Ariocarpus
Species in my collection.
Adapted to harsh climates
The genus Ariocarpus is full of species that have evolved specifically to survive in harsh, dry deserts of northern Mexico.
Rains come seldomly, and the cacti all hoard their water in large, fibrous tap roots. They’re often covered in mud and dirt during their dormant periods, and the bodies of the cacti regularly sink down to be almost completely level with the ground.
Rare and slow to grow, they are also extremely attractive to poachers – who serve as the biggest risk to the survival of all species within the Ariocarpus genus.
All of the Ariocarpus in my collection have come from US-seed grown specimens, from sellers who respect the species and also boycott any hint of field collection in terms of seeds or specimens.
Be cautious with folks exporting from outside of the country; cultivars such as Godzilla or Cauliflower are almost guaranteed to be seed grown and not the result of field collecting, but ‘pure’ species such as Ariocarpus retusus or especially Ariocarpus fissuratus are more at risk of field collection origins.
Location in Habitat
Ariocarpus have a limited range, being found mostly in north and central Mexico, as well as along the border of Texas – mostly along the Rio Grande river area.
The map below is a very rough outline of where they may be found, and should not be taken to be exhaustive or overly accurate. They share a considerable amount of habitat with Astrophytum.
Ariocarpus retusus
Has one of the widest distributions of the Ariocarpus genus, is the fastest growing, and the most forgiving for new growers.
Click the photo or click here for a detailed photographic diary of my plants growing over time!
Site-Specific Data
Ariocarpus retusus has a number of appearances specific to the original collection site of the seeds or field-collected plants now in someone’s collection. Where this isn’t known, plants exhibiting the ‘typical’ appearance are simply labeled Ariocarpus retusus. Most of my mature plants don’t have location data, although I do have a handful where the grower knew the provenance of their seeds.
Most of my seedlings with location data come from Mesa Garden seed.
Tons of Cultivars
With lots of careful hand-pollination in cultivation, varieties and cultivars are produced like crazy. I have several of the more common Ariocarpus retusus cultivars in my collection, but I won’t claim that I have an exhaustive collection of all possible cultivars these are known for.
Ariocarpus fissuratus
One of the few speices that still has a range extending up into the US, these are very popular with collectors. They’re also incredibly prone to poaching and illegal collection.
Click the photo or click here for the care diary for this species!
Site-Specific?
Near as I can tell (and I’m admittedly not much of an authority on this), these have less of the locale-specific growth habits than a species such as Ariocarpus retusus seems to.
Having said that, two of the specimens in my collection have location data pointing to Brewer County, Texas – so as they get larger, maybe I’ll see more of a difference compared to my large, non-locale-specific form.
Cultivars & Subspecies
Latin and scientific names are… convoluted, and ever changing. I’ve included the specimens here that I purchased specifically labeled as Ariocarpus fissuratus, whether it’s the Lloydii major form or otherwise. At least one of my other species seems to now be part of fissuratus, but I’ll plead ignorance on the nuances and simply stick to what the labels have said.
