Fought very hard for this flower. Trichocereus GRÄSERS ERFOLG x SB. Absolutely amazing ruffled flowers.
Slugs, rain, storm, my butt that almost ripped it down etc. I am on my victory lap just now that it finally opened. 🌵
My Gräsers Erfolg x SB has become so gigantic it leans on one side. I tried leaning it against something to counter balance and this is what worked the best. Almost ripped down the flower but had to do it because I want it to grow into the other direction now. Sunlight comes from the left.
In this video I captured Fertilizer Burns aka Chemical Burns that I caused around mid June. There were a few plants that I really wanted to get to flower during the current season, so I gave them a stronger dose than I probably should have given. I personally don´t really care about this kind of stuff unless it´s a very beloved plant. Fertilizing is just necessary and every plant has its own tolerance. The fertilizers that I use on my Trichocereus only cause relatively mild burns, compared to some of the cheaper fertilizers that´s available on the market. There are certain brands of fertilizer that can completely kill your plants via these fertilizer burns if the concentration is just a little bit too strong, so it’s really important you get a quality fertilizer. You can get similar chemical burns from Neem Oil. It´s not really the same as fertilizer burns, but the overall process is similar and the result is often even worse.
Hi guys, today I wanted to give you a preview from our Trichocereus Facebook group called Trichocereus & Echinopsis growers worldwide. It is one of the oldest Trichocereus groups on Facebook and was funded sometime around 2014.
Photo: Jason Hollinger
After all these years, our Trichocereus Facebook group has almost 17.000 members and we´re getting bigger every year. In regards to the subjects and topics that are allowed, we are rather open to off-topic subjects or threads about other cactus genera such as Lophophora, Lobivia, Hildewintera, Pseudolobivia, Ariocarpus, Akersia and many others.There are lots of different threads with hundreds of Trichocereus photos per week.
You can find the group here: facebook.com/groups/trichocereus
To celebrate the Trichocereus Christmas spirit, we have organized an amazing seed giveaway this year. Below you can see a small selection of the seed prizes from our 2018 Trichocereus Facebook giveaway. There are many, many more Trichocereus seeds that you can get for free.
These seeds were donated by the family of Karel Knize, the Peruvian seed and plant collector who had just passed away, and we are very proud that we can pass them along to the community.
Trichocereus tarmaensis
Trichocereus longispinus
Trichocereus glaucus KK334
Trichocereus carmaensis
Trichocereus cuzcoensis KK242
Trichocereus KK1670
Trichocereus tacaquirensis
Trichocereus sp. ‘House’
Trichocereus tulhuayacensis
Armatocereus matucanensis
Armatocereus KK230
Armatocereus procerus
Cereus repandus
Selenicereus grandiflorus
In addition to the Trichocereus seed giveaway, we´ll also have a Secret Santa event where our members are gifiting each other with some cactus related gifts. So far we have over 40 participants who are participating, and we still leave it open for new members to join. We´ll probably pick the matching Santas in 10-14 days, and it´s definitely not too late to join.
We are very welcoming when it´s about events or giveaway, and there´s lots of private members who run their own giveaway or events as well.
We´re truly an international Trichocereus Facebook group, and a large part of our members are actually from Australia. Because of this, we see quite a fair share of Trichocereus Australia clones that are being posted in our group.
Due to the fact that there are so many different people in our Trichocereus & Echinopsis Facebook group, there are members from all over the world. We have members from Europe, the United States, Australia, India, Africa and and and. Having so many different people in our group provides our members with great insight into the lives of cactus growers worldwide.
A large part of the posts in our group discuss the best fertilizer for Trichocereus and Echinopsis, or look into the most unseful soil recipes and minerals that are best suited for Trichocereus. There´s lots of content available about Pumice, Lava, Coir and all the other additives needed by cactus growers.
Due to the fact that some of our members are into Tissue culture and have extensive experience with it, there´s quite a few postings about it and how to do it right. Also, there´s many posts about other plant hormones that can be useful, e.g. BAP, GA-3 Gibberellic Acid, etc. All of these can be very useful if you know how to use them.
If your Trichocereus plants are sick, you can find answers about the pests and diseases that affect them in our group. We have threads about pretty much everything that can infect or attack a Tricho, for example Thrips, Root mealies, Fungus gnats, Nematodes, Bugs, Slugs, Snails, Virus infections like Tobacco Mosaic Virus and other viruses, Witches broom disease, etc
During the last year, some of our members started organizing DNA testing on plants from the genus Trichocereus and we´ll try to bring in some of the results that we´ll hopefully have during the next years into my upcoming book THE GENUS TRICHOCEREUS. We´ll try to conduct tests on some of the rare species like Trichocereus orurensis, Trichocereus uyupampensis, Trichocereus riomizquensis, etc, to find out if they deserve to be seen as correct and sepparate names or not.
I am posting regular updates about the book production process in our Facebook group, and pretty much all of the content and photos are shown there as well. If you enjoy the Trichocereus and Echinopsis books that we make, feel free to join our group to see how we´re making them.
We have lots of professional breeders in our midst, which is why there´s regular photos of beautiful Trichocereus, Echinopsis or Lobivia flowers to be seen in our group. There´s lots of unique and amazing hybrids like Flying Saucer, Orange California, Wörlitz, First Light, some of the MEX hybrids, hybrids like SUNNY and other hybrids like HELLFIRE, GOLDFISCH, ETC, lots of rare Pseudolobivia and Lobivia hybrids from Thailand and Asia such as BIT, BIV and all the other cool hybrid.s
So yeah, I hope I could give you a small preview of our group and how amazing it is. 😉 Hope to see you soon in our Facebook group.
Also make sure to join the newsletter at trichocereus.net/newsletter or follow us on Instagram.
Trichocereus angelesii, also known as Echinopsis angelesii or Echinopsis angelesiae, was originally described by Friedrich Ritter as a white flowering variety of Trichocereus strigosus / Trichocereus strigonus, until Kiesling publicized it under the name Trichocereus angelesii.
Michelle Killen
The flower of Echinopsis angelesii is white and 12-24 centimeters long. Trichocereus angelesii is a day flowering / diurnal species with clear visual similarity to Trichocereus strigonus. The spines, fruits and seeds are pretty much indistinguishable from the ones of Trichocereus strigosus, which makes it nearly impossible to identify the plant unless you find it at the original type location. Trichocereus angelesii, aka Echinopsis angelesii, usually has 14-22 ribs . In comparison to this, Trichocereus huascha has 12-15 ribs.
Pedro Lopez Artes
Pedro Lopez Artes
Pedro Lopez Artes
The typus location is Famatima in the provence La Rioja, what makes it likely that it is synonymous with the commercial name Trichocereus famatinensis. It is also closely related to the plant that Ritter called Trichocereus callianthus. This plant was originally sold by Ritter as FR999, which was still labeled as Trichocereus huascha back then.
Kiesling´s description gives Darwinia in Argentina as the typus location and it´s not clear whether or not those plants were actually the same.
