Claret cup cactus
A low, mounding desert cactus that bursts into bright red, cup-shaped flowers each spring at Arches, Canyonlands, and Big Bend.
Claret cup cactus at a glance
Echinocereus triglochidiatus kluh-RET cup KAK-tus; Echinocereus triglochidiatus is eh-kine-oh-SEER-ee-us try-glow-kid-ee-AY-tus
- Type
- Plant · cactus
- Diet
- Producer
- Size
- It grows in a low mound of many stems, usually about 1 to 3 feet across, roughly the size of a beach ball or a little wider. Each stem is about as thick as a soda can.
- Lifespan
- Several decades for a healthy desert mound, adding new stems over the years.
- Conservation
- Least Concern
Eats sunlight, rainwater, carbon dioxide, soil nutrients
A claret cup makes its own food by photosynthesis in its green, ribbed stems, which do the job leaves would do on other plants. The thick stems also store water, letting the cactus survive the long dry stretches between desert rains.
Is it safe to touch?
This cactus is covered in stiff spines, so the rule is look, do not touch. The bright red flowers are tempting to reach for, but the spines around them can jab and hurt. Keep hands off, and never pick the flowers. It grows slowly and is protected in the parks.
The claret cup cactus spends most of the year as a low, quiet mound of spiny stems, usually about 1 to 3 feet across, roughly the size of a beach ball, with each stem about as thick as a soda can. Then spring comes, and the mound bursts into bright red, cup-shaped flowers, sometimes dozens at once. The color is where the name comes from: claret is a deep red drink, and the flowers are that same rich red. The cactus grows at Arches, Canyonlands, and Big Bend, and its green, ribbed stems do the work that leaves do on other plants, making food by photosynthesis while also storing water to last through the long dry stretches between desert rains.
Those red cups are built for a particular visitor. Hummingbirds see red well and are drawn straight to the flowers, and as they dip in to sip nectar they carry pollen from one plant to the next, though bees help pollinate it too. The plant has a second name that fits its off-season shape: the hedgehog cactus, because a tight mound of clustered, spiny stems looks a bit like a hedgehog curled up on the ground.
The claret cup is common across its range and listed by the IUCN as Least Concern, and it is protected inside the parks where it grows. It also grows slowly, so a good-sized mound has been building for decades. For a visitor it is the usual story with a spiny desert plant: the red flowers are tempting to reach for, but stiff spines guard every stem, so keep hands off and never pick the blooms.
Did you know?
- The claret cup gets its name from its flowers, which are shaped like little cups and are a deep red, the color of a drink called claret. A single mound can hold dozens of blooms at once in spring.
- Its red, cup-shaped flowers are built for hummingbirds. The bright color draws them in, and as they sip nectar they carry pollen from flower to flower, though bees help pollinate it too.
- It is also called the hedgehog cactus because its clustered, spiny stems look a bit like a hedgehog curled up. The stems grow in a tight mound close to the ground.
Common questions
Why is it called a claret cup cactus?
Because its flowers are shaped like little cups and are a deep red, the color of a drink called claret. In spring one plant can be covered in red blooms.
What pollinates the claret cup cactus?
Mostly hummingbirds. The bright red, cup-shaped flowers draw them in for nectar, and they carry pollen between plants. Bees help out too.
Why is it also called a hedgehog cactus?
Because its clustered, spiny stems look like a hedgehog curled up. It is part of the hedgehog cactus family, Echinocereus.
Can I touch the claret cup or pick its flowers?
No. The stems are covered in stiff spines that can jab you, and the plant is protected in the parks. Look closely from a step back and leave the flowers for everyone.