WikiBotanicals:Echinocactus

Echinocactus (from echinos, a hedgehog, and  Cactus; plants beset with spines like a hedgehog). Hedgehog Thistle. A large genus of simple, grotesque, fleshy, ovoid or globose, ribbed, leafless, succulent plants.

Background
Flowers usually rising from the fascicles  of spines at the tops of the ribs; sepals numerous,  imbricated, united into a short tube, adnate to the base  of the ovary; outer ones bract-like; inner ones petaloid, elongated, spreading. About 200 forms have been de scribed. They are dispersed from Texas and California to Peru and Brazil, but are most numerous in Mexico. For culture, see Cactus.

Species
E. centeterius (many-spined). flower deep straw-colour, with reddish streaks down the centre; nearly 3in. across; anthers yellow. July. Plant sub-globose; tubercles in fifteen nearly vertical  series, confluent, oblong ; areole oval, white, tomentose; outer ten prickles slender, central four stronger. h. 6in. Mexico, 1840. (B. M. 3974.)

E. concinnus (neat). flower yellow. Spring. Plant globose, depressed, glaucescent, with about ten ribs, which are obtuse and sinuately crenated; areolæ remotish, woolly; spines setaceous, eight to ten, one of which is longer and stronger. h. 6in. Mexico(?), 1828. (B. M. 4415.)

E. corynodes (club-like). flower rich sulphur-yellow, 2in. in diameter when fully expanded, several from the crown of the plant; tube externally shaggy with brown wool;  petals in two or three  rows, spathulate, crenate and almost lacinated towards the  apex; stamens numerous, pale yellow, crowded around the style; stigma with the rays erect, bright scarlet. Summer. Plant sub-globose, but depressed at the top, and narrowed at the base, deep somewhat glaucous green. The sides are cut into about sixteen deep, vertical furrows, and as many prominent, crenated ridges; the creatures are from 1/2in. to 3/4in. apart, and in them is lodged a tuft of dense white wool, from which arise seven to nine spreading, rigid, pale brown spices, together with a central erecto-patent one, usually of a uniform deep brown color. h. 2in. to 3in. Mexico(?), 1837. A very show species. (B. M. 3906.)

E. crispatus (curled). flower purplish. Summer. Plant obovate or sub-globose, truncate or depressed at summit; sides cut  into about a score of vertical, narrow, undulated ridges; young  areolæ with deciduous white tomentum; outer spines eight or  nine spreading, setaceous, white, with a brown point; four central ones reddish, much larger.

E. Cummingli (Cumming's). flower golden-yellow, 1in. in diameter, with a funnel-shaped tube, numerous, sessile. June. Plant  nearly globose, greyish-green, contracted slightly at the base; tubercles about 1/3in. in diameter, arranged in spirals, sub-hemispherical ; areolæ small, nearly circular; outer spines about  fifteen to twenty, strict, slender, erecto-patent, pale yellowish,  the upper rather the longest, central two or three shorter and stouter. h. 3in. Bolivia, 1847. (B. M. 6097.)

E. gibbosus (gibbous). flower white. July. Plant roundish, deeply sixteen-angled; angles with a remarkable swelling below each parcel of spines. h. 6in. West Indies and Central America, 1808. (B. R. 137.) Varieties:
 * E. g. nobilis (noble). flower white. July. Plant deep glossy olive-green, oblong, with fewer angles than in the type; angles and spines middle-sized, straight. h. 2ft. Mexico, 1796.

E. grusonii (Golden Barrel Cactus, Golden Ball or, amusingly, Mother-in-Law's Cushion) is a well known species of cactus native to central Mexico from San Luis Potosi to Hidalgo. Described by Heinrich Hildmann in 1891.

E. Haynii (Hayne's). flower brilliant purple-red, very large. Stem  cylindrical, light green; twenty-five or more ribs with rounded edges; areolæ small, oval, with pearly-grey tomentum; spines very numerous, greyish, with brown points. h. 6in. to 12in. Peru.