It´s a rare species that you only get rarely, but classic Kaktus nurseries like Kakteen Haage or Uhlig Kakteen might have some of them available. If you don’t have the chance to collect them at one of the aforementioned locations, you will probably not run into it very oftenly. There are also some older plants that you can find on the commercial market, and these are usually labeled as T. huascha or Trichocereus strigonus. White flowering Trichocereus huascha might very well be a mislabeled Trichocereus angelesii.
If you enjoyed this article, also make sure to check out some of our other articles. For example the archive pages on Echinopsis macrogona, Echinopsis peruviana or Echinopsis valida.
Also join our Trichocereus Facebook group at https://facebook.com/groups/trichocereus
Trichocereus werdermannianus, also known as Echinopsis werdermanniana, is a columnar Trichocereus species from Bolivia. It is a close relative of Trichocereus terscheckii and I consider it an intermediate species between the large Andean Trichoereus terscheckii and Trichocereus taquimbalensis.
Trichocereus werdermannianus Backeberg & Knuth, Kaktus ABC
Trichocereus werdermannianus is an old name that is debatable because it is so genetically close to Trichocereus terscheckii and might as well be seen as a regional form of it. The plant was discovered and described by Curt Backeberg, who named it after the German Botanist Erich Werdermann.
Trichocereus werdermannianus is a species that is difficult to identify, and its similarity to Trichocereus terscheckii make it difficult to distinguish it from it.
Apart from T.werdermannianus being mislabeled as T. terscheckii, they are also often labeled as Trichocereus taquimbalensis or tacaquirensis. For example, there are a few seed & plant distributors that sell cacti labeled Trichocereus werdermannianus, and the plants we grew from them ended up being all kinds of species. Trichocereus werdermannianus was sold as Trichocereus terscheckii, Trichocereus taquimbalensis, Trichocereus pasacana, Trichocereus peruvianus and Trichocereus macrogonus.
A very constant trait in all Trichocereus werdermannianus plants is the dark green to blue gray green color of epidermis, that is very typical for this species. Most if not all specimens I ever saw had a very dark green epidermis and a spination that looks like a mix of Trichocereus taquimbalensis and Trichocereus terscheckii.
I included the Description from Backeberg´s Book below. Backeberg acknowledges Trichocereus werdermannianus´genetic proximity to Trichocereus terscheckii and Trichocereus validus, but mentions that its flowers usually emerge from the top of the plant, while the two species mentioned before would have flowers that appear at lower regions of the plants body. Based on these observations, we think that it should merely count as a form or variety of Trichocereus terscheckii. That is if we even go so far to split a species up based on such criteria.
White, flowering from the apex, flowers similar to the flowers of E.terscheckii.
The trees reach a size of 5 meters and a maximum diameter of 65 centimeters. Young plants have 10+ ribs while adult specimens can have 14+ ribs. The plant has ten spines that are between 5 and 10 centimeters long, color between yellow and yellowish brown. Many flowers that arise around the apex of the plant. The flowers can get up to 22 centimeters long, but the whole complex is very variable in this regard. The fruit is up to 4 centimeters in diameter and has many white or black hairs.
The seeds of this species are usually 1,4 mm large, but that is also influenced by other factors such as region, plants that grow in direct neighborhood.
Bolivia, the type location is in the Charcoma Valley east of Tupiza. However, the species is also present around Potosi. Backeberg suspected that Trichocereus taquimbalensis from the region around those aforementioned locations is actually Trichocereus werdermannianus. It is obviously related to Trichocereus taquimbalensis, but there are substantial differences between these two species.
The first Two Pictures are in Fact the plant that Backeberg understood as Trichocereus werdermannianus. Pictures from the unspeakable Thunderhorse! 😉 In Front on the lower left: True validus! Please note that some pics on this page actually show plants labeled Trichocereus werdermannianus, but get very close to Trichocereus taquimbalensis. It´s probably not that easy to draw a firm line between these two species sometimes.
KK1094 Trichocereus werdermannianus Mutant
The three pics above show seedlings that were raised from KK1094 Trichocereus werdermannianus seed. Please note that those seedlings actually ended up being Trichocereus taquimbalensis var. wilkae instead
Knize used this number for two plants. First, Trichocereus giganteus and then Trichocereus werdermannianus. Maybe he wasn’t sure about the ID, called it Tr. giganteus and changed it to Tr. werdermannianus later on. Both plants are collected in Otavi, Bolivia. Giganteus at 3200 Meters and Werdermannianus at 3500m. Pics: MUTANT.
I own a Trichocereus giganteus KK1094, which ended up being a completely typical Trichocereus werdermannianus.
This is Trichocereus Werdermannianus KK917 from Karel Knize. Pic from Rodni Kisar!
This One is Trichocereus werdermannianus in the Botanical Garden in Adelaide. Pic from ZED! Thank you Bro! The plant is very close to Trichocereus taquimbalensis.
Trichocereus werdermannianus Backb g. — Backeberg & Knuth, Kaktus-
ABC, 206, 412. 1935
Bis 5 m hoch; Stamm bis 1 m hoch und bis 60 cm ∅; Rippen ca. 10, später 14
und mehr, 2 cm hoch; Areolen 2,5 cm entfernt; St. am Jungtrieb ca. 10, mittlerekaum unterschieden, bis 7 cm lang, gelblich bis bräunlichgelb bzw. hornfarbig;
Bl., wenn zahlreich vorhanden, ± kranzförmig um den Scheitel oder scheitelnah;
bis 20 cm lang; Gr. weiß, kaum die Staubb. überragend; N. 15—19; Fr. kugelig,
3,5 cm ∅, lange, aber nicht sehr zahlreiche schwarze und weiße Haare tragend;
S. 1,3 mm groß, mützenartig, rauh punktiert. — B o l i v i e n (von mir, als Typort,
im Charcoma-Tal, östlich von Tupiza gefunden, von Cardenas auch in den
trockenen interandinen Tälern der Departements Potosi und Chuquisaca, auf
ca. 2600 m Durchschnittshöhe der Vorkommen) (Abb. 1054—1055). Während Trichocereus validus und T. terscheckii seitlich ± weit herab blühen,
ist T. werdermannianus durch seine nur hochsitzenden Bl. eindeutig unterschieden.
Sie alle scheinen nach den viel längeren Bl. und der sich nie verändernden
Stachelbildung an den Spitzen großer Pflanzen echt trichocereoide Riesenformen
zu sein, die (zum Teil) auch nachts geöffnete Bl. zeigen, wie ich zumindest an zwei
Arten beobachtete.
„Trichocereus pasacana“ dagegen scheint die größten Formen der Helianthocereus-
Formengruppe zu bilden, mit kürzeren Bl., gedrungeneren Röhren und an
alten Exemplaren bzw. solchen an hohen Standorten mit borstenartig elastischen
St., wie sie den Hochlands-Helianthocereus-Arten eigentümlich sind. Ich habe
daher Trichocereus pasacana auch zu Helianthocereus gestellt. Er ist zudem Tagblüher, soweit bekannt.
