Ferocactus wislizeni (Engelm.) Britton & Rose

More info for the term: cactus

candybarrel cactus
southwestern barrel cactus
bisnaga
visnaga

More info for the terms: cactus, central spines, fruit, radial spines, root crown, stem succulent

Candybarrel cactus is a native stem succulent that is barrel-shaped or sometimes columnar with rarely more than one stem. It ranges from 2 to 10 feet (3 m) tall, with a diameter of 18 to 33 inches (45-83 cm). Candybarrel cactus has 20 to 28 ribs. The spines are dense, somewhat obscuring the surface of the stem. There are four central spines per areole, the larger ones 1.5 to 2 inches (3.8-5.0 cm) long, and 12 to 20 radial spines to 1.8 inches (4.5 cm) in length. Flowers form on growth of the current season near the stem apex. The fruit is yellow, barrel-shaped, and fleshy at maturity [1,17,36]. According to Cannon [7], the root system of candybarrel cactus is shallow and confined to the upper soil layers. At one site a main anchoring root extended down to about 8 inches (20 cm) and had several short laterals. Horizontal roots originated from the root crown and were very shallow. Depth of burial decreased with distance from the plant and ranged from 0.6 to 1.2 inches (1.5-3.0 cm). Roots were often exposed after rain storms.

More info for the term: cactus

Candybarrel cactus is distributed in southeastern Arizona from Maricopa and Pima to Greenlee and Cochise counties, east to southern New Mexico from Hidalgo County to southwestern Lincoln County, and in El Paso County, Texas. Candybarrel cactus is also found in Mexico to Sinaloa and Chihuahua [1,17,36,38]. It is cultivated in Hawaii [40].

More info for the terms: cacti, cactus, cover, fire regime, grassland, meristem, seed

Large succulents such as candybarrel cactus have a thick cortex that insulates the vascular tissue. The cortex thickens with age, so older individuals may be more resistant to fire than younger ones. Taller individuals are more likely to survive fire because the apical meristem may be above flame height. Cacti escape fire in refugia and in areas with fuels too sparse to carry fire. Cacti do not appear to store seed in soil seedbanks [30]. Although desert vegetation rarely burns completely due to a lack of continuous fuels, unusually heavy winter rains may produce a cover of annual species dense enough to carry a fire when cured. Fires resulting from this situation tend to occur at the desert-desert grassland ecotone [16], a common habitat of candybarrel cactus. Thomas [30] has cited references suggesting that fire intervals in desert grasslands may be as short as 3 to 40 years. Repeated fires may be disastrous to barrel cactus populations, whose recovery period has been estimated at more than 15 years [37]. Most desert habitat does not produce enough vegetation to support frequent fires. If frequent fires do occur they gradually reduce succulent populations, although a small percentage of individuals may survive in refugia [30]. FIRE REGIMES : Find fire regime information for the plant communities in which this species may occur by entering the species name in the FEIS home page under "Find FIRE REGIMES".

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More info for the term: stem succulent

Stem succulent

More info for the terms: cactus, woodland

Candybarrel cactus is found on rocky, gravelly, or sandy soils of hills, flats, canyons, wash margins, and alluvial fans in desert shrublands and grasslands from 990 to 5,280 feet (300-1,600 m) elevation [1,35,38]. It also extends into woodland communities occurring at elevations below 6,500 feet (1,970 m) [14]. Candybarrel cactus is frost-sensitive [28], which is a limiting site factor at higher elevations and northern latitudes.

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This species is known to occur in association with the following cover types (as classified by the Society of American Foresters):

68 Mesquite
239 Pinyon - juniper
241 Western live oak
242 Mesquite

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This species is known to occur in the following ecosystem types (as named by the U.S. Forest Service in their Forest and Range Ecosystem [FRES] Type classification):

More info for the term: shrub

FRES30 Desert shrub
FRES33 Southwestern shrubsteppe
FRES34 Chaparral - mountain shrub
FRES35 Pinyon - juniper
FRES40 Desert grasslands

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This species is known to occur in association with the following plant community types (as classified by Küchler 1964):

More info for the terms: cactus, shrub, woodland

K023 Juniper - pinyon woodland
K027 Mesquite bosque
K031 Oak - juniper woodlands
K040 Saltbush - greasewood
K041 Creosotebush
K042 Creosotebush - bursage
K043 Paloverde - cactus shrub
K044 Creosotebush - tarbush
K046 Desert: vegetation largely lacking
K053 Grama - galleta steppe
K054 Grama - tobosa prairie
K058 Grama - tobosa shrubsteppe

More info for the term: cactus

Candybarrel cactus is often consumed by cattle and rabbits if the spines are removed by a disturbance such as fire [10,14,34]. Mule deer in the Sonoran Desert readily consume candybarrel cactus fruits. Mule deer diets consisted of 35.6, 42.5, 5.4, and 1.9 percent barrel cactus fruits in the fall, winter, spring, and summer, respectively [24,25]. Collared peccary also consume candybarrel cactus fruits when they are available [39]. Candybarrel cactus seeds are eaten by many birds [38].

