Austrocylindropuntia subulata
This is another common, easy to grow cactus sold to folks all over the world for their indoor collections. The branching Austrocylindropuntia subulata can grow to 13 feet tall. Easily propagated with cuttings, it does extremely well in the low desert even though it is native to high elevations in the Andes. It takes full sun, but it received some frost damage this past winter. New branches quickly developed and it has grown at least a foot this summer.
I planted this A. subulata in my garden from a pot when one of my many Bush Morning Glories died last summer. It needed repotting and I took the easy way out and just put it where the dead plant had been. At the time, I’d forgotten how large the A. subulata could get. If left where it is located, it will eventually interfere with a Palo Verde tree growing nearby.
Sometimes called Opuntia subulata, (AKA Eve’s Needle and Eve’s Pin Cactus) it is one of the 11 species placed in the Austrocylindropuntia genus. All the cacti in this genus have tube shaped stems and leaves. The leaves on my specimen remain for most of the year.
This cactus has never had flowers. When it blooms, the flowers will be large and red. I’ve read that it rarely blooms in cultivation, but if it happens, I’ll be glad it’s located where it is because I can see it from my breakfast area windows. I'll worry about its size later.
Hi "no Rain"
ReplyDeleteI love the title of your blog, because we have lots of rain here in Holland/Europe, I love the sun and sunny countries... Plants which grow better in the sun, their beautiful flowers....
I am from Holland, I am a woman, and I have a blog about my travelling to (warm sunny) other countries, also about my Dutch life and my dog, my hus, things I like. Just thoughts , my passion for photograpy and meeting other cultures....
Thats why I like visiting other peoples blog from other countries and meet YOU, your way of blogging, that is interesting me.
I invite you to visit my blog and see trhough my eyes "another world" on the same planet but nearby too under the same sun...
Bye hope to see you some day on my blog?
:) JoAnn from Holland
Hi No rain,
ReplyDeleteI just replanted my Eve's Pin. I purchased it at Home Depot of all places, in Feb and put it in a small pot as it was less then 6 inches in height. In less then 6 months it trippled in size and is now out in front of the house in an area where it will be able to grow to it's full size of 13 feet.