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A small, clump-forming cactus from northeast Mexico that spreads by suckers into colonies of spiny stems, bearing lemon yellow flowers in spring. Grow it in very well-drained, lean soil and keep it dry, especially in wet climates where it does best under glass.
Mammillaria surculosa is a species of flowering plant in the cactus family Cactaceae, native to north eastern Mexico, where it occurs in extremely isolated patches at altitudes of 950–1,200 m (3,120–3,940 ft). It is registered as "Endangered" by the IUCN Red List. Growing to 10 cm (3.9 in) tall by 50 cm (20 in) wide, this tiny plant forms colonies of spiny stems with relatively large, lemon yellow flowers in spring.
The Latin specific epithet surculosa means "producing suckers".
Mammillaria bombycina · Mammillaria carmenae · Golden Star Cactus · Mammillaria erythrosperma · Twin Spine Cactus · Old Lady Pincushion · Mammillaria laui · Mexican Pincushion · Mammillaria petterssonii · Feather Cactus · Mammillaria polythele · Cactus
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Mammillaria surculosa by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts and the care summary drawn from them are shared under the same licence.
The care summary was written by AI (Claude, Anthropic) from the sources on this page, with general growing knowledge where they are silent. Check before relying on it.
Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.
