Xeriscape Landscaping Plants For The Arizona Desert Environment
Pictures, Photos, And Information
Cactus

Totem Pole Cactus, Pachycereus schottii var. monstrosus
Or Lophocereus schottii f. monstrosus

Totem Pole Cactus, Pachycereus schottii var. monstrosus Or Lophocereus schottii f. monstrosus. Photo Taken February 2, 2006.

Pachycereus schottii var. monstrosus	Lophocereus schottii f. monstrosus

Totem Pole Cactus Pachycereus schottii var. monstrosus or Lophocereus schottii f. monstrosus, Cactus Family ( Cactaceae ), Totem Pole Cactus. Also called . Columnar, basally branching, slow growing up to 12 feet tall (3.6 m). Stems 4 to 8 inches in diameter (10 to 20 cm); 5 to 10 ribs; areoles on the bottom part of the stems are woolly, oval, 0.12 to 0.2 inch wide (3-5 mm), with one to 15 spines, 0.1 to 0.3 inch long; upper areoles 0.3 to 0.6 inch wide (7-15 mm), 20 to 75 spines , 1.2 to 4 inches long (3-10 cm). Its strange, mostly spineless shape (picture 2) can be very attractive for landscape use. It is also less frost resistant, and should be protected below 25°F The senita blooms at night at the end of the spring in the 'hairy' part of the stems. The flowers are light pink, up to 1.6 inches in diameter (4 cm). They close around mid-morning. The Senita blooms most of the year, mainly from April to September. The edible fruit is red, with a red pulp. The monstrose form of Lophocereus schottii usually does not flower or seed, all specimens in cultivation must have at one time been propagated vegatively. Height: Height to about 3 feet. Spreading to about 6 feet. Flowers: The monstrose form of Lophocereus schottii usually does not flower or seed, all specimens in cultivation must have at one time been propagated vegatively. Blooming Time: . Segments: Green stems are slim, lightly pruinose with broad rounded protuberances roughly branched and poorly defined. The areoles are few and insignificant. Fruit: Green - gray, spineless fruit, 1 to 1-1/2 inches long, 3/4 to 1 inches in diameter dry when ripe. Seeds 3/10 inches in diameter, rounded, smooth, and cream colored. Elevation: 0 - 4800 Feet. Habitat: Sandy flats. A Xeriscape Landscape plant. Native to small area NE of El Arco, about halfway down the Baja Peninsula, California, Mexico. Miscellaneous: Photos Taken At Arrowhead Ranch. Photo Taken February 2, 2006.