piedmont, and interdune habitats in locations such as the Mapimi biosphere reserve , where it is sometimes the most common cactus in a given location, or sometimes a secondary cactus. [ 3 ] [ edit ] Propagation In order to germinate, the seeds require a dormancy period of at least a year. As with other Opuntia species, mechanical or chemical scarification does not seem to help. [ 4 ] The species can reproduce either vegetatively or by seed. In fact, the nature of the habitat determines which is more common, with sexual reproduction dominating in grasslands and vegetative propagation dominating in scrublands. [ 5 ]