The shoots growing above the branches of dragon fruit seedlings are leaf buds or flower buds, with more leaf buds.

The dragon fruit is a climbing succulent. The plant has no main root, and the lateral roots are distributed in the shallow surface soil layer, while there are many aerial roots to climb and grow. The rhizome is dark green, stout, up to 7 meters long and 10-12 centimeters thick. Ribs flat, wavy edge, stem nodes at the growth of climbing roots, can climb on other plants to grow, each section of the stem node depression with small spines.

Because of the long-term growth in desert areas, the leaves have degenerated, photosynthesis function by the stem. Inside the stem is a large number of thin-walled cells full of viscous liquid, which facilitates the absorption of water during the rainy season.

Extended information:

Aerial roots grow because the dragon fruit itself is not upright enough to be hard. It can't absorb sunlight in all directions like a tree can, and when the aerial roots are born and attached to surrounding objects, it allows the stem to stretch and absorb sunlight better.

Get a stick and insert it into the ground, just tie the shoots gently with a rope, and then build a tripod when it grows to 1 meter tall to let the branches droop, and you will be able to bear fruit in the second year.

Funnel-shaped flowers, open at night; scales ovate-lanceolate to lanceolate, calyx tepals yellowish-green, linear to linear-lanceolate, petaloid tepals white, oblong-oblanceolate, filaments yellowish-white, styles yellowish-white, berries red, oblong-globose, umbilicus small, flesh white, red. Seeds obovate, black, umbilicus small. flowering and fruiting from July to December.?

Distributed from Central America to N South America, widely cultivated worldwide, climbing by aerial roots on tree trunks, rocks, or walls, 3-300 m above sea level. The branch cuttings are easy to survive, often used as grafting crabapple genus, cactus stick genus and a variety of cactus rootstock, flowers can be used as a vegetable, edible berries, the trade name "dragon fruit".