€7,95

🌱 Morphology
Small solitary cactus, slow to moderate growth, with a globose and flattened body, grayish-green, often marked with darker bands or patterns and with reddish tones when it receives a lot of light. It reaches approximately 3–5 cm in height and 4–6 cm in diameter. It presents about 8 wide ribs, triangular in profile and slightly wavy, with small, rounded areoles. Each areole usually bears 5–6 thin, yellowish-gray radial spines, slightly curved and about 8–10 mm long, with no central spines.

🌍 Distribution, habitat, and family
It is distributed throughout the Gran Chaco of Paraguay and northeastern Argentina, especially in scrubland and dry Chaco forest environments, starting from very low altitude areas. It grows on sandy or clayey soils, frequently protected under shrubs and other vegetation, so it is not adapted to the continuous scorching sun of an open desert.
Family Cactaceae · Subfamily Cactoideae · Tribe Cereeae

❄️ Temperature · USDA Zone 9b
It tolerates minimum temperatures down to −3 ºC, for short periods and with the substrate completely dry. Although some established specimens can occasionally withstand lower temperatures, it is recommended to avoid prolonged frosts.

☀️ Lighting
Partial shade. Very abundant but filtered lighting or partial shade is recommended, especially during the central hours of summer. In its habitat, it grows partially protected by vegetation. To maintain good coloration and encourage flowering, a high availability of light is recommended, around 20–30 mol·m⁻²·day⁻¹ of DLI PAR, avoiding the most intense sun when it causes overheating.

💧 Growth cycle and watering
Winter rest. During active growth, it is recommended to water abundantly and let the substrate dry completely before the next watering. In autumn, water is progressively reduced until it is kept dry during the winter. Excess moisture, especially at low temperatures, can cause root rot.

🌸 Flowering
It produces flowers in the apical area, about 4–4.5 cm long, generally greenish-yellow to yellowish-green, with the exterior of the perianth slightly reddish. The main flowering occurs from late spring to summer, approximately between June and September in cultivation, and it can emit several flushes of flowers during the same season. A first flowering has been documented approximately at 4–5 years from seed, although it can bloom while still very small.

🌿 Nutrition
During active growth, it is recommended to use Desert CHOICE® Cactaceae NPK (Ca-Mg) 4-4-7 (4-4) once a month along with watering. Assimilable calcium favors the formation of firm tissues and the maintenance of turgidity, while magnesium participates in chlorophyll synthesis. Before flowering, it can be supplemented with Desert CHOICE® Flowering.

🪴 Pot
Basic 9x9 cm pot

This is an inimitable xerophyte grown in Madrid in a technological square pot with the substrate activated with mycorrhizal fungi and biofungicides.

10x10 Gourmet black pot

* As this is an online purchase, the appearance of the sent specimen may vary slightly from the product image. The plant measurements are specified in the photo description, but this can also vary slightly, because it is a living thing! Each of the Desert CITY plants has unique characteristics.

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