Golden Spike

This enormous caudiciform grows up to 119 feet (36.3 meters) tall. The tapering stem is gray, and is covered in large amounts of rigid gold spines. It has a straight, thick, pale red trunk atop a thin block of knobbly, exposed roots. The branches are thick and yellow-green and are very short and thin.

The rounded-edged, 6 pointed leaves are solid caramel or peach, with light brown edges. They are rigid, and detach easily.

It is fast growing, taking 3 months to reach maturity. Once mature, and only under the right conditions, a single flower with solid magenta petals decorated with amber lines and a hazel central disk grows at the top, reappearing after 4 years, but only when the conditions are right again. The flower head is shaped like a cube made up of 8 widely spaced, narrow petals. It has a soft scent that smells like new books.

The caudiciform's skin is thick, the aquamarine flesh is soft, and the dark grey sap is thin.