🌱 Morphology
   Rubies in the desert... Small, globular to slightly elongated cactus that forms clumps with age through basal and lateral shoots. The stems can reach about 13–15 cm in height and 5–7 cm in diameter, with an intense green epidermis that can acquire reddish tones during winter dormancy. It features 13–15 well-defined ribs, separated by deep grooves. The areoles, initially whitish or brown and later grayish, produce 7–8 thin radial spines up to 1 cm long and usually 1–3 more robust, brown central spines up to 1.5 cm long.

🌍 Distribution, habitat, and family
Endemic to the Sierra de Ancasti and surrounding areas, in the province of Catamarca, Argentina, where it grows at approximately 1000 to 2000 m altitude, on gentle slopes and grasslands in dry mountain environments. It belongs to the Cactaceae family, Cactoideae subfamily, and Trichocereeae tribe. The epithet dobeana has given rise to numerous historical names, including Lobivia dobeana and Lobivia aurea var. dobeana.

❄️ Temperature · USDA Zone 8b–11b
It tolerates minimum temperatures of up to −9 ºC in dry, well-acclimated specimens. During winter, it is recommended to keep the substrate completely dry and especially protect it from the combination of cold and humidity.

☀️ Lighting
It requires very intense lighting to maintain compact growth and encourage abundant flowering. It can be grown in full sun after progressive acclimation. As a guideline during active growth, a DLI PAR of 20–30 mol·m⁻²·day⁻¹ is recommended.

💧 Growth cycle and watering
Winter dormancy. During spring and summer, it exhibits active growth and tolerates abundant watering, always allowing the substrate to dry out completely between waterings. As autumn arrives, water intake is progressively reduced until the plant is kept dry during winter.

🌸 Flowering
The characteristic that distinguishes this population is its spectacular intense red flowering. The flowers bloom laterally, on the lower half of the stem, and reach approximately 6–10 cm in length and up to 7 cm in diameter. The floral tube is narrow, slightly curved, and covered in scales and abundant white and dark hairs. The flowers appear mainly from mid-spring to summer and can be very abundant in mature specimens.

🌿 Nutrition
During the active growth period, a fertilizer with a high content of assimilable calcium and low nitrogen levels, such as Desert CHOICE® Cactáceas, is recommended, applied once a month when watering. Before flowering, it can be supplemented with Desert CHOICE® Floración.

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

9x9 cm black pot

                            and 12x12 cm

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