Xerophyte

Description

Turbinicarpus lophophoroidesSN|11693]]SN|11693]] is a dwarfed usually solitary, flattened globose cactus (but sometimes clusters with age). This Turbinicarpus, one of the first discovered, almost a century ago, has remained little known for a long time, due to the difficulty, for a long period, to find it in the wild. It specific name remember us that it resembles the genus Lophophora.

Roots

Thick and delicate.

Tubercles

Organized in 12 spirals.

Flowers

Usually rather large and white with a pinkish tinge, 3.5-5 cm in diameter. They are developed from the new very woolly areoles in the apex of the plant. It has scarcely irritable stamens, straight but thin, with a low insertion of the primary filaments, while in all the other species, (including Gymnocactus and Viereckii Series) the insertion is high and the stamens are very irritable. This indicates that this species has some primitive characters. Anthers yellow/orange. Stigmas white.

Spines

3 to 5 spreading, thin, ± rigid, (even though there are populations with 2 or even 6 spines per areole), mostly 5-8 mm long, black-tipped brownish-grey.

Stem

Greyish-green or bluish-green stem that doesn’t exceed the diameter of (3) 4.5-5 (10 cm) by 4.5 high.

Areoles

Very pronounced, woolly, later naked. With the age, the areoles become woollier and can get to completely transform the aspect of the plant.