. Carnegie Institution of Washington publication. 46 THE CACTACEAE. Subgenus 1. CYLINDROPUNTIA. Includes the many-jointed species in which none of the joints is at all flattened. Series 1. RAMOSISSIMAE. The series consists of a single bushy species, with slender joints, the nearly flat tubercles diamond-shaped and contiguous, the acicular spines, when present, usually only i at an areole. 1. Opuntia ramosissima Engelmann, Amer. Journ. Sci. II. 14:339. 1852. Opuntia tessellata Engelmann, Proc. Amer. Acad. 3: 309. 1856. Frutescent, bushy, sometimes 2 meters high, the branches gray, often widely
. Carnegie Institution of Washington publication. 46 THE CACTACEAE. Subgenus 1. CYLINDROPUNTIA. Includes the many-jointed species in which none of the joints is at all flattened. Series 1. RAMOSISSIMAE. The series consists of a single bushy species, with slender joints, the nearly flat tubercles diamond-shaped and contiguous, the acicular spines, when present, usually only i at an areole. 1. Opuntia ramosissima Engelmann, Amer. Journ. Sci. II. 14:339. 1852. Opuntia tessellata Engelmann, Proc. Amer. Acad. 3: 309. 1856. Frutescent, bushy, sometimes 2 meters high, the branches gray, often widely spreading, and 9 cm. long; tubercles low, slightly convex, 4-angled to 6-angled, giving the surface an appearance of being covered with diamond-shaped plates; leaves ovoid, i to 3 mm. long, acute; areoles on young shoots circular, with white or tawny wool and pale glochids, the upper part in age compressed into the narrow slit between the two adjoining tubercles, the lower part depressed-linear, with a slightly elevated border; spines often wanting, but when present abundant, usually one at each areole, rarely 2, porrect, acicular, sometimes 6 cm. long, usually reddish when young, covered by loose, yellow, papery sheaths; flowers, including ovaries, 3 to 4 cm. long; sepals subulate, similar to the leaves of the ovary, but longer; petals greenish yellow, tinged with red, obovate, aristulate, about i cm. long; stamens greenish yellow; anthers orange-colored; style and stigma-lobes cream-colored; ovary narrowly obconic, covered with emarginate tubercles, the areoles bearing wool and long glochids, but no spines; fruit dry, obovate, 2 to cm. long, covered with clusters of weak, slender spines, appear- ing like a bur; seeds few, white, 5 mm. broad. Type locality: In California, near the Colo- rado River. Distribution: Southern Nevada, western Arizona, southeastern California, northwestern Sonora and probably northeastern Lower Cali- fornia. The flowers of this species have been
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