Is there anyone else who enjoys plants that mastered the art of self-defense? If you do I would love to see them. Here's a picture of my "meanest" plant.
Puya Chilensis

Saw puyas in spain. Photos arent exactly top notch. Me personally? I like the plant and tried to grow it from seed. Germinated, looked like a bromeliad but never got anywhere.

Hallow said:
Is there anyone else who enjoys plants that mastered the art of self-defense?
Puya Chilensis

Not me! Even the more gentle ones manage to harm me . I'm looking forward to hearing from the masters!

skopjecollection said:Saw puyas in spain. Photos arent exactly top notch. Me personally? I like the plant and tried to grow it from seed. Germinated, looked like a bromeliad but never got anywhere.

The one I have is probably one of the fastest growing plants I have. Right now it's shooting out a lot of pups.


There's only 3mo between the two pictures of the plant.

The fastest growing plant I had was dracaena draco. Now its at out national botanical garden(ans still doing fine i guess)
Euphorbia ingens, plumeria , pereskia and selenicereus were quite fast in their first year but have now stagnated(still growing and healthy, but not as fast)

These are the nastiest spines I have ever encountered, by far. Mainly because they have barbs and hurt even more coming out than they do going in. Both are native to the region.

Not that they're very easy to see in this picture, but the hook spines aren't very friendly.

Baja_Costero said:These are the nastiest spines I have ever encountered, by far. Mainly because they have barbs and hurt even more coming out than they do going in. Both are native to the region.

• Coastal Cholla (Cylindropuntia prolifera)
• Uploaded by Baja_Costero

• Mason Valley Cholla (Cylindropuntia x fosbergii)
• Uploaded by Baja_Costero

And have you "mastered the art of self-defense?" in handling them? And if you have, can you make me believe it?

I will second Baja with regards to the meanest plants I have, definitely the Chollas. People always ask me why I even keep the Teddy Bear Cholla around... Another very well protected cactus is Stetsonia Coryne aka the tooth pick cactus. I had a nice specimen growing in the ground at my previous place, but it had gotten so large that when I moved I had to leave it. In my new neighborhood a neighbor about 3 houses over has a giant one, which is absolutely gorgeous.
Interestingly, that plant will start looking less and less ferocious as it grows and ages. To the point where some times it is hard to recognize mature specimens as being the same species as younger plants.

Among the fiercest looking plants and one of my favorites (though the plant pictured has flowered and died) is Agave xylonacantha, it actually looks a lot fiercer than it actually is:

If we are talking nastiest spines...boy do i got stories to tell.
Ill give the immediate:
1- this opuntia( no ID). Always get a injured when i handle it. Spines can break, and are somewhat difficult to get out. Sometimes like shrapnel(nearly got one in my eye)

2- Neoraimondia Hezogii. I had a lot of these. Spines are incredibly sharp, pierce gloves, stick in skin and break off. Often leave a small bit inside that huts a lot..

3-Stetsonia coryne. Same as the previous, and agree with @mcvansoest. Old photo


4.Pilosocereus. I know, i know. It doesnt look that ferocious. But if you underestimate this plant, youre in for a lot pain. Its broken super sharp spines pierce gloves and effectively become glochids. This is pachycladus, same goes for magnificus


My personal favorite though?
Rubus Bramble...We have this one wild species/subspecies with ferocious thorns... Nearly always when i get near it, i get scratched. Sadly no photo of that...

I also know that some eulychnias can can also fall into the super-long-spine category, but have never seen one IRL.
Not my photo, dont take credit.
https://live.staticflickr.com/...

Some interesting spines from the database (offensive or decorative) starting with our native prickly pear, which has memorably painful spines and glochids



Our native agave makes some interesting and variable spines




Pectinate spines (require a closer look)



Hairs and spines



Reds




Agaves



Dyckias



Aloes (these 2 are close cousins)



Ocotillo spines as they develop and persist



Various random cacti with cool spines

Baja_Costero said:These are the nastiest spines I have ever encountered, by far. Mainly because they have barbs and hurt even more coming out than they do going in. Both are native to the region.

• Coastal Cholla (Cylindropuntia prolifera)
• Uploaded by Baja_Costero

• Mason Valley Cholla (Cylindropuntia x fosbergii)
• Uploaded by Baja_Costero

Those are definitely evil! I saw videos on YouTube where people come a little to close to them and the blood thirsty beast attacks and doesn't let go.

