€7,95

Stenocereus thurberi (Engelm.) Buxb.

🌱 Morphology
Arborescent columnar cactus, relatively slow-growing, which develops a short trunk from which numerous erect and arched stems emerge, forming a characteristic candelabra silhouette. In the wild, it can exceed 10 m in height, especially in Mexican populations. Grayish-green stems with well-defined ribs and areoles equipped with numerous fine spines; the central ones can reach about 6 cm. The flowers are large, nocturnal, and bell-shaped, followed by fleshy, red, sweet, and edible fruits. 

🌍 Distribution, habitat, and family
Native to the Sonoran Desert, from Arizona to Sonora, Sinaloa, and both Californias. It lives in xerophilous scrublands, rocky slopes, and dry tropical forests, approximately between 20 and 1100 m. Northern populations are shorter, while in Mexico it can reach extraordinary dimensions. It belongs to Cactaceae, Cactoideae, tribe Pachycereeae.

❄️ Temperature · USDA Zone 10a
It tolerates minimum temperatures down to −1 ºC when kept dry and with well-acclimated specimens. It is a species sensitive to prolonged frosts; at its northern limit, distribution is conditioned by freezing episodes.

☀️ Lighting
It requires direct sun and very high light intensity, with an indicative DLI PAR of 20–30 mol·m⁻²·day⁻¹ during growth. Exposure should be increased progressively to avoid sunburn.

💧 Growth cycle and irrigation
Winter rest. During the cold months, it is kept practically dry, especially when temperatures drop. In spring and summer, irrigation is resumed, always abundant but spaced out, allowing the substrate to dry completely before watering again. The species is adapted to summer rains and long dry periods.

🌸 Flowering
It flowers from 20 years of age. The flowers appear mainly between April and July, although the period may vary geographically. They are nocturnal, opening at dusk and closing the following morning. Large plants produce more flowers and prolong flowering. It is self-incompatible, so pollen from another compatible plant is needed to obtain seeds. Its fruits are sweet and edible. They are known as Pitaya. (not to be confused with the Pitahaya from Hylocereus undatus)

🌿 Nutrition
During the active growth period, a fertilizer with 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 xerophytic plant cultivated in Madrid in a technological square pot and with the substrate activated with mycorrhizal fungi and biofungicides.

9x9 cm, 12x12 cm, and 14x14 cm pot

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