STORY BEHIND THE ART OF OLGA RYABTSOVA

23rd Annual International

American Society of Botanical Artists at Wave Hill

Rose Cactus

Pereskia grandifolia

Pereskia grandifolia is a shrub in the cactus family. The Pereskia genus is basal to the cactus family, its members retain leaves of significant size, whereas other cacti only have rudimentary leaves or no leaves at all.

Native to the coastal forests of Northeastern Brazil, Pereskia grandifolia has especially large long leaves. It may not look like a cactus, but it has long sharp spines hidden below its leaves.

The depicted specimen grows at Fullerton Arboretum, one of my favorite botanical gardens in Southern California. The large shrub attracted my attention on a rainy winter day when I saw it covered with unusually shaped clusters of fruits. I kept observing the plant throughout the seasons. When I visited the arboretum in June, I saw the shrub covered in beautiful pinks flowers. Those flowers earned Pereskia grandiflora its unofficial name “rose cactus”.

Eventually I bought a seedling of Pereskia grandiflora at the arboretum, so I have my own specimen in my garden.

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Read more about this artist’s work: 21st Annual