Xerophyte

Description

Opuntia leucotrichaSN|9736]]SN|9736]] (Duraznillo) is a jointed shrubby cactus forming clumps or small trees with distinct trunks and a large top often 3 to 5 meters high. Flowers are deep yellow with white stamens and deep red stigma with green lobes. Fruit is fragrant whitish-yellow ( Duraznillo blanco) or red ( Duraznillo colorado), have a good taste and can be found in Mexican markets.

Flowers

Yellow, 4 to 5 cm. long (including ovary), 4-8 cm in diameter. Petals yellow, broad. Pericarpel with numerous areoles, the upper ones bearing long, bristly glochids (ca. 1 cm. long). Style red, stigma-lobes green.

Stem

Trunk as well as the older joints covered with long white bristles. Cladodes (joints) oblong to orbicular, 10 to 25(-30) cm long and to 12 across, pubescent. In particular, the newly developing cladodes of Opuntia leucotrichaSN|9736]]SN|9736]] tended to become flattened in a direction perpendicular to a light beam, thereby intercepting more of the light compared with a random orientation of the cladodes.

Fruits

Variable, globose, 4 to 6 cm long, white or purple, the rind not easily coming off from the pulp, aromatic, edible.

Areoles

Numerous, closely set, small, to 1 cm apart. the upper part filled with yellow glochids, the lower part at first with only 1 to 3 flexible white spines, one much longer, to 3 cm.