Synonyms:

There are not synonyms for this plant.

Habitat:

Echinocereus mapimiensis is native to Mexico Northeast where the plant grows among shrubs and can spread up to 350 m of altitude.

Description:

Echinocereus mapimiensis is a small cactus with showy flowering belonging to the Cactaceae botanical family. The cactus has a solitary habit and in age can branch from the base. The plant can reach up to 30 cm in height and 25 cm in diameter. The stem is barrel-shaped to globose, smooth, bluish green to grey green in color, arranged in 6 rounded ribs distinct by slightly furrow. The areoles are few, small, whitish, woolly and bearing the spines. There are 4-8 short radial spines and 2-4 whitish to yellowish, thin, 2 cm long central spines. The roots are thick and tuberous and grow vertically downward and are specialized to store water and withstand periods of drought. Blooming occurs from the early spring to the late summer and blossom are borne near the apex of the stem. The flowers are funnel-shaped, dark brownish to maroon with lighter cream colored margins and with bright green central stamens. The flowers have many petals with central reddish stripes and can reach up to 6 cm in diameter. The cactus forms small, spherical green fruits.

Cultivation:

This is a slow growing plant, easy to cultivate. The best sun-exposure is in bright place but is recommended to avoid direct sun-light in the hottest periods. The plant does not like temperatures below 8°C so it needs to be placed indoors in the coldest periods. The perfect soil is a well-drained soil that let the water to drain away and avoid root rot. To achieve this feature, you can mix the pumice soil, clay and soil. Remember to use a perforating pot to drain excess water. Watering is very important for this species and should be done well: during the vegetative period you can water the plant (every 7 days), checking that the soil is completely dry before watering again; in winter you should stop the watering to allow the plant to enter dormancy. If you want a faster and lush growth you can fertilize the plant once a month during the growing season with the specific fertilizers for succulents; stop fertilizing throughout the winter. You should repot the plant every 2 years in a pot 2 cm wider. Repotting should be done early in the growing season with fresh new potting soil. Be careful to red spiders and mealy bugs.

Propagation:

Propagation can be done by cutting or by seed. By cutting you can make the cut during the spring and then let the cutting dry; after a few days the cut surface will dry and a callus will form, then place the cutting in a mixture of sand, soil and pumice. To increase the success of propagation you can make two or more cuttings at the same time. For cuttings it is recommended temperatures around 20 °C. By seed it is very simple to propagate the plant, it is enough to sow the seed in a sandy loam soil and keep it with a high level of humidity and at temperature of 14 C°.

Curiosity:

The name is composed by two Latin words: Echinos, that means porcupine, and Cereus, a common and beautiful specie of columnar cacti. So the echinocereus is similar to a cereus, but thornier.

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