Trichocereus werdermannianus
Trichocereus validus, also known as Echinopsis valida, is a columnar cactus that´s closely related to Trichocereus terscheckii. I consider it a form, variety or subspecies of Echinopsis terscheckii. Which one´s exactly the case will have to be decided by DNA testing .
l 
Cereus validissimus, Echinopsis valida, Echinopsis validus, Echinopsis robbinsoniana, Cereus forbesii, Trichocereus forbesii, cereus forbesii, Echinopsis rhodotricha, Trichocereus rhodotricha, Trichocereus terscheckii, Trichocereus terscheckii
Trichocereus validus grows like a tree and can get up to 40 centimeters in diameter. It doesnt get quite as thick as Trichocereus terscheckii, which is a close relative of it. The origin of Trichocereus validus is not know, was but it was probably Bolivia. In Bolivia, there are various Andean Trichocereus species from the Trichocereus terscheckii complex that this species could have come from. There´s populations of Trichocereus werdermannianus and Trichocereus tacaquirensis, which are both very similar in appearance. My personal impression is that Trichocereus validus is just one particular type of Trichocereus terscheckii.
10-12. Older specimens have a higher rib count, which is pretty typical. There are very little spines around the upper half of the body, what makes it look like a nearly spineless version of Trichocereus terscheckii.
The areoles are 2,5 – 3,5 centimeters apart of each other. 5-10 radial spines that are up to 4 centimeters long with a very typical outwards pointing spine, which is actually the lowest on the areole. In addition, Trichocereus Validus has approximately 1-2 middle spines. 5-10 centimeters long. Spines have a very small but visible rounded spine base. The spine color is yellow, similar to the one on Trichocereus Terscheckii.
White. Similar to Trichocereus terscheckii and between 10-15 centimeters long and up to 15 centimeters in diameter. Gray-brown hairs on the flower and white petals.
Round fruit with wool & hairs on top of it.
The original description of Trichoecreus validus was written after a bad photo, and there was no flower photo or description originally. However, a flower description could be made eventually after a plant that grew in the Botanical Garden in De Cedres and the photos we saw did show a very close relative of Trichocereus terscheckii. While it has pretty unique spination, it´s still pretty obvious that the plant was some variety of Trichocereus terscheckii.
I am very proud that some of the members from our SAB forum were able to relocate this long lost plant in Australia and make it somewhat available. There were a few growers that received cuttings of this remarkable plant and we sometimes have cuttings available in our Trichocereus Facebook Group.
Another breeder who offers some seeds of Trichocereus validus is Misplant.net! He has a plant that roughly belongs to the same complex, but which isn´t quite the same mother plant to make a couple crosses every year and you can buy seed through his Seed store on Misplant! Misplant´s Trichocereus validus belongs somewhere in the relationship of it and Trichocereus uyupampensis, another rare Trichocereus that is considered (by some) to be synonymous with Trichocereus validus. Whether or not this is the case is currently not clear.
In Australia, this plant was made available through the Fields Family and collection, who owned two large mother plants before the collection was donated to the Melbourne Botanical Garden. In addition, you can get seeds of Trichocereus validus from Sacred Succulents but I haven’t seen their mother plant yet. I will add new sources for this plant in this article but at the moment, I do not know more.
Trichocereus validus is very similar to Trichocereus terscheckii and everything I wrote about the cultivation of it applies here too. These large Andean giants can take slight night frosts, but it should not go over -5° to -7° Celsius or it will get dangerous. The plants need to be dry and the average minimum temperature should be around 10° Celsius during the cold winter months. Trichocereus validus is extremely thick and it needs a large, deep pot if you ever want to see it flowering.
The Plant here was found on ebay and has many similarities to Trichocereus Validus. Chances are, it´s just some Terscheckii with a similar Spination. But since Trichocereus Validus is most likely nothing else than some Terscheckii Variety it´s not really possible to clear this up.
Now the next Plant is really interesting. It is what many growers call the FIELDS Validus. It grows on a private property in Australia and the Owner originally bought some Seeds of Friedrich Ritters Collection of Trichocereus Validus and grow it out into a gigantic Monster of Awesomeness! The Plant is identical with the Plant shown in Backebergs Cactaceae and IS most likely the Terscheckii Variety that is known as Trichocereus Validus.
Rodni Kisar
This Plant grows in the Huntington Botanical Garden and is labeled Echinopsis Robinsoniana . It is actually the plant that came to fame as Trichocereus Validus. It´s probably a variety of Trichocereus Terscheckii and chances are that there are seeds labeled as that available on the market. So whenever you encounter Echinopsis Robinsoniana or Terscheckii varieties from Bolivia, it might be the plant that was once called Trichocereus Validus. I am beyond doubt that Trichocereus Validus didn´t suddenly cease to exist in cultivation but simply carries another label these days.
Trichocereus validus – Huntington Botanical Garden – by Richard Hipp
This Plant is labelled Echinopsis robinsoniana and looks very much look the Trichocereus validus pictured in Backebergs CACTACEAE. Personally, I am absolutely sure that Echinopsis robinsoniana is just a synonym for Trichocereus validus. This plant grows in the Huntington Botanical Garden, but this species has not been found outside the Botanical Garden and most plants that are found in the wild are identified as Trichocereus terscheckii or one of its associated species. It is definitely possible to come across this plant on the botanical market, labeled as Trichocereus terscheckii, Trichocereus werdermannianus, trichocereus validus etc. There are countless forms and intermediates that belong to this complex and there is a great amount of variety within the large Andean Trichocereus species. Trichocereus pasacana is another closely related species.
Jordan Caleija
Rodni Kisar
The Fields Garden Validus, photo by Terrapin
The Fields Shed Validus, photo by Terrapin
If you want to buy some Trichocereus validus seeds, check out our shop
Trichocereus tarmaensis Rauh & Backeberg – Deser. Cact. Nov. 20. 1956
Trichocereus tarmaensis is a close relative of Trichocereus cuzcoensis that was described as a separate species. There are various differences between Trichocereus cuzcoensis and Trichocereus tarmaensis, and some forms of Trichocereus knuthianus are considered to be synonymous with Trichocereus tarmaensis as well.
Trichocereus tarmaensis reaches a size of 2 meters and is pupping from the base. It has 7-9 ribs that are approximately 2 centimeters wide, rounded at the top and with very distinct V-notches above the areoles. The areoles are approx. 2-2,5 centimeters apart with a diameter of 9 millimeters. Young growth areoles have a very fine brown wool that changes it´s color to a darker brown. It has 3-6 radial spines that are between 1 and 3 cm long. It often has one very large downward pointing spine that is up to 10 centimeters long. The plant usually has one of those middle spines. Old spine growth changes its color very soon to a gray, similar to what we know from Trichocereus cuzcoensis.
White, very similar or identical to some of the spiny forms of Trichocereus cuzcoensis or Trichocereus peruvianus. The tube has brown hairs and the fruit reaches a maximum diameter of 5 centimeters.
Central peru, Tarma in Peru at around 3000 meters.
Trichocereus tarmaensis looks very similar to Trichocereus tulhyacensis and both species are hard to distinguish if do not have the luck to observe them during the flowering phase . The flower of Trichocereus tulhuyacensis is pink, which is something that does not apply to any other Trichocereus species from this complex. If your Trichocereus has a reddish to pink flower, it´s not Trichocereus tarmaensis but Trichocereus tulhuyacensis or another close relative. Both Trichocereus tarmaensis and Trichocereus tulhuayacensis are very rare and mislabeled anyways. Karel Knize is selling seed of this type under the name KK2148 Trichocereus tarmaensis .
