Cylindropuntia molesta

A shrubby cholla that grows about 0.6–2.5 m tall, endemic to the Baja California peninsula. It lives in hot, nearly rainless lowland desert scrub with mild winters, so it wants maximum light, very sharp drainage and a dry, cooler winter.

At home, aim for

Day Cool-growingTargets in Plantistry

Night Close to the dayTargets in Plantistry

Humidity Dry airBand in Plantistry

Light Full sunDLI and PPFD in Plantistry

Expects a seasonal restGrows in the ground

Where it grows wild

Open desert scrub and gravelly plains and slopes of the central Baja California desert, with little or no shade. Habitat details come from the measured records and from what is typical of Baja chollas, since species-specific habitat notes are scarce.

Recorded at 12–909 m, median about 200 m, so mostly low coastal and inland desert.

Mexico Northwest

🔒 Growing it like that

The wild conditions above, turned into targets for a shelf, a tent or a greenhouse. The full profile has:

✓ Day and night temperature targets, and the limits it tolerates

✓ Humidity band, and how to hold it

✓ Light as DLI and PPFD for a grow light

✓ Wet and dry seasons, and whether to rest it

✓ Substrate and airflow

✓ A step-by-step setup to grow it like the wild

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Profiles are drafts built from measured range and climate and from published sources; each section carries its own confidence in the app. Photo from Wikimedia Commons, used under its CC0 licence, unmodified.