Friday Afternoon Cactus ID!
Hello… I’m a regular reader, and very occasional commenter on your blog… you may remember me from a prickly pear cactus jelly post you linked to… [Ed: Yes we do remember!] regardless…
I bought this plant in July of 2008. When I bought it, it was labeled Mammillaria species… and that’s it. Nothing else…
I’ve included 4 pics… 2 of the plant when I first bought it, which I posted on the blog in hopes that some kind, kind person out there knew or could blindly guess the species. They couldn’t…
there’s also one with blooms from last year, and a current pic showing fruit…
If you could help me ID the thing, I’d really really be grateful… thanks for your trouble…
Claude from Random Rants and Prickly Plants…
Claude,
I typed up a response and saved it in drafts, and now its missing, so I don’t know if you’ve already received an answer from me, but you have a lovely Mammillaria perbella. The fruit in one of the photos is edible, though tiny, and only if you haven’t used chemical insecticides. If grown outdoors, it would be way more spiny, but yours is looking great.
Hap
Also, see here on Claude’s blog another picture of the Mammillaria in question. And don’t miss out on the beer can garden post. Really, you don’t want to miss it.