If you’ve ever visited a desert, chances are you’ve encountered the unique and captivating cholla cactus. With their vibrant colors and spiny exteriors, these fascinating plants are a true symbol of resilience in harsh environments. In this article, we will explore different species of cholla cactus, each with its own characteristics and beauty.
A Variety of Colors and Shapes
Most cholla cacti display orange or greenish-yellow flowers, but what sets them apart is the wide range of colors within each species. Even among the same species, the stems and joints can vary in width, length, shape, and color. Some chollas may appear as ground creepers, while others take the form of shrubs or trees, reaching heights anywhere from less than a foot to an impressive 15 feet.
Buckhorn Cholla / Major Cholla / Yellow-Flowered Cane Cactus (Opuntia acanthocarpa)
This widespread cholla species exhibits light green coloration and inconspicuous spine sheaths. It boasts different variations, including acanthocarpa, coloradensis, ganderi, major, and thornberi.
- Desert: Sonoran Desert
- Height: 3-10 feet
- Joints: Long and straggly
- Flowers: Bright yellow, orange, pink, or red
- Fruit: Spiny and dry
- Elevation: 500-4,000 feet
Cane Cholla (Opuntia spinosior)
Growing from desert floors to grasslands and lower mountain slopes, the cane cholla develops a thick trunk and features purple jointed joints.
- Desert: Chihuahuan Desert of southern Arizona and southwestern New Mexico
- Height: Up to 8 feet
- Joints: Thick, tubercled, covered with gray spines
- Flowers: From deep purple to yellow and white
- Fruit: Flesh, spineless, yellow in winter
- Elevation: 2,000-7,000 feet
Chain-Fruit Cholla / Chain Cholla / Jumping Cholla (Opuntia fulgida)
The chain-fruit cholla, the largest of the chollas, can reach heights of up to 15 feet. This spiny cactus is usually seen as a shrub but occasionally resembles a tree. The name “chain fruit” comes from the chain of fruits formed by new and previous seasons’ fruits.
- Desert: Sonoran Desert of central and south Arizona and northwest Mexico
- Height: Up to 15 feet
- Joints: Small, oblong, yellow-green with short, colored spines
- Flowers: White and pink petals streaked with lavender
- Fruit: 1 1/2 inch green, spineless, pear-shaped berries grow in clusters and hang in long, branched chains
- Elevation: 0-4,000 feet
Christmas Cholla / Holycross Cholla / Desert Christmas Cactus (Opuntia leptocaulis)
The slenderest of all chollas, the Christmas cholla mainly inhabits the Chihuahuan desert. It stands out with its red berries, which give it a seasonal appearance.
- Desert: Chihuahuan Desert of southern Arizona, New Mexico, and Texas
- Height: 4-6 feet
- Joints: Slender and smooth, uninterrupted by tubercles
- Flowers: Yellow to bronze
- Fruit: Bright-red, grape-sized berries that last throughout the winter
- Elevation: 200-5,000 feet
Devil Cholla / Club Cholla (Opuntia clavata, Opuntia parishii, Opuntia schotti, Opuntia stanlyi)
The Devil Cholla, also known as Club Cholla, encompasses various species. These low-growing chollas have club-shaped joints with sharp spines, hence the name. The lack of sheaths on their spines makes them particularly prickly.
Opuntia clavata
- Desert: Chihuahuan Desert of central New Mexico
- Height: Up to 4 inches
- Joints: Form at the base of older joints and lie on the ground
- Flowers: Lemon-yellow to greenish
- Fruit: Yellow, spiny, 3 inches long
- Elevation: 6,000-8,000 feet
Opuntia parishii
- Desert: Mojave Desert of eastern California, southern Nevada, and eastern Arizona
- Height: Up to 4 inches
- Joints: Obovoid segments up to an inch in diameter
- Flowers: Lemon-yellow with greenish centers
- Fruit: Fleshy, smooth, yellow, up to 3 inches long
- Elevation: 6,000-8,000 feet
Opuntia schotti
- Desert: Chihuahuan Desert of west Texas
- Height: Up to 12 inches
- Joints: Form at the base of older joints and lie on the ground
- Flowers: Lemon-yellow to greenish
- Fruit: Yellow, spiny, 3 inches long
- Elevation: 1,000-5,000 feet
Opuntia stanlyi
- Desert: Sonoran and Chihuahuan Deserts from Southern California to southwestern New Mexico
- Height: Up to 12 inches
- Joints: Form at the base of older joints and lie on the ground
- Flowers: Lemon-yellow to greenish
- Fruit: Yellow, spiny, 3 inches long
- Elevation: 300-4,000 feet
Diamond Cholla / Pencil Cactus (Opuntia ramoissima)
As a low shrub that thrives in the driest deserts, the diamond cholla is unique for its grooved surface and prominent yellow or tan spine sheaths with orange tips.