More info for the terms: cactus, codominant, grassland, shrub, woodland

Candybarrel cactus is primarily found in desert grassland and desert shrub
habitats in the Sonoran and Chihuahuan deserts [1,5,14,27]. It also
extends into communities at higher elevations in interior chaparral and
is found in the Madrean evergreen woodland in encinal woodlands with a
mixture of evergreen oaks (Quercus spp.) and junipers (Juniperus spp.)
[5,14]. Candybarrel cactus is not listed as a dominant or codominant species
in available publications.

Some species generally associated with candybarrel cactus include prickly
pear or cholla (Opuntia spp.), acacia (Acacia spp.), ocotillo (Fouqueria
splendens), yucca (Yucca spp.), saguaro (Carnegiea gigantea), grama
(Bouteloua spp.), and threeawn (Aristida spp.) [3,4,18,21].

More info for the term: cactus

Cactus

More info for the terms: cactus, frequency, shrub

Glendening [10] and Brown [4] reported that candybarrel cactus increased over
17- or 18-year periods, respectively, on desert grasslands of Arizona.
Both studies included treatments that excluded cattle and rabbits (no
grazing), excluded cattle only (light grazing), and contained areas open
to grazing. The following average numbers of candybarrel cactus plants under
each treatment were reported by Glendening [10] on the Santa Rita
Experimental Range:

No grazing Light grazing Open
________________________________________________________
1932 0 0.5 0.5
1949 30.5 24.0 5.0

Blydenstein [3] stated that there was no significant difference in
frequency of candybarrel cactus between lightly grazed desert shrub
communities and communities that had been protected from grazing for 50
years.

Candybarrel cactus populations are negatively affected by urban development
and cactus collection [27].

More info for the term: cactus

Candybarrel cactus fruits are reported to be highly digestible (greater than
50% of dry matter) by mule deer. The following in vitro dry matter
digestibility (DMD) and nutrient values (%) were reported for barrel
cactus fruits in different seasons on the Santa Rita Experimental Range
in southern Arizona [24]:

Spring Summer Fall Winter
___________________________________________________________________
DMD 59.5 78.1 60.9 73.5
Protein 7.8 8.6 6.2 10.8
Phosphorous 0.20 0.21 0.18 0.23
P/Ca 0.65 0.48 0.47 0.61

AZ HI NM TX MEXICO

More info for the term: cactus

Native Americans have used candybarrel cactus pulp for making jelly and cactus candy [19,36]. Candybarrel cactus is extensively collected and used in landscaping themes and cactus gardens [38].

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More info for the term: cactus

Candybarrel cactus flowers sporadically in late spring and profusely in the summer (July to September) [1,17].

More info for the terms: cactus, meristem

Glendening [10] stated that candybarrel cactus reproduces from seeds only, which are dispersed by birds and rodents [10,38]. No offsets were reported after fires in southern Arizona; growth was from the apical meristem only [31]. Ferocactus species will often branch at the apex following injury to the terminal bud [1]. Limiting factors for germination of candybarrel cactus seeds are temperature and light. Greatest germination takes place at 68 to 86 degrees Fahrenheit (20-30 deg C) after at least 8 hours of light. Seeds do not germinate in the dark [12].

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This species can be found in the following regions of the western United States (according to the Bureau of Land Management classification of Physiographic Regions of the western United States):

7 Lower Basin and Range
12 Colorado Plateau
13 Rocky Mountain Piedmont
14 Great Plains

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More info for the terms: climax, grassland

Candybarrel cactus' life span has been reported to be from 50 [11] to 130 years [26]. It is a climax member of the desert grassland [27].

Echinocactus wislizenii Engelm. [1,17,36]
Ferocactus wislizenii (Engelm.) Britt. & Rose [1,36,38]

More info for the term: cactus

The currently accepted scientific name of candybarrel cactus is Ferocactus
wislizeni (Engelm.) Britt. & Rose (Cactaceae) [33,41]. There are no
infrataxa.