Our mystery fruit from last week were from an unusual cactus in the genus Pereskiopsis.
Pereskiopsis are unusual because they are cacti that have leaves. They are like all other cacti in that they have glochids (tiny spines) and areoles.
You can see the clusters of glochids on the fruit.
The flowers are lovely, but short lived. In our yard they bloom in the afternoon and are gone the next day.
People who grow cacti often use pereskiopsis for root stock and graft other cacti to it. Because it is tropical in origin, the plants can withstand humidity and more frequent watering than other cacti.
One of our botany friends gave us this specimen and I’m not sure of the species. It is such an interesting plant, I’m not sure why more people don’t grow it.
Do you know what species this is? Have you ever grown a Pereskiopsis?