This picture shows a seedgrown specimen that was sold through the SAB shop in Australia.
When looking at this pic, it gets obvious that this type is VERY similar to some types of Trichocereus cuzcoensis, and even has similarities to a KK242. I do not think that specimens of KK2148 could be recognized as such without knowing the label. They are simply synonymous with some types of Trichocereus cuzcoensis. This species grows at around 3000 meters altitude.
Photo: S. Preiss
Below: Some photos from Tarma. The first one does not show a Trichocereus, but the others show some of the wild forms in between Trichocereus tarmaensis and Trichocereus knuthianus.
Trichocereus grandiflorus is a cactus from the genus Trichocereus. Its status is highly questionable as a correct species and the opinions are as varied as the names it carried. Joel Lodé has listed Trichocereus grandiflorus as Trichocereus rowleyi right now, while Anderson listed it as a synonym of Echinopsis huascha in his Cactus Lexicon. Please note that some people also refer to this plant as Echinopsis grandiflora, but this name is also used by Echinopsis eyriesii v. grandiflora and the older name has priority.
Lobivia grandiflora, Lobivia grandiflorus, Helianthocereus grandiflora, Helianthocereus grandiflorus, Helianthocereus huascha, Trichocereus rowleyi, Echinopsis huascha
Trichocereus grandiflorus was moved around between the genera a lot in the past. It is genetically close to both Lobivia and Soehrensia, which is why it was sometimes included there. Friedrich et al. listed it as Echinopsis grandiflora. Anderson then listed it as a synonym to Echinopsis calochlora in his CACTUS LEXICON. Joel Lodé lists it as Trichocereus rowleyi. Schlumpberger lists it as Soehrensia grandiflora (Schlumpberger).
The flowers of Trichocereus grandiflorus are often red and/or show various variations of red flowers. There are many hybrids, which is why the flower color is relatively unrelaible. There also are versions of flowers that are white in color and between 15-25 Centimeters in size. The tube is usually very hairy, but there are countless hybrids with all kinds of flower colors available on the open market.
Argentina, especially around Catamarca. The original description refers to a plant from a private collection and it is suspected that Trichocereus grandiflorus is extremely close to Trichocereus huascha and might even be part of this species.
The original description as Lobivia grandiflora came from Britton & Rose. Because of that, the plant was labeled as a Lobivia in most classic cactus literature. In addition, the title “Grandiflorus”, which roughly means “Large Flower” makes a lot of sense because most Lobivias usually have smaller flowers. The large flower size for a Lobivia shows that it is not a very normal Lobivia either. The collector Fric, who labeled it Chamaecereus giganteus (same principle because most Chamaecereus are tiny Lobivia), originally introduced the plant into the market, but since it was so different from Chamaecereus, this did not last long. Backeberg wanted to put it in his own problematic Genus Helianthocereus due to the diurnal flowers, but this flawed system was not adapted. Eventually, the plant ended up in Trichocereus, where it was until the restructuring made by Friedrich et al.
Trichocereus grandiflorus is a very hardy plant that can grow a lot during just one growing season if watered accordingly. The plant is able to tolerate some light frost but I would not recommend trying it out to the limit. I keep them at around 10° Celsius during the wintertime in a bright and well-ventilated room. I do not water them during the wintertime and only start watering again in March.
This plant is available every now on then on marketplace sites like Ebay or Amazon. In addition, many growers use it to produce hybrids. The Californian nursery Sacred Succulents has some colored Grandiflora hybrids and they sell seed every now an then. You can also try to make a post at our Trichocereus group at https://facebook.com/groups/trichocereus because there are some growers there who give some away every now and then.
Trichocereus grandiflorus also shows similarities to Trichocereus schickendantzii and some even consider them close relatives. It´s sometimes difficult to keep the two apart and growers or collectors mix them up all the time. The same applies to Trichocereus huascha, which differs from Trichocereus grandiflorus through its spination.
Due to the fact that there are so many misidentified Trichocereus grandiflorus, or plants that are identified as Trichocereus huascha but are actually GF, a large part of the photos that can be seen online show something else. This whole confusion is worst with small and juvenile plants. Trichocereus grandiflorus is MULTI-Ribbed and grows columnar. Its higher rib count and the strange pupping behavior in combination with shorter spines than T. huascha and its typical pupping style at the base make it possible to identify it reliably though. The pups almost look like little balls on the base of the plant while Trichocereus schickendanzii forms large clusters that can get up to 1-2 meters wide. The problem with Trichocereus grandiflorus is that the original description was written after a collection plant, which may or may not have already been a hybrid of Trichocereus huascha.
Before we get to the pics, let me first take the time to say thank you to Prier, who donated those amazing pics. Thanks Prier!
Trichocereus rowleyi hybrid – Photo credit: Jarek Tuszyński
Trichocereus rowleyi hybrid – Photo credit: Jarek Tuszyński
Trichocereus rowleyi hybrid – Photo credit: Jarek Tuszyński
A very typical Trichocereus grandiflorus Photo Credit: Dinkum
Trichocereus scopulicola x Trichocereus grandiflorus Zelly hybrid Jeremy Jones
A typical Trichocereus grandiflorus, labeled as Trichocereus huascha (Randy)
Another typical T. grandiflorus, labeled as T. huascha. Roger Kidd geograph.org.uk ,_Ashington,_
Another typical T. grandiflorus, labeled as T. huascha. by Daderot -_Botanischer_Garten_Freiburg
In comparison to this, here are Trichocereus huascha and Trichocereus schickendantzii:
Trichocereus huascha Echinopsis huascha stickpen
Trichocereus schickendantzii Echinopsis schickendantzii Gus 2
Note the differences in regards to the flower. White versions of Trichocereus grandiflorus are almost always misidentified Trichocereus schickendantzii, Trichocereus shaferi, or true hybrids involving T. huascha or T. grandiflorus that resulted in a white flower.
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Trichocereus huascha, also known as Echinopsis huascha, is an Argentinian Trichocereus species that looks very similar to Trichocereus spachianus, Trichocereus grandiflorus, Trichocereus shaferi and Trichocereus schickendantzii. However, there are important differences to distinguish them.
Trichocereus huascha has had a long history with many name changes due to its unique position between Trichocereus, Lobivia and Echinopsis. Friedrich & Rowley renamed it to Echinopsis huascha in 1974 but their actions weren´t really embraced with love.
I have some fresh seeds of Echinopsis huascha. You can get them here:
Synonyms: Lobivia huascha, Helianthocereus huascha, Trichocereus huascha, Echinopsis huascha, Soehrensia huascha, Cereus huascha, Cereus huascha variety flaviflorus, Cereus huascha var. rubriflorus, Lobivia purpureominata, Trichocereus andalgalensis, Echinopsis andalgalensis, Lobivia andalgalensis, Trichocereus grandiflorus, Echinopsis grandiflora,
Trichocereus huascha v. robustior or robusta
Trichocereus huascha v. pecheterianus
Trichocereus huascha v. rubriflorus
Trichocereus huascha v. auricolor
The list of names that Trichocereus huascha already had does not fit on one page, so I will only keep the most important ones. Many varieties of this species were actually labeled Lobivia, Cereus or even Chamaecereus and it´s very difficult to differentiate the plant from similar plants like Trichocereus schickendantzii, Trichocereus spachianus or Trichocereus grandiflorus.
