Publication: Cactaceae (Britton & Rose) 4: 54 (fig. 51). 1923
Description
Escobaria tuberculosa is a small branched and small stemmed cactus(to 50 branches) but sometimes solitary and large stemmed.
Stems: Ovoid to cylindric up to 12 (18) cm tall, 7 cm in diameter.
Tubercles: More or less regularly arranged in spirals, and firm, areolar glands are absent.
Spines: 21-41 per areole, ashy white, grey, or pale tan in colour, with the tips of the largest spines reddish brown or reddish black, all straight. Radial spines numerous (15-41 per areole), 4-15 mm long, grey to white, sometimes as many as 30. Central spines several, stouter than radials, brown to blackish or colored only at tips
Flowers: The flowers are apical or nearly so, pure white, pale rose-pink, or pale lavender-pink, darker centrally, 2,5 to 4 cm in diameter.
Fruit: Oblong, bright red not very succulent; the floral remnant is strongly persistent.
Origin and Habitat
Southeastern Arizona, southern New Mexico and Trans-Pecos Texas in the United States, and south into northern Mexico (Chihuahua, Coahuila, Durango, Nuevo León and Zacatecas).
Type locality: Mexico: Chihuahua: Flounce Mountains, below El Paso, below San Elisario on the Río Grande.
Altitude range: Escobaria tuberculosa grows at elevations of 600 to 1,600 metres above sea level.
Habitat and Ecology: The species grows in rocky slopes, limestone or igneous, in desert scrub, in crevices and cliffs. It has been reported from limestone soils of hills, canyons, and alluvial fans in deserts and grasslands. Accompanying cactus and succulent species can be Ariocarpus fissuratus, Echinocereus dasyacanthus, and Coryphantha muehlenpfordtii.
Escobaria tuberculosa has a very wide range, is abundant, and there are no threats.
Cultivation and Propagation
Easy to cultivate in a very gritty substrate with much drainage. Water regularly in summer, but do not overwater (very rot prone), it prefer a completely dry place during winter. An unheated greenhouse would be perfect. It can survive low temperatures (appr. -12 C). Full sun to light shade.
Propagation: Seeds (no dormancy requirement, they germinate best at 25°C in spring) or usually by offsets (readily available), or occasionally grafted.
Bibliography
Major references and further lectures
-
Edward Anderson “The Cactus family” Timber Press, Incorporated, 2001
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James Cullen, Sabina G. Knees, H. Suzanne Cubey “The European Garden Flora Flowering Plants: A Manual for the Identification of Plants Cultivated in Europe, Both Out-of-Doors and Under Glass” Cambridge University Press, 11/Aug/2011
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David R Hunt; Nigel P Taylor; Graham Charles; International Cactaceae Systematics Group. “The New Cactus Lexicon” dh books, 2006
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Terry, M., Heil, K. & Corral-Díaz, R. 2013. Escobaria tuberculosa. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2015.2. <www.iucnredlist.org>. Downloaded on 21 July 2015.
From llifle page Escobaria gigantea
Description
Escobaria tuberculosa f. gigantea, is a controversial geographical or morphological forms of Escobaria tuberculosa that should actually be regarded as non-existent (nomen nudum). It has comparatively larger and taller stems and remain usually unbranched, while the standard species often forms clusters, however solitary and large stemmed plants are found both in the wild and in cultivation too, and the “forma gigantea” is not sufficiently differentiated and does not appear to differ from typical Escobaria tuberculosa in any significant respect and should be attributed to the standard species.
Habit: It is usually solitary and large stemmed.
Stems: Ovoid to cylindric up to 20 cm tall, up to 7 cm in diameter.
Tubercles: More or less regularly arranged in spirals, and firm, areolar glands are absent.
Spines: 21-41 per areole, ashy white, grey, or pale tan in colour, with the tips of the largest spines reddish brown or reddish black, all straight. Radial spines numerous (15-41 per areole), 4-15 mm long, grey to white, sometimes as many as 30. Central spines several, stouter than radials, brown to blackish or coloured only at tips
Flowers: The flowers are apical or nearly so, pure white, pale rose-pink, or pale lavender-pink, darker centrally, 2,5 to 4 cm in diameter.
Fruit: Oblong, bright red not very succulent; the floral remnant is strongly persistent.
Origin and Habitat
Souhwestern USA, northern Mexico
Bibliography
Major references and further lectures
-
Edward Anderson “The Cactus family” Timber Press, Incorporated, 2001
-
James Cullen, Sabina G. Knees, H. Suzanne Cubey “The European Garden Flora Flowering Plants: A Manual for the Identification of Plants Cultivated in Europe, Both Out-of-Doors and Under Glass” Cambridge University Press, 11/Aug/2011
-
David R Hunt; Nigel P Taylor; Graham Charles; International Cactaceae Systematics Group. “The New Cactus Lexicon” dh books, 2006
Source: Escobaria gigantea, LLIFLE - Encyclopedia of living forms, CC-BY-SA, retrieved 2026-10-25.
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