| Harrisia | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Harrisia gracilis and Harrisia martinii | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Order: | Caryophyllales |
| Family: | Cactaceae |
| Subfamily: | Cactoideae |
| Tribe: | Cereeae |
| Subtribe: | Trichocereinae |
| Genus: | Harrisia Britton [1] |
| Type species | |
| Harrisia gracilis | |
| Species | |
| Synonyms [1] | |
| |
Harrisia (applecactus [2] and moonlight cactus [3] [4] ) is a genus of night blooming cacti.
They are tree-shaped, sometimes climbing or shrub-like cacti with cylindrical shoots. They reach heights of up to 7 m. The shoots are ribbed (four to twelve ribs) and do not form aerial roots. The flowers open at night, are white and up to 12 cm in diameter. After successful pollination, rounded fruits are formed, which are red to orange in color. The fruits have scales with areoles in the axils. The black seeds are 2 to 3 × 1.5 mm in size. [5]
Plants are native to Argentina, Paraguay, Brazil, Bolivia, Uruguay, the Greater Antilles, the Bahamas, and the U.S. state of Florida. The genus is named after William Harris, an important botanist of Jamaica. There are about 20 species. [6]
Harrisia cactus is an exotic invasive in Queensland, [3] [7] Africa, and the U.S. state of Hawaii.
The genus was established by Nathaniel Lord Britton in 1909. [1]
As of September 2023 [update] , Plants of the World Online accepted the following species: [1]
| Image | Scientific name | Distribution |
|---|---|---|
 | Harrisia aboriginum Small ex Britton & Rose | Florida, on the Gulf Coast of the counties of Lee, Sarasota County, and Charlotte |
| Harrisia adscendens (Gürke) Britton & Rose | Brazil | |
 | Harrisia bonplandii (J.Parm. ex Pfeiff.) Britton & Rose | Paraguay, Argentina, Bolivia |
 | Harrisia brookii Britton | Bahamas. |
| Harrisia caymanensis A.R.Franck | Cayman Islands, Swan Islands. | |
 | Harrisia divaricata (Lam.) Backeb. | Hispaniola. |
 | Harrisia earlei Britton & Rose | Cuba |
| Harrisia eriophora (Pfeiff.) Britton | Cuba. | |
| Harrisia fernowii Britton | Cuba. | |
 | Harrisia fragrans Small ex Britton & Rose | St. Lucie County, Florida |
| Harrisia gracilis (Mill.) Britton | Jamaica | |
 | Harrisia martinii (Labour.) Britton | E. Paraguay to NE. Argentina. |
 | Harrisia pomanensis (F.A.C.Weber ex K.Schum.) Britton & Rose | Argentina, Bolivia, Paraguay |
 | Harrisia portoricensis Britton | Puerto Rico |
 | Harrisia regelii (Weing.) Borg | Argentina (Santa Fé, Entre Ríos) to Uruguay. |
 | Harrisia taetra Areces | Cuba. |
 | Harrisia tetracantha (Labour.) D.R.Hunt | Bolivia. |
 | Harrisia tortuosa (J.Forbes) Britton & Rose | Bolivia to Uruguay. |
Acanthocereus is a genus of cacti. Its species take the form of shrubs with arching or climbing stems up to several meters in height. The generic name is derived from the Greek word άκανθα (acantha), meaning spine, and the Latin word cereus, meaning candle. The genus is native to the mostly tropical Americas from Texas and the southern tip of Florida to the northern part of South America, including islands of the Caribbean.
Echinocactus is a genus of cacti in the subfamily Cactoideae. The generic name derives from the Ancient Greek εχινος (echinos), meaning "spiny," and cactus. It and Ferocactus are the two genera of barrel cactus. Members of the genus usually have heavy spination and relatively small flowers. The fruits are copiously woolly, and this is one major distinction between Echinocactus and Ferocactus. Propagation is by seed.
Echinocereus is a genus of ribbed, usually small to medium-sized, cylindrical shaped cacti, comprising about 70 species native to the southern United States and Mexico in very sunny, rocky places. Usually the flowers are large and the fruit edible.
Browningia is a genus of cacti, comprising 11 accepted and 3 unresolved species. It is named for Webster E Browning (1869-1942), director of the Instituto Inglés, Santiago, Chile.
