Echinocactus

Echinocactus is a genus of cacti in the subfamily Cactoideae.[1] The generic name derives from the Ancient Greek εχινος (echinos), meaning "spiny," and cactus. It and Ferocactus are the two genera of barrel cactus. Members of the genus usually have heavy spination and relatively small flowers. The fruits are copiously woolly, and this is one major distinction between Echinocactus and Ferocactus. Propagation is by seed.

Echinocactus
Golden Barrel cactus, Huntington Desert Garden.jpg
Echinocactus grusonii
Scientific classification
Kingdom:
Plantae
(unranked):
Angiosperms
(unranked):
Eudicots
(unranked):
Core eudicots
Order:
Caryophyllales
Family:
Cactaceae
Subfamily:
Cactoideae
Tribe:
Cacteae
Genus:
Echinocactus

Link & Otto[1]
Type species
Echinocactus platyacanthus
Species

See text

Synonyms

Brittonrosea Speg.
Echinofossulocactus Lawr.
Homalocephala Britton & Rose[1]

Perhaps the best known species is the golden barrel (Echinocactus grusonii) from Mexico, an easy-to-grow and widely cultivated plant. Though common in the houseplant and landscape industry, the golden barrel has become very rare in habitat.

SpeciesEdit

As of 2020, the genus includes 6 accepted species out of hundreds of plants having the name.[2]

ImageScientific nameCommon NameDistribution
Echinocactus grusonii Cactaceae.jpgEchinocactus grusonii Hildm.Golden Barrel CactusQuerétaro, and in the state of Hidalgo, Mexico
Echinocactus horizonthalonius (5669467725).jpgEchinocactus horizonthalonius Lem.Devil's Head, Silverbell Cactus, Turk's Head CactusGolden Barrel Cactussouthwestern United States and northern Mexico
Echinocactus parryi.jpgEchinocactus parryi Engelm., 1856horse crippler or devil's pincushionMexican state of Chihuahua
Echinocactus platyacanthus. Jardín de Cactus - Lanzarote - J07.jpgEchinocactus platyacanthus Link & OttoGiant Barrel CactusMexico in the Chihuahuan Desert
Echinocactus polycephalus.jpegEchinocactus polycephalus Engelm. & J.M.BigelowCottontop CactusMojave Desert region of Arizona, California, and Nevada, and northern Sonora, Mexico.
Homalocephala texensis.jpgEchinocactus texensis HopfferHorse Crippler, Devil's Pincushion[3][4]United States and Mexico.

Formerly placed hereEdit

  • Astrophytum asterias (Zucc.) Lem. (as E. asterias Zucc.)
  • Aztekium ritteri (Boed.) Boed. (as E. ritteri Boed.)
  • Ferocactus wislizeni (Engelm.) Britton & Rose (as E. wislizeni Engelm.)
  • Lophophora williamsii (Lem. ex Salm-Dyck) J.M.Coult. (as E. williamsii Lem. ex Salm-Dyck)
  • Turbinicarpus subterraneus (Backeb.) A.D.Zimm. (as E. subterraneus Backeb.)

 


This article uses material from the Wikipedia article
 Metasyntactic variable, which is released under the 
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