€7,95

🌱 Morphology
It looks like a small snowball that has become trapped in the middle of the Mexican desert. Its green body is barely visible beneath a dense cloud of very fine, interlaced white spines, creating a surface so uniform that at first glance it is difficult to even recognize it as a cactus. As it grows, it can go from a solitary specimen to forming small colonies of white spheres, like a handful of snowballs on the rock.

The body is globose and depressed at the apex, although with age it can become more elongated, reaching approximately 15 cm in diameter and up to 30 cm in height. The tubercles are arranged in very regular spirals, and their axils feature small white bristles. Each areole produces numerous white, fine, and slightly flexible radial spines, which can exceed 40 per areole, accompanied by several straight central spines, white with pink or brown tones at the tip. The result is one of the whitest and most delicate spine coverings in the genus.

🌍 Distribution, habitat and family
It is native to northeastern and north-central Mexico, with documented presence in Coahuila, Nuevo León, San Luis Potosí, Tamaulipas, Zacatecas, and Guanajuato. It grows in xerophytic scrubland and rocky areas, especially on limestone, between approximately 500 and 2500 m above sea level. It belongs to the Cactaceae family.

❄️ Temperature — USDA Zone 9a
It tolerates minimum temperatures of up to −5 ºC if kept completely dry and properly acclimated. There are references indicating occasional greater resistance, but −5 ºC is a prudent cultivation guideline.

☀️ Lighting
During active growth, it requires intense lighting, with a target of approximately 18–25 mol/m²/day of DLI PAR. Gradual exposure to direct sunlight promotes compact growth and helps maintain its characteristic white spine covering.

💧 Growth cycle and watering
Winter dormancy.
During the active period, heavy watering is recommended, allowing the substrate to dry out completely before watering again. It is especially sensitive to excess moisture around the roots, so drainage must be excellent. In winter, it should be kept practically dry.

🌸 Flowering
The flowers appear forming a crown around the apex and can be white, greenish-white, or pink, depending on the population and the individual specimen. They reach approximately 2–3.5 cm and contrast delicately with the white surface of the cactus. In Madrid, flowering can mainly be expected between March and May. The fruits are pink to reddish and appear later among the tubercles.

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

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

📏 The sizes of our basic collection xerophytes are as follows:

S -> 9cm x 9cm

M-> 14cm x 14 cm

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

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