Neoraimondia is a genus of medium to large cacti from Peru. The genus is named after the Italian-born Peruvian explorer, naturalist, and scientist, Antonio Raimondi.
Hylocereus is a former genus of epiphytic cacti, often referred to as night-blooming cactus. Several species previously placed in the genus have large edible fruits, which are known as pitayas, pitahayas or dragonfruits. In 2017, a molecular phylogenetic study confirmed an earlier finding that the genus Hylocereus was nested within Selenicereus, so all the species of Hylocereus were transferred to Selenicereus.
Selenicereus, sometimes known as moonlight cactus, is a genus of epiphytic, lithophytic, and terrestrial cacti, found in Mexico, Central America, the Caribbean and northern South America. The term night-blooming cereus is also sometimes used, but this is also used for many night-blooming cacti, including Epiphyllum and Peniocereus. In 2017, the genus Hylocereus was brought into synonymy with Selenicereus. A number of species of Selenicereus produce fruit that is eaten. The fruit, known as pitaya or pitahaya in Spanish or as dragon fruit, may be collected from the wild or the plants may be cultivated.
Mila caespitosa is a species of cacti and the only species of the genus Mila. Its generic name is an anagram of Lima, Peru, the city near which the plant is found. The genus was first thought to comprise 13 species, until recent studies suggest they form one very variable species.
A pitaya or pitahaya is the fruit of several different cactus species indigenous to the region of southern Mexico and along the Pacific coasts of Guatemala, Costa Rica, and El Salvador. Pitaya is cultivated in East Asia, South Asia, Southeast Asia, the United States, the Caribbean, Australia, and throughout tropical and subtropical regions of the world.
Harrisia aboriginum, the west-coast prickly apple or prickly applecactus, is a species of columnar cactus endemic to peninsular Florida, on the Gulf Coast of the counties of Lee, Sarasota County, and Charlotte. Only 12 occurrences are known, and the species is threatened by horticultural collection, shading from fire suppression, competition from invasive flora, and most of all habitat destruction. It is a federally listed endangered species of the United States.
Harrisia bonplandii is a species of cactus. The cactus plants in the Gran Chaco are generally called tuna and this specific variety reina de la noche. Fruits and roots are edible and well known to the native nations of the Gran Chaco.
Harrisia fragrans is a rare species of cactus known by the common name fragrant prickly apple. It is endemic to Florida, where it is known only from St. Lucie County. The plant's habitat has been almost completely consumed by development, leading to its rarity. It is a federally listed endangered species of the United States.
Harrisia martinii, commonly called the Martin applecactus, is a species of night-blooming, rope-like cacti native to South America. With large showy flowers that attract the hawk moth, it is considered by some a useful landscape plant in areas that do not freeze.
Harrisia pomanensis is a species of cactus.
Cereus ( "serious") is a genus of cacti including around 33 species of large columnar cacti from South America. The name is derived from Greek (κηρός) and Latin words meaning "wax", "torch" or "candle". Cereus was one of the first cactus genera to be described; the circumscription varies depending on the authority. The term "cereus" is also sometimes used for a ceroid cactus, any cactus with a very elongated body, including columnar growth cacti and epiphytic cacti.
The Department of Agriculture and Fisheries is a department of the Queensland Government which aims to maximise the economic potential for Queensland's primary industries on a sustainable basis through strategic industrial development. The section known as Biosecurity Queensland is responsible for biosecurity matters within the state.
Lophocereus schottii, the senita cactus, is a species of cactus from southern Arizona and north-western Mexico, particularly Baja California and Sonora.
Cylindropuntia spinosior, with the common names include cane cholla, spiny cholla and walkingstick cactus, is a cactus species of the North American deserts.
Harrisia tortuosa is a species of cactus in the Trichocereeae tribe.
Invasive species are species that are native to foreign environments which may have important effects on a specific area's economy, ecosystem and infrastructure. These species can be introduced by natural causes or human intervention. There are many invasive species that exist around the world. One that is abundant around Puerto Rico is the lionfish. The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA)'s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) Plant Protection and Quarantine (PPQ) and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) perform biosecurity inspections for Puerto Rico.
