Synonyms:

Echinopsis ancistrophora
Echinopsis ancistrophora var. graulichii
Echinopsis ancistrophora var. hamatacantha
Echinopsis ancistrophora var. polyancistra
Echinopsis leucorhodantha
Echinopsis lobivioides
Echinopsis obrepanda subsp. tapecuana
Echinopsis pelecyrhachis
Echinopsis pelecyrhachis var. lobivioides
Echinopsis polyancistra
Echinopsis tapecuana
Lobivia ancistrophora
Lobivia graulichii

Habitat:

E. Subdenudata is native to Argentina Northwest, Bolivia and Paraguay. In its habitat the plant can spread up to 1800 m of altitude. This species grows in many habitat types, such as grasslands, shrublands, and forests. The cultivar Fuzzy navel has garden origin.

Description:

E. Subdenudata cv. Fuzzy navel is a cactus belonging to the Cactaceae botanical family. The plant has a round ball-shaped stem, bright green without spines. The stem is arranged in 8-12 ribs, divided by furrows. On the edge of each ribs there are small cream-colored areoles. The areoles are big and bear short greyish spines usually hidden by areolar wool. The plant can reach 12 cm in diameter and can be solitary or offsetting from the base. Blooming occurs in late spring and throughout the summer and blossom are borne near the top of the plant. Flowers are large, pinkish, funnel-shaped with long stalks up to 15 cm. Flowers are made up of many petals and in the center there are yellow anthers which make the plant wonderful. This species has a night-blooming, very rapid therefore flowers open at the morning and remain opened all the night long, then at the second day they start to wither. The cultivar fuzzy navel differs from the standard cultivar in having larger, fluffier areoles and more pink flowers. The plant differs from the monstrous form for the more regular appearance. The cultivar Fuzzy navel is more sensitive that the normal plant so it needs to be grafted to increase its resistance to adversity.

Cultivation:

The plant has a slow growth rate but it easy to cultivate. The best sun-exposure is in bright place but is recommended to avoid direct sun-light in the hottest periods. The minimum temperatures that the plant can withstand are 10 ° C, below this temperature it begins to suffer 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 can be done regularly in Spring and Summer: 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. If the pot starts to be too small for the plant you can repot the plant 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, by seed or by grafting. 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°. By grafting you can use other cacti species. Make the cut as close to the growing tip as possible, then chose a stock with a diameter similar to that of the scion. After the cut, wash away the latex until it no longer remains. Bring the scion closer to the stock and held together with elastic bands. The plants should be left in an airy and shady place for 7-10 days before the bands are removed.

Curiosity:

As for Echinocactus and Echinocereus genres, the name comes from Latin word Echinos, that means porcupine, which indicates the presence of numerous and robust thorns. In this variant, even the -opsis suffix reinforces this concept as it means “the look of”. Compared to its thorny relatives, however, the Echinopsis gives you abundant and frequent blooms. The name “subdenudata” is a Latin word that means “almost naked” and this because this species is usually spineless.

Official Web Site:
www.giromagi.com

Italian Blog:
www.giromagicactus.com

Tips:
Read our advice