Cereus hexagonus

Cereus hexagonus
Conservation status
	; Least Concern (IUCN 2.3)
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
Clade:	Tracheophytes
Clade:	Angiosperms
Clade:	Eudicots
Order:	Caryophyllales
Family:	Cactaceae
Subfamily:	Cactoideae
Genus:	Cereus
Species:	C. hexagonus
Binomial name
	Cereus hexagonus; (L.) Mill. 1768.
Synonyms
	Acanthocereus thalassinus (Otto & A.Dietr.) Borg, Cacti 133. 1937.; Cactus regalis Spreng., Syst. Veg. 2: 496. 1825.; Cephalocereus perlucens (K.Schum.) Borg, Cacti, ed. 2, 144. 1951.; Cereus horridus Otto ex Pfeiff., Allg. Gartenzeitung 5: 370. 1837.; Cereus horridus var. alatosquamatus Werderm., Notizbl. Bot. Gart. Berlin-Dahlem 12: 452. 1935.; Cereus lepidotus Salm-Dyck, Cact. Hort. Dyck., ed. 2, 207. 1850.; Cereus karstenii Salm-Dyck, Cact. Hort. Dyck. ed. 2: 218. 1850.; Cereus lepidotus Salm-Dyck, Cact. Hort. Dyck. ed. 2: 207. 1850.; Cereus longiflorus Alexander, Lloydia 2: 199. 1939.; Cereus northumberlandianus Lambert in Loud., Gard. Mag. 91. 1841.; Cactus octogonus Page ex Steud., Nomencl. ed. vol. 2, 246. 1840.; Cereus perlucens K.Schum., Monatsschr. Kakteenk. 10: 173. 1900.; Cereus perrottetii Pfeiff., Enum. Diagn. Cact. 98. 1837.; Cereus regalis Haw. ex Spreng., Syst. Veg. 2: 496. 1825.; Cereus thalassinus Otto & A.Dietr., Allg. Gartenzeitung 6: 34. 1838.; Cereus thalassinus var. quadrangularis C.F.Först., Handb. Cacteenk. 399. 1846.; Pilocereus perlucens (K.Schum.) Werderm., Bras. Saulenkakt. 112. 1933.; Pilosocereus perlucens (K.Schum.) Byles & G.D.Rowley, Cact. Succ. J. Gr. Brit. 19: 67. 1957.; Piptanthocereus lepidotus (Salm-Dyck) Backeb., Blätt. Kakteenf. Pt. 12 (p. 7). 1934;

Cereus hexagonus or lady of the night cactus is a species of columnar cactus found in Ecuador and Venezuela.^[2]

Description[edit]

Cereus hexagonus grows like a tree with erect shoots that branch out from near the base and can reach heights of growth of up to 15 metres. The cylindrical, segmented, glaucous light green shoots have a diameter of up to 12 centimeters and more. There are four to seven thin, wavy ribs that are 3 to 5 centimeters high. The areoles on it are small. The thorns are missing on young shoots or there are only a few. Older shoots have 8 to 10 or more unequal spines per areole. The initially brown thorns become lighter later. They are 5 to 6 centimeters long.

The white flowers are 20 to 25 centimeters long. The 5.5 to 13 centimeters long, egg-shaped fruits are light red. They contain white or pink flesh.

Distribution[edit]

Cereus hexagonus is distributed in Guyana, French Guiana, Suriname and Venezuela.

The species is classified as Least Concern (LC) in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.^[1]

Taxonomy[edit]

The first description as Cactus hexagonus was published in 1753 by Linnaeus in his work Species Plantarum.^[3] Philip Miller placed the species in the genus Cereus in 1768.

References[edit]

^ ^a ^b "The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2011-07-26. Retrieved 2023-08-10.
^ "Name - Cereus hexagonus Cárdenas". Tropicos. 2019-08-04. Retrieved 2019-08-04.
^ Linné, Carl von; Salvius, Lars (1753). Caroli Linnaei ... Species plantarum :exhibentes plantas rite cognitas, ad genera relatas, cum differentiis specificis, nominibus trivialibus, synonymis selectis, locis natalibus, secundum systema sexuale digestas... Holmiae: Impensis Laurentii Salvii. doi:10.5962/bhl.title.669.

External links[edit]

Media related to Cereus hexagonus at Wikimedia Commons
Data related to Cereus hexagonus at Wikispecies

[IUCN_Red_List_of_Threatened_Species_2011_p.-1] "The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2011-07-26. Retrieved 2023-08-10.

[Tropicos_2019-2] "Name - Cereus hexagonus Cárdenas". Tropicos. 2019-08-04. Retrieved 2019-08-04.

[Linné_Salvius_1753_p.-3] Linné, Carl von; Salvius, Lars (1753). Caroli Linnaei ... Species plantarum :exhibentes plantas rite cognitas, ad genera relatas, cum differentiis specificis, nominibus trivialibus, synonymis selectis, locis natalibus, secundum systema sexuale digestas... Holmiae: Impensis Laurentii Salvii. doi:10.5962/bhl.title.669.

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