Echinopsis huascha usually grows in small, clumping groups that reach up to 1,1 meters in height. It usually pups abundantly and can grow upwards like a columnar cactus or creeping. The pups can get up to 5-6 centimeters in diameter and has up to 15 ribs as a mature plant. The areoles are between 1 cm and 1,5 centimeters apart from each other. There are yellow colored and needle-like spines on each areole. Trichocereus huascha has 10-12 radial spines that are up to 2 centimeters long. The flower color is absolutely variable; also because there are SO many natural and commercial hybrids. This plant is used extensively in Trichocereus hybrid culture and many hybrids that are floating around on the market cant fully be id´d because the offspring can sometimes look very different from the parental generation. The plant flowers from the apex, through the areoles and the flower color can be yellow, red or orange. You can keep it apart from plants like Trichocereus schickendantzii by the color of the flower (Schickendantzii has white flowers) and the thinner growth of E. huascha. The flowers are 6-8 centimeters in diameter and the species is usually dayflowering! They also are sometimes self-sterile, while other forms are self-fertile. You usually need two plants to get seed, but T.huascha hybridizes so easily in nature that there are some plants that form fruit without being pollinated! There are constant arguments about its synonymy with Trichocereus andalgalensis and at the moment, I consider them synonymous. Trichocereus andalgalensis was described as a red flowering variety of T. huascha (T. huascha v.rubriflorus), but since there are also yellow flowering T. andalgalensis at the original site, this is not really a species that I consider correct.
Argentina. Very widely distributed and can be found almost everywhere around Catamarca & La Rioja. The plant grows at 900-2000 meters altitude.
By izzyplante from Montreal, Canada
This plant looks more like a Trichocereus candicans, but I am still keeping it here for now because it´s from a botanical garden and it migt actually be a hybrid between these two species. Photo by Cliff from Arlington, Virginia, USA Echinopsis huascha
Trichocereus huascha v. rubriflorus Trichocereus andalgalensis By Lord Koxinga2
By Lord Koxinga
by stickpen-
by stickpen-Trichocereus huascha amarilla
by stickpen Trichocereus huascha
T.huascha v. pecheretianus (ex. grandiflorus) by Peter A. Mansfeld
by Daderot huascha (ex Grandiflorus) – Botanischer Garten Freiburg
by frank vincentz Jardin Echinopsis_huascha
Soehrensia_huascha by Allie Caulfield
by Raffi Kojan Gardenology.org
Dru Bloomfield Echinopsis_huascha
By Jofre Vlastní fotobanka Echinopsis huascha var. rubriflora
E.huascha in a private garden ( Photo: De Wet Swart)
Tr.huascha v. auricolor Echinopsis huascha Flower
Photos below: Tr. huascha v. rubriflorus Delia Kisar
Trichocereus skottsbergii Backeberg, also called Echinopsis skottsbergii, is a columnar cactus that is closely related to Trichocereus chiloensis / Echinopsis chiloensis. Under current taxonomy it is placed as a subspecies below Trichocereus chiloensis with Echinopsis skottsbergii as currently accepted name.
The species was described by Curt Backeberg and named after Mr. Carl Johan Fredrik Skottsberg. Friedrich Ritter noted that it grows together with Trichocereus chiloensis without forming zones of hybridization. The easiest way to differentiate Tr. skottsbergii from Trichocereus chiloensis is by comparing the number of ribs. Echinopsis skottsbergii has 16-21 ribs, while Trichocereus chiloensis only has 16-18 ribs.
Curt Backeberg gives the form T. skottsbergii v. breviatus as a valid variety, but it was probably just a regional form of the same species. In the past, there were many unnecessary descriptions made that would not stand today. In my personal opinion, all the Chilean Trichocereus species are so closely related that it might not be a bad idea to consider them as one, very big and variable species. The same treatment works well with the whole group of species around T. peruvianus.
In Chile, the variability of the genus Trichocereus is just as big as the variability of Trichocereus species in Peru or Bolivia. E. skottsbergii is extremely close to Trichocereus litoralis, also known as Trichocereus chiloensis ssp. litoralis as well. It is very difficult to distinguish them and descriptions are absolutely necessary.
Trichocereus skottsbergii Trichocereus chiloensis Pedro Lopez Artes JN 380 Highway Fray Jorge, Coquimbo, Chile 269m
Original photo by Friedrich Ritter
Trichocereus skottsbergii Pato novoa Echinopsis_skottsbergii_—_Pato_Novoa_001
Ulrich Hörner (4)
Ulrich Hörner (2)
A hybrid between Trichocereus deserticolus x T. skottsbergii (Pedro Lopez Artes)
Ulrich Hörner (below)
Pedro Lopez Artes (Below)
Ulrich Hörner (below)
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Trichocereus deserticolus, also known as Echinopsis deserticola, is a columnar cactus from Chile. This species also includes Trichocereus fulvilanus / Echinopsis fulvilana as a subspecies of Echinopsis deserticola now.
Trichocereus deserticolus / Echinopsis deserticola Patrick Noll
Trichocereus deserticolus is a plant with a complicated and close relationship to Trichocereus fulvilanus, Trichocereus coquimbanus and Trichocereus chalaensis. They get very close to each other sometimes, for example the population between Paposo and El Cobre. Trichocereus fulvilanus grows from Caldera in the north to El Cobre, while Trichocereus deserticola grows from Paposo down in the south to Tocopilla in the north. There are taxonomists or authors that regarded Trichocereus fulvilanus as being unrelated to Trichocereus deserticolus / Echinopsis deserticola, but I do not really share this opinion. Yes, there certainly are differences between Trichocereus deserticolus and Trichocereus fulvilanus, but a blind man could see that both are as closely related as it can get.
Echinopsis deserticola, Trichocereus deserticola, Cereus deserticola, Cereus fulvilanus, Echinopsis fulvilanus, Echinopsis fulvilana,Trichocereus deserticolus, Echinopsis deserticolus
Chile. The type location is Antofagasta. It also grows around Atacama, El cobre, Paposo, Tocopilla, etc. Trichocereus deserticolus grows in a moister climate than Trichocereus fulvilanus, which grows around the coastlines and that prefers a drier climate. Because of that, Trichocereus deserticolus can rather be found in the higher areas around Paposo, where it is extremely common.
Trichocereus deserticolus is a branched plant that does not get as big as other Trichocereus species. It´s usually somewhere between 1-2 meters tall, but most of them are around 1 meter.
9-13, with very strong furrows. This plant is somewhat similar to Trichocereus chalaensis, which grows creeping.
The areoles are 1-2 centimeter apart of each other. Trichocereus deserticola usually has 2-3 middle thorns and 18-24 radial thorns. Which are very thin and have a dark brown/reddish color. The epidermis of the skin shows a very weak, pale green color.
