Cactus vines yield flowers and fruit

Cactus plants: In my mind’s eye, I see them as globular or columnar, living in deserts and firmly set in the ground. But with more than 2,000 species in the Americas, it’s not surprising there are kinds that don’t conform. Consider, for example, the large number of epiphytic cactuses that perch on trees in tropical and semi-tropical woodlands, never touching the ground.

Even more unusual are cactus species that vine or clamber up and over rocks and other plants. One of these — Hylocereus undatus — is known as both night-blooming cereus and dragon fruit plant. It’s a strange and spectacular species that’s been cultivated so long that its origins are obscure. Dragon fruit cactus is grown for both its ornamental value and succulent, scarlet fruit. Its spectacular and strongly scented, goblet-shaped blossoms — which open at night and close by mid-morning — are yellow and white and up to 12 inches long and wide.

Able to climb up to 30 feet high on trees, rocks and walls using aerial roots, the dragon fruit cactus branches at both ground level and along its stems. Provide full or part-day sun and well-drained sites. Don’t hesitate to control this plant’s growth: if left alone for several years, a single dragon fruit cactus in a suitable spot can form a thicket of stems and cover a wall.

Also grown for its flowers and edible fruit is Barbados gooseberry (Pereskia aculeata). Sometimes called lemon vine because its round, inch-wide fruit are yellow and extremely tart, this shrubby, multi-stemmed species can climb 30 feet high in sun or light shade. Native to the West Indies and eastern South America, Barbados gooseberry flowers and fruits from late spring to mid-autumn, displaying multitudes of white, yellow-centered flowers that resemble daisies.

Easily grown from seeds and cuttings, lemon vine is extremely vigorous and may require occasional removal of some stems, especially horizontal growth that tends to take root where it touches the ground. Barbados gooseberry is sometimes grown as a novelty because its leaves, flowers and stems are so different from other cactuses.

Another cactus — one that doesn’t quite climb but depends on nearby shrubs to support its spindly stems — is Monvillea spegazzinii, a species without a common name. From Argentina, this 6-foot plant develops both erect and prostrate bluish-green stems in light shade. A form with broad, fan-like growths (‘Cristata’) is popular.

Charles Reynolds, a Winter Haven resident, has an associate’s degree in horticulture and is a member of Garden Writers Association of America.