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miss_vinny

Cactus ID

miss_vinny
16 years ago

I bought a very groovy little cactus today, but the tag says "Star Cactus - Astriphytum ornatum", which a quick browse of the web proved not to be true! Does anyone know what this wee cactus really is?

Image link:

Comments (7)

  • milwdave
    16 years ago

    Heya missvinny....It's an awfully small pic, but I'd say it's an Epiphyllum of some type. Probably one of the many hybrids but MIGHT be a species. But really, the pic is too small to get a good look.

    Dave
    Milwaukee

  • rjm710
    16 years ago

    It is an epiphytic, or jungle cactus. They like humidity, less light, and more organic matter (bark) than most desert cactus, but still need a well aerated, fast draining soil mix. It could be Epiphyllum, Rhipsalis, or one of some other genera.

  • ooojen
    16 years ago

    You're right; it's definitely not an Astrophytum! It's hard to tell with the picture being so small, but if the stems are angled (usually 3- or 4-sided, sometimes 5) rather than flat, try Lepismium cruciforme.

  • treehaus
    16 years ago

    I agree with ooojen, looks like it's in the Rhipsalis-Lepismium continuum. If the stems are flat, I'd say it's Rhipsalis micrantha or Lepismium crenatum. I recommend checking out the website Cactiguide, if you haven't already - along the margin on the left there are headings (in black) according to genus - I would search through the pictures under the subheadings "Rhipsalis" and "Lepismium" and see which images match the looks of your cacti. Whatever it is, it's a good looking plant.

    Here is a link that might be useful: Cactiguide

  • ooojen
    16 years ago

    Hey, another Minnesotan who grows epiphytes! Good deal!

    Another good source of information is rhipsalis.com. I've spent more than a few minutes poring over that site!

  • treehaus
    16 years ago

    Greetings ooojen,

    Nice to meet you! What do you grow?

    Treehaus

  • ooojen
    16 years ago

    What do I grow...? Let's see....
    Way too much, I think! I don't want to hijack Miss Vinny's thread, but I guess we've already given her the best advice we can.

    I've got a couple doz. or so epiphytic cacti, though not many showy Epiphyllums for some reason-- more of the Lepismium/Rhipsalis types. Got some orchids, some cacti (though few with wicked, outward-facing spines & almost no Opuntioids)-- again, many of my favorites are the interesting, atypical ones. I have some caudiciforms, quite a few Aloes & Haworthias, Euphorbias & lots of other misc. succulents. Got a few Hoyas & Dischidias, lots of stuff.
    We've had an ongoing remodeling project here, and while it's providing me with a nice big sunroom, the work, the mess, and the nowhere-to-go-with-my-plants has cost me some of my tropicals. I had a nice tropical fern collection, but it took a big hit (incl. a couple Lecanopteris :( *sigh*) I used to have more Aroids, Gesneriads and Begonias, too...still have some, and I'll probably begin to slowly replace a few over this summer, as most of the major remodeling stuff is finished, and the sunroom should be all done by fall.
    What part of the state are you in? Twin Cities area? I'm in the SE, now, but grew up about 60m west of Duluth.

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