''Escobaria'', pincushion cactus or foxtail cactus is a genus of low-growing

cacti A cactus (, or less commonly, cactus) is a member of the plant family Cactaceae, a family comprising about 127 genera with some 1750 known species of the order Caryophyllales. The word ''cactus'' derives, through Latin, from the Ancient Greek ...

that range from the southernmost parts of central and western Canada through northern Mexico, with one species in Cuba. The genus comprises about 23 species. The term "pincushion cactus" may also refer to the related '' Mammillaria''. The stems of ''Escobaria'' range from globose to cylindrical, and lack nectar-secreting glands; while ribs are absent, tubercles are present, tending to become corky and deciduous as they age. The flowers usually appear in spring and may have a variety of colors, while the fruits are almost always red. The seeds in this genus are notable for being deeply pitted. Common species include the Missouri foxtail cactus '' E. missouriensis'', widespread in grassland and forest west of the Mississippi, and the spinystar '' E. vivipara'',"''Escobaria vivipara'' (Nutt.) Buxbaum - spinystar"
PLANTS database, Natural Resources Conservation Service, United States Department of Agriculture distributed across the US and into Canada, first described by

Nuttall Nuttall may refer to: People * Nuttall (name) * Nuttall baronets Nature * Nuttall's oak, a fast-growing large deciduous oak tree native to North America * Nuttall's woodpecker, a species of woodpecker found in oak woodlands of California * Nutta ...

in 1813. ''Escobaria'' was defined by

Nathaniel Britton Nathaniel Lord Britton (January 15, 1859 – June 25, 1934) was an American botanist and taxonomist who co-founded the New York Botanical Garden in the Bronx, New York. Early life Britton was born in New Dorp in Staten Island, New York to Jasper ...

and Joseph Rose in their major work ''The Cactaceae'' (1923); they named the genus after Rómulo and Numa Escobar. The cacti of this genus bear many similarities to ''

Coryphantha ''Coryphantha'' (from Greek, "flowering on the top"), or beehive cactus, is a genus of small to middle-sized, globose or columnar cacti. The genus is native to arid parts of Central America, Mexico, through Arizona, New Mexico, and western Texas ...

'' and '' Mammillaria''. Two species were recently moved to ''

Acharagma ''Acharagma'' is a genus of two cactus species from northern Mexico. Description These cacti are usually solitary but sometimes occur in small clusters. The globose stems tend to be about 3–7 cm in diameter. The ribs have tubercles, wit ...

''.

Taxonomy

The following genera have been brought into synonymy with ''Escobaria'': *''Cochiseia'' W.H.Earle *''Escobesseya''

Hester Hester is both a female given name and a surname. As a given name Hester is a variant of Esther. As a surname it is of Germanic origin and uncertain meaning, possible roots being the Middle High German ''heister'' beech tree indicating residence ne ...

*''Fobea'' Fric (nom. inval.) *''Neobesseya'' Britton & Rose

Species

References

* Anderson, Edward F. (2001) ''

The Cactus Family ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in En ...

'' Timber Press, Portland, Oregon, pp. 307–314,
Genus Escobaria
Eng/De/Cz

External links

* * {{Taxonbar, from=Q133509 Cactoideae genera