€26,50

Trichocereus candicans var. gladiatus (Lem.) 

🌱 Morphology
  A columnar, caespitose cactus that begins as a solitary plant and over the years forms large clumps of numerous ascending stems. The light, bright green stems can reach 40–100 cm in length and 12–18 cm in diameter, although in adult specimens, the clumps can spread for several meters. It features 9–11 broad ribs, large woolly areoles, and a particularly spectacular spination in this variety: 9–12 radial spines of 2–6 cm and up to 4 robust central spines that can reach 10–11 cm, straight, yellowish or light brown, sometimes with darker bands. The combination of relatively low stems and long spines explains the evocative name “Sword of the Sierras”.

🌍 Distribution, habitat, and family
Native to Argentina, mainly from the Monte and Espinal phytogeographic provinces, from southern La Rioja and Córdoba to northern Río Negro and southern Buenos Aires. It inhabits dry, open areas among shrubs, grasslands, and rocky outcrops. It belongs to the Cactaceae family, subfamily Cactoideae, and tribe Trichocereeae. Lodé maintains the genus Trichocereus, contrary to the Kew treatment, which currently includes the taxon under Echinopsis candicans.

❄️ Temperature · USDA Zone 8b
It tolerates minimum temperatures of up to −8 ºC when kept dry and in well-acclimated specimens. Its origin in continental Argentine zones allows for considerable cold resistance when the substrate remains completely dry.

☀️ Lighting
It requires very intense light and direct sun to develop compact spination and maintain its robust habit. During active growth, a DLI PAR of 20–30 mol·m⁻²·day⁻¹ is recommended, performing a gradual adaptation to intense sun.

💧 Growth cycle and watering
Winter rest. During the cold months, it is kept practically dry. In spring, watering is resumed gradually, and during the warm period, it tolerates deep watering, always allowing the substrate to dry out completely. Excess humidity combined with cold should be especially avoided.

🌸 Flowering
It produces some of the most spectacular flowers in the group: white, large, fragrant, approximately 18–23 cm long and up to 11–19 cm in diameter, with a green receptacle and reddish outer tepals. They open mainly at night and attract nocturnal pollinators. Flowering occurs in adult specimens during the warm season. A reliable age for the first flowering has not been determined. There is also no sufficiently solid evidence to call it re-flowering in several pulses within the same season; it is preferable to speak of seasonal flowering with successive blooms.

🌿 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 substrate activated with mycorrhizal fungi.

S -> 9cm x 9cm

M-> 14cm x 14 cm

L->16cm x 16 cm

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

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