Synonyms:

Chilita painteri
Ebnerella painteri
Mammillaria crinita subsp. painteri
Neomammillaria painteri
Mammillaria painteri

Habitat:

Mammillaria painter is native to Mexico Northeast but Mammillaria cv. Caterpincy has garden origin.

Description:

Mammillaria cv. Caterpincy is a small perennial cactus belonging to the Cactaceae botanical family. The cactus has a cluster habit, offsets from the base and can reach up to 8 cm in height and 8 cm in diameter. The stem is globose to spherical, dark green in color, made of prominent, conical to cylindrical tubercles. At the top of the tubercles are located the areoles. The areoles are small, white and bear the spines. The central spines are usually absent, the 0-6 radial spines are short, thin, hair-like and white in color. Blooming occurs from the early spring to the late summer and blossoms are borne at the apex of the stem in a ring, forming a crown of flowers. The flowers are funnel-shaped, light pink with white stamens at the center of the tube. The fruits are globose, green to bright red in color containing brownish seeds.

Cultivation:

This is a slow growing plant, easy to cultivate. The plant needs a full light sun exposure but is recommended to avoid direct sun-light in the hottest periods. The plant does not like temperatures below 5°C so it needs to be placed indoors in the coldest periods. The soil should be mixed with pumice, clay and loam to allow the drainage and prevent the root rot, the plant is prone to it indeed. Using a perforating pot, you can 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. About fertilization, for this plant is sufficient to fertilize moderately during the growing season with the specific fertilizers for succulents and stop fertilizing during 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 of the genus come from the Latin word ‘Mammilla’ that means ‘teat’ or ‘nipple’ and refers to the numerous, nipple-shaped tubercles of their stem, that are the distinctive feature of this genus.

Official Web Site:
www.giromagi.com

Italian Blog:
www.giromagicactus.com

Tips:
Read our advice