Cereus repandus
| Peruvian apple cactus (Cereus repandus) | |
|---|---|
| |
| Common names | Peruvian apple cactus, apple cactus, hedge cactus, giant club cactus, cadushi |
| Scientific name | Cereus repandus |
| Family | Cactaceae |
| Genus | Cereus |
| Order | Caryophyllales |
| Native range | Southern Caribbean (Aruba, Curaçao and the Netherlands Antilles, Venezuelan Antilles, Windward Islands) to Venezuela and Colombia; introduced in the Dominican Republic |
| Growth habit | Multi-branched columnar succulent tree to about 10 m; stems 10–20 cm across |
| Fruit | Thornless, violet-red to yellow, white pulp with small crunchy black seeds; often splits open when ripe |
| Pollination | Self-incompatible; cross-pollination between two distinct plants, by bats, bees, moths, or hand |
| Years to fruit | About 1–2 years from cuttings, 4–5 years from seed |
| Harvest season | About 40–50 days after flowering; warm-season flushes |
| Hardiness | About USDA zones 9–11; brief frost to about −5 °C when dry |
| Uses | Fresh fruit; stem food (cadushi); living fences; ornamental |
Cereus repandus, the Peruvian apple cactus (also apple cactus, hedge cactus, giant club cactus, and cadushi on Curaçao and Aruba), is a multi-branched columnar cactus of the family Cactaceae. The name was published by Philip Miller in 1768, and Cereus peruvianus, Cactus repandus, Pilocereus repandus and Subpilocereus repandus are synonyms. [1] It is native to the southern Caribbean (Aruba, Curaçao and the Netherlands Antilles, the Venezuelan Antilles and the Windward Islands) and to Venezuela and Colombia. [1] In the wild it grows in dry thickets, sometimes as a dominant, from near sea level to about 1,200 m, and with Stenocereus griseus it forms the cardonales vegetation of coastal Venezuela. [2] The fruit is eaten fresh, and on Curaçao the peeled stems have long been a traded staple food known as cadushi. [2] The species is also grown widely as an ornamental and as a living hedge. [2] Because the name Cereus peruvianus has been applied loosely in horticulture, nursery stock under that label may be C. repandus, C. hildmannianus or C. forbesii; the accepted identity here follows the Kew taxonomic backbone. [3][1]
Description[edit | edit source]
The plant is a much-branched, candelabra-like succulent tree that usually forks near the base, reaching about 10 m tall with a main stem up to about 40 cm across. [2] The cylindrical stems are gray-green to blue, 10–20 cm in diameter, with 9–10 low, rounded ribs up to about 1 cm high (some material with 8–13 ribs). [3][4][5] The areoles are far apart and carry gray, needle-like spines that are extremely variable — sometimes numerous, sometimes almost entirely absent — with the longest to about 5 cm. [3][5]
The flowers are large, white to cream with reddish tips, to about 15 cm long and fragrant, opening at night for a single night only. [3][4][5] The fruit is thornless, globose to elongate, with violet-red to yellow or orange skin. [3][4] A grower-oriented guide describes the fruit as apple-sized and its rind as inedible. [6] Inside is white pulp holding small, crunchy black seeds; the flesh sweetens as the fruit ripens, and the fruit often splits open on the plant (the splitting tendency varies by individual). [3][4][7][2] Reported fruit size depends on provenance: about 3–4 cm long in Caribbean material, [7][2] while Israeli cultivated material measured 7–10 cm. [8]
Cultivation[edit | edit source]
A plant of drier tropical and subtropical areas, the Peruvian apple cactus stands very high temperatures and tolerates drought, but it is not strongly frost-hardy. [7][2]
Soil and water[edit | edit source]
The native settings are dry thickets on well-drained ground. [2] Guides recommend full sun with sharply drained mineral soil: one edible-plant database specifies mildly acid to neutral pH (preferring values below 6), while a grower-oriented guide gives pH 6.1–7.8 for the best fruit production, so the pH guidance conflicts and either range should be treated as a guide rather than a fixed requirement. [7][6] The same grower guide suggests a very well-drained sandy mix with about 30% organic material for fruit production. [6] Water thoroughly and allow the root zone to dry fully, with little or no water in winter; soggy, poorly draining soil leads to root rot. [4][6] In containers, a standard cactus mix works. [4] Saline water or salty soil inhibits growth and flowering: in a Negev desert trial, plants grown at the most saline sites grew little and produced almost no flowers, and the cactus encyclopedia likewise records salt sensitivity. [8][4]
Sun and humidity[edit | edit source]
The species needs full sun and is described as unable to grow in shade, but it tolerates drought once established. [7] In nature, seedlings establish under nurse plants in thickets, favoring thorny legumes such as Acacia farnesiana and Acacia macracantha. [2] In hot desert gardens, a grower guide recommends giving first-year plants about 50% shade whenever temperatures exceed about 32 °C (90 °F). [6]
Seasonal changes[edit | edit source]
The native climate is seasonal: Curaçao, at the heart of the range, receives about 553 mm of rain a year with the six driest months from February to July, and monthly air temperatures of about 26–29 °C. [9] Flowering and fruiting follow a dry-season rhythm in the wild, and in cultivation the plant blooms in warm-season flushes — a Negev trial recorded two waves of flowering, in May and again in July, and a large plant may bloom several times in a season. [3][8][4]
