David Attenborough encounters the most DANGEROUS plant in the desert!

[Ptah]

[LeftInTX]

1. He needs metal gloves

[Enter stage left]

2. We spend a lot of time in Arizona in the colder months...

and what he is saying should be taken as the absolute truth.

The "teddy bear cholla" is one of the most miserable cactus plants you can ever encounter. All of the cholla's are dangerous and should be avoided, except to admire them...from a distance.

I was backing our RV into a RV parking spot in AZ, and as i was making the turn the front tire brushed against a different type of cholla. After I was parked, I had to get my leather gloves and needle nose pliers to get the spines out of a Michelin tire sidewall. You would not want to tangle with that cactus with your bare skin. Trust me!

[Lithos]

4. texas has a few things a grade or two lower in seriousness

Given my experience with those - this scares the bejesus out of me.

[Enter stage left]

5. LOL, we spent a lot of time in Texas too...

there are some nasty cactus there also, but in my estimations, the Cholla's are even nastier.

Avoid the pretty, but sharp pointy things, anywhere in the southwest.

[AnotherDreamWeaver]

3. I remember those. I grew up in the Antelope Valley. nt

[SleeplessinSoCal]

6. I encounter weeds in our SoCal garden that are just as sticky.

They don't hurt as much, but they attach themselves and it's nearly impossible to completely free yourself from its tiny spikes. No idea what it's called. Looks benign, but it's a total pain for taking so long to free yourself from it.

[Warpy]

7. People jere have them in their yards.

They bloom in June, bright pink or yellow flowers, very showy.

At least you see what you're getting with the teddy bear cholla. I think there are worse plants, like Australia's gympie-gympie or the invasive giant hogweed or the manchineel tree with its poisonous sap anc cute little apples or even nasty pests like gorse, with hairlike spines that are hard to spot and hurt like hell if you don't get them out.

I remember poison control had a fairly elaborate way to get a large number of spines (like you'd fallen into a big patch of the stuff) that required antibiotic ointment or Vaseline, soaks in a bathtub, and a couple of other things to soften the spines enough that the barbs wouldn't make you hit the ceiling when they were pulled out. Also, if you get stuck around the head or neck, it's wise to go to the ER for an antibiotic prescription. The spines can carry some really nasty bugs.

The flowers are gorgeous. Most cacti have bright, showy flowers. However, seeing those spines sticking out of a glove is major cringe. Ow. No thanks.

[ChazInAz]

9. I lived in Tucson for over forty years.

Chollas are a menace. I've seen their segments go flying off in a stiff gust of wind and attach themselves to passers by.
A friend of mine once bicycled down Mount Lemmon Highway at close to light speed, misjudged a hairpin switchback and went sailing into a patch of the fiendish things.This resulted in a week at Tucson Medical Center, just getting the spines out and infections under control.

[Warpy]

11. They can be nasty if you blunder into them

Hitchhikers and bicyclists seem to catch the worst around here, that and the occasional touist who tries to use them for cover when they' need to pee off the side of the interstate (Pro tip: just go next to the car, cactus doesn't give any cover and you're risking an arse full of spines if you try).

I never worrired about my neighbor's font yard cholla bed, I just walked by and waited for the display in June.

[EverHopeful]

8. My cousin left the east coast to go to school in AZ

And he told us that if it doesn't bite, sting, or scratch, it's not native to Arizona.

He also sent us coffee mugs with a skeleton sitting up against a wall that said "But it's a dry heat"

He also met his wife of 30+ years so he does have some fondness for AZ.

[marked50]

10. Agree that chollas are bad news.

We live in New Mexico and they thrive here. Not the TeddyBear version. They are pretty in Bloom but that's all you can say about them. They have many branches that eventually die off one or two at a time and litter the surrounding ground. We took our dog once to a place that had a trail amongst a "forrest" of them, not particulary close to the trail. Worse thing ever for the dog.

Some of the spine clusters were on the ground. The dog just stopped immediately and would not move. It was so so sad in removing them. Carried the dog the rest of the way.

And interesting thing about these dead sections of cholla branches is that the Mexican wood rat (pack rat) uses them to surround their nests as a means of protection. They also live in the base of a full plant sometimes. Go figure on how they avoid the spines.

Also, we have learned not to wear any shoes worn outside into the house because you can easily get those small, multi-pronged clusters into your shoe soles and track them into the house. Not fun to step on them with bare feet.

[k55f5r]

12. the spines jump at you as you walk by