Xerophyte

Habit

Solitary rosette-forming, geophytic cactus rising slightly above ground level.

Description

Ariocarpus retususSN|2079]]SN|2079]] subs. horacekii differs from the standard Ariocarpus retususSN|2094]]SN|2079]] subs. trigonus only for its smaller body, all the other characteristics, namely tubercles shape and flowers colour clearly show that they are conspecific.

Roots

Tap root.

Tubercles

Upright yellow/brownish grey, divergent, not closely set or basally compressed, acute at the apices, flattened and smooth adaxially, not fissured, strongly incurved, usually twice as long as wide.

Flowers

Cream-white to yellowish-white or yellow (occasionally with reddish mid-ribs) with a satin sheen, 3 to 5 cm in diameter up to 4 cm long.

Blooming Season

Flowers come in late autumn or early winter. Ariocarpus trigonusSN|2079]]SN|2094]] is quite variable and has received numerous unnecessary names of no botanical value, representing no more than local phenotypes Ariocarpus retususSN|2079]]SN|2079]] subs. horacekii one of them.

Stem

Globose, more or less depressed, rounded on top, mostly yellowish-green.

Fruits

Whitish or greenish, 7-20 mm long, 5-10 mm across.

Areoles

It bears only small basal areoles.