€10,60

🌱 Morphology
It looks like a small cactus dressed in a silvery-grey silk armor, but its true surprise arrives with the flowering: suddenly, intense pink flowers, almost disproportionate to its tiny body, turn it into a small explosion of color. And among that delicate spination appears a detail of character: a central hooked spine that looks like a tiny claw.

It forms cushioned groups that can gather numerous heads, although compact and solitary forms also exist. The stems are globose or slightly conical, grey-green or blue-green in color, and can acquire pinkish hues under intense lighting. The tubercles are large and rounded, arranged in a spiral. Each areole produces approximately 9–15 thin, whitish radial spines with darker tips, as well as 1–3 more robust, usually brownish central spines, one of which often displays the characteristic hook. The stems can reach about 5–6 cm in height and diameter.

🌍 Distribution, habitat, and family
It is endemic to the Cape region in Baja California Sur, Mexico, including some nearby island areas. It grows in desert environments and dry shrublands. It belongs to the Cactaceae family. The species is listed as Endangered (EN) by the IUCN.

❄️ Temperature — USDA Zone 9a–11b
It tolerates minimum temperatures down to −4 ºC if it remains completely dry, is well-acclimated, and the cold exposure is brief. It is especially advisable to avoid the combination of low temperatures and humidity.

☀️ Lighting
During active growth, it needs intense lighting, with an approximate goal of 18–25 mol/m²/day of DLI PAR. Direct sun, introduced progressively, helps keep the stems compact and can intensify its attractive bluish-grey and pinkish shades.

💧 Growth cycle and watering
Winter rest.
During the active period, abundant watering is recommended, letting the substrate dry out completely before watering again. In winter, it should be kept practically dry, especially when temperatures are low.

🌸 Flowering
Its flowers are extraordinarily striking in relation to the size of the plant: intense pink to reddish-pink, funnel-shaped, and about 2.5–4 cm in diameter. They appear at the top of the stem and can form a crown of color that practically eclipses the cactus itself. In Madrid, flowering can occur mainly between April and July. After them, scarlet, almost dry fruits appear, providing another ornamental attraction.

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

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

9x9 cm pot

• Hassle-free returns

• Free Shipping on orders over €79.99

• Secure and protected payment guaranteed.