€42,40

Gymnocalycium spegazzinii f. unguispinum Slaba 

🌱 Morphology
A small, slow-growing cactus with a globose-depressed body, grayish-green to olive-green, which can reach approximately 6 cm in height and 14 cm in diameter. It features about 10–13 wide, low, and rounded ribs, with elliptical and slightly woolly areoles. Its extraordinary feature is its very short spines, generally about five per areole and less than 1 cm long, which are thick, subulate, twisted, and strongly curved outward and downward, resembling small eagle talons. It usually lacks a central spine.

🧬 An extraordinary natural form
Unguispinum is not a nursery-created cultivar. It is a rare form found in the wild and subsequently selected for cultivation for its particular armor of spines. The epithet comes from the Latin unguis, "nail" or "claw," and spina, "thorn." The name is currently considered a synonym for Gymnocalycium spegazzinii subsp. spegazzinii, although “unguispinum” remains highly valued by collectors, as it identifies this phenotype with short, hooked spines.

🌍 Distribution, habitat, and family
Its known origin is south of Puerta Tastil, Salta Province, Argentina, where it has been located at an altitude of about 3,000 m, in the mountainous environments of northwestern Argentina. The reference taxon, G. spegazzinii, is distributed throughout northwestern Argentina.
Family Cactaceae · Subfamily Cactoideae · Tribe Cereeae · Genus Gymnocalycium · Species Gymnocalycium spegazzinii Britton & Rose · Form f. unguispinum Slaba.

❄️ Temperature · USDA Zone 8a
It tolerates minimum temperatures of down to −12 ºC, for short periods and with the substrate completely dry. Its origin at about 3,000 m explains its notable cold resistance, although in cultivation it is recommended to avoid the combination of frost and humidity.

☀️ Lighting
High luminosity is recommended, preferably with filtered sun or protection during the middle hours of summer. High radiation favors the compaction of the body and the formation of robust spines, but excessively intense exposure can cause burns. An approximate DLI PAR of 20–30 mol·m⁻²·day⁻¹ is suitable.

💧 Growth cycle and watering
Winter rest. During active growth, it is recommended to water abundantly and allow the substrate to dry completely before the next watering. In autumn, reduce watering gradually until kept dry during the winter. It is slow-growing, yet is considered relatively easy to flower.

🌸 Flowering
It produces bell-shaped, pinkish-white flowers, which can reach about 7 cm in length and 5 cm in diameter. They appear near the apex, mainly in late spring. No sufficiently reliable data has been located regarding the exact age of the first flowering for this form.

🌿 Nutrition
During active growth, Desert CHOICE® Cactaceae NPK (Ca-Mg) 4-4-7 (4-4) is recommended 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
9x9 cm gourmet black pot

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

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