Cereus uruguayensis C.Ritter ex R.Kiesling, Cactaceae

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Present on Pacific Islands?  yes

Threat only at high elevations?  no

Other Latin names:  Cereus hildmannianus K. Schum. subsp. uruguayanus (C. Ritter ex R. Kiesling) N. P. Taylor

Common name(s): [more details]

English: hedge cactus, Peruvian apple, spiny tree cactus

Habit:  cactus

Description:  "Plants arborescent, up to 6 m tall, branched; stems cylindrical, 10-20 cm in diameter, ribs 6-9, rarely fewer.  Areoles gray or brown, spines 6-8 per areole, brown or black, 1-4 cm long.  Flowers nocturnal, 12-15 cm long, 8-10 cm in diameter; sepaloid perianth parts green or slightly pinkish, narrowly oblong to narrowly lanceolate, 4-5 cm long, 0.9-1.2 cm wide, inner perianth parts white, oblanceolate, 4.5-7.5 cm long, 1-2 cm wide; staminal filaments greenish; style green, 7.5-10 cm long; stigma lobes 12-15, green, ca. 1 cm long.  Berries reddish or yellowish orange, 5-7.5 cm long, 4.5-5 cm in diameter, smooth or with a few scales, splitting along 1 side and exposing a sweet while pulp" (Wagner et al., 1999; p. 417).

Habitat/ecology:  In Hawai‘i, "naturalized on southern Kaua‘i" (Wagner et al., 1999; p. 417).

Propagation:  Seed

Native range:  Southern Brazil, Uruguary and northeastern Argentina (Wagner et al., 1999; p. 417). Uruguay, naturalized elsewhere (GRIN).

Presence:

Pacific
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
State of Hawaii Hawaiian Islands	Kaua‘i Island	introduced invasive cultivated	Wagner, Warren L./Herbst, Derral R./Sohmer, S. H. (1999) (p. 417) Voucher cited: Au s.n. (BISH) Naturalized

Comments:  Reported as possibly an invasive plant in the Hawaiian Islands per Staples et al., 2000.

Additional information:  Additional online information about Cereus uruguayensis is available from the Hawaiian Ecosystems at Risk project (HEAR).

Taxonomic information about Cereus uruguayensis may be available from the Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN).

References:

Staples, George W./Herbst, Derral/Imada, Clyde T. 2000. Survey of invasive or potentially invasive cultivated plants in Hawai‘i. Bishop Museum Occasional Papers No. 65. 35 pp.

U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. 2007. National Genetic Resources Program. Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN). Online searchable database.

Wagner, Warren L./Herbst, Derral R./Sohmer, S. H. 1999. Manual of the flowering plants of Hawaii. Revised edition. Bernice P. Bishop Museum special publication. University of Hawai‘i Press/Bishop Museum Press, Honolulu. 1919 pp. (two volumes).