dwarf, succulent, spineless; main body of the plant subglobose or obconic, nearly buried in the ground, and excepting a small central tuberculate area covered over the top with very numerous (50–60) branches arranged in 4–5 series, forming a clump about 4 in. in diam. (not sparingly branched as originally described); branches 3/4–1 1/2 in. long, 4 1/2–6 lin. thick, simple or occasionally branching, more or less clavate, covered with transversely rhomboid or subhexagonal tubercles 1 1/2–2 lin. in diam. and 1/2– 3/4 lin. prominent, glabrous, green at the upper part, brown below; leaves rudimentary, soon deciduous, 1 lin. long, 1/2 lin. broad, lanceolate or narrowly elliptic, obtuse, very concave above as if longitudinally folded, very convex beneath, thick and fleshy; involucres solitary in the axils of tubercles near the apex of the branches, subsessile or on peduncles 1/2–1 lin. long, rather shallowly basin- or somewhat funnel-shaped, 3 1/2–4 lin. in diam., glabrous, with 5 glands and 5 transversely rectangular deeply toothed lobes; glands spreading, 1 1/3–2 lin. in their greater diam., subcontiguous or slightly separated, transversely oblong, with about 6 short entire or denticulate teeth along the outer margin, and the entire inner margin more or less turned up, forming a slight cavity in front of it, somewhat greenish; ovary sessile, included in the involucre, glabrous; styles united into a stout column 2/3– 3/4 lin. long, scarcely exceeding the lobes of the involucre, their very stout tips exserted, recurved-spreading, entire, broadly cuneate-obovate, channelled down the face, 2/3 lin. long and as much in breadth. null
