''Stetsonia coryne'', the toothpick cactus, is the sole species in the
cactus
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 ...
genus ''Stetsonia''. The plant is native to the deserts and
dry forest
Dry or dryness most often refers to:
* Lack of rainfall, which may refer to
**Arid regions
**Drought
* Dry or dry area, relating to legal prohibition of selling, serving, or imbibing alcoholic beverages
* Dry humor, deadpan
* Dryness (medical)
* ...
(
Gran Chaco
The Gran Chaco or Dry Chaco is a sparsely populated, hot and semiarid lowland natural region of the Río de la Plata basin, divided among eastern Bolivia, western Paraguay, northern Argentina, and a portion of the Brazilian states of Mato Gro ...
) of
Argentina
Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...
,
Bolivia
, image_flag = Bandera de Bolivia (Estado).svg
, flag_alt = Horizontal tricolor (red, yellow, and green from top to bottom) with the coat of arms of Bolivia in the center
, flag_alt2 = 7 × 7 square p ...
and
Paraguay
Paraguay (; ), officially the Republic of Paraguay ( es, República del Paraguay, links=no; gn, Tavakuairetã Paraguái, links=si), is a landlocked country in South America. It is bordered by Argentina to the south and southwest, Brazil to th ...
. ''Stetsonia coryne'' grows to a height of tall. It has white flowers. The genus was named to honor
Francis Lynde Stetson
Francis Lynde Stetson (April 23, 1846 – December 5, 1920) was an American lawyer. He was president of the New York State Bar Association in 1909 and of the New York City Bar Association from 1910 to 1911.
Early life and education
He was born i ...
, a New York attorney and plant lover.
Description
The plant is large, arborescent habit , tree-like reaches a growth height of 5 to 8 meters up to 12 meters. The trunk is thick and short, measuring about 4 dm in diameter, with numerous erect or somewhat bent branches form from a trunk. The blue-green shoots, turn greenish-gray with age, usually not jointed and have a diameter of 9 to 10 centimeters. There are 8 to 9 blunt-edged, somewhat notched ribs that are 1 to 1.5 centimeters high. The yellow spines, which later turn black, are straight and stiff. The central spine grows to 2-5 cm long and are thickened at the base., the 7 to 9 spreading marginal spines to 3 centimeters long. There is a single central spine, straight and more robust, which can measure up to 8 cm in length. All are black or yellowish-brown in color, although they eventually turn white with a dark tip.
It flowers from October to April with funnel-shaped flowers that are white and grow up to 15 centimeters in diameter. They open at night and often remain open until the next day. The pericarp is covered with numerous, roof-tile-like, the long corolla tube with scattered scales.
The plant fruits from January to May and its fruit is a fleshy berry 4 cm in diameter ovoid, scaled, edible fruits are green to reddish and have a drooping floral remnant. The broadly oval, shiny blackish-brown seeds are 1.7 millimeters long and 1 millimeter wide. They are humped with a fine wrinkled pattern.
File:Stetsonia coryne, Serezuela.jpg, Large plant growing in habitat in Argentina
File:Stetsonia coryne pm.jpg, branch
File:仙人掌-近衛柱 Stetsonia coryne -紐西蘭 Christchurch Botanic Garden, New Zealand- (46460471222).jpg, Flower
File:Stetsonia coryne 2019-12-13 6725.jpg, Spines
References
External links
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{{Taxonbar, from1=Q138297, from2=Q8184783
Cactoideae