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Melocactus erythracanthus Buining & Bredero
Cact. Succ. J. (Los Angeles) 45(5): 223. 1973
Family: CACTACEAE

Accepted Scientific Name: Melocactus ernestii Vaupel
Monatsschr. Kakteenk. 30: 8. 1920

Melocactus erythracanthus Photo by: Valentino Vallicelli
This is one of the longest spined species of the genus, but quite variable regarding the length of the spines and plants from different provenience will be remarkably different.

Synonyms:

See all synonyms of Melocactus ernestii
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Accepted name in llifle Database:
Melocactus ernestii Vaupel
Monatsschr. Kakteenk. 30: 8. 1920
Synonymy: 17 Accepted name in llifle Database:
Melocactus ernestii subs. longicarpus (Buining & Bredero) N.P.Taylor
Bradleya 9: 26 (1991)
Synonymy: 10
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Common Names include:
ENGLISH: Turk’s Cap, Melon Cactus, Melon

Subspecies, varieties, forms and cultivars of plants belonging to the Melocactus ernestii group

  • Melocactus diamantinus hort.: has extremely beautiful and very long red spines and large white woolly areoles. Distribution: Chapado do Diamantina (Mercedes de Diamantina).
  • Melocactus ernestii Vaupel: has noticeably mucilaginous stems with 10 to 13 ribs. Distribution: Bahia and northeastern Minas Gerais.
  • Melocactus ernestii subs. longicarpus (Buining & Bredero) N.P.Taylor: has not mucilaginous stems, with 9 to 11 ribs. Distributiom: southern Bahia and northern Minas Gerais.
  • Melocactus ernestii var. multiceps hort.: has stout brown spines, with both of normal vegetative growth and mutant plants with cristate and multiple branched cephalia. Distribution: West of Itaobim, Minas Gerais, Brazil.
  • Melocactus erythracanthus Buining & Bredero: has green, not glaucous body and very long, reddish spines up to 15 cm in length. Distribution: Morro do Chapeu, Bahia.
  • Melocactus florschuetzianus Buining & Bredero: has yellowish green stem with long thin yellowish-brown spines. Distribution: Barrocao, Francisco Sa, Minas Gerais.
  • Melocactus neomontanus Van Heek & Hovens


8838 valentino Valentino Vallicelli
Melocactus erythracanthus Photo by: Valentino Vallicelli
8840 valentino Valentino Vallicelli
Melocactus erythracanthus Photo by: Valentino Vallicelli

8842 cactus-art Cactus Art
Melocactus erythracanthus Photo by: Cactus Art
8841 valentino Valentino Vallicelli
Melocactus erythracanthus Photo by: Valentino Vallicelli


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