Every so often, gardeners find a deformed-looking flower or stem that
appears as if the plant has bulked up on steroids. The stem or flower
stalk will appear somewhat squashed and splayed, sometimes splitting in
two or more sections. Or it may appear that two or more stalks have
merged together to form one distorted structure. This odd growth is called
fasciation, which literally
translates to banding or bundling. Fasciation is thought to be caused by
a hormonal imbalance. In some cases, this imbalance could be a random
genetic mutation or, in other cases, induced by one or more
environmental factors, including bacteria, fungi, virus, insects, frost
and physical damage to the growing point.
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| This fasciated flower of Pow Wow Wild Berry coneflower. Photo by Gary Bachman - LINK |
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| Saguaro fasciation at the Desert Botanical Garden in Phoenix, Arizona. Photo by cunningba on Flickr |
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| Fasciated daisy. Photo by trish red on Flickr |
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| A fasciated blossom of a Black-Eyed Susan. Photo provided by Charlie Zapolski
of Saugus, Mass. - LINK |
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| Wyethia helianthoides or Mule's Ear Wildflower showing fasciation - LINK |
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| Blue Candle, Blue Myrtle Cactus, or Garambullo (Myrtillocactus geometrizans) fasciation - LINK |
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| Crested saguaro north of Phoenix - LINK |
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| Euphorbia Fasciation - LINK |
The cacti look like they have a STD.
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