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Ferocactus stainesii (Salm-Dyck) Britton & Rose
Cactaceae (Britton & Rose) 3: 124 (fig. 128). 1922
Family: CACTACEAE

Accepted Scientific Name: Ferocactus pilosus (Galeotti ex Salm-Dyck) Werderm.
Repert. Spec. Nov. Regni Veg. Sonderbeih. C t. 72. 1933

Ferocactus stainesii Photo by: Raimondo Paladini
Ferocactus stainesii (syn: Ferocactus pilosus) is a simple or clumping barrel/column cactus with thick red spines. In habitat plants must be a great age, often forming into quite massive groups, with several subsidiary barrels growing from the main one, with deep green bodies densely covered with bright red spines up its entire length. Most plants have bright red spines with bristle-like, but in some populations the white bristles are occasionally absent.

Synonyms:

See all synonyms of Ferocactus pilosus
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Accepted name in llifle Database:
Ferocactus pilosus (Galeotti ex Salm-Dyck) Werderm.
Repert. Spec. Nov. Regni Veg. Sonderbeih. C t. 72. 1933
Synonymy: 18
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Subspecies, varieties, forms and cultivars of plants belonging to the Ferocactus pilosus group

  • Ferocactus piliferus f. flavispinus (hort. ex Schelle) G.Unger: Yellow spined form.
  • Ferocactus pilosus (Galeotti ex Salm-Dyck) Werderm.: Plants solitary or forming massive clumps. Central spines bright red, yellow, or a mixture of both. Radial spines usually reduced to many whitish bristles or absent. The subsp. 'pilosus'' has additional wispy and hairy white spines. It appears also to have brighter red, bigger and thicker central spines compared to more common variety.
  • Ferocactus pringlei (J.M.Coult.) Britton & Rose: With only red acicular spines and none (or very few) hairy white spines. However it look very similar to subs. pilosus and are linked one to each others by populations of plants with intermediate characteristics. Nowadays both are thought to belong to a unique polymorphic species with some individual covered in fine white hairs, while others do not.
  • Ferocactus stainesii (Salm-Dyck) Britton & Rose: The Mexican fire barrel cactus is one of the most most spectacular species in this genus. After several (40/50) years plants it can reach about 2 meter high.
  • Ferocactus stainesii f. albispinum hort.: has cream-white spines (not red). Garden origin.


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