Echinocactus grusonii

Echinocactus grusonii
	Echinocactus grusonii
Systematics
Order :	Clove-like (Caryophyllales)
Family :	Cactus family (Cactaceae)
Subfamily :	Cactoideae
Tribe :	Cacteae
Genre :	Echinocactus
Type :	Echinocactus grusonii
Scientific name
	Echinocactus grusonii
	Hildm.

Flowers of Echinocactus grusonii

Echinocactus grusonii is a species of plant in the genus Echinocactus from the cactus family(Cactaceae). The specific epithet honors the German entrepreneur and cactus collector Hermann Gruson . German trivial names are "Goldkugelkaktus" and "Schwiegermutterstuhl". The German Cactus Society , the Society of Austrian Cactus Friends and the Swiss Cactus Society voted Echinocactus grusonii 2008 "Cactus of the Year".

description

Echinocactus grusonii grows individually, rarely sprouting. The light green, spherical to short cylindrical shoots are 20 to 130 centimeters high and 40 to 80 centimeters in diameter. The plant bodies have 21 to 37 ribs . The young thorns are golden yellow in color and darken with age. The 3 to 4 central spines are straight protruding. They become up to 2 inches long. The 8 to 10 radial spines are slightly spread and up to 3 inches long.

The yellow flowers often do not open completely. They are 4 to 6 inches long and 3 to 5 inches in diameter. The flowers only appear in older specimens. The spherical, somewhat elongated, greenish fruits are covered with white wool. They are 1.2 to 2 inches long and contain smooth, glossy brown seeds .

Distribution, systematics and endangerment

Echinocactus grusonii is found very locally on steep slopes and cliffs in the Mexican states of Hidalgo and Querétaro . It was first described in 1886 by Heinrich Hildmann .

Echinocactus grusonii is in the endangered Red List species the IUCN as " Critically Endangered (CR) ", d. H. classified critically endangered. The habitat at Zimapán in Querétaro has been almost completely destroyed by the construction of the Zimapán dam , which dams the Río Moctezuma .

proof

literature

Edward F. Anderson : The Great Cactus Lexicon . Eugen Ulmer KG, Stuttgart 2005, ISBN 3-8001-4573-1 , p. 188 .
Curt Backeberg : Die Cactaceae: Handbuch der Kakteenkunde . 2nd Edition. tape V . Gustav Fischer Verlag, Stuttgart New York 1984, ISBN 3-437-30384-8 , p. 2635 ff .

Individual evidence

↑ Urs Eggli, Leonard E. Newton: Etymological Dictionary of Succulent Plant Names . Birkhäuser 2004, ISBN 3-540-00489-0 , p. 99.
↑ Mother-in-law's chair is Cactus of the Year 2008
^ H. Hildmann: In: Deutsche Garten-Zeitung . Wochenschrift für Gärtner und Gartenfreunde, Vol. 5, 1886, pp. 27–28
↑ Echinocactus grusonii in the Red List of Threatened Species of the IUCN 2009. Posted by Fitz Maurice, WA & Fitz Maurice, B., 2002. Retrieved on January 7 of 2010.

Web links

Commons : Echinocactus grusonii - album with pictures, videos and audio files

[1] Urs Eggli, Leonard E. Newton: Etymological Dictionary of Succulent Plant Names . Birkhäuser 2004, ISBN 3-540-00489-0 , p. 99.

[2] Mother-in-law's chair is Cactus of the Year 2008

[3] H. Hildmann: In: Deutsche Garten-Zeitung . Wochenschrift für Gärtner und Gartenfreunde, Vol. 5, 1886, pp. 27–28

[4] Echinocactus grusonii in the Red List of Threatened Species of the IUCN 2009. Posted by Fitz Maurice, WA & Fitz Maurice, B., 2002. Retrieved on January 7 of 2010.