2024 Author: Gavin MacAdam | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 13:38
Echinopsis (lat. Echinopsis) - a genus of plants in the Cactus family. Echinopsis grows naturally in Brazil, Uruguay, Paraguay, Bolivia and Argentina. The name was proposed by Karl Linnaeus back in 1737.
Characteristics of culture
Echinopsis is one of the most common types of cacti. Young echinopsis have a spherical shape, slightly elongate with age and become cylindrical or columnar. The stem is dark green, symmetrical, smooth with shine, has sharp and even ribs. Areoles are large, with short hair, and are equally spaced from each other. The spines are hard, short or of medium length.
The root system is strong, horizontal. The flowers are large, funnel-shaped, up to 10-15 cm in diameter, with seven rows of petals, most varieties and hybrids have a pleasant aroma. The flower tube is pubescent. Flowering is short, maximum three days, which depends entirely on the temperature of the content. The fruits are ovoid. Seeds are smooth, shiny, black in color, reaching 0, 1-0, 2 cm in diameter.
Conditions of detention
Echinopsis is a light-loving plant, grows well on windowsills and rooms with bright lighting, they treat direct sunlight negatively, although a small amount is tolerated calmly. The optimum temperature for keeping is 22-27C in summer, 10-12C in winter. Air humidity for echinopsis does not play a significant role, it grows easily and develops in rooms with dry air.
Care
Echinopsis needs rare watering in spring and summer, watering is carried out as the top layer of soil in pots dries up. In winter, at an air temperature of 10-15C, plants are not watered, or watered very rarely. Top dressing is carried out once a month exclusively during the period of active growth and flowering. For top dressing, special fertilizers for cacti are used. Fertilizer should not be applied in winter.
Echinopsis are resistant to diseases and pests. Rarely are affected by the scale insect, mealybug and spider mite. If optimal conditions are not observed, plants are exposed to the following diseases: rust, root rot, late blight, dry cactus rot and various kinds of spotting.
Reproduction and transplantation
Echinopsis is propagated by seeds and children formed on old plants. Sowing seeds is carried out in spring in containers filled with a moist substrate consisting of leafy soil, finely crushed charcoal and well-washed river sand in a ratio of 1: 1, 2: 1. Before sowing, the seeds are kept in warm water for several hours. Crops before the emergence of shoots are kept at a temperature of 17-20C, ventilated and regularly sprayed with warm, settled water.
When Echinopsis is reproduced by children, the planting material is separated from the mother plant, dried for several days and planted in moist fine-grained sand before rooting.
Echinopsis is transplanted in the spring once every 2-3 years. For transplanting, it is recommended to use low bowls filled with a ready-made substrate for cacti with a pH 6 reaction. There must be good drainage at the bottom of the pot. For 6-8 days after transplanting, the plants are not watered, this is necessary in order to avoid decay of the roots.
Common types
* Echinopsis sharp-edged (lat. Echinopsis oxigona) - the species is represented by plants with a spherical stem, reaching 5-25 cm in diameter. The ribs are rounded, often with tubercles. One plant can have 8 to 14 ribs. Areolae slightly recessed, white. The spines are thick, needle-shaped, white. Flowers can be pink or pink-red in color, up to 22 cm long. Fruits are ovoid, green, up to 2 cm in diameter.
* Echinopsis Eyriesii (Latin Echinopsis eyriesii) - the species is represented by plants with a dark green stem with 11-18 rounded ribs. The spines are subulate, barely noticeable due to the fluffy whitish lumps located on the areoles. The flowers are white or pale pink, often with a dark pink stripe along the central part of the petal.
* Echinopsis tuboflora (Latin Echinopsis tubiflora) - the species is represented by plants with a green stem of a cylindrical shape with 11-12 pronounced ribs. Areoles are white, gray, or black. Spines are yellow with a dark end. The flowers are funnel-shaped, white, up to 10 cm in diameter.
* Echinopsis hook-nosed (lat. Echinopsis ancistrophora) - the species is represented by plants with a spherical flattened green stem. Ribs with prominent tubercles. Areoles are light, have 3-10 flexible and spreading white spines, 1.5 cm long. Flowers are white, pink or red, reach 10-15 cm in diameter, have no aroma. The fruits are green or greenish-purple, 1 cm in diameter.
