Cylindropuntia acanthocarpa var. major
Buckhorn Cholla
OʼodhamHanam
Description
Cylindropuntia acanthocarpa var. major is a sparsely-branched cholla cactus found in sandy and gravelly soils on desert hillsides and alluvial fans in south central Arizona at 500 to 3500 ft elevation. Flowers are produced in late April or May and can be yellow or red. The fruit are spiny.
Chollas are an important and highly nutritional traditional food source. Baked, dried buds of C. acanthocarpa have moderate amounts of iron, but high amounts of calcium (Greenhouse 1979). A 100-gram serving, or approximately 50 freshly baked buds, provides 1.4 milligrams of iron and 650 milligrams of calcium. This is equivalent to 14 percent of the recommended iron allowance and 81 percent of the recommended calcium allowance for adult males.
