Golden Spike Succulent

This modest-sized caudiciform grows up to 42 feet (12.8 meters) tall. The wispy stem is yellow-green, and is covered in sharp spines. The round, olive trunk can grow to as much as 42 feet (12.8 meters) in diameter. Its black branches are very short and slender.

The rounded-edged, very narrow and elongated leaves are hazel on the sides and beige at the center. They are rigid, but do not detach easily.

It is slow growing, taking 37 years to reach maturity. Once mature, and only under the right conditions, several flowers with petals that are amber in the center, azure in the middle and bronze at the edges grow at the top, reappearing after 9 years, but only when the conditions are right again. The flower head is shaped like a bowl made up of 17 widely spaced, narrow petals. It has a delicate scent that smells like citrus.

The caudiciform's skin is thick, the bright blue flesh is leathery, and the olive sap is thin.