46 



THE CACTACEAE. 



CYLINDROPUNTIA 



Includes the many- jointed species in which none of the joints is at all flattened. 



RAMOSISSIMAE 



-'V 



The series consists of a single bushy species, with slender joints, the nearly flat tubercles 

 diamond-shaped and contiguous, the acicular spines, when present, usually only i at an areole. 



y^ X- 1. Opuntia ramosissima Engelmann, Amer. Journ. Sci. II. 14: 339. 1852. * 



Opuniia tessellala Engclmann, Proc. Amer. Acad. 3 : 309. 1856, 



Frutescent, bushy, sometimes 2 meters high, the branches gray, often widely spreading, and 9 cm. 

 long; tubercles low, slightly convex, 4-angled to 6-angled, giving the surface an appearance of being 

 covered with diamond-shaped plates; leaves ovoid, 

 I to 3 mm. long, acute; areoles on young shoots 

 circular, with white or tawny wool and pale glochids, 

 the upper part in age compressed into the narrow 

 slit bet\<^een the two adjoining tubercles, the lower 

 part depressed-linear, with a slightly elevated border ; 

 spines often wanting, but when present abundant,^ 

 usually one at each areole, rarely 2, porrect, acicular, ' 

 sometimes 6 cm. long, usually reddish when young, 

 covered by loose, yellow, papery sheaths; flowers, 

 including ovaries, 3 to 4 cm. long; sepals subulate, 

 similar to the leaves of the ovary, but longer; petals 

 greenish yellow, tinged with red, obovate, aristulate, 

 about I cm. long; stamens greenish yellow; anthers 

 orange-colored; style and stigma-lobes cream-colored; 

 ovary narrowly obconic, covered with emarginate 

 tubercles, the areoles bearing wool and long glochids, 

 but no spines; fruit dry, obovate, 2 to 2.5 cm. long, 

 covered with clusters of weak, slender spines, appear- 

 ing like a bur; seeds few, white, 5 mm. broad. 





N. 



r 



Type locality: 



Colo 



rado River. 



Distribution: Southern Nevada, western 

 Arizona, southeastern California, northwestern 



Sonora and 



fornia. 



Lower 



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Figs. 54, 55. — Opuntia ramosissima. X0.75. 



1 ' 



The flowers of this species have been described as purple, apparently 



This species is found in the most arid deserts of the southwestern oart of the United 



erroneous 



f 



m 



species of the genus 



terminal shoots soon becoming 



difficult to propagate from cuttings, and is rarely found in gre^tilious 



f to the lower Colorado; it is 

 It is one of the least succulent 



hence the plant is 



L 4 





j^-X r 



monstrosity which Schumann 



Schumann (Monatsschr. Kakteenk 



1 898) is a striking 



t- 



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Journ. I : pi. [i]; Cycl. Amer. Hort 



LS Opuntia tessellata. 



f'^ 



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r- 



r 



Figure 54 represents a spiny branch drawn from a specimen sent by Mr. S 

 from Barstow, CaUfornia, in 19 15; figure 55 shows a portion of an unarmed b 



ir 





same collector from the same 



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LEPTOCAULES 



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Bushy species, with slender joints, the ultimate ones 4 to 15 mm. thick, often readily detached; 



the flowers small. 



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Domingo 



States, Mexico, northern South America, and 



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