CLUB CHOLLA FLOWERS

Club chollas typically are very spiny, mat-forming species that stay close to the ground. They usually branch from the base of the plant, but in this example the branches form at the tips. As a group, the club chollas have no sheaths on their spines. In this image two of the stems are flowering - see below.

Flower, showing the arrangement of floral parts typical of the family Cactaceae - a large number of stamens with pollen-bearing anthers (yellow) at their tips surround the cluster of central stigmas (green) which are fused at the base to form the style.