E. hexædrophorus (hexædron-bearing). flower white and pale red. June. Plant globose, glaucous, flat at top, tuberculate;  tubercles hexædrous, disposed in two series, vertical and spiral;  areolæ immersed, tomentose; spines four to seven, radiating, unequal, central one longer and stronger. h. 6in. North Mexico. (B. M. 4311.)

E. Le Contei (Le Conte's). flower petals lemon-yellow, with a brownish tint along the midrib. Plant ovate or cylindrical. Ribs  twenty to thirty, compressed, sub-obtuse, interrupted; areolæ elongate-oblong; four principal central spines 2in. to 2 1/2in. long; lateral ones more quadrangular. Mexico. A gigantic species, sometimes attaining a height of 5ft., and a diameter of 2ft.

E. longihamatus (long-hooked), flower yellow. July. Plant sub-globose, green, thirteen-angled. Ribs strong, acutish areolæ large, oblong, shortly woolly; outer nine prickles straight, radiating, inner four strong, upper three straight; central one long, flattened, hooked. h. 3in. Texas and Mexico, 1836. (B. M. 4632.)

E. multiflorus (many-flowered), flower white, large. July. Plant  globose, rather glaucous, tuberculate, hardly ribbed; tubercles  large, mammæform, disposed in an irregular vertical series; areolæ tomentose; prickles five, strong, recurved nearly equal. h. 1 1/2in. Probably native of Mexico. (B. M. 4181.)

B. obvallatus (fortified), flower surrounded by numerous erect spines; petals purple, with a whitish border. Stem obovate,  nearly globose, depressed at the summit, with about a score not very prominent vertical ribs. h. 4in. to 6in. South Mexico.

E. Ottonis (Otto's), flower delicate lemon-colour, sessile, in threes or fours upon the summit of the stem, with bright red stigmas. July. Plant orbicular-cylindrical, contracted at the base, with  about twelve vertical deep furrows; the ridges between the  furrows obtuse, studded with rather closely-set small tufts of  reddish wool; from these arise three or four rather strong spines,  of a deep purplish-brown colour, which stand forward and are  sometimes curved, and several lesser pale-coloured spreading ones. h. 3in. to 4in. Brazil, and probably also Mexico. (B. M.  3107.)

E. pectiniferus (pectinated). flower pale green, rose, solitary, two  or more from the same crown, and springing from near the top: large for the size of the plant, very beautiful. April. Plant sub-  rotund or ovate, rather suddenly contracted above the middle,  depressed and even umbilicated at the top, deeply costate, with  about twenty prominent costæ, which are obtuse and somewhat  mammillose at the margins; in the centre of each mammilla is an  oblong, white, woolly, close-placed areola, with numerous rather short spines, whose arrangement is very peculiar. They are of  two kinds; the greater number spread out almost horizontally in  two rows, closely placed in a pectinated manner, whitish or  yellowish-white, tipped with red or brown, almost united at their  base, the middle ones the longest; between these two rows are a few smaller ones. h. 4in. Mexico, 1844. A very showy species. (B. M. 4190.)

E. Pentlandi (Pentland's). flower large, in proportion to the size of  the plant, springing from the sides upon the ribs, solitary, but  three or four are expanded on one specimen at the same time;  calyx tube green, becoming yellow above, and beset with small  pilose and ciliated scales; limb of the calyx yellow-red; petals deep rose; stamens nearly white. July. Plant nearly globose, sessile, about 2in. across, depressed and umbilicate at the top,  deeply marked with about twelve furrows and as many prominent obtuse ribs; glaucous-green. Ribs lobed or remotely crenate,  distantly beset with little woolly tufts or areolæ (pulvinuli), from  which rise about six slightly curved, spreading, rather stout spines, each 1/2in. long, or a little more. (B. M. 4124.)

