''Opuntia macrocentra'', the long-spined purplish prickly pear or purple pricklypear, is a cactus found in the lower

Southwestern United States The Southwestern United States, also known as the American Southwest or simply the Southwest, is a geographic and cultural list of regions of the United States, region of the United States that includes Arizona and New Mexico, along with adjacen ...

and Northwestern Mexico. A member of the prickly pear genus, this species of ''

Opuntia ''Opuntia'', commonly called the prickly pear cactus, is a genus of flowering plants in the cactus family Cactaceae, many known for their flavorful fruit and showy flowers. Cacti are native to the Americas, and are well adapted to arid clima ...

'' is most notable as one of a few cacti that produce a purple pigmentation in the stem. Other common names for this plant include black-spined pricklypear, long-spine prickly pear, purple pricklypear, and redeye prickly pear. ''Opuntia macrocentra'' is an upright spreading shrub consisting of several joined segments called pads. This cactus produces large colorful yellow and red flowers and dark red edible fruits.

Distribution

Native populations of ''Opuntia macrocentra'' are found in Arizona, New Mexico, Southwestern Texas, and Northwestern Mexico. This cactus is a slow growing perennial that inhabits a wide range of soil substrates and habitat types. It can be found below the elevation of 5000 ft in areas of sandy desert flats, rocky hills, or valley grasslands.

Description

''Opuntia macrocentra'' is an upright spreading shrub, usually growing from tall. Individuals occasionally reach in height. The stem is blue-gray, blue-green, or purplish in color. The purple pad color is the most intense at the edges of the pad or around the areoles. The purple color comes from the production of a betalain (betacyanin) pigment that becomes more evident as the plant is stressed by drought or cold.

Pads

The cactus consists of smooth obovate to orbicular shaped pads that are connected to each other by the bottom edge or pad margin. Each pad is from in width and in length, but is usually wider than it is long.''Opuntia macrocentra'' in Flora of North America @ efloras.org
. accessed 3.23.2013 The areoles, highly reduced branch structures from which spines and glochids grow, are dark in color and can be found arranged in diagonal rows on the midstem segment. Spines are produced on the upper half or the upper edge only of the pad. Each aerole will have from 1-3 central spines coming from it with the longest being in length. The largest spine will be pointed in a markedly upward direction. Spines are sometimes seen with a white or yellow tip. Flowers are produced on the upper edge of the pads.

Flowers

Flowers of ''Opuntia macrocentra'' are large sturdy flowers of bright colors. They consist of yellow petals with red lower portions forming a bright red center. The visible internal reproductive structures are pale yellow to cream in color. This cactus produces flowers in spring, usually March through June. The flowers open in the midmorning, close at night and do not reopen.

Fruit

If the flower is pollinated, the cactus will produce small oval shaped fruits ranging in color from bright red to dull purple when ripe. The fruit produced is succulent and approximately half the size of the flower, from in length. Each fruit has between 12-16 areoles. The rind of the fruit is purple and the inner pulp and juices are light purple to clear in color. The fruit contains flattened, tan seeds that are less than approximately in length with a broad notch on one side and prominent ridge.

Uses

Because of its striking stem and flower color the ''Opuntia macrocentra'' cactus is cultivated as an

ornamental plant Ornamental plants or ''garden plants'' are plants that are primarily grown for their beauty but also for qualities such as scent or how they shape physical space. Many flowering plants and garden varieties tend to be specially bred cultivars th ...

for

drought tolerant In botany, drought tolerance is the ability by which a plant maintains its biomass production during arid or drought conditions. Some plants are naturally adapted to dry conditions'','' surviving with protection mechanisms such as desiccation tole ...

and

native plant In biogeography, a native species is indigenous to a given region or ecosystem if its presence in that region is the result of only local natural evolution (though often popularised as "with no human intervention") during history. The term is equi ...

gardens, and as a potted plant.''Opuntia macrocentra' species account and photographs from Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center Native Plant Information Network (NPIN)
. accessed 3.23.2013 Like many other cacti in the genus ''

'', the fruit produced by ''Opuntia macrocentra'' is edible. Collection of this cactus, and its fruit, is restricted in some areas for conservation needs.

Gallery

File:Opuntia macrocentra 02.jpg, Flower File:Opuntia macrocentra habit.jpg, Growth habit of ''Opuntia macrocentra.'' File:Opuntia macrocentra (1).jpg, Purple pads and yellow flowers. File:Opuntia macrocentra.jpg, Vivid coloration and multiple stamens of an ''Opuntia macrocentra'' flower.

References

External links

''Opuntia macrocentra'' photo gallery at Opuntia Web''Opuntia macrocentra'' Photo gallery
{{Taxonbar, from=Q150769 macrocentra Cacti of Mexico Cacti of the United States Flora of the Chihuahuan Desert Flora of the Sonoran Deserts Flora of Arizona Flora of Chihuahua (state) Flora of Coahuila Flora of New Mexico Flora of Texas Flora of the Rio Grande valleys Flora of Northeastern Mexico North American desert flora Desert fruits Garden plants of North America Drought-tolerant plants