Author: |
William Thomas Stearn 1939 |
Family: |
Cactaceae |
Habitat: |
Angola,
Argentina, Belize, Benin, Bolivia, Brazil, Burundi,
Cameroon, Cayman Islands, Central African Republic,
Colombia, Comoros, Congo, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominican
Republic, Ecuador, Eswatini, Ethiopia, French Guiana, Gabon,
Ghana, Guatemala, Guinea, Gulf of Guinea Islands, Guyana,
Haiti, Honduras, Ivory Coast, Jamaica, Kenya, Leeward
Islands, Liberia, Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritius, Mexico,
Mozambique, Nicaragua, Nigeria, Panamá, Paraguay, Peru,
Puerto Rico, Rwanda, Réunion, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Sri
Lanka, Sudan, Suriname, South Africa, Tanzania, Togo,
Trinidad-Tobago, Uganda, USA, Venezuela, Venezuelan
Antilles, Windward Islands, Zaïre, Zimbabwe |
Soil: |
Grit/Epiphytic |
Water:
|
Minimum |
Sun: |
Medium |
Thickness: |
4
millimetres |
Height: |
60 centimetres |
Flower:
|
Crème colour |
Propagate: |
Seeds/Cuttings |
Names:
|
Mistletoe Cactus |
Synonyms: |
Cassytha baccifera, John M. Miller 1771.
Cactus
parasiticus, Lam.1783.
Rhipsalis cassutha, Gaertn.
1788.
Rhipsalis delphinensis, Barthlott 1788.
Rhipsalis parasiticus, Haw. 1812.
Rhipsalis
fasciculata, Haw. 1819.
Rhipsalis pendulina,
A. Berger 1820.
Rhipsalis cereuscula Haw. 1830.
Hariota cassytha Lem. 1839.
Rhipsalis horrida
Baker 1884.
Rhipsalis prismatica, Rumpler 1885.
Rhipsalis
madagascariensis, F.A.C. Weber 1889.
Rhipsalis
comorensis, F.A.C. Weber 1890.
Rhipsalis pilosa, F.A.C. Weber ex K. Schum. 1890.
Rhipsalis suareziana, F.A.C. Weber 1892.
Rhipsalis
tetragona, Web. 1892.
Rhipsalis bartlettii,
Clover 1938.
Rhipsalis heptagona, Rauh & Backeb.
1957.
Rhipsalis coralloides, Rauh 1962.
Rhipsalis saxicola, Rauh 1963.
Rhipsalis
bermejensis, F. Ritter 1966.
Rhipsalis mauritiana,
Barthlott 1973. |
This member of the
Cactaceae family was described by William Thomas Stearn in 1939 (and by a
lot of others before and after!). It is found in central and south America,
central and southern Africa, Madagascar and Sri Lanka. It grows in
grit, between rocks and as an epiphyte with little water and some sun. It is
the only native cacti outside the Americas. Probably spread by birds because
of the white fruits have sticky pulp and tiny seeds. The branches are 3-4
millimetres in diameter, and can reach for 60 centimetres. Some subspecies
has no thorns, others have lots of small thorns. The flowers are crème
coloured.
baccifera means
sticks-making.
SubFamily: Cactoideae ,
Tribe: Rhipsalideae. |