E. Pfeifferi (Pfeiffer's). flower yellow. Plant between cylindric and globular, about 1ft. high and 9in. in diameter; ridges l 1/2in. to 2in. deep, and 1 1/2in. across at the base, triangular, deep green; spines in clusters 1in. apart, several, yellowish-white, rigid, about 1in. long. South Mexico.

E. polycephalus (Cotton top cactus). Mojave Desert. The stems are sometimes solitary, but more often in clusters of as many as 30, each up to 0.6 m tall. The spines are yellow to red. The plants grow in some of the most extreme arid environments in the American Southwest, such as Death Valley National Park, and the Mojave National Preserve. They have a reputation for being difficult in cultivation, and are rarely seen in cactus collections. Variety:
 * E. p. polycephalus.  California and Mojave Desert.  A shrub, stem succulent.
 * E. p. xeranthemoides.  Great Basin and  Mojave Desert.  Flower Jun. to Aug. in rocky hills, slopes, and ledges of canyons.  Spines red to straw colored, canescent, or puberulent.

E. rhodophthalmus (red-eyed). flower produced from the summit of the plant, large, handsome; calyx tube about 1in. long, obconical, quite destitute of spines or setæ ; sepals or scales ovate,  brown, with pale margins; petals bright rose, spreading, long,  linear-spathulate, acute; stigma of nine or ten spreading bright yellow rays, covering the anthers. August. Plant sub-columnar,  but tapering upwards almost from the base, deeply cut into about  eight or nine furrows, the ridges obtuse, but formed into lobes or  tubercles by transverse lines; areolæ furnished with obscure  wool; spines about nine, strong, straight, tapering, flattened, at  first deep purple, afterwards pale and almost colourless, mostly spreading, but the central one, which is much the longest and strongest, stands forward. h. 4in. to 5in. San Luis Potosi, Mexico, 1850. (B. M. 4486.)

E. Scopa (Broom). flower yellow, with the petals, which are serrated at top, in two series. April. Plant oblong, many-ribbed; fascicles of spines approximate, woolly at base; outer spines white, twenty to forty, weak; central three or four, purple, stiff. h. 6in. Brazil, 1847. (B. R. xxv. 24.)

E. Simpsoni (Simpson's). flower yellowish-green or purple, rather small, but numerous on the upper part of the stem. Plant dwarf, rarely exceeding 6in. to 8in. high, usually much less; tubercles loosely arranged, 1/2in. to 3/4in. long, with several white spreading spines, and a central yellowish one, Colorado. 1876. Nearly or quite hardy. (Gn., April. 1877; G. C. n. s., vi. 293.)

E. tubiflorus (tube-flowered). flower large, rising from one of the  fascicles of spines; tube very long, a little enlarged upwards,  brownish-green, scaly, each scale with a long tuft of slender, flaccid hairs; petals spreading, white, oblong, much acuminated. Plant sub-globose, much depressed, umbilicated at the top, and  deeply cut into about eleven very prominent, compressed, slightly undulated angles, which have live or six woolly tubercles, each  giving rise to a fascicle of six to eight strong black spines, from 1/2in. to 3/4in. long. Mexico. (B. M. 3627.)

E. Visnaga (Visnaga, among the Mexican settlers means a  toothpick), flower yellow, numerous. Plant large, elliptical, many-  angled, with narrow sinuses and deep sinuated tubercled angles;  top very woolly; areolæ approximate, rhomboid, immersed, glabrous, pale brown; prickles four, strong, central one 2in. long, the other three deflexed, shorter. h. 7ft. Mexico, 1847. A plant of this species, which measured 9 1/2ft. in circumference,  and weighed one ton, was an inmate of the succulent house at Kew, in 1846. From injury sustained during its conveyance to England, it did not long survive.

E. Williamsii (Williams's). flower pale greenish-rose, small, nearly solitary. Spring. Plant tufted, depressed, glaucous, six to eight- ribbed; ribs broad, convex, tubercled, unarmed. h. 3in. Mexico 1845. (B. M. 4296.)