Names | ||
Family |
Cactaceae | |
Tribe |
Trichocereeae | |
Botanical Name |
Echinopsis lageniformis | |
Synonym(s) |
Cereus lageniformis, Cereus bridgesii, Trichocereus bridgesii | |
English Name(s) |
Achuma, Wachuma | |
Chinese Name(s) |
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Description | ||
Size & Growth Habit
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Achuma is a large columnar cactus reaching 3-4 meters in height. Many branches may grow, often from near the base, forming fairly large stands of tall stems. | |
Leaves
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Leaves are not apparent except on some new growth, they quickly fade away. | |
Flowers |
Large white blooms open up at night and generally die the following day. Flowers are self-sterile, meaning they are unable to fertilize themselves and set seed. | |
Cultivars & Hybrids
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There are many clones that have various names tagged to them. They generally mean very little, but offer an interesting and probably more precise form of record keeping. There is much confusion with the old Trichocereus genus, and now the same species in the Echinopsis genus. Identification is poorly defined and there is no clear lines dividing many species. Penis Plant there are a few different clones of the "Penis Plant", also called TBM for Trichocereus bridgesii monstrose. Cristate plants also show up here and there, though it is not certain if they are hybrids or not. Penis Plant Cristate is a very unusual form of plant. The normal looking Penis plant is crested. This plant actually grows fairly fast when grafted, compared to other cristate cacti species. Monstrose T. bridgesii are fairly common. There are many different clones around, and they seem to spring up in many seed sowings of large numbers. One name used to describe them is "Melting Wax" Variegated plants are also now seen more often. They appear much like many other variegation in columnar cacti. Hybrids within Trichocereus, or Echinopsis, are incredibly common, so much so the person who owns the plant may not even realize they are creating hybrids rather than "pure" species. Quite often, but certainly not always, hybrid plants show more variation and mutations than same species crossing. | |
Cultivation | ||
By Seed |
Surface sow in high humidty and medium light. Standard cactus sowing methods apply. See Cactus Culture for more information. | |
By Cutting |
Standard cactus cutting techniques. Cut and let wound heal and dry before potting. Don't water until roots form. See Cactus Culture for more information. | |
Soil |
Rock based grit is best. Potted plants where controlling water is easier can have more real soil and compost added, but a minimum of 50% mineral bsed medium is ideal for super fast growth and limiting risk of rot. That said, they have been grown in pure clay before with success, but the difference in speed and health is very obvious. Limiting potential problems seems the best option. | |
Water |
Active growing season you can water once the pot is almost dry. In cold temperature, keep completely dry. They cannot handle super wet soils for very long before they start to rot in the roots and base of the stem. In ground plants probably dont ever need to be watered once established, unless it is a very arid environment that has no moisture deep down in the soil. | |
Feeding |
In active growing season, a liquid fertiliZer of 5-5-5 can be applied monthly or bimonthly. If you are in a dry area, or are growing in a greenhouse, adding manure pellets, worm castings and compost to a well drained soil can be done. | |
Light |
Medium to full sun. They can be grown outdoors in the open without problems from sun if they are fist acclimated properly. | |
Pruning |
Not needed. Prune if you do not want them to keep growing up. When cut, they will produce more stems from the areoles. The cut surface will never grow again. | |
Climate |
They prefer warm climates that do not stay wet for prolonged periods. They cannot handle the tropical rains in wet season, they rot far too easily, but if put in 100% rock based medium and allowed to dry out fully at least every other week, they may do ok. When kept dry, such as in a greenhouse, they can take some cold temperatures down to -2C for short periods. The apical meristem seems to be the most sensitive to cold, and placing paper cups over top in cold weather can help prevent damage. | |
Other |
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Other | ||
Human Uses |
Achuma is used as a visionary plant in the same manner as other Trichocereus that contain mescaline. T. bridgesii is quite consistently considered to not vary in concentration of alkaloids, as do T. pachanoi and T. peruvianus. There also seems to be some other psychoactive substances in the cactus aside from mescaline. | |
Chemicals/Activities |
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Links |
Kada's Garden, Cactus Culture, Photo Gallery, Dr. Duke's Phytochemical and Ethnobotanical Databases | |
Pictures | ||
