|
|
Habitat:
West Indies, Brazil,
Cuba, Peru, Mexico. In their
native countries they can be also found growing on the seashore.
Description: globular cacti with straight ribs and very variable in
spination. Small flowers are produced profusely during the summer followed
by mostly red fruits. The development of the cephalium on adult plants
enables them to flower but precludes further growing of the stem. Some
species like matanzanus and violaceus produce a cephalium only four years
after sowing while it may take from seven to ten years for others to do the
same.
Soil: fertile mix (with low-acidity peat, pH of 6); surround the root
with perlite.
Location: full sun in the winter, filtered during the hot months.
Temperature: keep the a minimum temperature around 14°C (57°F). They
are best overwintered indoors, so that they keep growing all year round.
Young plants can withstand low temperatures better than mature specimens,
especially if the latter have already developed the cephalium.
Water: average but controlled; excess water may cause the plant
cephalium to divide into two (dichotomy).
Cultivation tips: they’re not so easy; young plants should be feed
with fertilizer only once in spring, adult specimens once every two months.
They’re slow growing, susceptible to high atmospheric humidity and prone to
rotting, so they’re best grown indoors in the winter when they should be
watered once every three weeks. Due to their long, fibrous roots it’s
preferable to grow them in bowl-like pots. The Caribbean species are the
most delicate with the one exception of M. matanzanus. They’re easily
raised from seed.
Main species: M. azureus; M. amoenus; M. conoideus;
M. caesius; M. bahiensis; M. curvispinus; M. concinnus; M. erythracanthus;
M. disciformis; M. ernestii; M. salvadorensis; M. matanzanus Cuba;
M. longispinus; M. neryi; M. melocactoides; M. glaucescens; M. levitestatus
(rubrispinus); M. peruvianus; M. intortus.
   |
|
|
