Common name: Harrisia or Moonlight Cactus
Harrisia martinii (Labour.) Britton APNI* Synonyms: Cereus martinii Labour. APNI* Eriocereus martinii (Labour.) Riccob. APNI*
Description: Vigorously growing plant with stems much branched and tangled together and forming an impenetrable mass, to 3 m long, 3–4 cm diam., mostly with 4 or 5 ridges. Areoles with central spine 2–3 cm long, yellow with a dark tip, surrounded by a row of short radial spines 3–6 mm long and 1–3 spines 10–15 mm long.
Perianth white.
Fruit 2–4 cm diam., red, not tuberculate, sometimes without spines.
Distribution and occurrence: Naturalised in Qld and becoming a problem between Bogabilla and Narrabri. Native of Argentina.
NSW subdivisions: *NWP
Other Australian states: *Qld
Text by G. J. Harden Taxon concept: Flora of NSW 1 (1990)
APNI* Provides a link to the Australian Plant Name Index (hosted by the Australian National Botanic Gardens) for comprehensive bibliographic data ***The AVH map option provides a detailed interactive Australia wide distribution map drawn from collections held by all major Australian herbaria participating in the Australian Virtual Herbarium project.
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