- Desert: Sonoran Desert of southeastern California, southern Nevada, and southwestern Arizona
- Height: Up to 5 feet
- Joints: Pencil-sized, gray stems that are grooved, producing diamond-shaped tubercles
- Flowers: Dark pink to apricot
- Fruit: Spiny, dry burrs
- Elevation: 100-3,000 feet
Klein’s Cholla (Opuntia kleiniae)
Similar to the Pencil and Christmas chollas, Klein’s cholla stands out with its thicker stems. Spines grow in clusters of four and point downward.
- Desert: Sonoran and Chihuahuan deserts from central Arizona to western Texas
- Height: 3-7 feet
- Joints: Thick and tuberculate
- Flowers: Pink to purple
- Fruit: Smooth red or orange
- Elevation: 2,000-6,500 feet
Pencil Cholla (Opuntia arbuscula)
Unlike its sprawling shrub counterparts, the Pencil Cholla grows with a trunk. It thrives in sandy and gravelly plains, valleys, and washes.
- Desert: Sonoran Desert of southeastern California and southwestern Arizona
- Height: 2-5 feet
- Joints: Long, thin, deep green pencil-sized stems without tubercles
- Flowers: Yellow to orange
- Fruit: Fleshy and green
- Elevation: 1,000-4,500 feet
Sand Cholla (Opuntia pulchella)
This clump-growing cholla, with its bristled-covered tuber, prefers higher elevation dry-lake borders and sandy flats.
- Desert: Northern Mojave Desert from eastern California to southern Utah
- Height: Up to 10 inches
- Joints: Narrowly club-shaped to cylindrical, 1-inch diameter
- Flowers: Pink to magenta with yellow-green filaments
- Fruit: Smooth, red, fleshy, and barbed, up to 1 inch long
- Elevation: 4,500-7,000 feet
Silver Cholla / Gold Cholla (Opuntia echinocarpa)
With white or yellow sheaths, the Silver Cholla displays bushy, short-trunked growth. It features short terminal joints at the ends of longer ones.
- Desert: Sonoran Desert of western Arizona, southern Nevada, and southeastern California
- Height: Up to 5 feet
- Joints: Small, oblong, yellow-green with short, colored spines
- Flowers: Greenish yellow, with red-streaked outer portions
- Fruit: Spiny and dry when ripe
- Elevation: 1,000-5,000 feet
Staghorn Cholla / Tree Cholla / Deerhorn Cholla (Opuntia versicolor)
The Staghorn Cholla, with its forked branches resembling deer antlers, often hybridizes with Buckhorn and Cane chollas. This makes identification a challenge.
- Desert: Sonoran Desert within 100 miles of Tucson, Arizona, and south into Mexico
- Height: 3-15 feet
- Joints: Dull green, forming very long stems
- Flowers: Varied (versicolor)
- Fruit: Green, pear-shaped, fleshy, sometimes forming chains
- Elevation: 1,000-4,000 feet
Teddy Bear Cholla / Jumping Cholla (Opuntia bigelovii)
Referred to as the Teddy Bear due to its fuzzy appearance, this cholla boasts dense, straw-colored spines and yellow to green flowers.
- Desert: Sonoran Desert of western Arizona, southern Nevada, and southeastern California
- Height: 5-9 feet
- Joints: Small, oblong, yellow-green with short, colored spines
- Flowers: Greenish to yellow, with lavender streaks
- Fruit: Egg-shaped, yellow, up to 1 inch long
- Elevation: 100-5,000 feet
Tree Cholla (Opuntia imbricata)
Resembling the Cane Cholla, the Tree Cholla is green and somewhat spineless. It takes on a purplish hue in colder weather. This species thrives in desert flats, as well as Pinyon and Juniper stands.
- Desert: Chihuahuan Desert of New Mexico and Texas, extending north to semi-desert areas of eastern Colorado and western Oklahoma
- Height: Up to 7 feet
- Joints: Very fat with tubercles
- Flowers: Deep lavender to red
- Fruit: Yellow, oval, 2 inches long
- Elevation: 2,000-7,000 feet
Whipple Cholla (Opuntia whipplei)
Often growing as shrubs or in mats on plains and grasslands, the Whipple cholla is a common sight in the Colorado Desert.
- Desert: Chihuahuan Desert of eastern Arizona and western New Mexico
- Height: Up to 30 inches
- Joints: Green, cylindrical, up to 6 inches long
- Flowers: Pale to lemon yellow
- Fruit: Yellow, spineless, round to ovoid, about 1 1/2 inches long
- Elevation: 4,500-7,000 feet
Wolf’s Cholla (Opuntia wolfii)
Found in the Colorado Desert, Wolf’s Cholla stands out with its brown, 1-inch spines covered by translucent sheaths.
- Desert: Western edge of the Sonoran Desert to Baja California
- Height: Up to 6 feet
- Joints: Branched from the base in cylindrical segments
- Flowers: Pale brown with purple filaments
- Fruit: Dry, tubercled, 1 inch long
- Elevation: 1,000-4,000 feet
Through this exploration of cholla cactus species, we’ve gained a deeper appreciation for their diversity, adaptability, and stunning beauty. Whether they stand tall or creep along the ground, these fascinating desert plants continue to captivate us with their unique forms and colors. Next time you encounter a cholla cactus, take a moment to admire its remarkable features.
Article by A.R. Royo