Common name: Dwarf Turk’s Cap Cactus | Native: Matanzas, Cuba
Family: Cactaceae | Collector’s favourite
✨ Key ID
- Shape: Small, bright green globe (7–9 cm wide), 8–9 ribs, pale brown/white spines
- Cephalium: At ~4–5 years, grows a fuzzy red‑orange woolly cap on top — stops stem growth once it forms
- Flowers: Tiny pink‑carmine blooms emerge from the cap in summer
- Size: Stays compact — max ~9 cm across
🪴 UK Care (Sheffield)
✅ Light: Bright full sun, but shade midday in summer to avoid scorch
✅ Soil: Fast‑draining mineral mix: 20% cactus soil + 70% grit/pumice + 10% limestone chips
✅ Water: Not fully dry in winter
- Spring–Summer: Water deeply when almost dry (don’t let stay bone‑dry weeks on end)
- Autumn: Reduce from Oct
- Winter (≥12°C/54°F): Light water every 3–4 weeks — never completely dry dormancy
✅ Temp: Min 12°C (54°F) — dies below 8°C; warm windowsill/greenhouse only
✅ Feeding: Weak high‑potash cactus feed monthly Apr–Aug
✅ Pests: Mealybugs & root mealybugs — check under cephalium & pot edges
✅ Repot: Only when tight; very delicate roots — disturb as little as possible
⚠️ Quick Notes
- Non‑toxic (unlike Adenium/Pachypodium), but sharp spines
- Grows slow, cephalium takes years to appear — worth the wait
- Rare wild, buy only nursery‑propagated stock
Plant sent bare rooted
Photo taken June 2026
plant size 10cm
Common name: Dwarf Turk’s Cap Cactus | Native: Matanzas, Cuba
Family: Cactaceae | Collector’s favourite
✨ Key ID
- Shape: Small, bright green globe (7–9 cm wide), 8–9 ribs, pale brown/white spines
- Cephalium: At ~4–5 years, grows a fuzzy red‑orange woolly cap on top — stops stem growth once it forms
- Flowers: Tiny pink‑carmine blooms emerge from the cap in summer
- Size: Stays compact — max ~9 cm across
🪴 UK Care (Sheffield)
✅ Light: Bright full sun, but shade midday in summer to avoid scorch
✅ Soil: Fast‑draining mineral mix: 20% cactus soil + 70% grit/pumice + 10% limestone chips
✅ Water: Not fully dry in winter
- Spring–Summer: Water deeply when almost dry (don’t let stay bone‑dry weeks on end)
- Autumn: Reduce from Oct
- Winter (≥12°C/54°F): Light water every 3–4 weeks — never completely dry dormancy
✅ Temp: Min 12°C (54°F) — dies below 8°C; warm windowsill/greenhouse only
✅ Feeding: Weak high‑potash cactus feed monthly Apr–Aug
✅ Pests: Mealybugs & root mealybugs — check under cephalium & pot edges
✅ Repot: Only when tight; very delicate roots — disturb as little as possible
⚠️ Quick Notes
- Non‑toxic (unlike Adenium/Pachypodium), but sharp spines
- Grows slow, cephalium takes years to appear — worth the wait
- Rare wild, buy only nursery‑propagated stock
Plant sent bare rooted
Photo taken June 2026
plant size 10cm
