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Pereskia aculeata
Cactaceae FAMILY Least Concern

Pereskia aculeata

Pereskia aculeata

Edibility
3/5
Medicinal
2/5

Safety & Hazards

None known

Cultivation Details

HabitDeciduous Climber
Growth—

A plant of hot, tropical climates with medium to high rainfall[1]. Most Pereskia species occur in dry forests and thorn-scrub habitats in a tropical climate with a more or less pronounced dry season of about two to five months[2]. Requires a well-drained soil. An easily grown plant, flourishing with little or no care, the plant is drought-tolerant and suffers from over-watering[3]. Under high light intensity, it can be kept erect and compact; under low light, it grows higher, with ascending stems and the leaves are larger and thinner[3]. Prefers a pH in the range 6 - 7.5[4]. The plant has been widely introduced into tropical areas, where it has often escaped from cultivation[5]. Gardeners had to give up the plant in South Africa in 1979 when it was banned as an illegal weed because it had been invading and overwhelming natural vegetation[3]. The plant is often grown as an ornamental, the flowers being handsome and intensely aromatic,, although they do have a somewhat offensive fragrance[6, 2]. The flowers are said to be of great value to bees[3]. Species in this genus are deciduous under conditions with seasonal drought and, in cultivation, also lose their leaves if the mean temperature falls below around 15°c[2].

Propagation

Seed - fresh seed can be slow to germinate, it is best to sow seed that is between several months to 2 years old and this should germinate after a few days. Even when five years old, seed can have a 50% germination rate[2]. Easily grown from cuttings of half-ripe wood, taken during the dry season[3, 2]. Cite as: Tropical Plants Database, Ken Fern. tropical.theferns.info. 2026-02-20. <tropical.theferns.info/viewtropical.php?id=Pereskia+aculeata>

Pollinators

Insects

References

  1. [1]Perennial Edible Fruits of the Tropics : an Inventory — Martin, F. W.; Campbell, C. W.; Rubertbe, R. M. · U.S. Dept. of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service · 1987 ↩︎A booklet giving terse details of almost 300 species of edible fruits, plus regional lists of Botanical and Common names for over 2,500 less well-known edible fruits of the tropics.
  2. [2]Pereskia (Cactaceae) — Leuenberger B.E. · The New York Botanical Garden; Bronx, New York · 1986 · ISBN 0-89327-307-4 ↩︎The genus Pereskia (sensu lato) has been divided into several genera since this treatment was written, but it still remains an excellent guide to the plants.
  3. [3]Fruits of Warm Climates — Morton. J. · Florida Flair books, Florida. · 1987 · ISBN 0961018410 ↩︎A very well written guide to about 125 species.
  4. [4]The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. — Huxley. A. · MacMillan Press · 1992 · ISBN 0-333-47494-5 ↩︎Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.
  5. [5]Flora of China — Missouri Botanical Garden Press; St. Louis. · 1994 · http://flora.huh.harvard.edu/china/ ↩︎An excellent, comprehensive resource in 25 volumes. In addition to the botanical information the flora also gives basic information on habitat and some uses. An on-line version is also available.
  6. [6]Trees and Shrubs of Mexico — Standley P.C. · Smithsonian Institution; Washington · 1926 ↩︎Although dated, it contains a wealth of information on the trees and shrubs of Mexico, including many of their uses. It can be downloaded from the Internet.
  7. [7]IUCN Red List of Threatened Species — http://www.iucnredlist.org/ ↩︎A list of plants under threat and facing possible extinction, usually with brief details of the threats and information on habitat.
  8. [8]Dictionary of Economic Plants. — Uphof. J. C. Th. · Weinheim · 1959 · ISBN - ↩︎An excellent and very comprehensive guide but it only gives very short descriptions of the uses without any details of how to utilize the plants. Not for the casual reader.
  9. [9]Food Plants in the Americas: A Survey of the Domesticated, Cultivated, and Wild Plants Used for Human Food in North, — Kermath B.M.; Bennett B.C.' Pulsipher L.M. · 2014 ↩︎A pre-publication draft of an amazing, on-going work first started in 1985. It contains information on more than 3,900 taxa from the Americas - from Arctic regions to the Tropics
  10. [10]The Cactus Family — Anderson E.F. · Timber Press; Portland, Oregon · 2001 · ISBN 0-88192-498-9 ↩︎An excellent work, giving botanical descriptions of virtually all the cacti, together with their range (but not their habitats) and sometimes also a photo. it also contains a long chapter detailing the many uses of cacti and another on cultivation..
  11. [11]Cornucopia II — Facciola. S. · Kampong Publications, California. · 1998 · ISBN 0-9628087-2-5 ↩︎The second edition of an excellent guide to the edible uses of plants, though it does not give any details of cultivation etc.
  12. [12]Medicinal Plants of Brazil — Mors W.B.; Rizzini C.T.; Pereira N.A. · Reference Publications; Michigan. · 2000 · ISBN 0-917256-42-5 ↩︎An extremely concise book, listing approximately 1,500 species and varieties of plants with their botanical name, common name in Brazil, regions in Brazil where the plant is found, a brief list of uses and any medically active compounds in the plant.