Flowers: The flowers are white and a little bit smaller than the ones on other Trichocereus species. The size of the flowers is between 5 and 12 centimeters. They have brown/black hairs and the fruits are round and can be eaten.
In a wider sense, this plant is most likely related to Trichocereus chiloensis as well. However, the exact genetic situation has to be revealed by DNA testing.
Trichocereus deserticolus should be treated just like every other Trichocereus from Chile. It only needs watering during the hot season and requires a soil that dries out very fast. I usually use purely mineral soil mixes and as Chilean Trichocereus species, Trichocereus deserticolus aka Echinopsis deserticola likes it a lot
There are almost no seeds of Trichocereus deserticola available. Sometimes you can get small cuttings on sites like eBay. I sometimes have seeds of this species available and I can recommend that you join our Trichocereus group or Newsletter to stay in touch.
Trichocereus deserticolus should not be kept at temperatures below -5° Celsius and the plants have to be completely dry if you want to overwinter them at a cold climate. A perfect overwintering temperature is around 10° celsius, which is something around 50° Fahrenheit. The plants should be kept at a bright and well ventilated area.
leonora enking Echinopsis deserticola Trichocereus deserticolus
leonora enking 2
By Leonora Enking
Photos below: Pedro Lopez Artes
by Michael Wolf
Trichocereus cuzcoensis is a Trichocereus species from Cusco in Peru. It is described as from Cusco and in sense of the description plants only count as being part of this species if they are from Cusco, but close relatives of Trichocereus cuzcoensis also occur in many other parts of Peru, e.g. Trichocereus knuthianus, Trichocereus schoenii, Trichocereus tarmaensis, etc.
Trichocereus cuzcoensis is currently still called Echinopsis cuzcoensis, but many good authors have abandoned this sinking ship and went back to use the Trichocereus names. Trichocereus cuzcoensis, also known as Echinopsis cuzcoensis, is an accepted species, despite it´s obvious similarity to Trichocereus peruvianus. There are countless intermediates between Trichocereus peruvianus and Trichocereus cuzcoensis (especially where both grow together) and there are many regional forms that show traits of both species. As an example, there are Peruvianoid forms of Trichocereus cuzcoensis and there are specimens of Trichocereus peruvianus that show some traits of Trichocereus cuzcoensis. Personally, I think that Trichocereus cuzcoensis and Trichocereus peruvianus are so similar that they are at least subspecies or varieties of the same species. We´ve already seen lots of different regional forms of Trichocereus cuzcoensis. Everywhere T.cuzcoensis grows in direct neighborhood of Trichocereus peruvianus, they hybridize with each other and form transitional forms. The whole group around Trichocereus peruvianus is extremely variable and that also includes Trichocereus cuzcoensis as well. Please note that Trichocereus cuzcoensis is MORE than just Karel Knize´s KK242, which has become THE textbook definition of a cuzco. The hate around KK242 is responsible for giving the species a bad rep and that´s absolutely not justified as far as we are concerned. It´s a beautiful and unique species and large mother plants are usually stunning.
Because there are countless forms of Trichocereus cuzcoensis or its close relatives, we started collecting as many photos as we can to put them here together.
Trichocereus Cuzcoensis is a columnar cactus that grows columnar and is pupping from the base. It can get more than five meters tall, though most collection plants that are grown in pots do not exceed 2 meters. However, in countries like Australia, there are many huge plants of Trichocereus cuzcoensis to be found. New growth has a bright green color. It can get between 7 -9 rounded Ribs and the areoles are approximately 1-2 centimeters apart from each other. Trichocereus cuzcoensis has many, very strong spines. The number of spines is very variable but in most cases, I observed between 8-12 spines. The spines usually have a rounded, knobby base. New spine growth is yellow or dark brown while old spine growth is usually dark gray to white with slight black undertones or black spine tips. The spines usually are between 5-10 centimeters long. If you have a suspected E.cuzcoensis with a low rib count, it is likely not a Cuzco but a close relative such as the plants from San Marcos, T. schoenii, T. santaensis, etc.
Trichocereus cuzcoensis is a night-flowering species but the flowers usually stay fresh until the morning of the next day. It is self-sterile and you need another specimen as pollen donor in order to produce seed.
The flower color is white and the flower is usually very large. It measures up to 16 centimeters, the tube is green and 7-8 centimeters long. Petals are approximately 5 centimeters long and there are hairs covering the flower.
Peru, Cuzco. Cuzcoensis relatives from other areas do not count as T.cuzcoensis is the sense of the description.
Trichocereus knuthianus, Trichocereus crassiarboreus, Cereus cuzcoensis, KK242, KK340, KK1911 Knuthianus, Trichocereus tarmaensis. Please note that some of these are close relatives that we count in the winder context of this species.
Trichocereus Cuzcoensis is grown just like other Trichocereus species. It´s a very tough and frost hardy species and is able to cope with temperatures down to -9° celsius/15.8° Fahrenheit for short periods of time. The minimum average temperature is 10° celsius/50° fahrenheit. That temperature is also the minimum temperature that it needs to stay healthy during the winter.
Trichocereus cuzcoensis can be overwintered in a bright and well ventilated place. The temperature should be around 9-10° Celsius and the plants need to be completely dry. In european countries, the growers stop giving water and fertilizer in late summer (September or October) and take em in until early May or April. Keeping the plants dry and cold over winter also helps to increase flower production. Plants that are kept in a warm room over the winter lose their ability to flower. Besides, plants or seedlings need to be watered on a regular basis as soon as you have them in a heated room. If you want to overwinter a Trichocereus in a warm room (20°-30° Celsius), you have to water it on a regular basis. You can only overwinter a plant “dry” if the temperatures are low.
Growing Trichocereus cuzcoensis from seed: Trichocereus cuzcoensis is very easy from seed, because it is relatively resistant to most pests. One of the biggest challenges is to get good quality seed because most cuzcoensis seed on the market is pretty old and some do not even germinate. I am constantly looking for interesting new types of Trichocereus cuzcoensis, because they are amazing plants. Take a look at the pics from the Sacred Succulents Field Trips that are labeled “Cuzcoensis” and you will most likely agree. Germination temperature for Trichocereus cuzcoensis is between 26° and 30° celsius. It only needs very little water to induce germinations and if you have quality seed, they will germinate within 2-6 weeks. If nothing shows up by the 6th week, you will probably not get germinations at all. In this case, remove the lid, let the soil dry out and start with the germination process again. Those cycles mimic the way this actually happens in nature and sometimes, you will be able to re-activate dead seed. You can also add GA-3, which is Gibberelic Acid or use a strong HPS or LED lamp to wake the seeds up, because ultraviolet light increases germination rates. In general, Trichocereus seeds need light to germinate, so do not cover them with soil.
Trichocereus cuzcoensis Seed Sources: I have some great seeds in my shop right now. The first one comes from Huancavelica in Peru and the other one is somewhere between Trichocereus peruvianus and Trichocereus cuzcoensis.
