Chain Fruit Cholla

Photo by Lisa E White

Photo by Thomas Schmied

Cholla cactus come in many different varieties such as the chain fruit chollas shown here.  The plants look like trees as they age, complete with trunks, bark and branches.  At the end of the branches, flowers bloom in May through August, forming fruits that can stay on the branch for years.  The following year, the bloom forms out of the old fruit, so the new fruit links to the old fruit, forming a chain, sometimes as long as two feet in length.  These are also known as "jumping" cholla, as the segments easily break off and cling to passersby.  Reminder:  do not hike in the desert in flip flops, for many reasons. (See this blog Staghorn Cholla Apr. 10 and Teddy Bear July 17.)