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A small, slow-growing globular cactus with a dense brain-like pattern of many thin ribs, native to the shrublands of northeastern Mexico. It is grown as a collector's cactus and needs very bright light, fast-draining soil and sparing water.
Stenocactus multicostatus, the brain cactus, is a member of the cactus family native to the deserts of Mexico, and is popular in the gardening community. It has gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit.
Though it has only been reported in the shrublands of Chihuahua, Coahuila, Durango, Nuevo León, San Luis Potosí, Zacatecas, and Tamaulipas, it has yet to be assessed using the IUCN Categories and Criteria because its taxonomy is still unclear.
Stenocactus boedekerianus · Stenocactus coptonogonus · Stenocactus crispatus · Stenocactus obvallatus · Stenocactus ochoterenanus · Stenocactus
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Stenocactus multicostatus 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.
