Machaerocereus eruca f. cristata

Donate now to support the LLIFLE projects.
Your support is critical to our success.

Since 4 Aug 2013

Machaerocereus eruca f. cristata

Family: CACTACEAE

Accepted Scientific Name: Stenocereus eruca f. cristata

Machaerocereus eruca f. cristata (Stenocereus eruca f. cristata) Photo by: Valentino Vallicelli
The name Machaerocereus signifies dagger cereus with reference to the longest central spines that are knifelike flat and much wider than the others.

Synonyms:

Stenocereus eruca f. cristata

Machaerocereus eruca f. cristata

See all synonyms of Stenocereus eruca

back

Accepted name in llifle Database:
Stenocereus eruca (Brandegee) A.C.Gibson & K.E.Horak
Ann. Missouri Bot. Gard. 65(4): 1007 (1978 publ. 1979).
Synonymy: 5

Stenocereus eruca (Brandegee) A.C.Gibson & K.E.Horak

Cereus eruca Brandegee
Lemaireocereus eruca (Brandegee) Britton & Rose
Machaerocereus eruca (Brandegee) Britton & Rose
Rathbunia eruca (Brandegee) P.V.Heath

Accepted name in llifle Database:
Stenocereus eruca f. cristata
Synonymy: 2

Stenocereus eruca f. cristata

Machaerocereus eruca f. cristata

back

Common Names include:
ENGLISH: Crested Caterpillar Cactus, Creeping Devil Cactus
SPANISH (Español): Chirinole Forma Cristata

Description: 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.

Subspecies, varieties, forms and cultivars of plants belonging to the Stenocereus eruca group

Stenocereus eruca (Brandegee) A.C.Gibson & K.E.Horak: The stems grow horizontally and root in the ground, making it seem to move across the desert like an enormous caterpillar.
Stenocereus eruca f. cristata: It is a very wild a crested form covered by sharp dagger-like spines.

Machaerocereus eruca f. cristata (Stenocereus eruca f. cristata) Photo by: Valentino Vallicelli

Machaerocereus eruca f. cristata (Stenocereus eruca f. cristata) Photo by: Cactus Art

Machaerocereus eruca f. cristata (Stenocereus eruca f. cristata) Photo by: Valentino Vallicelli

Machaerocereus eruca f. cristata (Stenocereus eruca f. cristata) Photo by: Valentino Vallicelli

Machaerocereus eruca f. cristata (Stenocereus eruca f. cristata) Photo by: Cactus Art

Machaerocereus eruca f. cristata (Stenocereus eruca f. cristata) Photo by: Cactus Art

Machaerocereus eruca f. cristata (Stenocereus eruca f. cristata) Photo by: Cactus Art

Send a photo of this plant.

The gallery now contains thousands of pictures, however it is possible to do even more. We are, of course, seeking photos of species not yet shown in the gallery but not only that, we are also looking for better pictures than those already present. Read More...

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.

Your Actions
	Back to Machaerocereus index
	Back to Cactaceae index
	Back to Cacti Encyclopedia index

Cite this page: "Machaerocereus eruca f. cristata" Text available under a CC-BY-SA Creative Commons Attribution License. www.llifle.com 14 Nov. 2005. 26 Dec 2024. </Encyclopedia/CACTI/Family/Cactaceae/11578/Machaerocereus_eruca_f._cristata>