I watched an idiot jump into one on TV once. Or was that a saguaro. Maybe I saw a video of that too.

Hallow said:
Those are definitely evil! I saw videos on YouTube where people come a little to close to them and the blood thirsty beast attacks and doesn't let go.

Yep... When we lived in AZ we had close encounters with Jumping Cholla. Wicked indeed.

skopjecollection said:Saw puyas in spain. Photos arent exactly top notch. Me personally? I like the plant and tried to grow it from seed. Germinated, looked like a bromeliad but never got anywhere.

I believe they are bromeliads. Another Nick name for this type is the sheepeater. There's strong belief there a carnivorous plant. Larger animals get tangled up and trapped within the leaves, then die and decay. Leaving behind a rich nutritious liquid in there arid Rocky environment there native to. It's crazy if you look at the spines. The first half of the leaves there curve outward as you go down the leaves they change direction inward to the plant. The small spines are like razor wire.

They are all bromeliads, yes . Aside from puya hechtia , dyckia, aechmea, tillandsia, pineapple(ananas), vrisea, guzmania, deucteromia,crypthanthus , bilbergia are all bromeliads. I have seen, own or used to own most of these///
My (now dead pineapple)

This one at marimurta , deuterocohnia

This hechtia , also there

Unknown , also at marimurta





this dyckia at our own national botanic garden , flowerstalk behind pilosocereus




And these ones




My tilandsias(only the large one still lives)

Edit: forgot to add this. Can you spot the bromelaids in this photo?



There are at least 9

Baja_Costero said:Some interesting spines from the database (offensive or decorative) starting with our native prickly pear, which has memorably painful spines and glochids

• Coastal Prickly Pear (Opuntia littoralis)
• Uploaded by Baja_Costero

Our native agave makes some interesting and variable spines

• Shaw's Agave (Agave shawii)
• Uploaded by Baja_Costero

• Shaw's Agave (Agave shawii)
• Uploaded by Baja_Costero

• Shaw's Agave (Agave shawii)
• Uploaded by Baja_Costero

• Shaw's Agave (Agave shawii)
• Uploaded by Baja_Costero

• Shaw's Agave (Agave shawii)
• Uploaded by Baja_Costero

• Shaw's Agave (Agave shawii subsp. shawii)
• Uploaded by Baja_Costero

Pectinate spines (require a closer look)

• Conchilinque (Mammillaria pectinifera)
• Uploaded by Baja_Costero

• Peyotillo (Pelecyphora aselliformis)
• Uploaded by Baja_Costero

Hairs and spines

• Oreocereus
• Uploaded by Baja_Costero

• Old Man of the Mountain (Oreocereus trollii)
• Uploaded by Baja_Costero

Reds

• Fire Barrel Cactus (Ferocactus gracilis)
• Uploaded by Baja_Costero

• Fire Barrel Cactus (Ferocactus gracilis)
• Uploaded by Baja_Costero

• Mexican Fire Barrel (Ferocactus pilosus)
• Uploaded by Baja_Costero

• Devil's Tongue Barrel (Ferocactus latispinus)
• Uploaded by Baja_Costero

Agaves

• Saw-Leaf Agave (Agave xylonacantha)
• Uploaded by Baja_Costero

• Sierra Mixteca Agave (Agave oteroi)
• Uploaded by Baja_Costero

• Agave (Agave applanata 'Cream Spike')
• Uploaded by Baja_Costero

Dyckias

• Bromeliad (Dyckia)
• Uploaded by Baja_Costero

• Bromeliad (Dyckia marnier-lapostollei)
• Uploaded by Baja_Costero

• Dyckia 'Brittle Star'
• Uploaded by Baja_Costero

Aloes (these 2 are close cousins)

• Black-Spined Aloe (Aloe melanacantha)
• Uploaded by Baja_Costero

• Krimpvarkie (Aloe erinacea)
• Uploaded by Baja_Costero

Ocotillo spines as they develop and persist

• Ocotillo (Fouquieria splendens)
• Uploaded by Baja_Costero

• Ocotillo (Fouquieria splendens)
• Uploaded by Baja_Costero

Various random cacti with cool spines

• Mammillaria (Mammillaria spinosissima 'Un Pico')
• Uploaded by Baja_Costero

• Viejito (Eriosyce senilis)
• Uploaded by Baja_Costero

• Parodia schumanniana
• Uploaded by Baja_Costero

Beautiful plants and inspiring! Specially the Shaw's agave.