This looks like a very typical Trichocereus cuzcoensis KK242. This strain was originally brought into cultivation by Karel Knize. He also sold various types of similar plants labeled as Trichocereus cuzcoensis, Trichocereus macrogonus or Trichocereus peruvianus. The label KK242 does not refer to a particular plant but the area where the seeds/cuttings were collected at. Because of that, there are many plants labeled KK242 which are NOT a Trichocereus cuzcoensis. The type just looks so unique and remarkable that it stuck and most plants that look like this are usually identified as KK242. Which is not really correct because that´s just one of the many types that grow within the KK242 range. However, most of the KK242 are in fact Trichocereus cuzcoensis. Pic: Master Evan
Another KK242
Below: A form of KK242 that is not a Trichocereus cuzcoensis.
One of the many faces of KK242. Copyright K.Trout
Ben Kamm
Copyright: Ben Kamm, Sacred Succulents
Also check out this posting with many cool Cuzcos fom the Sacredsucculents Field Trips!
Nitrogen
Nitrogen
Delia Kisar 
Rodni Kisar
KK242 Echinopsis cuzcoensis
Trichocereus glaucus, also known as Echinopsis glauca, is a Peruvian Trichocereus species described by Friedrich Ritter.
Friedrich Ritter original photo
Trichocereus glaucus – Foto: Friedrich Ritter
Peru ( South Peru ), Arequipa (Rio Tambo), Chile. In Chile, this plant is closely related to Trichocereus fulvilanus and Trichocereus deserticolus.
Trichocereus glaucus can get between 1,5-2 meters tall and is a prostrate/creeping species that you often find hanging down slopes and cliffs. This trait is very distinct in the variety Trichocereus glaucus var. pendens. The color of the skin is very glaucous and small specimens look absolutely like the type of plants that are labeled Trichocereus macrogonus / Echinopsis macrogona today. Spiny, dark blue versions from the complex around T. peruvianus. However, macrogonus grows columnar while this species tends to bend over with age. New growth is very glaucous.
The areoles are dark brown to gray in color and approximately 2,5 centimeters apart of each other. Similar to other plants related to Trichocereus peruvianus, the plant has a diameter of up to 10 centimeters and the areoles are gray felted. The spines look a bit like the ones on Trichocereus cuzcoensis and old growth has a typical satin white glow that is common on this species. Trichocereus glaucus has 6-9 ribs, 3-6 middle spines and 8-11 radial spines. The middle spines are 5-10 centimeters and the radial spines 1-2 centimeters long. New spine growth is black to brown and turns gray with age.
White, just like almost every other Trichocereus from this complex. The diameter is very variable and usually is between 15-22 centimeters. Trichocereus glaucus is a night-flowering species with green, round fruits. However, the hairy flowers usually stay open until the next morning.
Round, green, and 3 centimeters thick.
Type locality: Lower part of the Rio Tambo in the department Arequipa.
Trichocereus glaucus is very similar to Trichocereus chalaensis and grows in a similar way. We think that Trichocereus chalaensis might be synonymous with Ritter´s Trichocereus glaucus. Ritter´s field number of Trichocereus glaucus was FR270. We distributed seeds of Trichocereus glaucus various times in the past and all ended up amazingly beautiful. It´s a very nice species.
Trichocereus glaucus aka Echinopsis glauca is extremely rare and most plants on the market will probably come labeled as “Trichocereus peruvianus” or “Trichocereus macrogonus”. It is common occurence for some Peruvian cactus collectors to label all glaucous Trichocereus species with this name. This is obviously wrong and causes chaos. We sometimes have plants of this species in our Trichocereus Facebook group, which can be found here: https://facebook.com/groups/trichocereus
Trichocereus glaucus is a very resilient grower and likes to be watered well in summer. In winter, they should be kept as dry as possible at around 10° Celsius. Seed germinates very well and the plant is usually very tough. That´s also caused by its drought tolerance, which is very typical for these kinds of plants. The species will probably tolerate temperatures between -5° to -7° Celsius over very short time, but I would not stress it and this also depends on many other factors, like general health and dryness. I would recommend keeping at no lower than 10° Celsius in winter.
Varieties of E. glauca: Trichocereus glaucus var. pendens. This variety does only grow hanging down cliffs and small hills. This variety only grows at one location in Chile and is extremely rare. This local population is in the south of Arica, Camarca in Chile. Backeberg suggested that this would be his Trichocereus uyumpaensis, but Friedrich Ritter vehemently disagreed with that. More information is necessary about this topic.
Below: Trichocereus Glaucus – Fotos: Auxin
Translation of Ritter´s description (loosely)
This species forms shrubs the size of 1 – 2 meters and often several meters in diameter, sprouting mainly from shoots that lay sideways on the ground. This plant rarely pups from the top or upper parts. The shoots are 5 – 8 inches thick, erect, later lying in the lower parts, the new shoot blue-green, later gray-green.
Ribs: 7-9, very broad, obtuse, 7.5 to 13 mm high, 15-25 mm wide, notched, with transverse furrows that do not reach down to the separating grooves of the ribs,
areoles: grey felted, 1/2-3/4 inches in diameter, 1 to 2 inches free removal, let down by the humps in the notches
Spines: In the new shoot black to brown, becoming gray, straight, rigid
Marginal spines: 7-10, directed laterally, the lower and lateral 8 to 15 mm long, coarse needle-shaped, somewhat flattened, the upper the upper stronger and not sharply separated from the Central spines.
Central spines: 3-6, very spread apart, subulate in the middle, but usually closer to the top edge and almost in the position of an edge of spine, below 1.5 mm thick
Flower: Not far from the apex, 13 to 19 centimeters long, fragrant, opening in the evening, the morning still open,
Ovary: Green with fleshy green, narrowly triangular, 2-5 mm long, pointed scales and large scales raised bases. The flowers are covered with brown/black hairs.
Partition against the nectar chamber 3-4 mm thick, tube-shaped, 13 to 23 mm long, to the stylus 1to 2 mm wide, brownish, almost openly, with nectar
In addition funnel shaped, 40-65 mm long, the top 2 to 3 cm wide, pale green interior, exterior gray-green, with triangular points, 7.5 to 10 mm long, dark green scales and tufts of hair as on the ovary.
Stamens: white, greenish below, insertions missing on the top 2 to 3 centimeters of the tube to a ring on the hem, pouch pale brown, approximately at half height petals standing
Stylus: pale green, white or pale brownish above, 10 to 11 cm in length, with 14 to 18 mm fall on the 13-16 spread pale yellow stigma lobes, between the pouches or outstanding.
Büsche von 1 meter bis 2 meter höhe und oft mehreren Metern Durchmesser, sprossend hauptsächlich unten von liegenden Trieben, weniger oben sprossend. Triebe 5 bis 8 Zentimeter dick, aufrecht, später in den unteren Teilen liegend, im Neutrieb blaugrün, später mehr graugrün.
