Gray Spine Cactus

This short cactus grows up to 9 feet (2.7 meters) tall. It splits partway up the body to form 5 perforated stems. Each stem is gray, and is covered in copious amounts of rigid hazel spines. The wedge-shaped body is yellow, and is covered in lots of rigid white spines.

It is very slow growing, taking 25 years to reach maturity. Once mature, a handful of flowers, with solid vivid purple petals decorated with cream dots and a bold green central disk, grow at the top, reappearing every year. The flower head is an uncoordinated mess of up to 20 curved petals. It has no scent.

The cactus's skin is delicate, the pale red flesh is smooth, and the crimson sap is thin.