Totem Pole Cactus – Desert Botanical Garden, Papago Park, Phoenix, Arizona

If your idea of a cactus is a hostile, squatty little plant bristling with dangerous spines and gathering dust on someone’s windowsill, then you really should investigate the genus Lophocereus (also known as Pachycereus). There are approximately a dozen species and they really couldn’t be more different from the cartoon version of a cactus.

The unusual lumpy shape of totem pole cactus is especially attention-grabbing. Instead of the upright ribs typical of most cactus species, this variation of senita cactus resembles a melted candle, with randomly spaced bulbous shapes up and down its 10 to 12 foot length. Besides its rather odd appearance, totem pole cactus is almost always thornless. Another peculiarity of the totem pole cactus is that it usually does not flower or seed but can be propagated easily by taking cuttings from the top of the stem or from a branch.