Rippen: 7-9, sehr breit, stumpf, 7,5 bis 13 mm hoch, 15 bis 25 mm breit, gekerbt, mit Querfurchen, die nicht bis zu den Trennfurchen der Rippen hinabreichen,
Areolen: Graufilzig, 1/2-3/4 Zentimeter Durchmesser, 1bis 2 Zentimeter freie Entfernung, , von den Höckern in die Kerben hinabreichend
Stacheln: Im Neutrieb schwarz bis braun, , vergrauend, gerade, starr
Randstacheln: 7 bis 10, seitlich gerichtet, die unteren und seitlichen 8 bis 15 mm lang, derb nadelförmig, etwas abgeflacht, die oberen die Oberen stärker und nicht scharf von den Mittelstacheln gesondert.
Mittelstacheln: 3 bis 6, sehr gespreizt, pfriemlich in der Mitte, aber meist näher dem oberen Rand und fast in der Stellung eines Randstachels, unten 1,5 mm dick
Blüte: Nicht weit weg vom Scheitel, 13 bis 19 zentimeter lang, duftend, abends öffnend, morgens noch offen,
Fruchtknoten: Grün mit fleischigen grünen, schmal dreieckigen, 2-5 mm langen spitzen Schuppen und großen erhabenen Schuppenbasen. Mit starken schwarzen oder braunschwarzen Wollhaaren.
Trennwand gegen die Nektarkammer 3-4 mm dick, diese tubisch, 13 bis 23 mm lang,um den Griffel 1bis 2 mm weit, bräunlich, fast offen, mit Nektar
Röhren: Darüber trichterig, 40 bis 65 mm lang, oben 2 bis 3 cm weit, innen blaß grünlich , außen graugrün, mit dreieckigen Spitzen, 7,5 bis 10 mm langen dunkelgrünen Schuppen und Haarbüscheln wie auf dem Fruchtknoten.
Staubfäden: weiß, unten grünlich, Insertionen fehlen auf den obersten 2 bis 3 Zentimetern der Röhre, bis auf einen Ring auf dem Saum, Beutel blassbraun, etwa bei halber Petalen Höhe stehend
Griffel: blassgrün, oben weiß oder blass bräunlich, 10 bis 11 cm lang, wovon 14 bis 18 mm auf die 13-16 gespreizten blaßgelben Narbenäste fallen, zwischen den Beuteln oder sie überragend.
Jeff Alaback / The version of Trichocereus glaucus from Sacred Succulents
Jeff Alaback
Patrick Noll
Jeremy Jones
Jeremy Jones
Jeremy Jones
Jeremy Jones
Patrick Noll
Delia Kisar
Delia Kisar
Delia Kisar
Sams Plants
Sebastian Preiss
Patrick Noll
Rodni Kisar
Cactus Affinity T. glaucus v. pendens
Sams Plants
In comparison to this species, check out closely related species:
Trichocereus chalaensis Cactus Affinity Echinopsis chalaensis
Trichocereus deserticolus Leonora Enking Echinopsis deserticola
Trichocereus fulvilanus Michael Wolf Echinopsis fulvilana
Trichocereus riomizquensis is a Bolivian Trichocereus species that is closely related to Trichocereus bridgesii. I count it as a close relative and potential regional form of Trichocereus bridgesii, which is only endemic to one site in Bolivia near the Rio Mizque.
The species was discovered and described by the German cactus field botanist Friedrich Ritter, who gave Chuyllas as the type locality and described it growing on steep slopes in the province Campero.
His Field Number was FR 856. Friedrich Ritter was one of the leading Cactus experts of his time and successfully ran a seed shop, in which he sold this species as seed to people all over the world. Trichocereus riomizquensis was also visited during the Sacred Succulents Fieldtrips and they found a couple of different types growing around that area.
In Ritter´s book, he published a photo of this species. Unfortunately this photo is not very good and it is one of the species that are rare in cultivation. Almost all labels on plants grown from Ritter´s seeds are lost, but the plant is definitely available. On the market, it sometimes shows up labeled as Trichocereus bridgesii, or probably also labeled as Trichocereus PC. Please note that there is a wide variety of plants from this site and the range is very big, ranging from spiny to completely spineless plants.
Ben Kamm published some photos of a Herbarium specimen that was very close to Trichocereus bridgesii as well.
Though Trichocereus riomizquensis is common in cactus collection in the USA, it is usually mislabeled. Sacred Succulents were giving away seeds after their Field Trips and some plants might have gotten into the hands of collectors. They are also selling live plants grown from their collected seeds sometimes.
This is partial description of Friedrich Ritter´s original description, including remarks on how to keep it apart from T. scopulicola.
Trichocereus riomizquensis is 6-8 centimeters thick (while Trichocereus scopulicola is 8-10 centimeters thick), it has 5-6 ribs, (T. scopulicola: 4-6), its flanks are 2 centimeters wide (Scopulicola 3-4 cm wide flanks), the flanks are less rounded than the ones on Tr. scopulicola. It has rounded areoles (while the ones on T. scopulicola are usually oval). The areoles have a very visible fluff with a diameter of 2-3 mm. The 1-5 spines are honey-colored and between 1-3 mm long. Sometimes they are even missing.
The flower of Trichocereus riomizquensis is 20 centimeters long (while the flowers of T. scopulicola are 16-20) and covered with dark brown/white wool with large scales. The fruit looks knobby.
Type locality: Chuyllas near the Rio Mizque, on very steep rock walls in the province Campero, Bolivia. Discovered from Ritter in 1958 – FR 856.
Ritter´s original photo of his Trichocereus riomizquensis. It is possible that this plant is the same strain as the American PC clone, which gets very close to this plant´s phenotype.
In comparison to Ritter´s plant, check out the PC Trichocereus clone above. (Forest and Kim Starr)
This is one of the plants from the Sacred Succulents Field Trips:
Copyright Ben Kamm, Sacredsucculents.com
Trichocereus Riomizquensis BK 10.08.7
Trichocereus riomizquensis is one of the most interesting species from the Sacred Succulents Field Trips because of its incredible range. Some plants look like the Trichocereus bridgesii-type plants with long spines from the Field Trips and some other ones look like the short spine versions that Friedrich Ritter´s description was about.
If you take a close look at the whole appearance of this plant, you can see that it has a similar areole shape to the areoles on the well known Trichocereus PC clone, also known as predominant cultivar or predominate cultivar. The flower and the overall appearance are so similar that everything else would be extremely surprising. Despite the fact that there are some very spiny plants at this site, there are some other which get extremely close to Ritter´s original photo. Though this will probably never be proven, there´s definitely reasonable doubt that this PC clone is actually a Trichocereus pachanoi.
There is a lot variation within the populations the original site near the Rio Mizque. This population is one of the most interesting Trichocereus populations out there and DNA testing should absolutely be made to look into its relationship to Trichocereus bridgesii.
Well, Ben and Sacred Succulents would be my starting point if I were in the USA. They don´t ship plants internationally, but if you have the luck to be in the country you might be able to get some cuttings. Apart from this, I do not know any sources for this species. Most of Ritter´s old plants have lost their labels meanwhile, which makes getting one even harden. I am sure that some of them show up on online market places labeled as Trichocereus bridgesii every now and then.
Copyright: Ben Kamm, Sacredsucculents.com
This photo here looks really unspectacular, but shows the area of the Rio Mizque. It is the place of origin of this rare species and most of the plants that can be found there are obviously Bridgesii related.
