Common Name: Club Cholla

General Information

Grusonia clavata is a spiny, low-spreading, succulent, evergreen cactus forming mats of growth 5 - 15cm tall[].
The plant is harvested from the wild for local use as a food and a medicine.
Grusonia clavata occurs over a wide area in New Mexico, is abundant, and there are no major threats. The plant is classified as 'Least Concern' in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species(2017)[].

Known Hazards

The plant has numerous minutely barbed glochids - these are barbed spines that are usually small to minute and are very sharp and brittle. The glochids are very easily dislodged when the plant is touched and can penetrate the skin where, because of their barbs, they become stuck and are very difficult to see and remove. They can cause considerable irritation and discomfort[, ].
Opuntia species can contain quite high levels of oxalic acid, especially in older parts of the plant. Perfectly alright in small quantities, foods containing oxalic acid should not be eaten in large amounts since it can lock-up other nutrients in the food, especially calcium, thus causing mineral deficiencies. The oxalic acid content will be reduced if the plant is cooked. People with a tendency to rheumatism, arthritis, gout, kidney stones or hyperacidity should take especial caution if including this plant in their diet since it can aggravate their condition[, ].

Botanical References

,

Range

Southwest N. America - central New Mexico

Habitat

Grasslands, sandy soils, and in xerophyllous scrub and juniper forest; at elevations from 1,800 - 2,500 metres[, ].

Properties

Conservation Status	Least Concern
Edibility Rating
Medicinal Rating
Habit	Evergreen Shrub
Height	0.12 m
Pollinators	Bees, Insects
Cultivation Status	Wild

Cultivation Details

Grusonia clavata is a plant of semi-arid regions in southwest N. America. It experiences hot summers and winters that can be very cold - plants have been known to survive temperatures falling as low as -23°c, and can remain snow covered for weeks at a time[].
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

Fruit - raw[, ]. Eaten in times of scarcity[]. The barrel shaped to ellipsoidal, yellow fruits are fleshy, around 30 - 45mm long and 15 - 25mm in diameter. The fruit skin is free of spines but has irritant glochids[].

Stem sections - cooked[]. Roasted and eaten in times of food scarcity[].

Medicinal

The stem sections are either dried or burned and then ground into a powder. This is applied as a dressing on open sores or bad wounds[].

Other Uses

None known

Propagation

Seed -