At the cool end of its range the plant rests in winter: watering stops and temperatures should stay above about 5–8 °C. [4] Cold hardiness reports are qualified: the cactus encyclopedia allows short frost to about −5 °C when the plant is kept dry, a grower guide reports survival of about −6.7 °C (20 °F) with tip protection, and in the Negev field trial plants showed visible cold injury (brown spots or yellowing) after several hours near −7 °C. [4][6][8] USDA zone ratings in the references range from 9–11 to 9–12, and the plant needs no chill hours. [6][7] In storm-prone Florida, a Peruvian apple cactus was pushed over and needed re-staking after Hurricane Irma in 2017; the same grower placed cactus second-lowest in his yard ranking for hurricane resistance, above Anona. [10]
Propagation[edit | edit source]
Cuttings are the standard and preferred route, since a clone keeps the parent's fruit and growth traits. [6] Take a stem cutting cut through the middle of a segment, leave it to callous for a few days, then plant it right side up; spring cuttings dried until calloused are also recommended. [6][4] A grower who had written off a suffering cutting as dead reports that after about six months it pushed healthy new shoots from the base and then flowered and fruited from the old growth: cuttings are resilient even when they look moribund. [11]
Seed also works: sow fresh, unrefrigerated seed on the surface of a moist mix, with germination reported at 14–28 days at 25 °C. [6][4] Seedlings grow slowly at first and, in the wild, need the shade and shelter of nurse plants during establishment. [2] In cactus collections, slow-growing species are sometimes grafted onto apple-cactus rootstocks for faster growth. [4]
Flowering, fruiting, and harvest[edit | edit source]
Flowers are hermaphrodite, tubular-campanulate with white inner tepals, and open for a single night. [12][9] In the native range, nectar-feeding bats are the primary pollinators: on Curaçao the threatened bats Glossophaga longirostris elongata and Leptonycteris curasoae are critical pollinators of the species, with hummingbirds and moths playing a minor role in pollination, and a Venezuelan field study found the same two bat species responsible for practically all fruit set. [9][13] In a Negev orchard trial, bees and small flies were the main flower visitors during the hours the flowers were open around sunset and sunrise, and placing beehives increased fruit set; the cactus encyclopedia likewise notes that honey bees can pollinate in the few open hours. [8][4] Gardeners with mature plants describe heavy bee activity around the blooms, and one grower warns that the nectar draws a heavy, stinging insect swarm at sunrise and sunset. [14][15]
The species is self-incompatible in seed-grown material: in the Israeli trial, bagged self-pollination set 0% fruit across all tested seedlings while cross-pollination set about 100% with heavier, more-seeded fruit, and open-pollinated flowers set 0–37.5%; natural fruit set of individual plants at one site ranged from 0 to 95%. [8] Venezuelan field studies classify the species among obligate outcrossers, and the Curaçao phenology study likewise records self-incompatibility. [13][12][9] One edible-plant database states that the plant is self-fertile, a minority view that contradicts the field studies; reliable fruiting in a garden therefore means two genetically distinct plants (not two cuttings of one clone) or hand cross-pollination, transferring pollen between flowers of the two plants on the night they open — a Reddit grower whose moths never produced fruit planned exactly that with a paintbrush. [7][6][14] Even with compatible pollen, set depends on pollination success: one Reddit grower with several old plants reports only a single fruit in years, from which seeds were harvested and grown. [14]
Fruit develops in about 40 days (Curaçao measurements) to 40–50 days (cultivation guide). [9][4] Plants flower from about 1–2 years old when grown from cuttings and 4–5 years from seed, though the Negev seedlings first flowered in their fifth growing season at some sites; a Michigan container grower who overwinters the plant indoors reports no bloom after 15+ years, so cold-winter container culture can stay flowerless. [6][8][14] Large plants flower more heavily and start earlier in the season than small ones, and a single large plant can carry hundreds of fruits in a year. [9][4]
Harvest at full color: the flesh sweetens as the fruit opens, and fruit often splits on the plant when ripe (the splitting tendency varies by individual, and reduced irrigation during final fruit development was suggested in the Israeli trial to limit bursting). [8][3] Ripe fruit is perishable — the encyclopedia says harvested ripe fruits should be eaten within about 24 hours or they begin to ferment, while a grower guide reports that unwashed fruit keeps about 5 days refrigerated. [4][6]
Fruit and uses[edit | edit source]
