Branches 3-winged, ribs compressed, margin strongly undulate, becoming horny with age
Areoles up to 40 mm apart, with 1 central spine 2-4 mm long and up to 2 peripheral spines 2-4 mm long
Flowers solitary
Sepals lorate, greenish or yellowish, apices acuminate
Petals spathulate, green, apices acute
Stamens of mature flower roughly parallel to perianth
Style cream; stigma lobes ± 24
Fruit (ripe) red, oblong, scaly
Seeds black
x = 11
Nomenclature:
*Hylocereus (A.Berger) Britton & Rose
Britton & Rose: 428 (1909)
Backeberg 2: 803 (1959)
IOS Working Party: 69 (1986)
IOS Working Party: 89 (1990)
Barthlott & Hunt: 179 (1993)
Distribution & Notes:
Global: Species ± 18, tropical America
Southern Africa: *Hylocereus undatus (Haw.) Britton & Rose, is recorded as invasive in KwaZulu-Natal and Eastern Cape
References:
BACKEBERG, C. 1958-1962. Die Cactaceae. Gustav Fischer, Jena
BARTHLOTT, W. & HUNT, D.R. 1993. Cactaceae. In K. Kubitzki, J.G. Rohwer & V. Bittrich, The families and genera of flowering plants 2. Springer-Verlag, Berlin
BRITTON, N.L. & ROSE, J.N. 1909. The genus Cereus and its allies in North America. Contributions from the United States National Herbarium 12
IOS WORKING PARTY 1986. The genera of the Cactaceae: towards a new consensus. Bradleya 4
IOS WORKING PARTY 1990. The genera of Cactaceae: progress towards consensus. Bradleya 8
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Biodiversity Advisor, developed by the South African National Biodiversity Institute (SANBI) and its Data Partners, is a system that will provide integrated biodiversity information to a wide range of users who will have access to geospatial data, plant and animal species distribution data, ecosystem-level data, literature, images and metadata.
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