Candleholder Cactus

Browningia candelaris

"Browningia candelaris" is a species of cactus from northern Chile and southern Peru. It has a distinctive growth habit, with a straight spiny trunk topped by more-or-less spineless thinner branches. In some places, the long-term survival of local populations may be threatened by grazing, which destroys seedlings.
Candleholder Cactus (Browningia candelaris) Yura, Arequipa, Peru. Mar 31, 2022 Browningia candelaris,Fall,Geotagged,Peru

Appearance

"Browningia candelaris" has a tree-like habit of growth, reaching a height of up to 6 m. When mature, it has a distinct unbranched trunk with a diameter of up to 50 cm, which is densely covered with straight brown spines, 6–15 cm long. Above the trunk the plant has a crown of branching thinner stems, which may be entirely spineless or bear spines reduced to a few bristles. All the stems have about 50 ribs.

The white flowers are tubular, 8–12 cm long and are followed by fleshy fruits, yellow when ripe and up to 7 cm long. The fruits are edible.

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Taxonomy
KingdomPlantae
DivisionAngiosperms
ClassEudicots
OrderCaryophyllales
FamilyCactaceae
GenusBrowningia
SpeciesB. candelaris
Photographed in
Peru