Xerophyte

Habit

It is a globe-shaped to elongate cactus densely covered by spines. The purple, tubular flowers project beyond the spines and present a most attractive appearance at flowering time.

Central Spines

Usually one barely differentiated from radials.

Flowers

Apical, dark crimson, up to 7 cm long and 2,5-3,5 cm broad, bilaterally symmetrical to nearly regular, limb scarcely oblique, with a long slender tube; scales on ovary and tube few, small, ovate, naked in their axil. The segments acute, purplish crimson. Filaments bright carmine, anthers yellow. Style bright carmine, stigma-lobes greenish.

Spines

Variable, fewer than in the type species, white to pale brown, grey with age.

Ribs

Strongly rounded and tuberculate.

Stem

Generally single but occasionally many-stemmed, globular to shortly cylindrical, less than 7 cm in diameter, up to 10 cm high, green, densely covered and almost invisible under the numerous spines.

Radial Spines

Radially spreading, more or less curved, weak, and setaceous.

Fruits

Small, spherical to club shaped light reddish-green about 1 cm in length.

Areoles

Set closely together, with an abundance of wool when young, but without any when old.