The fruit is eaten fresh: mild, sweet white flesh with small crunchy seeds. [7][2] Quality varies strongly by individual: in the Negev trial some seedlings gave juicy, aromatic fruit and others were mucilaginous and inferior, and flavor is subjective — a Fort Lauderdale grower enjoys a distinctive floral flavor that a commenter in the same thread found off-putting, though the commenter's family liked it. [8][16] The rind is not eaten. [6]
The stems are also food: on Curaçao the cadushi is a staple, and the dark-green flesh layer of peeled stems is eaten fresh or dried and pounded into a mealy powder that makes a mucilaginous soup stock. [17][2] In Aruba the equivalent soup, cadada, is cooked with salted pork, goat meat, fish, sweet red pepper and tomatoes. [5] The fleshy stem is also used traditionally in emollient ointments for skin conditions, and the dried green flesh was consumed traditionally as a remedy for diarrhea in Aruban and Curaçaoan kitchen practice. [2][5] Beyond food, the inner cane-like wood is used in wattle-and-daub construction by the Wayuu of La Guajira, and the plant serves as a living hedge, a soap substitute, furniture wood and dried-stem fuel and torches; it has also been used in water filtration. [3][2][5]
The fruit is thornless, but the stems are spiny (sometimes almost spineless) and need careful handling. [3][5]
Cultivars and selections[edit | edit source]
Published records for the species name no formally registered cultivars; the names in circulation are a breeding-program label and a horticultural form. [8] The Israeli apple-cactus breeding program named its selection "Koubo", and growers discuss it as a semi-domesticated type with improved fruit characteristics and ask where to buy cuttings, indicating that named improved cultivars are not broadly available in the United States. [5][18][8] For a fruit crop from unnamed stock, select a good-fruiting individual (thornless, sweet, non-splitting fruit) and propagate it by cuttings, because seedling populations vary in thorniness, peel color, fruit splitting and flavor. [8] A monstrose (crested) form, documented under the name Cereus repandus f. monstrose (with the synonym Cereus peruvianus f. monstrose), is grown for its sculptural, deformed stems rather than for fruit; a cultivated specimen in the Palm House at Wałbrzych, Poland is photographed in the Photos section below.
Photos[edit | edit source]
References[edit | edit source]
- ↑ [8] Weiss, J.; Nerd, A.; Mizrahi, Y. (1993). Development of Cereus peruvianus (Apple Cactus) as a New Crop for the Negev Desert of Israel — New Crops proceedings, Purdue NewCROP.
- ↑ [9] Petit, S. (2001). The reproductive phenology of three sympatric species of columnar cacti on Curaçao — Journal of Arid Environments.
- ↑ [12] Population genetic structure of Venezuelan chiropterophilous columnar cacti (Cactaceae) — American Journal of Botany (PubMed full text).
- ↑ [13] Nassar, J.M.; Ramírez, N.; Linares, O. (1997). Comparative pollination biology of Venezuelan columnar cacti and the role of nectar-feeding bats in their sexual reproduction — American Journal of Botany 84(7): 918 (PubMed record).
- ↑ [14] A 12 hr time lapse of my night blooming Peruvian Apple Cactus' first flowers — Reddit r/gardening.
- ↑ [15] How many fruit trees are planted in your front yard? — GrowingFruit.org, post by Darren Robertson (dannytoro1, July 2026).
- ↑ [16] Looking For: Peruvian Apple Cactus (Cereus repandus) near Fort Lauderdale, FL — Tropical Fruit Forum, post by FloridaManDan (Nov 2022).
- ↑ [17] Morton, J.F. (1967). Cadushi (Cereus repandus Mill.), a useful cactus of Curaçao — Economic Botany 21(2): 185–191 (SpringerLink).
Image credits[edit | edit source]
- File:Cereus repandus en Paraguana.jpg — Whole plants in native-range landscape at Villa Marina, Paraguaná Peninsula, Falcón State, Venezuela (January 2014; summary image). Creator: Juan Carlo Castillo Ortega (Wikimedia Commons user Maskafran), CC BY-SA 3.0 (license). File page: Wikimedia Commons. Attribution: Juan Carlo Castillo Ortega, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
- File:2026-02-19, Peruvian apple cactus, Cereus repandus, flowering.jpg — Nocturnal white flowers on a ribbed columnar plant (New Zealand, February 2026). Creator: Sleeps-Darkly, CC0 (license). File page: Wikimedia Commons. Attribution: Sleeps-Darkly, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons.
- File:Cereus Peruvianus Fruit.jpg — Whole and cut koubo fruit showing white pulp, plus separated pulp (Israel, 2022). Creator: Saifunny, CC BY-SA 4.0 (license). File page: Wikimedia Commons. Attribution: Saifunny, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
- File:Hooiberg with cereus repandus.jpeg — Open (split) ripe fruit on the plant at Hooiberg hill, Aruba (June 2023). Creator: Caribiana, CC BY-SA 4.0 (license). File page: Wikimedia Commons. Attribution: Caribiana, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
- File:Cereus repandus seedlings 32 days old.JPG — Seedlings 32 days after planting (2014). Creator: Dragonglow, CC BY-SA 4.0 (license). File page: Wikimedia Commons. Attribution: Dragonglow, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
- File:Cereus repandus f. monstrose 2023-10-31 01.jpg — Monstrose (crested) form of Cereus repandus (f. monstrose, synonym Cereus peruvianus f. monstrose) in the Palm House, Wałbrzych, Poland (October 2023). Creator: Agnieszka Kwiecień (Nova), CC BY-SA 4.0 (license). File page: Wikimedia Commons. Attribution: Agnieszka Kwiecień (Nova), CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
