The standard Macharocereus eruca is an odd wildly spined cactus with crawling prostrate stems except for their slightly raised tips. They grow about up to 3 m long ramifying further and eventually covering a huge area. The crested form is also very spiny and odd looking.
Areoles: Large, 2 cm apart.
Central spines: flat much wider than the others, 3 cm long.
Radial spines: Around 20 light grey or whitish of unequal length. Outer ones are short and subulate; inner ones are larger and flat.
Cultivation and Propagation
This plant, is seldom seen in cultivation, need full sun to light shade, in plants that are too shaded the spines turn out to be shorter and untypical.
Propagation: Almost allways by grafting, but it is also possible to root it placing a large crested piece on the soil surface without burying the plant base down in the soil.
