''Obregonia'', the artichoke cactus, is a

monotypic In biology, a monotypic taxon is a taxonomic group (taxon) that contains only one immediately subordinate taxon. A monotypic species is one that does not include subspecies or smaller, infraspecific taxa. In the case of genera, the term "unispec ...

genus of

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 ...

, containing the species ''Obregonia denegrii''. The species is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsew ...

to the state of

Tamaulipas Tamaulipas (), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Tamaulipas ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Tamaulipas), is a state in the northeast region of Mexico; one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the 32 Federal Entiti ...

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

. The

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus com ...

''Obregonia'' is named after Álvaro Obregón, while the species is named after Ramon P. De Negri, who was the Minister of Agriculture of Mexico when the cacti was first described by Alfred Frec in 1923.

Description

This rare species resembles an inverted green pine cone with a woolly center. It grows slowly in culture and requires little water. It benefits from full sun and is multiplied by seed. It is very slow growing. It is an

IUCN Red List The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species, also known as the IUCN Red List or Red Data Book, founded in 1964, is the world's most comprehensive inventory of the global conservation status of biol ...

Endangered species An endangered species is a species that is very likely to become extinct in the near future, either worldwide or in a particular political jurisdiction. Endangered species may be at risk due to factors such as habitat loss, poaching and inv ...

Uses

The Nahuatl Indians call the plant ''peyotl'', and it is said to have hallucinogenic

alkaloids Alkaloids are a class of basic, naturally occurring organic compounds that contain at least one nitrogen atom. This group also includes some related compounds with neutral and even weakly acidic properties. Some synthetic compounds of similar st ...

. It is one of the closest living relatives of the genus ''

Lophophora ''Lophophora'' () is a genus of spineless, button-like cacti. Its area range covers southern through northeastern and north-central Mexico to Querétaro in central Mexico. The species are extremely slow growing, sometimes taking up to thirty ye ...

''.

Gallery

File:Obregonia denigrii 9.JPG, ''Obregonia denigrii'' in flower File:Obregonia denegrii 4.JPG, ''Obregonia denigrii'' seen from above File:Obregonia denigrii 11.JPG, The flower of ''Obregonia denigrii'' File:Cactaceaeː Obregonia denegril.JPG, Cultivated plant specimen

References

* — Database report on species & threats.

External links

*
Cactiguide.com: ''Obregonia''
Cactoideae genera Cacti of Mexico Endemic flora of Mexico Monotypic Cactaceae genera Endangered biota of Mexico Endangered flora of North America {{Cactus-stub