Ocotillo

Ocotillo

Taxobox
name = Ocotillo


image_width = 250px
image_caption = Ocotillos near Palm Springs, California
regnum = Plantae
divisio = Magnoliophyta
classis = Magnoliopsida
ordo = Ericales
familia = Fouquieriaceae
genus = "Fouquieria"
species = "F. splendens"
binomial = "Fouquieria splendens"
binomial_authority = Engelm.

The ocotillo ("Fouquieria splendens" - also called the coachwhip, Jacob's staff, and the vine cactus) is a curious, and unique desert plant of the southwestern United States and northern Mexico. For much of the year, the plant appears to be an arrangement of large spiny dead sticks, although closer examination reveals that the stems are partly green. With rainfall the plant quickly becomes lush with small (2-4 cm) ovate leaves, which may remain for weeks or even months.

The stems may reach a diameter of 5 cm at the base, and the plant may grow to a height of 10 m. The plant branches very heavily at its base, but above that the branches are pole-like and only infrequently divide further, and specimens in cultivation may not exhibit any secondary branches. The leaf stalks harden into blunt spines, and new leaves sprout from the base of the spine. The bright red flowers appear in spring and summer, occurring as a group of small tube shapes at the tip of the stem. They are pollinated by hummingbirds or carpenter bees.

Ocotillo poles are a common fencing material in their native region, and often take root to form a living fence. Owing to light weight and an interesting pattern, these have been used for canes or walking sticks.

Three subspecies are accepted by some botanists:
*"Fouquieria splendens" subsp. "splendens"
*"Fouquieria splendens" subsp. "breviflora" Henrickson
*"Fouquieria splendens" subsp. "campanulata" (Nash) Henrickson

References

* [http://ucjeps.berkeley.edu/cgi-bin/get_JM_treatment.pl?4359,4360,0,4361 Jepson Flora Project: "Fouquiera splendens"]
* [http://calphotos.berkeley.edu/cgi/img_query?query_src=ucjeps&where-genre=Plant&where-taxon=Fouquieria+splendens Calphotos: "Fouquiera splendens"]


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Look at other dictionaries:

  • Ocotillo — Ocotillo, CA U.S. Census Designated Place in California Population (2000): 296 Housing Units (2000): 253 Land area (2000): 8.884504 sq. miles (23.010760 sq. km) Water area (2000): 0.000000 sq. miles (0.000000 sq. km) Total area (2000): 8.884504… …   StarDict's U.S. Gazetteer Places

  • Ocotillo, CA — U.S. Census Designated Place in California Population (2000): 296 Housing Units (2000): 253 Land area (2000): 8.884504 sq. miles (23.010760 sq. km) Water area (2000): 0.000000 sq. miles (0.000000 sq. km) Total area (2000): 8.884504 sq. miles… …   StarDict's U.S. Gazetteer Places

  • ocotillo — ocotillo. m. Méx. Arbusto que ramifica desde el suelo, con flores rojas, cuya corteza produce resina …   Enciclopedia Universal

  • ocotillo — m. Méx. Arbusto que ramifica desde el suelo, con flores rojas, cuya corteza produce resina …   Diccionario de la lengua española

  • ocotillo — ☆ ocotillo [ō΄kə tē′yō ] n. pl. ocotillos [ō΄kə tē′yōz] [AmSp, dim. of ocote, Mexican pine < Nahuatl ocoλ, pine] a spiny, desert candlewood (Fouquieria splendens) with scarlet flowers, found in the SW U.S. adj. designating a family… …   English World dictionary

  • Ocotillo — Dieser Artikel behandelt die als Ocotillo bekannte Pflanze. Die Stadt Ocotillo findet sich hier. Ocotillo Ocotillo (Fouquieria splendens) im kalifornischen Coachella Valley. Systematik …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Ocotillo — Fouquieria splendens …   Wikipédia en Français

  • ocotillo — /oh keuh teel yoh/; Sp. /aw kaw tee yaw/, n., pl. ocotillos / teel yohz/; Sp. / tee yaws/. a spiny, woody shrub, Fouqueria splendens, of arid regions of the southwestern U.S. and Mexico, having a tight cluster of red flowers at the tip of each… …   Universalium

  • ocotillo — noun /əʊkəˈtɪləʊ,əʊkəˈtiː(j)əʊ/ Any of various succulent plants unrelated to the cactus, in the genus Fouquieria, living in Central America or the southwest United States. It had rained in the night, and some of the ocotillo fences had sprouted… …   Wiktionary

  • ocotillo — baltažiedis meketis statusas T sritis vardynas apibrėžtis Meketinių šeimos augalas (Fouquieria fasciculata), paplitęs Meksikoje. atitikmenys: lot. Fouquieria fasciculata angl. ocotillo šaltinis Valstybinės lietuvių kalbos komisijos 2007 m.… …   Lithuanian dictionary (lietuvių žodynas)

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