The cactus and succulent show (4)

The cactus and succulent society show (3)

The annual cactus and succulent society show (2)

The annual Cactus and Succulent Show

The annual Maltese cactus and succulent show was a huge success. Twelve members participated in the show which hosted several different cacti and succulents from several Genera. The pictures speak for themselves. Well done!

The cactus show lasted for three days. On Friday 24th October the show was open to members only while on the next two days it was open to the general public.

Just flowered

Mammillaria guelzowiana has the largest flowers in the genus Mammillaria. It is one of the soft-bodied Mamms and therefore needs to be left very dry before watering again.

Because of its hooked spines it needs to be placed where it does not get attached to clothing. The tubercles can get very easily damaged and may lead to rot. It has numerous radial spines reportedly from 60 to 80.

It comes from Rio Nazas valley in the
state of Durango, Mexico.

The top picture shows M. guelzowiana before the flowers opened.

Middle picture shows several plants in flower. Flowers are very showy with deeper throat and they completely hide the plants .

Bottom picture shows a close up of the flowers. Some are so dense that they had to overlap.

Pictures taken by Amante Darmanin

Mammillaria luethyi

This fascinating cactus has an interesting history behind it.

The story goes back to April 1952 when Dr. Norman Hill Boke, (1913-1996) a Scholar and Author on anatomical features in the Cactaceae, was on his way from Mexico to the USA. He happened to stop at the Crosby Hotel in Ciudad Acuna, a town at the border on the Mexican side in the state of Coahuila.

He was surprised to find a miniature cactus growing in a 1lb Coffee can. Inquiring about the cactus he learned that some plants were given to the lady operator of the hotel by a mining prospector in Coahuila. It is unfortunate that we do not know who this sharp-eyed mining prospector was. Boke took some pictures of the plants and sent them to Ladislaus Cutak at the Missouri Botanical Garden in St. Louis, USA.

Intrigued by the pictures, Cutak corresponded with the lady operator of the Crosby Hotel. He managed to acquire two specimens of this mysterious cactus, but they were not in good condition. Both plants eventually died. The plant remained a mystery. That is until May 1996.

Meanwhile Cutak published a description of the plant and described it as one of the tiniest and daintiest cacti in existence. He could not place it in any known Genus.

In 1959, Backberg was the first to publish the pictures and to surmise that it could not be placed in the Genus Turbinicarpus because the flowers emerged from the side of the stem and not from the top. He provisionally listed the plant under Neogomesia.

Buxboum and Kladiwa in 1969 described a new Genus Normanbokea. Buxboum was of the idea that the mysterious plant belonged to this Genus.

Other Authors contributed their views.

In May 1996, two known Cactophyles Jonas M. Luthy and George S. Hinton, studied the maps of Coahuila, deduced possible locations where it could be and rediscovered the cactus. The plant was named Mammillaria luethyi for one of the discoverers. The plants grow on horizontal limestone slabs.

In cultivation the plants are usually grafted to speed up their growth but plants can also be grown on their own roots.

The top three pictures were photographed under a light microscope where several pictures were taken and combined by a computer process known as photo stacking to increase the depth of field. The pictures show the individual minute spines which branches to much smaller spines in the form of a parasol which is unique in the Cactaceae. It is arguable the prettiest Mammillaria.

All photos taken by Amante Darmanin

A touch of colour

Top picture: This cactus bears the name of Parodia cafayatensis but is clearly a form of Parodia microsperma. The name microsperma denotes small seeds. Seed size compares with Blossfeldia or Aztekium.

Distibution: From Argentina; Caramarca, Santiago del Estero, Salta, Tucuman.


Bottom picture: Mammillaria herrerae comes from the Mexican State of Queretaro, from near Cadereyta and Vista Hermosa.

It is not an easy plant to grow as Mammillaria goes. Such plants are often found grafted in cultivation. In Malta it is more easier than continental Europe due to warmer climate.

Pictures submitted by Amante Darmanin

April flowers continued

Top picture: Neoporteria senilis ssp. coimasensis. This subspecies comes from Valparaiso, Chile. The Genus Neoporteria has been dumped in the Genus Eriosyce, a Genus that previously contained about four species.

Bottom picture: Mila caespitosa comes from near Santa Clara, Lima, Peru. In fact the Genus name Mila is an Anagram of Lima. According to some authorities there is only one species that is very variable and hence more widespread than the type locality mentioned above, while others recognise four species.

It is quite small and branches from the base resembling the North Americaan Echinocereus in growth habit.

Both pictures supplied by Amante Darmanin

April flowers continued

Top picture:
Turbinicarpus pseudomacrochele has flowers that range from white to nearly magenta. It is a very small species as are all Turbinicarpus sensu stricto. It is not difficult to grow in cultivation. In habitat it has been recorded from near Bernal, Queretaro, near Cadereyta also in Queretaro and between Ixmiquilpan and Pachuca in the state of Hidalgo.

Bottom picture: Mammillaria candida is very widespread in its habitat, in the central Mexican platau (from San Luis Potosi, Coahuila, Nuevo Leon and Tamaulipas). Yet, plants are rarely found in large numbers in each individual locality.

They differ from completly white spined plants to pink tipped spines to pink spine rings alternate with white. Some can be found solitary while others have a clumping habit.

Seeds are smooth (finely caniculate) which are different from other Mammillaria species. At one time there was attempts to place this plant in a Genus of its own, Mammilloydia, but recent trends are in favour of keeping it under Mammillaria. Easy to grow in cultivation.

Both pictures submitted by Amante Darmanin

April flowers

Top: Echinocereus pulchellus v. sharpii is one of the few Echinocereus having white flowers or very pale pink as is in this picture. It remains small both in habitat and cultivation.

It is very rare in habitat. Mexico, Nuevo Leon, Near San Roberto.

Bottom: The locality of Mammillaria sheinvariana has been destroyed by the building of a dam. In cultivation it offsets profusely producing a sizable clump in a few years. Mexico, Queretaro, Mesa de Leon.

Pictures submitted by Amante Darmanin

Mammillaria humboldtii

This gem of a cactus is found in the Mexican State of Hidalgo. There are several forms in cultivation. The one shown here has an unkempt appearance to its spines while others are more neat. It is not very difficult to cultivate in Malta, as long as it is kept in a sheltered place and watered sparsely in the growing season only.

Picture supplied by Amante Darmanin

A few flowers

Top picture shows Turbinicarpus alonsoi. It caused a furor in the cactus world,when it was discovered in 1996 by Glass and Arias, because of its striking flowers and its resemblance to an Ariocarpus.

T. alonsoi contains several alkaloids , among them pellotine which causes convulsions.


Bottom picture shows Gymnocactus subteraneus v. zaragosae. In its native habitat this species grows among tall grass. Through evolution it has grown a tall neck to enable it to compete for sunlight.


Pictures submitted my Amante Darmanin