Cephalium is a frequently brightly coloured structure of wool and bristle at the growing tip of certain
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 Gree ...
. It is most commonly found on cacti of the genus ''
Melocactus
''Melocactus'' (melon cactus), also known as the Turk's cap cactus, is a genus of cactus with about 30–40 species. They are native to the Caribbean, western Mexico through Central America to northern South America, with some species along the ...
'' and can take a number of colours, forms and shapes.
The cephalium will only begin growing after a cactus has reached a certain size or age. Once flowering begins the flower buds will form from the cephalium.
Image:Arrojadoa penicillata.jpg, Flowers emerge from cephalium of '' Arrojadoa penicillata''.
Image:Melocactus matanzanus 1.jpg, Cephalium of '' Melocactus matanzanus''
Image:Espostoa lanata-IMG 1935.jpg, Lateral cephalium of ''Espostoa lanata
''Espostoa lanata'' (= Wooly Espostoa) is a species of cactus of the genus '' Espostoa''.
Its common names are Peruvian old man cactus, cotton ball cactus, snowball cactus, snowball old man.
Habitat
Its original habitat is from southern Ec ...
''
External links
* http://www.cactus-art.biz/note-book/Dictionary/Dictionary_C/dictionary_cephalium.htm
{{Cactus-stub
Cacti
Plant morphology