Opuntia molesta
Proc. Calif. Acad. Sci. ser. 2, 2: 164. 1889
Family
Cactaceae
Genus
Species
Opuntia molesta
Author
Brandegee
Chinese genus
仙人掌属
Chinese name
-
Primary
Accepted
DescriptionEdit description
Leaves
Linear, 10 mm long or less.
Seeds
6 mm in diameter, irregular in shape.
Description
CylindrSN'>16362' alt='16363'>Opuntia molesta#SN#16363'>Cylindr[[Opuntia molestaSN' style='border
Stem Segments
Joints clavate to subcylindrical, firmly attached, 7-12(-40) cm long, and 1-3 cm wide, sometimes as much as 4 cm in diameter at the top, pale green to grey-green (sometimes glaucous) , with low, broad tubercles, these elongated and often 4 cm. long or more.
Flowers
Purple bronze but also yellow, greenish-bronze or dark maroon, showy,19-26 mm long and 3-5 cm in diameter. CylindrSN'>16362' alt='16363'>Opuntia molesta#SN#16363'>Cylindr[[Opuntia molestaSN' style='border
Blooming Season
Spring (April to June).
Fruits
Ovoid, green, yellow at maturity, the fleshy fruits are 2-4 cm long and deeply excavated at the apex, distinctly tuberculate,spineless or with scattered spines.
Areoles
Widely elliptical, with yellowish brown wool and yellowish brown glochids, 1-2.5 mm long. In the areoles are also present small, cupshaped extrafloral nectaries, the sites at which ants appear to fill their stomach with nectar and the location of nectar buildup when ants were excluded from the plants.