Common Name: California Barrel Cactus

General Information

Ferocactus cylindraceus is a spiny, succulent, evergreen, barrel cactus, usually producing a single, globose to cylindrical stem that can be up to 3 metres tall and 50cm in diameter[].
The plant is harvested from the wild for local use as a food. It was considered an important and dependable food source by various native tribes[]. It is grown as an ornamental.
Ferocactus cylindraceus is widespread and abundant, with no evidence of directional population trend. The plant is classified as 'Least Concern' in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species(2017)[].

Known Hazards

None known

Botanical References

,

Range

Southwest N. America - southern California, Nevada, Utah, Arizona, northwest Mexico (Baja California, Sonora)

Habitat

Rocky slopes on the mountain ranges of the desert, sometimes on the plains, and on gravelly or rocky hillsides, canyon walls, and alluvial fans; at elevations up to 1,750 metres[].

Properties

Conservation Status	Least Concern
Edibility Rating
Other Uses Rating
Habit	Evergreen Shrub
Height	2.00 m
Pollinators	Bees
Cultivation Status	Ornamental, Wild

Cultivation Details

In cultivation, Cactus plants generally will not succeed in moist climates. They usually require a sunny position in a well-drained, circumneutral soil and to be kept more or less dry in the dormant season[].

Edible Uses

Seeds[]. Rich in oil and protein, they can be ground into an oily paste[].

Fruit[, ]. Fleshy[]. A rather sour flavour[]. The yellow, globose fruit is up to 3cm long[].

Flower buds - raw or cooked[]. The raw buds are somewhat bitter, but cooked buds taste rather like brussels sprouts[]. They can be dried for later use[].

The stems of barrel cacti are traditionally baked in a pit, and the cooked pulp sliced and eaten[].
The candied pulp of the stem of various barrel cacti makes an excellent sweetmeat, which is much used in Mexico and the southwestern United States, and is sold in the eastern United States as ‘cactus candy’[, ]
.
The liquid obtained by crushing the pulp inside the stem can be used as an emergency source of fluid[, , , ]. It is said to be at least refreshing, though unpleasant and slimy to the taste[]

Medicinal

None known

Other Uses

The plants were sometimes used as cooking vessels. The interior is scooped out and mashed, and the liquid thus obtained replaced in the cavity and heated with hot stones, after which the foods are placed in the liquid and cooked[, ].

Several species develop tough spines and, after straightening out the tips and reducing the thicker part, these can be used as toothpicks and needles for knitting stockings etc[].

Propagation

Seed -