Cactus family. Probably the most common cactus in our country, found in nature from Northern Bolivia to Southern Argentina, grows in Paraguay, Uruguay and Southern Brazil. This group of cacti has more than 50 species, there are many hybrids in the culture, this makes it difficult to determine them. Young echinopsis are ball-shaped, then extended and the adult plant has a cylindrical stem. The flowers are large, long-tubed, mostly white or pink, sometimes fragrant. Some species grow singly, others in groups.
The genus Echinopsis, in addition to echinopsis itself, also includes cacti belonging to lobivia and pseudo-mobiles .
Echinopsis acute Echinopsis oxygona - with a green large spherical or slightly flattened stem. 8-14 ribs, lumpy. Areoles are light gray, rounded. Radial spines 3-15, needle-shaped, up to 2.5 cm long, gray, brown at the ends . Central spines 1-5, thick, needle-shaped, up to 3 cm long, gray-brown, sometimes absent. The flowers are pink, pink-red.
Echinopsis eyriesii - with a dark green stem, which is initially spherical, then short-cylindrical - up to 20 cm tall and 15 cm in diameter. 11-18 ribs. Areoles are rounded, whitish or gray-yellow. Radial spines 6-10, straight, in fluffy areoles barely noticeable, about 3 mm. Central spines 4-8, they are dark brown, stiff, up to 5 mm long . The flowers are long, up to 25 cm long, 9-10 cm in diameter, white or pink.
Echinopsis tubecolor Echinopsis tubiflora - with a green stem, which is only initially spherical, then cylindrical, 8 cm in diameter. 11-12 pronounced ribs with deep grooves. Radial spines up to 20, straight, yellow-brown, 2-2.5 cm long. Central spines 3-4, they are also yellow-brown, about 3.5 cm long. The flowers are very large, white or pale pink, funnel-shaped, up to 24 cm long and 10 cm in diameter.
Echinopsis ancistropha Echinopsis ancistrophora is a small cactus, with a dark green stem, usually single, spherical in shape, slightly flattened from above, 6 cm tall, 8 cm in diameter. Ribs - 15-20, tuberous. Areoles are small, creamy. The central spine is one, light brown, up to 2 cm long, hooked. Sometimes there are more central ones (up to 4) or not at all. Radial spines 3-10, up to 1.5 cm long, bent back, light gray. The flowers are arranged laterally (from the sides of the stem), narrowly funnel-shaped, 12-16 cm long, in various colors .
Echinopsis subdenudata subdenudata - literally "almost naked," areoles with white pubescence. The stems are grey-green, solitary, globose or slightly flattened above, 5-8 cm tall, 7-12 cm in diameter. Ribs - 10-12, areoles are small, cream, at a distance of up to 1.5 cm. Spines are grayish-brown, very short, inconspicuous under the hairs of the areoles. Central spines - one, directed up to 2 mm long. Radial spines - 3-7, up to 1.5 mm long. Flowers are white or light pink, apical, narrowly funnel-shaped, slightly curved, up to 20 cm long.
Echinopsis care
In general, echinopsis are not demanding, but certain conditions should be observed for successful flowering. In most cases, echinopsis flowers appear on the shadow side of the stem. It is undesirable to turn the plant with the other side if it is going to bloom.
Temperature: Normal in summer, preferably kept outdoors, with a difference in night and day temperatures of 5-10 ° C. On the balcony in central Russia, you can take out on the glazed balcony in April. In winter, the rest period at a temperature of 8-10 ° C, not lower than + 5 ° C, in dryness. It is these conditions that are characteristic of those places where Echinopsis grow in nature .
Lighting: Bright diffused light, direct sun. Echinopsis can stand in the sun only after gradual training, otherwise the plant can get burns, but even then, it is better to provide shade in especially hot hours in summer (from 12 to 15).
Watering: Moderate from spring to autumn, after drying the top layer of the earth. In winter, without irrigation or with rare irrigation, the frequency of which depends on the air temperature .
Fertilizer: March to August once a month with cactus fertilizer at the recommended dose.
Air humidity: not demanding on high air humidity, but in nature they are accustomed to fogs, evening and morning dew. Therefore, the main thing is not to keep them near the source of directed dry air (batteries).
Transplantation: Soil - 2 parts of turf, 2 parts of leaf, 1 part of sand and brick or gravel crumb. The roots of echinopsis are well developed, so the dishes are selected more than for most other cacti, but not too spacious. Young plants are transplanted annually, old in a year. Good drainage to the bottom of the pot is mandatory.
Reproduction: Easily propagated by children and seeds. They bloom in the fourth or fifth year.
Despite the fact that echinopsis are easily propagated by children, the most beautiful and healthy plants are obtained by growing them from seeds.
Seeds can be bought, or you can get it yourself. To do this, it is necessary, however, to have two flowering echinopsis, which are not related, i.e. themselves obtained from different plants. Then the pollination of these two plants is carried out (for this they use a squirrel brush). Subsequently, a berry forms in the place of the flower, in which the seeds ripen.
Growing problems
Despite the fact that echinopsis are quite unpretentious cacti, they still need to pay enough attention. Lack of lighting leads to stretching and thinning of the stem, as a result of which a ruining constriction is formed on the plant. On the contrary, if echinopsis is sharply exposed to the sun after winter, burns may appear.
If a rusty coating appeared on the skin of echinopsis mainly in the apex area, then, most likely, this is a red tick lesion. Echinopsis are also attacked by scutes and worms.
See also section Cacti