Beyond Scribbles

A joint family you’d rather stay away from!

There were plenty of these guys on one side of the trail. They were merrily gazing at us, knotted and twisted all around, as we passed them on the Levee Trail in Usery Mountain Regional Park, very close to where we live.

Chollas are “jointed” cacti with cylindrical, segmented stems. The segments (joints) detach easily from the main plant.

I didn’t know what they were called before I did a quick search on google lens.

It’s a type of a jumping cholla cactus, also known as the chain-fruit cholla (Cylindropuntia fulgida). This plant is well known for its easily detachable segments that appear to “jump” out and stick to anything that brushes against them.

Key features and facts:

-It produces pink to magenta flowers in late spring, which develop into green, spineless, pear-shaped fruit berries that hang in chains

-It is native to the Sonoran Desert in the Southwestern United States and Sonora, Mexico. 

-The spines have microscopic barbs, which anchor the segments to skin or clothing, making them difficult to remove. 

-These detached segments can take root where they fall, allowing the plant to propagate. 

-The cactus can grow quite large, sometimes exceeding 12 feet in height. 

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Joining Esha for Wordless Wednesday this week.